| Tlingit | |
|---|---|
| Lingít | |
| Pronunciation | /ɬɪ̀nkɪ́t/ |
| Native to | United States,Canada |
| Region | Alaska,British Columbia,Yukon,Washington |
| Ethnicity | 10,000Tlingit (1995)[1] |
| Speakers | ~50 highly-proficient L1 speakers, 10 highly-proficient L2 speakers (2020, United States)[2] 120 in Canada (2016 census)[3] |
Dene–Yeniseian?
| |
| Tlingit alphabet (Latin script) | |
| Official status | |
Official language in |  Alaska[4] |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-2 | tli |
| ISO 639-3 | tli |
| Glottolog | tlin1245 |
| ELP | Tlingit |
 | |
 Tlingit is classified as Critically Endangered by theUNESCOAtlas of the World's Languages in Danger. | |
| This article containsIPA phonetic symbols. Without properrendering support, you may seequestion marks, boxes, or other symbols instead ofUnicode characters. For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, seeHelp:IPA. | |
| Lingít "People of the Tides" | |
|---|---|
| People | Tlingit |
| Language | Lingít |
| Country | Tlingit Aaní |
Tlingit (English:/ˈklɪŋkɪt/ ⓘKLING-kit;LingítTlingit pronunciation:[ɬɪ̀nkɪ́t])[5] is an endangered language indigenous toSoutheast Alaska andWestern Canada spoken by theTlingit people. It is generally agreed to form an independent branch of theNa-Dene language family. Although the number of speakers is declining, there are several revitalization andsecond-language programs in Southeast Alaska.
Missionaries of theRussian Orthodox Church were the first to develop a written version of Tlingit using theCyrillic script. After theAlaska Purchase, Tlingit language use was suppressed by the United States government, though preservation programs were introduced beginning in the 20th century. Today, Tlingit is spoken natively by perhaps only 100 elders.[6]
Tlingit's placement in the Na-Dene family has provoked much debate over the last century, with most scholars now considering it to form a separate branch in the phylum, the other being Eyak-Athabaskan (includingEyak and theAthabaskan languages).[7] Tlingit has also attracted interest due to its unusual phonology, especially compared toIndo-European languages, and its morphological complexity.
The early history of Tlingit is poorly known, mostly because there was no written record untilRobert de Lamanon collected numerals and five nouns during theLa Pérouse expedition in 1786.[8] The language appears to have spread northward from theKetchikan–Saxman area towardsIcy Bay[9] since certain conservative features are reduced gradually from south to north.[10] In fact, Tlingit northerly expansion intoEyak andAthabaskan territories was still taking place in recorded times.[9][11]
The first Tlingit orthography and literacy program were created by theRussian Orthodox church during theRussian colonization of Alaska.[12] However, following the 1867purchase of Alaska by the United States, native languages were suppressed in favor of English language homogeneity and assimilation.[12][13] It was not until the mid-20th century that the language literacy movement would regain ground,[12] but the total number of speakers continued to decline.[14] Beginning in the late-20th century, revitalization and preservation programs were also introduced.[15]
Tlingit is currently classified as a distinct and separate branch of Na-Dene, anindigenous language family of North America.[16] In 1915,Edward Sapir argued for its inclusion in the Na-Dene family,[17] a claim that was subsequently debated byFranz Boas,P.E. Goddard, and many other prominent linguists of the time.[18] Its inclusion in the family has proven controversial due to lack of common vocabulary despite shared phonological and grammatical features.[19]
Studies in the late 20th century by Heinz-Jürgen Pinnow andMichael E. Krauss showed a strong connection toEyak and hence to theAthabaskan languages, thus essentially proving the Na-Dene family as including Tlingit.[19] Jeff Leer has proposed that the seeming lack of shared vocabulary between Tlingit and the Athabaskan languages can be explained by a process of hybridization within Tlingit.[20]
