Alaska wasn’t always called Alaska. Long before it became the 49th state of the United States, Indigenous peoples of the region referred to it as “Alyeska,” meaning “The Great Land.” The name Alaska is believed to come from the Aleut word *Alyeska* (or *Alaxsxaq*), describing the vast mainland. In 1867, the United States purchased the territory from Russia in a deal later nicknamed Seward’s Folly, because many Americans thought it was a waste of money. That opinion changed quickly after gold was