| Koyukon | |
|---|---|
| Denaakkenaageʼ,Denaakkʼe,Dinaak̲'a | |
| Pronunciation | [təˈnæːqʼə] |
| Native to | United States |
| Region | Alaska (middleYukon River,Koyukuk River) |
| Ethnicity | Koyukon |
Native speakers | 65 (2015 census)[1] |
| Latin | |
| Official status | |
Official language in |  Alaska[2] |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | koy |
| Glottolog | koyu1237 |
| ELP | Koyukon |
 Koyukon is classified as Critically Endangered by theUNESCOAtlas of the World's Languages in Danger. | |
Koyukon (also calledDenaakk'e) is the geographically most widespread Athabascan language spoken inAlaska.[3] TheAthabaskan language is spoken along theKoyukuk and the middleYukon Rivers in western interior Alaska. In 2007, the language had approximately 300 speakers, who were generally older adults and bilingual inEnglish. The totalKoyukon ethnic population was 2,300.[4]
Jules Jetté, aFrench CanadianJesuitmissionary, began recording the language and culture of theKoyukon people in 1898. Considered a fluent Koyukon speaker after spending years in the region, Jetté died in 1927. He had made a significant quantity of notes on the Koyukon people, their culture and beliefs, and their language.
Eliza Jones, a Koyukon, came across these manuscripts while studying, and later working, at theUniversity of Alaska in the early 1970s. Working from Jetté's notes and in consultation with Koyukon tribal elders, Jones wrote theKoyukon Athabaskan Dictionary. It was edited byJames Kari and published in 2000 by the Alaska Native Language Center at theUniversity of Alaska Fairbanks.
TheKoyukon Athabaskan Dictionary is unusually comprehensive in terms of documentation of an American indigenous language, in part because Jetté's notes were of excellent quality and depth. In addition, he wrote about the language and culture nearly a century ago, when the language was far more widely spoken in daily life and the Koyukon people were living in a more traditional way. The use of the word, "Dictionary", in the title is perhaps misleading; the book is more similar to an encyclopedia, as it also is a record of the culture and traditions of the Koyukon people.
The book includes traditional stories recorded by Catherine Attla and published in 1983 by the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
As of 1978 there were three Koyukon Language dialects (Lower, Central and Upper).[5] Lower Koyukonwas spoken inKaltag andNulato; Central Koyukon was spoken on theYukon River in the villages ofGalena,Ruby,Koyukuk and part ofTanana, and on theKoyukuk River in the villages ofHuslia,Hughes, andAllakaket; Upper Koyukon was spoken atStevens Village,Rampart, and part ofTanana.[5]
In 2012, Susan Pavskan reported:
On Thursday evenings Denaakk'e (Koyukon Athabascan) classes are held at Yukon-Koyukuk School District offices inFairbanks andHuslia. About 18 people from four generations attended Thursday over video-conference. At the end of class, I demonstrated how MP3 sound files can be imported intoiTunes then synced withiPads oriPods. The students demonstrated these to their parents and grandparents.[6]
The children's showMolly of Denali features the Koyukon language.
Sounds are given inIPA with the orthographic equivalent in angled brackets:[7]
| Bilabial | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Uvular | Glottal | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central | Sibilant | Lateral | |||||||
| Plosive and Affricate | Plain | p⟨b⟩ | t⟨d⟩ | ts⟨dz⟩ | tɬ⟨dl⟩ | k⟨g⟩ | q⟨gg⟩ | ʔ⟨'⟩ | |
| Aspirated | tʰ⟨t⟩ | tsʰ⟨ts⟩ | tɬʰ⟨tl⟩ | kʰ⟨k⟩ | qʰ⟨kk⟩ | ||||
| Ejective | tʼ | tsʼ | tɬʼ⟨tl'⟩ | kʼ | qʼ⟨kk'⟩ | ||||
| Fricative | Voiced | z | ɣ⟨gh⟩ | ||||||
| Voiceless | s | x⟨h⟩ | h⟨ĥ⟩ | ||||||
| Sonorant | Voiced | m | n | l | j⟨y⟩ | ||||
| Voiceless | n̥⟨nh⟩ | l̥⟨ł⟩ | j̊⟨yh⟩ | ||||||
Plosives and affricates, other than the labialb and the glottal ', distinguish plain,aspirated andejective forms. Other consonants include labial and alveolarnasals; alveolar, velar and glottalfricatives; and alveolar and palatalapproximants. Again other than the labialm and the glottalh, these distinguish forms with and withoutvoice.
Koyukon has four full vowels and four reduced vowels. Note that/æː/ is actuallynear-open, and/ʊ/ is actuallynear-close.[citation needed]
| Indigenous | |
|---|---|
| Sign languages | |
| Non-Indigenous | |
