Shenandoah and Its Native American Roots
2020-12-27
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1And now, Words and Their Stories, from VOA Learning English.
2Every word has its own story.
3Where did it come from? How did it get into the language?
4Today's word is "Shenandoah."
5Hundreds of years ago a Native American chief named Shenandoah lived with his tribes in what is now the state of Virginia.
6Little is known about Shenandoah, but in some way, the soft sound of his name was given to a river.
7The Shenandoah River still flows in a deep valley between the Allegheny and Blue Ridge Mountains, just as it did when Chief Shenandoah lived.
8It is a slow moving river, soft and as beautiful as its name.
9There are some word experts who believe the word "Shenandoah" means "spruce river" because the waters of the river run through great forests of spruce trees.
10And this explanation could be correct.
11However, there is an old Native American story which is far more beautiful than that of the experts.
12Long ago, centuries before Europeans came to the New World, there was a great lake of sparkling blue water hidden in the mountains of Virginia.
13This lake was 250 kilometers long and 50 kilometers wide.
14For hundreds of years, Native American tribes lived near this lake, feeding on the fish from its clean waters.
15The Native Americans often climbed up the mountains and camped there during their long hunts for food.
16In the evenings they sat near their camp and looked down at the beautiful lake.
17On a clear, starry night you could see thousands of stars shining and dancing on the water below.
18The Native Americans loved this lake, and because they could see the stars in it they called the lake, "Clear Daughter of the Stars."
19In their language, the word for this was "Shenandoah."
20One day there was a loud crashing sound at one end of the lake.
21The lake started to disappear.
22Its water ran out of the valley, through a break in the mountain side.
23The waters ran on and on until they joined another river which today is known as the Potomac.
24At last, the lake was gone.
25In its place was only a river.
26It is this way today.
27The lake is gone, but the beautiful Shenandoah River runs on.
28And on a clear night, anyone in the mountains can still see the stars dancing on the water.
29Shenandoah National Park has just over 80,000 hectares of protected lands.
30The park has cascading waterfalls, beautiful mountain vistas and serene woods.
31Located outside of Washington, DC, the Shenandoah National Park is a popular get-away for people wanting to hike, picnic or nature-watch.
32Millions of Americans have seen the Shenandoah and have talked about it.
33And some years ago, someone wrote a song about it.
34"Shenandoah" is perhaps one of America's most recognizable folk songs.
35Some say the song refers to the river.
36Others say it is about the daughter of Chief Shenandoah.
37Regardless of what the song is about, "Shenandoah" remains an American classic.
38"O Shenandoah, I love your daughter, Away you rolling river; O Shenandoah, I love your daughter, Away I'm bound to go, 'Cross the wide Missouri ..."
39And that brings us to the end of this episode of Words and Their Stories.
40I'm Anna Matteo.
1And now, Words and Their Stories, from VOA Learning English. 2Every word has its own story. Where did it come from? How did it get into the language? 3Today's word is "Shenandoah." 4Hundreds of years ago a Native American chief named Shenandoah lived with his tribes in what is now the state of Virginia. Little is known about Shenandoah, but in some way, the soft sound of his name was given to a river. 5The Shenandoah River still flows in a deep valley between the Allegheny and Blue Ridge Mountains, just as it did when Chief Shenandoah lived. It is a slow moving river, soft and as beautiful as its name. 6There are some word experts who believe the word "Shenandoah" means "spruce river" because the waters of the river run through great forests of spruce trees. 7And this explanation could be correct. 8However, there is an old Native American story which is far more beautiful than that of the experts. 9Long ago, centuries before Europeans came to the New World, there was a great lake of sparkling blue water hidden in the mountains of Virginia. This lake was 250 kilometers long and 50 kilometers wide. 10For hundreds of years, Native American tribes lived near this lake, feeding on the fish from its clean waters. 11The Native Americans often climbed up the mountains and camped there during their long hunts for food. In the evenings they sat near their camp and looked down at the beautiful lake. 12On a clear, starry night you could see thousands of stars shining and dancing on the water below. The Native Americans loved this lake, and because they could see the stars in it they called the lake, "Clear Daughter of the Stars." 13In their language, the word for this was "Shenandoah." 14One day there was a loud crashing sound at one end of the lake. The lake started to disappear. Its water ran out of the valley, through a break in the mountain side. The waters ran on and on until they joined another river which today is known as the Potomac. 15At last, the lake was gone. In its place was only a river. It is this way today. The lake is gone, but the beautiful Shenandoah River runs on. 16And on a clear night, anyone in the mountains can still see the stars dancing on the water. 17Shenandoah National Park, a place for nature lovers 18Shenandoah National Park has just over 80,000 hectares of protected lands. The park has cascading waterfalls, beautiful mountain vistas and serene woods. 19Located outside of Washington, DC, the Shenandoah National Park is a popular get-away for people wanting to hike, picnic or nature-watch. 20Millions of Americans have seen the Shenandoah and have talked about it. 21And some years ago, someone wrote a song about it. 22"Shenandoah" is perhaps one of America's most recognizable folk songs. Some say the song refers to the river. Others say it is about the daughter of Chief Shenandoah. 23Regardless of what the song is about, "Shenandoah" remains an American classic. 24"O Shenandoah, I love your daughter, Away you rolling river; O Shenandoah, I love your daughter, Away I'm bound to go, 'Cross the wide Missouri ..." 25And that brings us to the end of this episode of Words and Their Stories. 26I'm Anna Matteo. 27This Words and Their Stories was written by Herbert Suttfliffe, with revisions by Anna Matteo. The Norwegian soprano, Sissel, sings the version of "Shenandoah" heard in this program. This program is a rebroadcast. It originally aired on November 28, 2015. 28Now it's your turn! Practice with the adjectives "sparkling," "dancing," "cascading" and "serene" to describe a nature scene where you live. 29____________________________________________________________ 30Words in This Story 31sparkling - adj. shining with or reflecting bright points of light 32cascade - v. to flow or fall rapidly and in large quantity 33vista - n. a large and beautiful view of an area of land or water 34serene - adj. calm and peaceful