Alaskan Terminology

Alaskan Terminology (conversion to language outside) Part 1

Outside: What Alaskans call any place outside the borders of Alaska. Personally, I prefer to use the term because, to me, "outside" is where everything is when you travel usually adding at least a travel day each way when vacationing or traveling on business trips.

Last Frontier: What many Alaskans are proud to call the State. There is truly a pioneer type spirit here among the people who live and work here. There are the modern conveniences found in most other areas but with the extreme conditions found within the vast land mass here the consequences are like those found in the frontier days of the wild west.

Lower 48: What Alaskans call the original 48 contiguous states. You are not considered a Native Alaskan; no matter whether you were born here or not, unless you are at least part Eskimo, Aleut, or American Indian.

North Slope: The sloping tundra region from the foothills of the Brooks Range north to the Beaufort Sea and Arctic Ocean. This area above the Artic Circle contains the Prudhoe Bay oil field, often called "The Slope" by the oil field workers who rotate in and out every 6 weeks to work there.

Southeast: The southeastern panhandle portion of the state: includes the cities of Skagway, Juneau, Sitka, and Ketchikan. This is the area the cruise ships travel to see the beautiful fiords, glaciers, and wildlife.

Cheechako – This is the name give to an inexperienced person living in Alaska for a short period of time, a type of "tenderfoot, greenhorn”, or other confused mortal not used to Alaska ways. These are the people who sometimes get kidded with during the cold, long, dark winter nights by long term residents. These practical jokes make the time pass quickly and help keep everyone entertained.

Sourdough: The miners of the Gold Rush era (1898) carried sourdough starter to mix with their flour to make bread, biscuits, pan cakes, etc. They called themselves "Sourdoughs." The old time definition of a Sourdough was: one who had peed in the Yukon, slept with a squaw, and killed a bear. In these more modern and politically correct times, the definition is: one who has spent at least a year in Alaska.

Termination dust: During the gold mining days, when the first autumn snow fell, it was the signal to the miners that they should terminate operations for the year and retreat to town for the winter. They called it "termination dust".

Outhouse - An outdoor toilet

Double Decker Model

Honey pot - this is a indoor toilet or a construction job toilet. In Alaska they have heaters and lights in them so you can see during the long dark cold nights.

Ice