The name geoduck is derived from a Lushootseed (Nisqually) word gʷídəq[REF][REF] either a word composed of a first element of unknown meaning and əq meaning "genitals" (referring to the shape of the clam),[REF] or a phrase meaning "dig deep" [REF].
Between 1983 and 2010, the scientific name of this clam was confused with that of an extinct clam, Panopea abrupta (Conrad, 1849), in the scientific literature [REF].