The Indian languages of North America have left a strong mark on modern English. To begin with, we frequently encounter Indian tribal and place names such as Tuscaloosa, Tuscumbia, Tallahassee, Tombigbee, Cherokee, Choctaw, Seminole, Sioux, Pensacola, Apache, Tallapoosa, Cheyenne, Talladega, Alabama, Kentucky, Manhattan and Mississippi. And let's not forget podunk, an American Indian word that we use today to describe a seldom visited, unimportant village or town in a remote area -- as in "Vance, Alabama, was nothing but another little podunk town until the Mercedes-Benz plant was built nearby." Another large group of Indian-English words are the names of typically North American animals and plants -- caribou, raccoon, chipmunk, skunk, moose, woodchuck, muskrat, possum, squash, pecan, succotash (a mixture of beans and corn), hominy (as in hominy grits), hickory, persimmon and pone (as in corn pone). Perhaps the best-known Indian-English words, however, are the terms we borrowed from Native American daily life -- tomahawk, teepee, powwow, bayou, toboggan, totem (as in totem pole), wampum (money), squaw (a woman), wigwam, papoose (an infant or very young child), moccasin, igloo and kayak. There are hundreds of other examples of Indian words becoming part of modern English, so it is very clear that the Native Americans may have mostly disappeared but their languages are still around.