Sapir initially proposed a connection between Tlingit andHaida,[17] but the debate over Na-Dene gradually excluded Haida from the discussion. Haida is now considered anisolate,[21] with some borrowing from its long proximity with Tlingit. However, some contemporary linguists still hold that Haida is part of the Na-Dene family, such as John Enrico, a specialist in Haida.[22]
The first proposal linking Na-Dene and thus Tlingit to theYeniseian languages of Siberia was made by Italian linguist Alfredo Trombetti in 1923.[23] In the early 2000s,Edward Vajda presented empirical evidence for the existence of this super family,Dene–Yeniseian.[24] Although support for the hypothesis has not been universal,[25] it has been called "the first demonstration of a plausible genealogical link between languages of Eurasia and languages of the Americas".[26]
The Tlingit language was traditionally spoken from near the mouth of theCopper River atController Bay down the open coast of theGulf of Alaska and throughout almost all of the islands of theAlexander Archipelago inSoutheast Alaska.[27][28] It is characterized by about four distinct dialects,[29][30] but they are mostly mutually intelligible,[11] indicating relatively recent territorial expansion.[11][31] Almost all of the area where the Tlingit language is endemic is contained within the modern borders ofAlaska. The exception is an area known as "Inland Tlingit"[32] that extends up theTaku River and into northernBritish Columbia and theYukon aroundAtlin Lake (Áa Tleen "Big Lake"[33]) andTeslin Lake (Desleen <Tas Tleen "Big Thread"[33]), as well as aroundTagish Lake near theChilkoot Trail (Jilḵoot).[32] There is a small group of speakers (about 30) inWashington as well.[34]
Tlingit is classified as critically endangered by UNESCO.[35] In 2007, Golla reported a maximum population of 500 speakers in Alaska, and an additional 185 in Canada.[36] TheFirst Peoples' Cultural Council reported 2 fluent speakers in British Columbia out of an ethnic population of 400.[37] Crippen estimated in 2019 that between 100 and 200 people in the United States and Canada speak Tlingit as their native language, with the youngest of these over the age of 60.[6]
Tlingit courses are available at theUniversity of Alaska Southeast, taught in part byLance Twitchell. In 2022, the university began offering these classes for free.[38][39] Classes offered at a post-secondary level have produced several fluent L2 (second-language) speakers.[40] In April 2014, Alaska HB 216 recognized Tlingit as an official language of Alaska, lending support tolanguage revitalization.[41]
Tlingit is divided into roughly four major dialects,[30] all of which aremutually intelligible:[11]
Most dialects of Tlingit can be classified into two-tone (Northern and Transitional) and three-tone (Southern) systems.[48] Tongass Tlingit, however, has no tone, but rather a four-wayregister contrast between short, long, glottalized, and "fading" vowels.[49] (In the last type, the onset of the vowel is articulated normally but the release ismurmured, essentially a rapid opening of theglottis once articulation is begun, resulting in fading of volume and pitch.)[50]
Jeff Leer has shown that the Tongass vowel system can directly derive the tonal features other dialects,[51] so it can be concluded that the register contrast in Tongass gave rise to the tonal systems.[52] Additionally, the Tongass system is quite similar to both systems of vowel modifications forEyak and the one reconstructed forProto-Athabaskan,[53] suggesting that they retained features from Proto-Na-Dene which instead developed into tonal systems in most of the Athabaskan languages and the other dialects of Tlingit.[54]
Tlingit has a complexphonological system compared toIndo-European languages such as English orSpanish. It has an almost complete series ofejective consonants accompanying its stop, fricative, and affricate consonants. The only missing consonant in the Tlingit ejective series is[ʃʼ].[55] The phonology is also typologically unusual because it has severallaterals but no voiced[l] norlabials in most dialects, except for[m] and[p] in recent Englishloanwords.[56]
The consonants in the table are given in theIPA, with the popular orthography equivalents in brackets. Dialectal, obsolete, and marginal consonants are given in parentheses.
