Iwas recently corrected when referring to Katahdin. Saying “Mount Katahdin” is technically redundant, since the direct translation from the Penobscot language means “the greatest mountain.

That small correction — and my curiosity — sent me down a rabbit hole of researching other landscape names in Maine and discovering the funny or interesting translations they carry.

I find it a bit surprising when someone drives over a bridge or past a stream every day without knowing what its name means. Take Musquash, a stream in Down East Maine. It translates to the name of a small rodent with incredibly soft fur: a muskrat.

When I was in New Mexico, I noticed all the roads and landscape features had Spanish names, which made me regret having taken French in high school. Many of the names translate

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