Inuvialuktun Inuktitut, Siglitun, Uummarmiutun, Kangiryuarmiutun Spoken in Canada (Northwest Territories) Region North America Total speakers 400–700 Language family Eskimo-Aleut Eskimo Inuit Inuvialuktun Official status Official language in Northwest Territories (Canada) Regulated by Inuvialuit Cultural Resource Centre and Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami Language codes ISO 639-1 iu ISO 639-2 iku ISO 639-3 ikt Note: This page may contain IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. Inuvialuktun, or Western Canadian Inuit language, Western Canadian Inuktitut, Western Canadian Inuktun comprises three Inuit dialects spoken in the northern Northwest Territories by those Canadian Inuit who call themselves Inuvialuk (plural Inuvialuit). Inuvialuktun is spoken by the Inuit of the Mackenzie River delta in the Northwest Territories, Banks Island, part of Victoria Island and the Arctic Ocean coast of the Northwest Territories - the lands of the Inuvialuit Settlement Region. The government of the Northwest Territories considers Inuvialuktun distinct from the Inuktitut spoken in Nunavut.

Inuvialuktun is an official language of the Northwest Territories and is written using the Roman alphabet, like all NWT official languages, and has no tradition of Inuktitut syllabics. However, the official understanding of Inuvialuktun is somewhat at variance to the way linguists understand it. Rather than a single dialect, Inuvialuktun is a politically motivated grouping of three quite distinct and separate dialects. Before the 20th century, the Inuvialuit Settlement Region was primarily inhabited by Siglit Inuit who spoke the Siglitun dialect, but in the second half of the 19th century, their numbers were dramatically reduced by the introduction of new diseases. Inuit from Alaska moved into traditionally Siglit areas in the 1910s and 20s, enticed in part by renewed demand for furs from the Hudson's Bay Company. These Inuit are called Uummarmiut - which means people of the green trees - in reference to their settlements near the tree line. Originally, there was an intense dislike between the Siglit and the Uummarmiut, but these differences have faded over the years, and the two communities are thoroughly intermixed these days. Contents 1 Dialects 2 Inuvialuktun phrases 3 Preservation 4 Phonology 5 Notes 6 Further reading 7 External links Dialects

Inuvialuktun has three main dialect divisions, plus a fourth dialect conventionally grouped here from a neighboring language:1 Siglitun: Until the 1980s, it was believed that the Siglitun dialect was extinct, but it is still spoken by people in Paulatuk, Sachs Harbour and Tuktoyaktuk. Inuinnaqtun consists of 4 subdialects: Kangiryuarmiutun, Coppermine, Bathurst, Cambridge. The Kangiryuarmiutun subdialect is spoken in the small community of Ulukhaktok. It is essentially identical to the Inuinnaqtun spoken in the bordering part of Nunavut. Natsilingmiutut consists of 3 subdialects: Natsilik, Arviligjuaq, Utkuhiksalik Uummarmiutun, the dialect of the Uummarmiut, is essentially identical to the Inupiatun dialect spoken in Alaska, and is considered an Iñupiaq language, but is conventionally grouped with Inuvialuktun. Uummarmiutun is found in the communities of Inuvik and Aklavik. Inuvialuktun phrases English Inuvialuktun pronunciation Hello Atitu /atitu/ Good Bye Ilaannilu/Qakugulu /ilaːnilu/ / /qakuɡulu/ Thank you Quyanainni /qujanainni/ You are welcome Amiunniin /amiunniːn/ How are you? Qanuq itpin? /qanuq itpin/ I am fine Nakuyumi/Nakuyumi assi /nakujumi assi/ Good morning Ublaami /ublaːmi/ Yes Ii /iː/ No Naaggai /naːɡɡai/ Cold! Brrr! Alaappa! /alaːppa/ *Gasp* (an expression used when alarmed or fearful) Alii /aliː/ See you later Anaqanaallu /anaqanaːllu/ Wow/Awesome Aqqali /aqqali/ Listen! Ata! /ata/ See you, too Ilaanniptauq /ilaːnniptauq/ It is like this Imaaniittuaq /imaːniːttuaq/ Like this Imanna /imanna/ Whose? Kia? /kia/ Who is this? Kina una? /kina una/ Where? Nani?/Naung?/Sumi? /nani/ / /nauŋ/ / /sumi/ Where are you from? Nakinngaaqpin?/Sumiutauvin? /nakiŋŋaqpin/ / /sumiutauvin/} How much does it cost? Qanuq akitutigivaa? /qanuq akitutigivaː/ How old is he/she? Qanuq ukiuqtutigiva? /qanuq ukiututiɡiva/ What do you call it? Qanuq taivakpiung? /qanuq taivakpiuŋ/ What is time? Sumukpaung? /sumukpauŋ/ What for? Suksaq? /suksaq/ Why? Or how come? Suuq? /suːq/ What? Suva?/Suna? /suva/~/suna/ Doesn't matter/It is ok Sunngittuq /suŋŋittuq/ What are you doing? Suvin? /suvin/ It can't be helped! Too bad. Qanurviituq! /qanuʁviːtuq/ in fact, actually Nutim [nutim] Do it again! Pipsaarung! [pipsaːʁuŋ] Go ahead and do it Piung [piuŋ] It is cold out! Qiqauniqtuaq /qiqauniqtuaq/ Christmas Qitchirvik /qittʃiʁviq/ Candy Uqummiaqataaq [/uqummiaqataːq/ Play music Atuqtuuyaqtuaq /atuqtuːjaqtuaq/ Drum dancing Qilaun/Qilausiyaqtuaq /qilaun/ / /qilausijaqtuaq/ Church Angaadjuvik /aŋaːdjuvik/ Bell Aviluraun /aviluʁaun/ Jewels Savaqutit /savaqutit/ Eskimo ice cream Akutuq /akutaq/ That's all! Taima! /taima/ Siglitun Inuvialuktun snow terms2 English meaning Apiqaun first snow layer in autumn that stays Apusiqqaun first fall of snow Aqiuyaq small, fresh snowdrift Masak waterlogged snow Mauyaa deep, soft snow Minguliruqtuaq blowing wet snow Piangnaq good snow conditions for sledge travel Preservation

