in Gulf of Alaska, S of Cook Inlet.
This island, the largest in Alaska, native home to the Kodiak Bear, was first discovered by Stephen Glotov in 1763. "Glotof (sic) however did not land till he reached the last and most Eastward of these islands, called by th e inhabitants Kadyak."(Coxe 1787, p. 124). According to Bancroft (1886, p. 141), "Glottof finally anchored on the 8th of September off the coast of a large and mountainous island, called Kikhtak by the natives, but now known as Kadiak." Petroff (in Bancroft, p. 224) says, "Kikhtak, or Kikhtowik, is the Innuit word for island. At the present day (1886) the natives of the peninsula speak of the Kodiak people simply as Kikhtagamutes, islanders. The The tribal name appears to have been Kaniag and the Russian appellation now in use probably derived from both." The name "Kodiak" was first used on October 20, 1778, by Captain Cook (1785, v. 2, p. 504) who wrote, "It was from him (Ismyloff) that we got the name of Kodiak."
| September 23, 2011 | 1 person died | plane piloting | Read More |