City Council introduced a new street name yesterday for a road that was formerly just an access road to the Paper Mill.
With the Catalyst property being subdivided, the main access road off Stamp Avenue will be named Nuupts’ ikapis (pronounced: Nup-see-cup-is) Way.
City CAO Tim Pley said the naming is part of reconciliation discussions the city has been having with Tseshaht and Hupacasath councils.
He said one of the criteria for names is that they be approved by the North Island 9-1-1
“The name Nuupts’ ikapis was run past 9-1-1 and the did approve the name,” said Pley. “While some might say those names are hard to say, especially for visitors it’s also important that government be respectful of Indigenous language by using the correct spelling and correct pronunciation and that we all learn how to say those words. It may be challenging in the short term, but we’re not the first government or the first country to undertake this, and I think it’s the right thing to do.”
Nuupts’ ikapis was the name of a village site near the subdivision at the mouth of the Somass River, and translates as “one tree on the beach”.
