OLYMPIA, Wash. — Squaw Creek in Whatcom County is one step closer to being renamed Paatstel Creek.

The name change was one of five proposals approved by the Washington State Committee on Geographic Names Tuesday.

The Nooksack Tribe submitted Paatstel, which had been the name of a historical village near the creek’s headwaters.

Squaw Creek runs near Lynden and Sumas.

The Department of Natural Resources says the new proposed names will now go before the Board of Natural Resources for a final decision and are currently open to public comment.

Tribal members and others suggested the name change due to the derogatory nature of the term Squaw.