Tag Archives: Washington State Board on Geographic Names

Ready for the name “Salish Sea” to become official?

It looks like the Washington State Board on Geographic Names likes the name “Salish Sea” when describing the inland waterway that includes Puget Sound, the Strait of Georgia and the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

I wasn’t able to attend Friday’s hearing on the subject, but Caleb Maki, who staffs the board, told me that the board seems to support the name after hearing a lot of positive comments about it.

In fact the only negative comments, Maki said, seemed to be from people who thought the name “Salish Sea” would replace the name “Puget Sound” or take away something else familiar.

As we’ve discussed before in Water Ways, the proposal is not to take away any names but to add a new one when talking about the body of water that crosses the international border.

In an unofficial poll on this blog, folks were fairly evenly split between liking the name “Salish Sea” and seeing little or no use for it.

If people have strong feelings one way or the other, they should contact the board directly and their comments will be made part of the official record:

Washington State Board on Geographic Names
1111 Washington St. SE, PO Box 47030
Olympia, WA 98504-7030

360-902-1231
Fax 360-902-1778
bogn@dnr.wa.gov

Here’s the story I prepared for tomorrow’s Kitsap Sun:
Continue reading →

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Mixed results seen in survey about the name ‘Salish Sea’

I’ve closed the poll asking whether we should officially create the name “Salish Sea” for the waters including Puget Sound, the Strait of Juan de Fuca and Georgia Strait.

Oddly enough, exactly 100 users answered the poll question. That makes percentage calculations easy, but winners and losers are a little open to interpretation.

We have 44 people who say they don’t see the need for the addition of a new name. That compares to 40 who said they unequivocally liked the name “Salish Sea” to identify the international ecosystem.

Another 14 people said they would support the “Salish Sea” name, but only if the U.S. and Canadian governments went along with it. Another two people said they would support the name if the Canadian government went along with it. With that condition attached, we would have 56 people who support the name change if the U.S. and Canadian governments agree.

I’m not sure whether the Washington State Board on Geographic Names would complicate their decision that way. As I understand it, all state name changes are forwarded to the U.S. Board on Geographic Names, which can adopt the change, oppose the change or ignore it.

British Columbia has a naming board, which makes such decisions for the province.

I think the Washington board could change the name, effective after adoption by the U.S. and/or B.C. governments. But they may just want a cleaner decision.

For background information, check out the original entry about Salish Sea in Water Ways.

If you’d like to send comments to those who can make a difference, write to:

Washington State Board on Geographic Names
1111 Washington St. SE, PO Box 47030
Olympia, WA 98504-7030

360-902-1231
Fax 360-902-1778
bogn@dnr.wa.gov

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