Algoma is a

placename Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of '' toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage, and types. ''Toponym'' is the general term for a proper nam ...

given to many different places throughout the United States and Canada. Examples include

Algoma District, Ontario Algoma District is a district and census division in Northeastern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario. The name was created by an American ethnologist, Henry Rowe Schoolcraft (1793–1864), who was appointed Indian agent to the Ojibwe ...

;

Algoma, Oregon Algoma is an unincorporated community on the east shore of Upper Klamath Lake, in Klamath County, Oregon, United States. The community is approximately north of the city of Klamath Falls on U.S. Route 97. Algoma was named for the Algoma Lumbe ...

;

Algoma, Wisconsin Algoma ( ) is a city in Kewaunee County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 3,243 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Algoma is part of the Green Bay metropolitan area. History The Ahnapee settlement, which eventually beca ...

; and

Algoma Township, Michigan Algoma Township is a civil township of Kent County, Michigan, Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 12,055 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, which is a large increase from 9,932 at the 2010 United States censu ...

. Algoma also lends its name to companies such as

Algoma Steel Algoma Steel Inc. (formerly The Algoma Steel Corporation, Limited; Essar Steel Algoma) is an integrated steel mill, primary steel producer located on the St. Marys River (Michigan-Ontario), St. Marys River in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada. ...

and

Algoma Central Railway The Algoma Central Railway is a railway in Northern Ontario, Canada, that operates between Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Sault Ste. Marie and Hearst, Ontario, Hearst. It used to have a branch line to Wawa, Ontario, Wawa. The area served by th ...

Word origin

The origin of the word ''Algoma'' is not entirely clear; the following are definitions culled from several different sources * The word ''Algoma'' was invented as a

Henry Schoolcraft Henry Rowe Schoolcraft (March 28, 1793 – December 10, 1864) was an American geographer, geologist, and ethnologist, noted for his early studies of Native American cultures, as well as for his 1832 expedition to the source of the Mississippi ...

Goma Goma is a city in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the North Kivu, North Kivu Province; it is located on the northern shore of Lake Kivu and shares borders with the Bukumu Chiefdo ...

comes from the Algonquian suffix for "lake", while Schoolcraft took the ''al-'' prefix from the word Algonquian.

's original text, supports the idea that he invented this word: * Another definition for the word states that Algoma actually comes from (; ) for "

snow shoe Snowshoes are specialized outdoor gear for walking over snow. Their large footprint spreads the user's weight out and allows them to travel largely on top of rather than through snow. Adjustable bindings attach them to appropriate winter footw ...

".Rev. E. P. Wheeler; A. Skinner in Milwaukee Public Museum Bulletin. r.6 p. 399 * Yet another definition from the

Chamber of Commerce claims that ''Algoma'' is an Indian word meaning "park of flowers". Several web sites that provide meanings for the names of children and pets state that ''Algoma'' means "valley of flowers". * The history of the town of Algoma,

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

contains a reference to ''Algoma'' as a

Chickasaw The Chickasaw ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands, United States. Their traditional territory was in northern Mississippi, northwestern and northern Alabama, western Tennessee and southwestern Kentucky. Their language is ...

word meaning "God abides" given as the name to the Algoma community by a

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

preacher A preacher is a person who delivers sermons or homilies on religious topics to an assembly of people. Less common are preachers who Open-air preaching, preach on the street, or those whose message is not necessarily religious, but who preach com ...

named Savage.

Variations

The word ''Algona'' is frequently seen, substituting an ''n'' for an ''m''. Various sources cite this as a corruption of

's original word ''Algoma''. '' Alcona'' itself is a

used in the United States and Canada.

References

External links

Personal Memoirs of a Residence of Thirty Years With the Indian Tribes on the American Frontiers: With Brief Notices of Passing Events, Facts, and Opinions, A.D. 1812 to A.D. 1842
by Henry Schoolcraft
A History of the Place Names of the North Western Line

Wisconsin History: Origin of the Algoma Placename

* {{usurped,

}

Place name etymologies History of Michigan History of Minnesota Algonquian languages American toponymy Henry Schoolcraft neologisms