Whatness

On the reservation where I live, there is a little town called Tokio.

It is funny when visitors ask, “Tokyo? Isn’t that in Japan?”

Well, yes, and no.

Tribal historian Louis Garcia once told me how Tokio got its name. The railroad was going to be coming through that area, but it was sparsely populated. The Dakota people would travel nearby and ask the railroad workers, “Tokhiyothan?” which meant, “Where is it?” or “In what direction is it?”

The workers thought that the Dakota were telling them what...