Squamish (Sḵwx̱wú7mesh sníchim)

Squamish is a Central Salishan language spoken in the southwest of British Columbia in Canada, mainly in reservations in Squamish in North Vancouver, and in West Vancouver. In 2014 there were seven native speakers of Squamish, and about 450 learners of the language.

Squamish is closely related to Sechelt, Halkomelem, which are also spoken in British Columbia, and Nooksack, which is spoken in the northwest of Washington State in the USA.

Squamish was first documented in the 1880s by Franz Boas, a German anthropologist. A grammar of Squamish was produced by a Dutch linguist, Aert H. Kuipers, in the 1950s. The language was further documented in 1968, when the current orthography was devised. A Squamish dictionary was publish in 2011.

Squamish was declared the offical language of the Squamish people in 1990. Since then efforts have been made to revitalize the language. Squamish language courses are offered at Capilano University in North Vancouver, and at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver. There are also classes in Squamish in primary and secondary schools.

Squamish alphabet and pronunciation

Notes

An acute accent (´) indicates that a vowel is stressed
In some Squamish texts the apostrophes appear next to letters, in others they appear above the letters

Download a chart of the Squamish alphabet

Some Squamish phrases

Nú, chexw men wa ha7lh? = Hello, are you doing good? (respectful greeting)
Nú = Hello (to close friends)
I chen tl’iḵ = I have arrived (used as a greeting)
I chexw tl’iḵ = You have arrived (response to the above greeting)
Wa chexw yuu = Take care
Huy̓ melh halh = Goodbye
Ayás chexw = Have a good one

Source: https://www.kwiawtstelmexw.com/language_resources/greetings-in-skwxwu7mesh/

Sample videos in and about Squamish

Information about Squamish | Numbers

Links

Information about Squamish
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Squamish_language
http://www.native-languages.org/squamish.htm
https://www.kwiawtstelmexw.com/language_resources/how-to-read-the-squamish-language/
http://www.squamish.net/about-us/our-culture/#language
https://www.ethnologue.com/language/squ

Salishan languages

Coeur d'Alene, Comox, Halkomelem, Klallam, Lushootseed, Lillooet, Nooksack, Nuxalk, Okanagan, Saanich, Salish, she shashishalhem, Shuswap, Squamish, Nlaka’pamux (Thompson)

Languages written with the Latin alphabet

Page last modified: 25.02.23

[top]

You can support this site by Buying Me A Coffee, and if you like what you see on this page, you can use the buttons below to share it with people you know.

If you like this site and find it useful, you can support it by making a donation via PayPal or Patreon, or by contributing in other ways. Omniglot is how I make my living.

Note: all links on this site to Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.fr are affiliate links. This means I earn a commission if you click on any of them and buy something. So by clicking on these links you can help to support this site.

[top]