Marie Smith Jones
Marie Smith Jones | |
|---|---|
| udAch' k'uqAXA'a'ch' | |
| Eyak Nation leader | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | May 14, 1918 Cordova, Territory of Alaska |
| Died | January 21, 2008 (aged 89) Anchorage, Alaska |
| Resting place | Angelus Memorial Park Anchorage, Alaska |
| Spouse | William F. Smith |
| Children | Nine children |
| Known for | Last surviving speaker of the Eyak language; honorary chief of the Eyak Nation, and the last remaining full-blooded Eyak. |
Marie Smith Jones (May 14, 1918 – January 21, 2008) was an American national who was the last surviving speaker of the Eyak language of Southcentral Alaska. She was born in Cordova, Alaska, was an honorary chief of the Eyak Nation and the last remaining full-blooded Eyak. In a 2005 interview, Smith Jones explained that her name in Eyak is 'udAch' k'uqAXA'a'ch' (/ʔutət͡ʃ’ k’uqəχəʔaˀt͡ʃ’/) which, she said, translates as "a sound that calls people from afar".