Etymology Originally named Hardersburg after Hans Harder who platted the town in 1902, the community was later renamed Kahlotus. The meaning of the word "Kahlotus" is uncertain. According to toponymist William Bright, the name derives from the Sahaptin placename /kalúːt'as/. The name is also thought to translate from another Native American word meaning "Hole in the ground". A third possibility is that the town was named for a Palouse tribal chief and signer of the Yakima Treaty of 1855. His name appeared with various spellings, including Kohlotus, Quillatose (by future governor Isaac Stevens), Qalatos, and Kahlatoose.
Etymology Originally named Hardersburg after Hans Harder who platted the town in 1902 the community was later renamed Kahlotus. The meaning of the word "Kahlotus" is uncertain. According to toponymist William Bright, the name derives from the Sahaptin placename /kalúːt'as/. The name is also thought to translate from another Native American word meaning "Hole in the ground". A third possibility is that the town was named for a Palouse tribal chief and signer of the Yakima Treaty of 1855. His name appeared with various spellings, including Kohlotus, Quillatose (by future governor Isaac Stevens), Qalatos, and Kahlatoose.