HOW TUCUMCARI GOT ITS NAME
First things first: it’s pronounced 2 come carry.
Tucumcari is thought to be among the oldest place names in New Mexico. Unfortunately, the real origin and meaning of Tucumcari
T.M. Pearce, an English professor at the University of New Mexico, researched the origin of Tucumcari. He says that Elliot Canonge, an Oklahoma linguist, has the most convincing explanation. Canonge believes that the name comes from the Comanche Tukamukaru which means to lie in wait for someone or something to approach. According to Felix Kowena, Canonge’s Comanche informant, Tucumcari Mountain was frequently used as a lookout by Comanche war parties. The mountain peak was an excellent lookout point since it can be seen from the Texas Panhandle more than 50 miles away.
According to Herman Moncus, a local historian, another possible meaning for the word comes from the Jemez Indians who lived in the Rio Grande
On a less scholarly note, in 1907 a Methodist minister created a story about how the name evolved. The two finest warriors of an Apache tribe that made their home at the mountain met in combat to determine who would succeed their dying Chief Wautonomah. The survivor would also win the hand of the chief’s daughter, Kari. Tocom, the brave loved by Kari, was slain by Tonopah in the battle. Overcome with grief and rage, Kari seized her knife, killed Tonopah and took her own life. Heartbroken at this tragic turn of events, the old chief stabbed himself, crying out as he died, “Tocom-Kari, Tocom-Kari.” This story is what became known as “The Legend of Tucumcari.”
Information from:
Robert Julyan, The Place Names of New Mexico, Revised Edition. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1998.
Gil Hinshaw, Tucumcari: Gateway to the West (A History of Quay County).
