Italio

The river Italio near Yakutat, Alaska, was named after Frank Italio. The river was a famous place where the Italio family could commercial fish during the summer season, trap and subsist for resources during the winters. He passed away on December 23, 1929. Indeed the Italio River was rich in Tlingit culture and the family traditions continue even to this day.


In those days there was no such thing as Sr’s and Jr’s in families. The elder Italio had a son whom he named Frank Italio. He was born on July 7, 1870. As he grew older, he eventually became the culture barrier for his clan, the Shungukweidi’s. His Tlingit name was Kuchein.


In Tlingit tradition there are two moieties of which each have clans. One moiety is called Eagle and the other is Raven. Robert is Raven of the L’uknaxidi clan. His wife is an Eagle of the Shungukweidi clan. Men and women marry people into what we call the opposite moiety. The children follow their mother’s clan and so in this case their children are also Eagle and Shungukweidi. They also have Tlingit names and one of his boys is named Italio and carries Frank Italio’s Shungukweidi’s name---Kuchein. Robert wants his children to stay close to their culture, and naming him Italio is a way for the boy to remember who he is.


Italio band is from Juneau, Alaska. We got our name from Italio River. We are Alaskan Native. We make original music and some of our songs reflect our native heritage.


Gunaal’cheech

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