Ekalaka was named in honor of Ijkalaka, daughter of Eagle Man of the Ogalala Sioux. She was the wife of David H. Russell, the first white settler in the picturesque Russell Creek Valley. She got her name from her restless nature. She grew up on a ranch in Powder River Territory, Wyoming.
Ijkalaka and David had four children before moving to a valley in the southeast Montana Territory in 1881. The family were the first settlers in that region. When the post office was built in 1885, the burgeoning nearby town was named for Ijkalaka, spelled phonetically so visitors could write the name.