| Labial | Alveolar | Palato- alveolar | Velar | Uvular | Glottal | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| plain | sibilant | lateral | plain | labial | plain | labial | plain | labial | ||||
| Plosive | unaspirated | t⟨d⟩ | ts⟨dz⟩ | tɬ⟨dl⟩ | tʃ⟨j⟩ | k⟨g⟩ | kʷ⟨gw⟩ | q⟨g̱⟩ | qʷ⟨g̱w⟩ | ʔ⟨.⟩ | (ʔʷ)⟨.w⟩[a] | |
| aspirated | tʰ⟨t⟩ | tsʰ⟨ts⟩ | tɬʰ⟨tl⟩ | tʃʰ⟨ch⟩ | kʰ⟨k⟩ | kʷʰ⟨kw⟩ | qʰ⟨ḵ⟩ | qʷʰ⟨ḵw⟩ | ||||
| ejective | tʼ⟨tʼ⟩ | tsʼ⟨tsʼ⟩ | tɬʼ⟨tlʼ⟩ | tʃʼ⟨chʼ⟩ | kʼ⟨kʼ⟩ | kʷʼ⟨kʼw⟩ | qʼ⟨ḵʼ⟩ | qʷʼ⟨ḵʼw⟩ | ||||
| Fricative | voiceless | s⟨s⟩ | ɬ⟨l⟩ | ʃ⟨sh⟩ | x⟨x⟩ | xʷ⟨xw⟩ | χ⟨x̱⟩ | χʷ⟨x̱w⟩ | h⟨h⟩ | (hʷ)⟨hw⟩[a] | ||
| ejective | sʼ⟨sʼ⟩ | ɬʼ⟨lʼ⟩ | xʼ⟨xʼ⟩ | xʷʼ⟨xʼw⟩ | χʼ⟨x̱’⟩ | χʷʼ⟨x̱ʼw⟩ | ||||||
| Sonorant | (m)⟨m⟩[b] | n⟨n⟩ | (l)⟨ll⟩[c] | j⟨y⟩ | (ɰ)⟨ÿ⟩[d] | w⟨w⟩ | ||||||
Phonetic analysis shows that all Tlingit word final non-ejective stops are unaspirated.[65] This analysis also has phonological basis, as words with final non-ejective stops that are suffixed with vowels maintain a non-aspirated pronunciation. This is reflected by the orthography, which uses the graphemes for unaspirated sounds,⟨d g g̱⟩, when a vowel is suffixed. For example,x̱aat[χaːt] ("root") becomesax̱ x̱aadí[aχχaːtí] ("my root").[66]
Phonetic analysis also shows that theejectivefricatives in Tlingit are in fact true ejectives, with complete closure of the glottis before frication begins and the larynx raising in the same manner as with ejective stops. This contrasts with common analyses in some other languages with ejective fricatives, which considers them a sequence of fricative and glottal stop.[67]
Tlingit has eight phonemicvowels, four of these distinguished formally bylength. However, shorter vowels are typically also pronounced more centralized,[68][69] or lesstense.[70]
| Tense/Long | Lax/Short | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| front | central | back | front | central | back | |
| close | iː⟨ee⟩ | uː⟨oo⟩ | ɪ⟨i⟩ | ʊ⟨u⟩ | ||
| mid | eː⟨ei⟩ | ɛ⟨e⟩ | ʌ⟨a⟩ | |||
| open | aː⟨aa⟩[a] | |||||
Word onset is always consonantal in Tlingit. Thus, in order to avoid a word starting with a vowel, an initial vowel is always preceded by either[ʔ] or[j].[72][73] The former is most common,[72] while the latter occurs in conjunction with the prefixi-.[73] For example:
ÿu-
ÿa-
t'áa
hot
ḵu- ÿu- ÿa- t'áa
INDH.OBJ- PERF-(ø, -D, +I)- hot
"the weather is hot"
But when the perfective prefixÿu- is word-initial, the glottal stop appears to ensure that the word begins with a consonant.
