Cowlitz language

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Cowlitz Salish
ƛʼpúlmixq
Native toUnited States
RegionSouthwestern Washington
Salishan
  • Coast
    • Tsamosan
      • Inland
        • Cowlitz Salish
Language codes
ISO 639-3cow
Glottologcowl1242

Cowlitz (Cowlitz: ƛʼpúlmixq),[1] also known as Cowlitz Salish,[2] is a Tsamosan language of the Coast Salish family of Salishan languages. It was spoken by the Lower Cowlitz people of the Cowlitz Indian Tribe and is spoken today by both Lower and Upper Cowlitz people. Although it went dormant in the 1960s, it is being revitalized by the Cowlitz Tribe.

Cowlitz people[edit]

The Cowlitz people were originally two distinct tribes: the Lower Cowlitz and the Upper Cowlitz, sometimes called the Taidnapam. Only the Lower Cowlitz originally spoke Cowlitz Salish. The Upper Cowlitz spoke a Sahaptin language.[3]

Phonology[edit]

Consonants[4]
Bilabial Alveolar Palatal Velar Uvular Glottal
central sibilant lateral plain lab. plain lab.
Plosive/
Affricate
plain p t ts k q ʔ
ejective tsʼ tɬʼ tʃʼ kʷʼ qʷʼ
Fricative s ɬ ʃ x χ χʷ h
Sonorant plain m n l j w
glottalized
Vowels[4]
Front Central Back
Close i u
Mid e ə
Open a

Vocabulary[edit]

Cowlitz is most similar to Lower Chehalis, another Tsamosan language, although it contains some oddities, such as the word for one, utsus (in contrast to the Lower Chehalis paw).

English Cowlitz
Lower Cowlitz tribe Sł'púlmš
one (number) utsus
two salli
three kałi
four mus
five tsilats
to sing ilani
moon/sun Łuqał
dog kaxa
water kal'l
man siłimx
woman kuwił

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Cowlitz Coast Salish Dictionary". Cowlitz Salish Dictionary. Cowlitz Indian Tribe. Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  2. ^ "Cowlitz Salish Language Learning". Cowlitz Salish. The Language Conservancy. Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  3. ^ "Our Story". The Cowlitz Indian Tribe. Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  4. ^ a b Kinkade, Marvin Dale (2004). Cowlitz dictionary and grammatical sketch. Missoula, MT: Linguistics Laboratory, University of Montana. pp. 219–224.

Further reading[edit]

See also[edit]