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Haisla language
Haisla (Haisla: X̄aʼislak̓ala / X̌àh̓isl̩ak̓ala, [ˈχaʔislakʼala]) is a First Nations Wakashan language spoken by the Haisla people of the North Coast region of the Canadian province of British Columbia, who are based in the village of Kitamaat.
The name "Haisla" is derived from the Haisla word xàʼisla or xàʼisəla, meaning 'dwellers downriver'. The Haisla and their language, along with that of the neighbouring Heiltsuk and Wuikinuxv peoples, were in the past incorrectly called "Northern Kwakiutl".
Haisla is currently spoken by several hundred people but it is considered critically endangered. Haisla is geographically the northernmost Wakashan language. Its nearest Wakashan neighbor is Oowekyala.
The present-day population of Kitamaat developed from multiple sources, and they had language differences among them. The two most prominent are Kitimaat (X̅aʼislakʼala) and Kitlope (X̅enaksialakʼala). Pronunciation, grammar, and word choice depend on which dialect is being spoken.
Haisla is still used to refer to the language as a whole, similar to the way that the term "English" encompasses multiple dialects.
Haisla is closely related to the other North Wakashan languages, Oowekyala, Heiltsuk, Kwak'wala, and, to a lesser extent, Nuuchahnulth (Nootka), Nitinat, and Makah. Typical of languages spoken on the Northwest Coast, these languages consist of multiple consonants with limited allophonic variation. The phonological inventory is familiar to other Northern Wakashan languages.
Haisla has a wide range of consonants, with the plain plosives being either voiced or voiceless. Similar to the other Wakashan languages, Haisla does not have large vowel systems. The vowels seen in the language are /i/, /a/, /u/, /o/, /e/ and /ə/. /ə/ also exists in Kwakwala, and absent from Southern Wakashan languages. The two languages are also characterized by their open /i u/.
Dorsals can either be front /k ɡ x/ or back, /q ɢ χ/, and can also be rounded. Plosives can be further altered by aspiration, glottalization, and voicing. Resonants also experience further augmentation through glottalization. Fricatives and plain plosives are generally aspirated within Northern Wakashan languages, whereas the voiced plosives can be either phonetically voiced or voiceless un-aspirated.
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Haisla language
Haisla (Haisla: X̄aʼislak̓ala / X̌àh̓isl̩ak̓ala, [ˈχaʔislakʼala]) is a First Nations Wakashan language spoken by the Haisla people of the North Coast region of the Canadian province of British Columbia, who are based in the village of Kitamaat.
The name "Haisla" is derived from the Haisla word xàʼisla or xàʼisəla, meaning 'dwellers downriver'. The Haisla and their language, along with that of the neighbouring Heiltsuk and Wuikinuxv peoples, were in the past incorrectly called "Northern Kwakiutl".
Haisla is currently spoken by several hundred people but it is considered critically endangered. Haisla is geographically the northernmost Wakashan language. Its nearest Wakashan neighbor is Oowekyala.
The present-day population of Kitamaat developed from multiple sources, and they had language differences among them. The two most prominent are Kitimaat (X̅aʼislakʼala) and Kitlope (X̅enaksialakʼala). Pronunciation, grammar, and word choice depend on which dialect is being spoken.
Haisla is still used to refer to the language as a whole, similar to the way that the term "English" encompasses multiple dialects.
Haisla is closely related to the other North Wakashan languages, Oowekyala, Heiltsuk, Kwak'wala, and, to a lesser extent, Nuuchahnulth (Nootka), Nitinat, and Makah. Typical of languages spoken on the Northwest Coast, these languages consist of multiple consonants with limited allophonic variation. The phonological inventory is familiar to other Northern Wakashan languages.
Haisla has a wide range of consonants, with the plain plosives being either voiced or voiceless. Similar to the other Wakashan languages, Haisla does not have large vowel systems. The vowels seen in the language are /i/, /a/, /u/, /o/, /e/ and /ə/. /ə/ also exists in Kwakwala, and absent from Southern Wakashan languages. The two languages are also characterized by their open /i u/.
Dorsals can either be front /k ɡ x/ or back, /q ɢ χ/, and can also be rounded. Plosives can be further altered by aspiration, glottalization, and voicing. Resonants also experience further augmentation through glottalization. Fricatives and plain plosives are generally aspirated within Northern Wakashan languages, whereas the voiced plosives can be either phonetically voiced or voiceless un-aspirated.