What Was Her Name?

No one is too sure about the exact name of the young mother who joined the Corps from North Dakota to the Pacific and back. What was her name, anyway?

There’s no right answer! Transliterating a name from one language to another always means trying to write it in letters not necessarily able to convey the right sounds. To top that off in this case, the fellow who first wrote “Sah ca gar we a” in English—William Clark—was a notoriously poor speller. Standard spelling was a very new concept in 1805, certainly hadn’t yet reached either Clark or Lewis (a better speller than Clark), and would take years to catch on anyway.

So that’s one problem.

And if her husband did the introductions…Well, he spoke French and almost no English at first. His own accent would’ve confused Clark’s Kentucky-bred ears anyway.

Another problem is, in what language was Clark told her name? She was Shoshone, but had lived among the Hidatsa for several years. Was she using the Shoshone name she once had, or a Hidatsa one? The debate continues on that.

Meanwhile, you can write Sacajawea and say it sack-uh-juh-wee-uh. Or Sacagawea, suh-cah-guh-wee-uh. Those are closer to Shoshone.

But when you’re in North Dakota, you have to go with Hidatsa: Sakakawea, suh-kahk-uh-wee-uh.