‘Ee Dah How': Not the Origin of ‘Idaho'

This feature first ran July 10, 2014, in the Times-News and at Magicvalley.com . Generations of Idahoans grew up thinking the state's name came fro...

February 16, 2023
6:30 PM

This feature first ran July 10, 2014, in the Times-News and at Magicvalley.com . Generations of Idahoans grew up thinking the state's name came from a Shoshoni word meaning 'The Sun Comes over the Mountains.' The 'Ee Dah How' fable continued for decades in fourth-grade Idaho History textbooks. Now textbooks 'introduce (the ‘Ee Dah How' story) as a tale, and then give the real fact for how our state was named,' said Lori Hinton, who taught fourth grade and Idaho History at Morningside Elementary School in Twin Falls.

Drew Nash