The recordings in this collection are of Tlingit speakers talking naturally to each other in their ancestral language. From 2007 to 2013 Tlingit elders made the recordings for current and future Tlingit language learners. We hope the recordings and subtitles will help learners hear, understand, pronounce, read, and write Tlingit. We hope the content of these conversations will be of value to the Tlingit community and others for the history, stories, child rearing, fishing, women’s ways, men’s ways, humor, games, songs, Tlingit protocols, food harvesting and preparation, flora, fauna, kin relationships, weather, land ownership, potlatches, medicine, funerals, and more. You can search and download the Woosh Een áyá Yoo X’atudliátk Video Catalog for the topics and contents of each of the conversations.
We also hope these recordings will be of value to Linguists, the scientists who study all aspects of Language, asking questions such as: What sounds are used in the language? What combinations of sound contain meaning? How are words formed? How are words organized into longer units of meaning? Do women speak differently than men? How is this language acquired? What languages are most similar to this language?
This has been, all along, a guilt-free, apology-free, grief-free, complaint-free, shame-free project. Each recording presented here is imbued with the joy and healing we all felt in working with it. We wish you joy and wellbeing as you use these materials and hope they benefit you on your pathway, whatever it may be.
Nearly everyone who listens to these recordings hears something new that others have missed. We welcome your suggestions for improvement and will incorporate them into the written captions, with your name if you wish. Email your suggestions to [email protected].
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This project is funded by National Science Foundation Award 853788 under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 209 (Public Law 111-5). Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.