| A | B |
|---|
| Karana | The Main character, she is stranded alone on the Island of the Blue Dolphins |
| Chief Chowig | Karana's father, leader of the tribe |
| Captain Orlov | The Russina captain in charge of the Aleuts |
| Ulape | Sister of Karan. Very hard-working |
| Ramo | Karana's brother. He was killed by wild dogs. Very playful |
| Aleuts | Tribe of hunters from the islands off the coast of Alaska. They killed most of the people og Ghalas-at |
| Ghalas-at | Karana's village |
| kelp | coarse, brown seaweed. Used for tieing and binding |
| pelts | skins of furry animals |
| abalones | large sea snails with bowl-like shells |
| mesa | a flat-topped hill with steep sides |
| awl | a pointed tool for making holes in leather or wood |
| beckoned | summoned or called with a movement |
| lair | living or resting place of a wild animal |
| mussels | bluish-black shellfish, somewhat like clams |
| sinews | tendons; the tissues fastening a muscle to a bone |
| pelicans | large, fish-eating birds having a pouch under their beaks |
| omen | a sign or warning |
| sea elephant | a sea animal of the seal family with long tusks, flippers and rough hides |
| carcass | the body of any dead animal |
| devilfish | (octopus) a sea animal that has a soft body and eight long arms covered with suckers |
| singed | burned slightly, especially hair or feathers |
| smelt | small fish having oily flesh |
| reef | a ridge of sand or rock just about even with the surface of the water |
| snare | traps made with bent tree limbs and sometimes a noose |
| Rontu | Leader of the wild dogs. Later Karana's pet |
| Tainor and Lurai | pet birds |
| Tutok | an Aleut girl who befriended Karana |
| Mon-a-nee | a pet sea otter |
| Rontu-Aru | Rontu's son. Karana's second pet dog |