In contrast, when prefixed withi-, the same verbal root (tʼaa, "hot") becomesyatʼaa[jatʼaː] rather than *itʼaa[ʔitʼaː].[73]
Tone is contrastive in all dialects of Tlingit but Tongass.[48] In the Northern and Transitional dialects, there are high and low tones, and in the Southern dialect there is an additional falling tone.[74] Rather than tone, Tongass Tlingit has a register system of vowel phonation and glottalization[50] that corresponds to the tone systems of other dialects. An illustration of some of these correspondences can be seen below.[75]
| Tongass register | Southern tone | Northern tone | Example translation[48] | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| notation | description | example | notation | description | example | notation | description | example | |
| V | short | sha | V́ | high tone | shá | V́ | high tone | shá | "head" |
| VV | long | shaa | V́V | long high tone | sháa | V́V | long high tone | sháa | "woman" |
| VV' | long glottalized | ḵaa' | V̂V | long falling tone | ḵâa | V́V | long high tone | ḵáa | "man" |
| VV` | long fading | aa`n | V̀V | long low tone | àan | V̀V | long low tone | aan | "land" |
The very first instance of written Tlingit is from theLa Pérouse expedition in 1786, where for example,tleixʼ ("one") was transcribed as"keirrk".[76] A more formal orthography based on theCyrillic alphabet was created by the Russians during their colonization of Alaska. However, after Alaska was acquired by the United States, native language literacy was discouraged,[12] and until the latter half of the 20th century, Tlingit was only written by linguists.[77]
The most widespread orthography used today is based off of the transcription systems of some of these linguists, particularly Constance Naish and Gillian Story.[78] Like other popular writing systems, it uses the letters for voiced obstruents to represent unaspirated sounds; e.g.,⟨d⟩ for/t/. Uvular sounds are distinguished from velars by an underline; that is,⟨k ḵ⟩ for/kʰqʰ/. Typing an underline was straightforward on the typewriters of the 20th century, but it is no longer so on modern computers.[79] Thus, an alternative "email" orthography was developed in the 1990s[77] that replaces the underline with an appended⟨h⟩; so,⟨ḵ⟩ becomes⟨kh⟩, and so on.[79]
The Inland Tlingit orthography does not use vowel digraphs. Instead, short high vowels are marked with an acute accent, long high vowels are marked with a circumflex, and long low vowels are marked with a grave accent. Short low vowels are unmarked. So, Coastal Tlingit⟨áa⟩ and⟨aa⟩ are Inland⟨â⟩ and⟨à⟩ respectively. Coastal⟨éi⟩ and⟨ei⟩ are Inland⟨ê⟩ and⟨è⟩; Coastal⟨ée⟩ and⟨ee⟩ are Inland⟨î⟩ and⟨ì⟩; and Coastal⟨óo⟩ and⟨oo⟩ are Inland⟨û⟩ and⟨ù⟩.[80]
Tlingit is often described aspolysynthetic because a single verb phrase can be the equivalent of a complete English sentence.[81][82] As such, verb morphology is highly complex,[83] like in other Na-Dene languages.[82]Nouns are clearly distinguished from verbs, unlikein the Salishan languages, which are also part of theNorthwest Coast Sprachbund.[84] Other word classes includepronouns,postpositions, directionals, and particles. Word order defaults toSOV, but it is flexible.[85]
Nouns are classified as either possessable or unpossessable, with the possessable nouns being further classified byalienability. Alienable possessed nouns may be possessed by a pronoun, while inalienable nounsmust be possessed. In contrast, unpossessable nouns cannot be possessed, and include names for people and places.[86] Nouns may be marked for the plural with the suffix-xʼ,[87] but it is optional.[88]
Possessed nouns take the suffix-ÿi, which has several forms (including-(y)i and-(w)u) depending on the sounds that precede it. Its tone also depends on the stem vowel, so that a low-toned stem vowel will trigger a high tone on the suffix (i.e.yí) while a high-toned stem vowel will do the opposite.[89]
Pronouns in Tlingit, also known as pronominals, are distinguished in fourpersons (formally first, second, third, andindefinite), two numbers (singular and plural), and three miscellaneous classes (reflexive,reciprocal, andpartitive).[90] They appear as either prefixes on the verb or as independent words.[91] The third person object pronominals are additionally classified through a system ofanaphora similar to that in otherNa-Dene languages such asNavajo.[92]
Tlingit usespostpositions to indicate spatial and temporal relationships between nouns. They can be suffixed to nouns and nominalized verbs.[93] For example, theperlative suffix-nax̱ is used to mean "through" or "via":[94]
Lingít
Tlingit
x̱ʼéi-nax̱
mouth-PROL
waa
how
sá
Lingít x̱ʼéi-nax̱ waa sá ∅-du-wa-sáa-kw
Tlingit mouth-PROL how Q 3.NEU.OBJ-INDH.SUBJ-PFV-name-REP
"How is it called in Tlingit?" (lit. "How is it calledvia the Tlingit mouth?)
