Has anyone heard of or have any documentation for a story told by Jimmie
Durham (widely exhibited Cherokee artist, self-exiled in Mexico) that
the Americas were actually circuitously named after themselves? The way
he tells it, Amerigo, the explorer, came to the New World, thought it was
paradise, and asked the natives the name of the island he landed on. They
said "America," and he was moved to change his name to match such beauty.
Then a mapmaker in a royal court, who hadn't heard of Columbus, named it
after America (formerly Amerigo) ... ???
Also, the current names of many tribes are french or other european slurs
instead of the original names, which usually meant some variation of The
People. My sister needs a bunch of concrete examples of the differences
between these sets of names for tribes and she doesn't trust the books
she's looked in. Can anyone help?
You can respond to me on the net or directly to: truame@u.washington.edu
Thanks in advance, with true aim and good intentions, Anneliese Truame