Issaquah means "snake." Native Americans who traveled around the Issaquah region called it
Sqwak because of the squawking sounds of the birds. The natives habitually said "ish"
before words, forming the word "isquowh," which when spelled by settlers became Issaquah.
It is also the name of an Issaquah 130 class ferry, in the service of the Washington State
Ferry System, which was built in Seattle, Washington in 1979.
Source: WSDOT web site