OLYMPIA, WA - A state board in Washington has approved a measure to give Puget Sound, Georgia Strait and the Strait of Juan de Fuca a new name. They’ve officially designated them the “Salish Sea.”

The term Salish Sea recognizes the Coast Salish group of Indian tribes that lived in the region before European settlement. Over the past two decades, the term has gradually been embraced to describe the inland marine waters shared by Washington and British Columbia. By a 5-to-1 vote, the Washington State Board for Geographic Names approved the new title.

Bert Webber is professor emeritus at Western Washington University in Bellingham. He claims to have coined the term “Salish Sea” and has promoted its use for years. He says it’s important to recognize the area as a connected ecosystem.

Webber: "Humans, in the way that we approach understanding things, name them in order to give them some kind of recognition,” he says. “So, names are fundamental to – and the first step to – understanding and protecting natural systems."

The new title won’t affect the existing names for the Puget Sound and the other component parts of the Salish Sea. Think of it as referring to the Great Lakes, but each lake still having its own individual name. The new term still has to be approved at the national level in both the U.S. and Canada. That could happen before the end of the year.

Copyright 2009 KPLU

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