00Enrolled HJR 4                                                                                                          
01 Urging the President of the United States, the United States Secretary of the Interior, the                             
02 United States Board on Geographic Names, and the members of the state's delegation in                                   
03 Congress to maintain Denali as the official name for the tallest mountain in North America.                             
04                                          _______________                                                                
05 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                             
06      WHEREAS the name Denali is deeply ingrained in the state's culture and identity;                                   
07 and                                                                                                                     
08      WHEREAS residents of the state believe that the names of the geographic features in                                
09 the state should be determined by state residents and representatives; and                                              
10      WHEREAS the Athabaskan people and their ancestors have lived in the interior of                                    
11 the state for more than 10,000 years; and                                                                               
12      WHEREAS Denali, the traditional Koyukon Athabaskan name, meaning "the high                                         
13 one," was designated as the official name for North America's tallest mountain in 1975 by the                           
14 state; and                                                                                                              
15      WHEREAS, on June 7, 1913, Walter Harper, a 20-year-old man of Athabaskan                                           
16 descent, became the first person to stand on the summit of the mountain; and                                            
17      WHEREAS state lawmakers petitioned the United States Board on Geographic                                           

01 Names to change the mountain's name to Denali in 1975, and, in 2015, the United States                                  
02 officially adopted the name Denali for the mountain; and                                                                
03      WHEREAS residents of the state from all backgrounds and political persuasions                                      
04 embrace Denali as the rightful name for the tallest mountain in North America; and                                      
05      WHEREAS residents of the state take pride in the fact that people outside the state                                
06 also recognize Denali as the mountain's well-established name; and                                                      
07      WHEREAS both Denali National Park and the mountain are well-known and                                              
08 established landmarks, and changing the mountain's name could cause confusion and                                       
09 negatively affect tourism in the state; and                                                                             
10      WHEREAS there were once hundreds of languages spoken by Alaska Native peoples,                                     
11 many of which are still used by their descendants today; and                                                            
12      WHEREAS the use of, and names and terms from, Athabaskan languages have a rich                                     
13 legacy in the Interior and Canada; and                                                                                  
14      WHEREAS traditional Indigenous names for certain geographic features, places, and                                  
15 communities are commonly used by local, state, and federal government agencies in the state;                            
16 and                                                                                                                     
17      WHEREAS residents of the state understand that the use of Indigenous names                                         
18 throughout the state reflects the long history, diverse cultures, traditions, and languages of the                      
19 state's Alaska Native peoples; and                                                                                      
20      WHEREAS the Alaska State Legislature supports efforts to recognize the heritage of                                 
21 the state's Alaska Native peoples and the continuing importance of the mountain to Alaska                               
22 Native culture;                                                                                                         
23      BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature respectfully urges the President                                  
24 of the United States, the United States Secretary of the Interior, and the United States Board                          
25 on Geographic Names to maintain Denali as the name for the tallest mountain in North                                    
26 America and that action to rename the mountain not be taken; and be it                                                  
27      FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature respectfully urges the                                          
28 members of the Alaska delegation in Congress to advocate on behalf of, and work to preserve,                            
29 Denali as the name for the tallest mountain in North America.                                                           
30      COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Donald J. Trump, President                                
31 of the United States; the Honorable JD Vance, Vice President of the United States and                                   

01 President of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Douglas Burgum, United States Secretary of the                              
02 Interior; the Domestic Names Committee, United States Board on Geographic Names; and the                                
03 Honorable Lisa Murkowski and the Honorable Dan Sullivan, U.S. Senators, and the                                         
04 Honorable Nicholas Begich, U.S. Representative, members of the Alaska delegation in                                     
05 Congress.