Great Land of Alaska

Definition of Alaskan Terms

Arctic Circle: The southernmost point at which the sun does not set on the summer solstice nor rise on the winter solstice; located at approximately 66° 34' N lattitude.
Barn door: A large halibut in excess of 300 pounds.
Bear insurance: A gun powerful enough to bring down a bear in a single shot.
Bush, The: Any part of Alaska that can be reached only by plane or boat, depending on the season and the weather. This means most of Alaska.
Cabin fever: A psychological condition arising from being inside too much during the long, cold winter. Sometimes described as "a 12-foot stare in a 10-foot room."
Calving: When a large piece of ice falls from a glacier.
Cheechako: A newcomer to Alaska.
Chicken: A small halibut.
Combat fishing: Crowded fishing conditions. [picture]
Firecracker: A small herring used as bait while trolling.
Highliner: A good fisherman.
Honeybucket: Indoor bucket used as a toilet in houses that don't have plumbing.
Iron dog: A snowmachine.
Kenai, The: 1 : The Kenai Peninsula.
2 : The Kenai River.
Kooshdaakaa: Southeast Alaska's Big Foot.
Lights, The: The Aurora borealis.
Lode claim: A mining claim made on a vein, zone, or belt of minerals. The mineral is in its original position in the bedrock. See Placer claim.
Longline fisherman: A halibut fisherman.
Lower 48: The continental United States. See outside.
Moose Gooser: The Alaska Railroad.
Moraine: A mass of glacial residue carried and deposited by a glacier.
Mountain, The: Denali / Mt. McKinley, North America's largest mountain.
Musher: A dog team driver.
Muskeg: Marsh; bog; wet, swampy land.
Nunatak: A lone hill sticking out above the surface of a glacier.
Outside: 1 : The continental United States. See Lower 48.
2 : Anywhere not in Alaska.
Permafrost: Permanently frozen ground.
Pingo: A large mound raised by frost action above the permafrost.
Placer claim: A mining claim made on an area, rather than a vein. The mineral has been removed from its original position in the bedrock through erosion. See Lode claim.
Pod: A group of whales.
Portage: 1 : n. An overland route of travel between navigable waterways.
2 : v. To carry a canoe or small boat over a portage.
Qiviut: Hair from a musk-ox to make garments.
Rookery: A seal's natural breeding ground.
Shaman: A medicine man with great power.
Sitka Slippers: Heavy-duty rubber boots, commonly worn in the southeast.
Snowmachine: A snow-mobile. [picture]
Soaker: On the fishing grounds, a very large fish.
Sourdough: 1 : Someone who has lived in Alaska a long time, usually in the bush.
2 : A sour-tasting dough used to make a variety of foods, including bread and pancakes.
Spawned Out: A fish (usually a salmon) that's finished spawning and is slowly dying and is considered inedible. Usually recognized by a dramatic color change and large patches of dead, white flesh.
Termination dust: 1 : A dust coating of snow that appears on the mountain tops in fall, signaling the end of summer.
2 : The first snow to stay on the ground in the Anchorage bowl, thereby terminating construction season. (Definition 2 is the original meaning, but nowadays 1 is the most commonly used).
Tundra: A layer of moss that protects and covers permafrost.
Ulu: A versatile, half-moon-shaped knife traditionally used by many Native Alaskans.
Williwaw: A sudden gust of wind that may reach 100 knots after the winds build up on one side of a mountain and suddenly spill over into relatively protected areas.