Dena’ina language

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For the ethnic group, see Dena'ina (tribe).

Dena’ina (sometimes spelled Tanaina) (ISO 693-3 tfn) is the Athabaskan language of the region surrounding Cook Inlet. It is geographically unique in Alaska as the only Alaska Athabaskan language to include territory which borders salt water. Four dialects are usually distinguished:

  1. Upper Inlet, spoken in Alaska, Knik, Susitna, Tyonek
  2. Outer Inlet, spoken in Kenai, Kustatan, Seldovia
  3. Iliamna, spoken in Pedro Bay, Old Iliamna, Lake Iliamna area
  4. Inland, spoken in Nondalton, Lime Village

Of the total Dena'ina population of about 900 people, only 75-95 members still speak Dena’ina. James Kari has done extensive work on the language since 1972, including his edition with Alan Boraas of the collected writings of Peter Kalifornsky in 1991. Joan Tenenbaum also conducted extensive field research on the language in the 1970's.

Contents

[edit] Phonology

Dena'ina is one of seven Alaska Athabaskan languages which does not distinguish phonemic tone.

[edit] Consonants

The consonants of Dena’ina in practical orthography, with IPA equivalents indicated in square brackets.

   Labial  Dental Lateral Alveolar Palatal Velar Uvular  Glottal 
Stop / Affricate unaspirated (b) d dl dz j g gg '
aspirated   t [tʰ] tl [tɬʰ] ts [tsʰ] ch [tɬʰ] k [kʰ] q [qʰ]  
ejective   t’ tl’ ts’ ch’ k’ q’  
Fricative voiceless   (f) ɬ s sh [ʃ] x h [χ] ĥ [h]
voiced v   l z zh [ʒ] ŷ [ɣ] gh (ʁ)  
Sonorants   m n   (r) y [j]      

[edit] Vowels

The 4 vowels of Dena’ina. Note that high vowels are lowered in the environment of a uvular consonant.

  Front Central Back
High i   u
Mid   e [ə]  
Low   a  

[edit] External links

[edit] Bibliography

  • Balluta, Alex & Gladys Evanoff. 2004. Dena'ina Qenaga Du'idnaghelnik (Dena'ina Words Sound Pretty). Dena'ina Phrases 1: Nondalton Dialect, ed. by Olga Müller. Fairbanks: Alaska Native Language Center; Anchorage: Alaska Native Heritage Center. [[1]]
  • Chickalusion, Maxim, et al. 1980. Q'udi Heyi Niłch'diluyi Sukdu'a: "This Years Collected Stories.(Dena'ina Stories from Tyonek and Illiamna Lake). Anchorage: National Bilingual Materials Development Center.
  • Ellanna, Linda & Andrew Balluta. 1992. Nuvendaltin Quht'ana: The People of Nondalton. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press.
  • Johnson, Walter. 2004. Sukdu Neł Nuhtghelnek: I'll Tell You A Story: Stories I Recall From Growing Up On Iliamna Lake. Fairbanks: Alaska Native Language Center.
  • Kalifornsky, Peter. 1991 "K'tl'egh'i Sukdu, A Dena'ina Legacy: The Collected Writings of Peter Kalifornsky" edited by James Kari and Alan Boraas. Fairbanks: Alaska Native Language Center.
  • Kari, James. 1975. A classification of the Tanaina dialects. Anthropological Papers of the University of Alaska 17:49-55.
  • Kari, James, Priscilla Russell Kari and Jane McGary. 1983. Dena’ina Ełnena: Tanaina Country. Fairbanks: Alaska Native Language Center. Includes good bibliography and many photographs.
  • Kari, Priscilla Russell. 1987. Tanaina Plantlore: Dena’ina K’et’una. 2nd ed. Anchorage: Alaska Park Service. Ethnobotany and much other cultural information.
  • Osgood, Cornelius. 1937. Contributions to the Ethnography of the Tanaina. Yale University Publications in Anthropology, 16.
  • Stephan, Sava. 2005. Upper Inlet Dena’ina Language Lessons, ed. by James Kari. Anchorage: Alaska Native Heritage Center. [[2]]
  • Tenenbaum, Joan. 1978. Morphology and semantics of the Tanaina verb. (Doctoral dissertation, Columbia University).
  • Tenenbaum, Joan. 2006. Dena'ina Sukdu'a 3rd ed. Fairbanks: Alaska Native Language Center. ISBN 1-55500-090-8.
  • Townsend, Joan B. 1981. “Tanaina.” In June Helm, ed., Subarctic: Handbook of North American Indians, vol. 6. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution.
  • Wassillie, Albert. 1980. Nuvendaltun Ht’ana Sukdu’a: Nondalton People’s Stories. Anchorage: National Bilingual Materials Development Center.
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