Samish(Xws7ámeshqen,IPA:[xʷsʔ'e.məʃ.qen])[1]is a dialect of theNorth Straits Salishdialect continuumspoken by theIndigenousSamish peopleof thePacific Northwest.Samish is traditionally referred to as a language, but it is mutually intelligible with the other dialects of North Straits Salish. Samish is aCoast Salish languageand is closely related to other languages in that family.
| Samish | |
|---|---|
| Xws7ámeshqen | |
| Pronunciation | [xʷsʔ'e.məʃ.qen] |
| Native to | United States,Canada |
| Ethnicity | Samish people |
Salishan
| |
| NAPA(Xws7ámeshqen Alphabet) | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | – |
| Glottolog | sami1249 |
The Samish language is still spoken by some Samish tribal members, and theSamish Indian Nation'sXws7ámeshqenProgram is working to revitalize the language in daily life. They offer classes to tribal citizens and have an online website with a wordlist and placenames.[1]
Orthography
edit| Uppercase | Lowercase | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| 7 | /ʔ/ | |
| A | a | /e/ |
| Ch | ch | /t͡ʃ/ |
| Ch' | ch' | /t͡ʃ‘/ |
| E | e | /e~ə/ |
| H | h | /h/ |
| I | i | /i/ |
| K | k | /k~k’/ |
| Kw | kw | /kʷ/ |
| Kw' | kw' | /kʷ’/ |
| L | l | /l/ |
| Lh | lh | /ɬ/ |
| M | m | /m/ |
| N | n | /n/ |
| Ng | ng | /ŋ/ |
| O | o | /ɔ/ |
| P | p | /p/ |
| P' | p' | /p’/ |
| Q | q | /q/ |
| Q' | q' | /q’/ |
| Qw | qw | /qʷ/ |
| Qw' | qw' | /qʷʼ/ |
| S | s | /s/ |
| Sh | sh | /ʃ/ |
| T | t | /t/ |
| T' | t' | /t’/ |
| Tl' | tl' | /t͡ɬ’/ |
| Ts | ts | /ts/ |
| Ts' | ts' | /ts’/ |
| U | u | /u/ |
| W | w | /w/ |
| X̲ | x̲ | /χ/ |
| Xw | xw | /xʷ/ |
| X̲w | x̲w | /χʷ/ |
| Y | y | /j/ |
References
edit- ^ab"Language".Samish Indian Nation.Retrieved2023-06-24.
- ^Hall, Kelly; McCool, Christopher."Introduction to Samish Language".Samish Indian Nation– via Samish E-Classroom.