about SKOOKUM SPIRIT
Skookum Spirit was created as a home for the featured writings of Cynthia Mudge and guest authors whose stories reflect their own sense of Skookum spirit.
Skookum is Chinook-Wawa (language) for strong or powerful but it is also a name for a bad spirit and even referenced as a monster similar to Sasquatch/Big Foot
Crows, spider (or disease-causing insect) are among the other animals associated with Skookum.
As with most languages, Chinook-Wawa offers pronunciation nuances that changes the meaning of a word:
Skukum (strong, capable)
Skukúm (dangerous being; disease causing insect such as a spider)
Skukúm-tilixam (dangerous person/spirit, monster, demon
Word reference is from The Chinuk Wawa Dictionary Project (2012). Chinuk Wawa, As our elders teach us to speak it. Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde. University of Washington Press.
To learn more about the meanings of Skookum visit Chinook Wawa Word of the Day.