Note that postpositions should be differentiated from directionals, which also express spatial relationships but are a subcategory of nouns. Directionals can also be the object of a postposition.[95]
Verb morphology is highly intricate, with a single verb phrase (called the "verb complex") capable of expressing a full sentence.[82] This verb phrase can communicate, among other things,aspect,mood,tense,transitivity, subject(s) and object(s), and qualities of the object(s).[96]
The nucleus of the verb is the root, which indicates what exactly is being done (e.g. eating, playing, walking, etc.).[97] A verb root cannot appear on its own, so it always also has stem variation,[98] which are differences in vowel length and tone that are dictated by aspect and conjugation.[99] For example, the root *x̱a ("eat") is ungrammatical by itself. Instead, theimperative form of the verb also includes a high tone on the vowel:X̱á! ("Eat (it)!").[100]
Tlingit verbs are commonly analyzed using template morphology,[101] meaning that specificaffixes are assigned a position in the verb complex relative to each other. The number of positions varies depending on the analysis given.[102] James Crippen has criticized verb templates in analyses of Tlingit grammar, as they fail to explain interdependencies betweenmorphemes and present a seemingly arbitrary order of affixes,[103] but they are still the most common way for analyzing verbs in all Na-Dene languages.[101] An example of a verb template for Tlingit by Jeff Leer is given below.[104]
| Position | Description | Example morpheme(s) |
|---|---|---|
| +8 | preverbs | g̱unayéi, "beginning" |
| +7 | number prefixes | has, plural |
| +6 | objects | yee- "you guys" |
| incorporated alienable nouns | ḵee- "day" | |
| +5 | incorporated inalienable nouns | x̱ʼe- "mouth" |
| +4 | schetic prefixes | na- |
| +3 | distributive | dag̱- |
| +2 | subject | x̱- "I" |
| +1 | classifier | ÿa- |
| 0 | ROOT | About 3500 distinct roots[105] |
| -1 | derivational suffixes | -ÿ,telic perfective[106] |
| -2 | durative suffixes | -x̱, habitual |
| -3 | inner mode suffixes | -n |
| -4 | outer mode suffixes | -ín |
| -5 | clause type | -í,subordinate clause |
Another criticism of the template is that it implies that all positions can be filled; in reality, this is not true, and even the longest verb phrases do not have every affix slot filled.[103] The example below is a complex verb phrase with many slots filled.[107] Note that the first two words areclitics.[108]
yan
yax̱
ya-
k-
g-
wu-
dzi-
.ée
cook
yan yax̱ yi- ya- k- g- wu- x̱- dzi- .ée
TERMEXH 2P.OBJ-QUAL-SRO-SBEN- PFV- 1S.SUBJ- CL- cook
"I finished cooking you (plural, small round) all up for myself"
Tlingit is by default anSOV language,[85] but nevertheless word order is quite flexible.[109] The SOV order is most apparent whenobject and (non-pronominal)agent phrases both exist in the sentence. However, there is a tendency to restrict the arguments of theverb phrase to a single non-pronominalnoun phrase, with any other arguments being integrated into the verb. This can cause the appearance of anOSV word order, but it has been shown Tlingit is not an object-initial language.[85]
TheIrish TV seriesAn Klondike (2015–2017), set in Canada in the 1890s, contains Tlingit dialogue;[110] as does the American comedy-dramaNorthern Exposure (1990–1995).[111]
In 2023, theCentral Council of the Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes released the first of nine Tlingit-language children's books and animated videos. TitledKuhaantí (lit. "orphan"), it was released on October 27 and has no accompanying English translation, which Lance Twitchell said shows that "our literature can stand on its own."[112][113]
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)| Indigenous | |
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