Tallahatchie River
/ˌtæl.əˈhætʃ.i ˈrɪv.ər/noun
A river in northern Mississippi, United States, that flows southward into the Yazoo River system.
Did you know?The Tallahatchie River became globally famous through Bobbie Gentry’s 1967 song “Ode to Billie Joe,” whose bridge was said to be on the river near Money, Mississippi.
Etymological Timeline
Pre-European Mississippi
Choctaw
tali / talwa + hacha
“Traditional Choctaw elements commonly interpreted as “rock” and “river”; spellings vary in English records.”
18th–19th Century
English
Tallahatchie
“An anglicized rendering of the Indigenous river name used in colonial and American geographic records.”
19th Century
English
Tallahatchie River
“The established English geographic name for the Mississippi waterway.”
1967
English
Tallahatchie River
“The river referenced in Bobbie Gentry’s song “Ode to Billie Joe.””
Modern English
English
Tallahatchie River
“A named river and cultural landmark in Mississippi.”