Tongass National Forest

[ tong-guhs nash-uh-nl fawr-istfor-, nash-nuhl ]

noun

1. a temperate rainforest in southeastern Alaska that also harbors more than two dozen communities, including Juneau: largest U.S. national forest. 16.7 million acres (6.8 million hectares; 26,100 square miles; 68,000 square kilometers).

Word History and Origins

Origin of Tongass National Forest¹

First recorded in 1905–10; probably from Tsimshian Tamgas, the Tsimshian name for the Taanta Kwáan or Taant'a Ḵwáan “Sea Lion People,” a Tlingit people who lived near Ketchikan in southeastern Alaska

Example Sentences

Last week, the Forest Service announced in its Final Environmental Impact Statement that it planned to axe the Roadless Rule in Southeast Alaska’s Tongass National Forest.

From Popular-Science

The Tongass National Forest could easily supply one-third of this amount indefinitely.

From Project Gutenberg