English has in recent years become the common language of the Inuvialuit. Surveys of Inuktitut usage in the NWT vary, but all agree that usage is not vigorous. According to the Inuvialuit Cultural Resource Centre, only some 10% of the roughly 4,000 Inuvialuit speak any dialect of Inuvialuktun, and only some 4% use it at home. [1] Statistics Canada's 2001 Census reports 765 self-identified Inuvialuktun speakers out of a self-reported Inuvialuit population of 3,905. With only a few hundred speakers and already divided into diverse dialects, Inuvialuktun's future appears bleak. Phonology Main article: Inuit phonology Notes ^ "Iñuvialuktun/Inuvialuktun/Inuinnaqtun". languagegeek.com. http://www.languagegeek.com/inu/inuvialuktun.html. Retrieved 2007-09-29.  ^ "Inuvialuit Settlement Region Traditional Knowledge Report". August 2006. http://www.ngps.nt.ca/Upload/Letters%20of%20Comment/Inuvik%20Community%20Corporation/ICC-ISR_TK_Study/070402_ICC-ISR_TK_Study_FINAL%20_Aug18-06-1.pdf. Retrieved 2009-03-16.  Further reading Harper, Kenn. Current Status of Writing Systems for Inuktitut, Inuinnaqtun and Inuvialuktun. [Yellowknife, N.W.T.]: Northwest Territories, Culture and Communications, 1992. External links Inuvialuit Regional Corporation - Language v · d · eEskimo-Aleut languages and dialects Italics indicate extinct languages Aleut Aleut Inuit* Greenlandic Eastern Greenlandic, Inuktun Inuinnaqtun   Inuktitut Nunatsiavummiutut, Inuttitut Inupiaq Qawiaraq, Uummarmiutun        Inuvialuktun Kangiryuarmiutun, Natsilik, Utkuhiksalik, Siglitun Yupik Alutiiq   Central Alaskan Yugtun, Nunivak Cup'ig, Chevak Cup’ik Naukan   Sirenik**   See also; Proto-Eskimo, Proto-Eskimo-Aleut, Inuktitut writing *The Inuit language 'family' is a continuum of dialects, but while people can understand the dialects closest to them, it becomes harder the further away they are. **Some linguists classify Sirenik as under a separate Eskimo branch, and not under Yupik.