Cosna River (Alaska)

The Cosna River is a 44-mile (71 km) tributary of the Tanana River in the central part of the U.S. state of Alaska.[3] It flows northward from the Bitzshtini Mountains into the Tanana west (downstream) of Manley Hot Springs.[4]

Cosna River
Location of the mouth of the Cosna River in Alaska
Location
Country	United States
State	Alaska
District	Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area
Physical characteristics
Source	Bitzshtini Mountains
• coordinates	64°24′34″N 152°00′31″W[1]
• elevation	1,985 ft (605 m)[2]
Mouth	Tanana River
• location	32 miles (51 km) northeast of Bitzshtini Mountains
• coordinates	64°51′16″N 151°21′55″W[1]
• elevation	249 ft (76 m)[1]
Length	44 mi (71 km)[3]

In 1899, Lieutenant J. S. Herron attributed the name to the Tanana peoples living in the area.[1] However, a century later linguist William Bright, citing the Koyukon Athabascan Dictionary, attributed the name to the Koyukon words kk' os, schist rock, combined with no', river.[5]

See also

• List of rivers of Alaska

References

1. "Cosna River". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. March 31, 1981. Retrieved October 20, 2013.
2. Derived by entering source coordinates in Google Earth.
3. Orth, Donald J.; United States Geological Survey (1971) [1967]. Dictionary of Alaska Place Names: Geological Survey Professional Paper 567 (PDF). University of Alaska Fairbanks. United States Government Printing Office. p. 240. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 17, 2013. Retrieved October 13, 2013.
4. Alaska Atlas & Gazetteer (7th ed.). Yarmouth, Maine: DeLorme. 2010. pp. 112–13. ISBN 978-0-89933-289-5.
5. Bright, William (2004). Native American Place Names of the United States. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press. p. 123. ISBN 0-8061-3576-X.