Adopted 30 June 1910 on 92L/7 as listed in the 1910 Gazetteer. In lieu of original paperwork this was resubmitted 17 December 1932 as listed in Gazetteers (1920, 1911, 1912, 1913, 1914, 1915, 1924, 1930) and as appears on Reference Map 2C "Vancouver Island - Northerly" (1919, 1929). May have previously appeared as "Karmutsen Lake" on Reference Map 22T3 (title/date not cited). Likely named in association with Nimpkish River.

Source: BC place name cards & correspondence, and/or research by BC Chief Geographer & Geographical Names Office staff.

Nimpkish is an anglicized form of 'Namgis. If you listen to an older person pronounce 'Namgis in Kwakwala it sounds like Nimpkish. When non-Indigenous people started to come to 'Namgis lands, they obviously couldn't speak Kwakwala, so they used words as they heard them, such as Nimpkish. Other examples are shown throughout the territory in existing place names; Woss = Wa's, Karmutzen = Kamitsin, Maquilla = Makwala, Kilpala = Galtbala, and many more examples. These were our names for these places, and many are still on the land today, as are we.

Source: http://www.namgis.bc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/NamgisNamedPlacePoster-2020-scaled.jpg

"Karmutsen Lake" is another recorded name for this lake.

Source: BC place name cards & correspondence, and/or research by BC Chief Geographer & Geographical Names Office staff.