The city of Dallas is honoring some of Texas' Native American tribes by renaming three man-made lakes along the Trinity River basin in West Dallas.
The Dallas City Council voted unanimously Wednesday for a resolution to name the Three Sisters Lakes, with each lake named after a tribe that has historical roots to North Texas.
“Our contributions are part of Texas history," Rachel Salinas, an enrolled member of the Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas, told the council. "By naming the lakes after three historic tribes with ties to North Texas, you are not only recognizing our heritage, but you are also bringing visibility to the Native community of Dallas and North Texas."
The resolution renames the lakes after three tribes and their Native words for “sister” – NʉmʉNahmi Lake (Comanche Nahmi Lake), Wichita ita:iʔh (pronounced ih-dahts-ih) Lake, and Lipan Apache Mbátí Lake. The three lakes, which help control flooding in the area, will also be designated for recreation along the Trinity River.
Salinas, who served on the naming committee for the lakes, told KERA in a written statement that her tribe has a deep-rooted presence in North Texas.
“Our ancestors hunted, traded, and traveled throughout what is now Dallas long before the city was established. The Trinity River and surrounding areas were part of our seasonal movements and trade routes,” Salinas said. “We have lived under all six flags of Texas and have fought alongside Texans in defense of this land.”
Jodi Voice Yellowfish (Muscogee Creek, Oglala Lakota and Cherokee), a local advocate for the Native American community and the head of the naming committee, said the resolution is a step towards recognizing the city’s Indigenous history, including its role in the Indian Relocation Act of 1956, which encouraged migration from reservations to urban areas.
“Being a product of this program, I'm the first generation to be born here to set down roots and start my family here. I don't know calling ‘home’ my ancestral homelands. I know calling ‘home’ Dallas,” Voice Yellowfish said. “I'm hoping that moving forward, that we don't have to hide that history, because I feel like that's what's happened in our city.”
Yellowfish, who helped lead the effort, told KERA that the naming committee did their due diligence and worked with the tribes, including the Comanche Nation and the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes, to choose the lake names.
While the council vote was unanimous, District 12 council member Cara Mendelsohn said she had concerns about the “practicality” of naming the lakes with Native languages.
“I'm concerned that we will have a wayfinding and an emergency service response issue because these are not English words and so I'm wondering what will signage say specifically,” Mendelsohn said.
Dallas Water Utilities director Sarah Standifer told the council that the signage for the lakes will be determined as leaders work out “policy decisions."
The resolution was originally proposed by the city’s Transportation and Infrastructure committee under now-former chair Omar Narvaez, who said the effort stemmed from a 2019 resolution that recognized Indigenous People’s Day in Dallas.
“The most important part is for the Native American community, that they know that this council continues to do what it said it would, which was to uplift them and remember and honor them as we move forward,” Narvaez said in a committee meeting earlier this month.
The resolution states that the new names for the three lakes take effect immediately.
This story was updated on June 27 to clarify that the naming committee consulted all three tribes in the process and to correct the pronunciation of ita:iʔh.
Pablo Arauz Peña is KERA’s growth and infrastructure reporter. Got a tip? Email Pablo at parauzpena@kera.org.
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