←

Mapping Stories, Not Just Places

// Every name tells a story of land, language, and legacy

Indigenymy preserves and shares Indigenous place names through digital cartography. We document toponymy in contemporary orthographies, connecting traditional knowledge with modern mapping technologies to ensure these stories endure.

SENĆOŦEN Place Names in W̱SÁNEĆ Territory

ȽÁU,WEL,ṈEW̱
Mount Newton
"place of escape"
A sacred mountain where ancestors took refuge. The slopes hold ceremonial grounds where people gain strength and pray. Home to the thunderbird's cave.
W̱JOȽEȽP
Tsartlip (Brentwood Bay)
"place of maple leaves"
Where broadleaf maple trees grow abundantly. A major village site, once home to seven longhouses along the beach. Home to SENĆOŦEN orthographer, PENÁĆ Dave Elliott Sr.
SṈITC̸EL
Tod Inlet
"place of blue grouse"
Traditional harvesting area for clams and salmon. The inlet's tributaries are used for ritual bathing, maintaining spiritual connections to the water.
W̱SÍKEM
Patricia Bay
"place of clay"
Named for its clay-rich soil. Once a thriving herring spawning ground where cedar branches were laid to collect roe during the spring runs.
BOḰOĆEN
Coles Bay
"earth bluff"
A traditional seaweed harvesting area from March to May. The steep bluff provides shelter, and unique conditions for Inlet marine life.
SEN,NI,NES
Senanus Island
"chest out of the water"
Sacred burial island shaped like a rising chest. Long history of clam harvesting, with strict ritual protocols respecting the island.

Why Indigenymy Matters

Indigenous place names encode millennia of observation, relationship, and wisdom about the land. They're not just labels; they're compressed libraries of knowledge.

📍

Navigation

Names describe physical features, tides, and seasonal changes—crucial information for safe travel and resource harvesting.

🌊

Ecology

Place names record which species live where, when they arrive, and how ecosystems have changed over time.

📚

History

Names preserve stories of events, movements, and relationships between peoples and places across generations.

🔮

Spirituality

Sacred sites, ceremonial grounds, and places of power are marked and protected through their names.

Our Approach

Indigenymy combines traditional knowledge with modern technology to create a living archive of Indigenous place names.

50+ Primary SOURCES
1000+ Place Names
15+ Languages
∞ Stories
SENĆOŦEN
W̱SÁNEĆ
Hul'q'umi'num'
Quw'utsun
she shashishalhem
shishalh
Sḵwx̱wú7mesh
Squamish

Add Your Voice to the Map

Indigenymy is a collaborative project. Share place names from your territory, contribute orthographic data, or help with digital mapping.

Contribute Names Explore Full Map