Oh sure, we speak English up here. You'll find we also speak a number of other languages, including "Alaskan," and here are a few words that may help you understand us a little better:
• Breakup: It marks the end of winter and beginning of spring. It's usually messy. The basis of the word comes from when melting snow raises the level of ice-covered rivers and streams, causing the ice to break apart and float downstream.
• Bush: The Bush is anywhere in Alaska that's off the road system.
• Cheechako: Describes a newcomer, generally someone who hasn't spent a winter in Alaska.
• Denali: It's what most Alaskans call Mount McKinley. It translates as "the Great One" in Alaska Native language.
• Fireweed: The magenta-colored perennial herb that blooms in late summer and autumn. As its blooms reach their splendor, the countdown to winter begins.
• Outside: Any state other than Alaska. You might hear the phrase, "He's from Outside."
• The PAC: The Alaska Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Anchorage. The PAC is home to many arts performances and, in the summer, daily showings of an aurora borealis presentation.
• Sleeping Lady: The local name for Mount Susitna, visible across Cook Inlet from Anchorage.
• Sourdough: Any Alaska or Yukon old-timer.
• Southcentral: The area of Alaska between the Gulf of Alaska and the Alaska Range. Included in Southcentral are Anchorage, the Mat-Su area, Kodiak, Valdez and all of the Kenai Peninsula.
• Southeast: Also called the "panhandle," it stretches from Icy Bay near Yakutat to Dixon Entrance at the U.S.-Canada border. Juneau, Haines, Sitka, Skagway and Ketchikan are in Southeast.
• Termination dust: If you're around in late summer you might see it. It's the first light snow on the mountains; it signals summer is ending.
• The Valley: Part of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough. The area includes Palmer, Wasilla, Big Lake and Willow. You will frequently hear it called the Mat-Su.
