Cowlitz language

(Redirected from ISO 639:cow)

Cowlitz (Cowlitz: ƛʼpúlmixq),[2] also known as Cowlitz Salish,[3] 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.[3]

Cowlitz
ƛʼpúlmixq
Native toUnited States
RegionSouthwestern Washington
EthnicityLower Cowlitz people
Extinct1960s
Revivalrevival efforts underway
Salishan
  • Coast
    • Tsamosan
      • Inland
        • Cowlitz
Language codes
ISO 639-3cow
Glottologcowl1242

Dialects

edit

Cowlitz had two dialects, with a dialectal opposition between [k] and [x] and [t͡ʃ] and [ʃ]. However, these dialects were poorly documented, due to the extinction of the language.[4]

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.[5]

Phonology

edit
Consonants[6]
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[6]
Front Central Back
Close i u
Mid e ə
Open a

Orthography

edit
Cowlitz alphabet[7]
ʔ a b c č čʼ d e ə f g h i j k kʼʷ l ɬ ƛʼ m n
o o p q qʼʷ r s š t u v w x x̣ʷ y z

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 people sƛʼpúlmx
one (number) ʔúcʼs
two sáliʔ
three káʔɬiʔ
four mús
five čílačš
to sing sʔílnʼ
moon/sun ɬukʷáɬ
dog qáx̣aʔ
water qálʔ
man síɬmx
woman kə́wɬ

References

edit
  1. ^ Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger (Report) (3rd ed.). UNESCO. 2010. p. 11.
  2. ^ "Cowlitz Coast Salish Dictionary". Cowlitz Salish Dictionary. Cowlitz Indian Tribe. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  3. ^ a b "Cowlitz Salish Language Learning". Cowlitz Salish. The Language Conservancy. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  4. ^ Kinkade, M. Dale (October 1973). "The Alveopalatal Shift in Cowlitz Salish". International Journal of American Linguistics. 39 (4): 224–231. doi:10.1086/465270. ISSN 0020-7071.
  5. ^ "Our Story". The Cowlitz Indian Tribe. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  6. ^ a b Kinkade, Marvin Dale (2004). Cowlitz dictionary and grammatical sketch. Missoula, MT: Linguistics Laboratory, University of Montana. pp. 219–224.
  7. ^ "Cowlitz Salish Dictionary". dictionary.cowlitzsalish.org. Retrieved October 10, 2024.

Further reading

edit

See also

edit