Hoonah, Alaska

Hoonah, Alaska
Xunaa / Gaaw Yat’aḵ Aan
Aerial photo of Hoonah
Aerial photo of Hoonah
Hoonah is located in Alaska
Hoonah
Hoonah
Location in Alaska
Coordinates: 58°06′34″N 135°26′11″W / 58.10944°N 135.43639°W / 58.10944; -135.43639
CountryUnited States
StateAlaska
Census AreaHoonah-Angoon
IncorporatedJune 8, 1946[1]
Government
 • MayorBill Miller
 • State senatorBert Stedman (R)
 • State rep.Rebecca Himschoot (I)
Area
 • Total7.13 sq mi (18.47 km2)
 • Land5.87 sq mi (15.20 km2)
 • Water1.26 sq mi (3.28 km2)
Elevation
52 ft (16 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total931
 • Density130/sq mi (50/km2)
Time zoneUTC-9 (Alaska (AKST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-8 (AKDT)
ZIP code
99829
Area code907
FIPS code02-33360
GNIS feature ID1403488
Websitewww.cityofhoonah.org

Hoonah (Tlingit: Xunaa or Gaaw Yat’aḵ Aan) is a largely Tlingit community on Chichagof Island, located in Alaska's panhandle in the southeast region of the state. It is 30 miles (48 km) west of Juneau, across the Alaskan Inside Passage. Hoonah is the only first-class city on Chichagof Island, the 109th-largest island in the world and the 5th-largest island in the U.S. At the 2020 census the population was 931,[3] up from 760 in 2010.[4] In the summer the population can swell to over 1,300 depending on fishing, boating, hiking and hunting conditions.[5]

"Hoonah" became the official spelling in 1901, with establishment of the Hoonah branch of the United States Post Office.[6] "Hoonah" is the approximate pronunciation of the Tlingit name Xunaa, which means “lee of the north wind”, i.e., protected from the north wind.[7]

  1. ^ 1996 Alaska Municipal Officials Directory. Juneau: Alaska Municipal League/Alaska Department of Community and Regional Affairs. January 1996. p. 66.
  2. ^ "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  3. ^ "2020 Census Data - Cities and Census Designated Places" (Web). State of Alaska, Department of Labor and Workforce Development. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  4. ^ "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Hoonah city, Alaska". American Factfinder. U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved April 17, 2017.[dead link]
  5. ^ Alaska Pulp Corporation Long Term Sale Area, 1986-90 Operating Period: Environmental Impact Statement, Volume 1. Northwestern University. 1985. pp. 3–59.
  6. ^ Donald J. Orth, Dictionary of Alaska Place Names, U.S. Gov't. Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1967
  7. ^ Sonia C. Tidemann; Andrew Gosler (2012). Ethno-ornithology: Birds, Indigenous Peoples, Culture and Society. Routledge. p. 182. ISBN 978-1-136-54384-5. Xunaa, 'In the Lee of the North Wind', is a descriptive name for the main village's location