Inuktun
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Inuktun (Template:Langx, Template:Langx, Template:Langx) is the language of approximately 1,000 Indigenous Inughuit (Polar Inuit), inhabiting the world's northernmost settlements in Qaanaaq and the surrounding villages in northwestern Greenland.[3]
Geographic distribution
Apart from the town of Qaanaaq, Inuktun is also spoken in the villages of (Inuktun names in brackets) Moriusaq (Muriuhaq), Siorapaluk (Hiurapaluk), Qeqertat (Qikiqtat), Qeqertarsuaq (Qikiqtarhuaq), and Savissivik (Havighivik).
Classification
The language is an Eskimo–Aleut language and dialectologically it is in between the Greenlandic language (Kalaallisut) and the Canadian Inuktitut, Inuvialuktun or Inuinnaqtun. The language differs from Kalaallisut by some phonological, grammatical and lexical differences.
History
The Polar Inuit were the last to cross from Canada into Greenland and they may have arrived as late as in the 18th century.[4] The language was first described by the explorers Knud Rasmussen and Peter Freuchen who travelled through northern Greenland in the early 20th century and established a trading post in 1910 at Dundas (Uummannaq) near Pituffik.
Current situation
Inuktun does not have its own orthography and is not taught in schools. However, most of the inhabitants of Qaanaaq and the surrounding villages use Inuktun in their everyday communication.
All speakers of Inuktun also speak Standard Greenlandic. Many also speak Danish, and some speak English as well.
Phonology and orthography
There is no official way to transcribe Inuktun. This article uses the orthography of Michael Fortescue, which deliberately reflects the close connection between Inuktun and Inuktitut.
Vowels
The vowels are the same as in other Inuit dialects: Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". and Script error: No such module "IPA"..
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i iː | u uː | |
| Mid | (e~ə eː~əː)[a] | (o oː)[a] | |
| Open | a aː | (ɑ ɑː)[a] | |
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- ^ a b c Like in West Greenlandic Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". and Script error: No such module "IPA". become Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". and Script error: No such module "IPA". respectively before uvular consonants. However, unlike in West Greenlandic, Script error: No such module "IPA". and Script error: No such module "IPA". aren't written with ⟨e⟩ and ⟨o⟩. Instead they are written with ⟨i⟩ and ⟨u⟩ like in Inuktitut
There are two diphthongs: Script error: No such module "IPA". and Script error: No such module "IPA"., which have been assimilated in West Greenlandic to Script error: No such module "IPA". (except for final Script error: No such module "IPA".).
Consonants
The most notable phonological difference from West Greenlandic is the debuccalization of West Greenlandic Script error: No such module "IPA". to Script error: No such module "IPA". (often pronounced Script error: No such module "IPA".) except for geminate Script error: No such module "IPA". (from earlier Script error: No such module "IPA". or Script error: No such module "IPA".). Inuktun also allows more consonant clusters than Kalaallisut, namely ones with initial Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". or Script error: No such module "IPA".. Older or conservative speakers also still have clusters with initial Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". or Script error: No such module "IPA".. Younger speakers have gone further in reducing old clusters, with also Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". and Script error: No such module "IPA". being assimilated to the following consonant.
The digraphs ⟨gh⟩ and ⟨rh⟩ (from earlier Script error: No such module "IPA". and Script error: No such module "IPA"., cognates with West Greenlandic ⟨ss⟩ and ⟨rs⟩) are pronounced like West Greenlandic velar and uvular fricatives -gg- Script error: No such module "IPA". and -rr- Script error: No such module "IPA". respectively.
| Labial | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Uvular | Glottal | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | plain | m ⟨m⟩ | n ⟨n⟩, ⟨-t⟩[a] | ŋ ⟨ng⟩, ⟨-k⟩[a] | (ɴ ⟨-q⟩)[a] | ||
| geminated | mː ⟨mm⟩ | nː ⟨nn⟩ | ŋː ⟨nng⟩ | ɴː ⟨rng⟩ | |||
| Plosive | plain | p ⟨p⟩ | t ⟨t⟩ | k ⟨k⟩ | q ⟨q⟩ | ʔ[b] | |
| geminated | pː ⟨pp⟩ | tː ⟨tt⟩ | kː ⟨kk⟩ | qː ⟨qq⟩ | |||
| Affricate | plain | (t͡s ⟨t⟩)[c] | |||||
| geminated | tːs ⟨ts⟩ | ||||||
| Fricative | plain | v ⟨v⟩ [d] | s ⟨s⟩ | (ç ⟨h⟩)[e] | ɣ ⟨g⟩ | ʁ ⟨r⟩ | h ⟨h⟩ [e] |
| geminated | sː ⟨ss⟩ | xː ⟨gh⟩ | χː ⟨rh⟩ | ||||
| Approximant | (l ⟨l⟩)[f] | j ⟨j⟩ | |||||
| Flap | ɾ ⟨l⟩[f] | ||||||
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- ^ a b c in word-final position the stops Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". and Script error: No such module "IPA". become nasals Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". and Script error: No such module "IPA".. Fortescue chose not to show this in his orthography (except for the name of the dialect itself, Inuktun, which corresponds to West Greenlandic Inuttut "speaking like a person").
- ^ the non-nasal voiced geminates in Inuktun (gg, vv, ll, rr) are pronounced with a glottal stop + single voiced consonant (Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA".), unlike in Kalaallisut where they have all become devoiced long consonants (Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA".).
- ^ like in West Greenlandic short Script error: No such module "IPA". is in complementary distribution with short Script error: No such module "IPA"., with the former appearing before Script error: No such module "IPA". and the latter elsewhere; both are written ⟨t⟩ and could be analysed as belonging to the same phoneme Script error: No such module "IPA".. Before Script error: No such module "IPA"., long Script error: No such module "IPA". occurs while long Script error: No such module "IPA". doesn't, so long Script error: No such module "IPA". before Script error: No such module "IPA". could be analysed as long Script error: No such module "IPA".. However, before Script error: No such module "IPA". and Script error: No such module "IPA"., both long Script error: No such module "IPA". and long Script error: No such module "IPA". occur. Long Script error: No such module "IPA". is always written ⟨ts⟩.
- ^ Script error: No such module "IPA". may be bilabial Script error: No such module "IPA". for older speakers
- ^ a b the phoneme Script error: No such module "IPA". has two allophones for most speakers, an ordinary 'glottal' Script error: No such module "IPA". and a palatal sound, Script error: No such module "IPA"., which can be written 'hj'. This latter allophone, which is more frequent among older speakers, occurs regularly for most middle generation speakers between Script error: No such module "IPA". and Script error: No such module "IPA". (as in ahu), Script error: No such module "IPA". and Script error: No such module "IPA". (as in puqtuhuq) and Script error: No such module "IPA". and Script error: No such module "IPA". (as in ahaihuq), but also in the few (but common) other words containing the sequence huuq or huur, as in the ending of the word takihuuq ("long"). The only major exception concerns the indicative/participle endings (huq, etc.), which does not usually have the allophone Script error: No such module "IPA". even after Script error: No such module "IPA". or Script error: No such module "IPA".. Since the variation is predictable, Fortescue chose to use h for both sounds. For many if not most middle generation and younger speakers, however, a reanalysis of some of the forms with huuq has taken place (at least word-initially or after Script error: No such module "IPA".) so huuq ("why") and pualahuuq ("fat") are now pronounced hiuq and pualahiuq, with a clear sequence of two syllables.
- ^ a b the phoneme Script error: No such module "IPA". is pronounced as a flap Script error: No such module "IPA". as in most of northwest and East dialects of Greenlandic, which may sound more like a "d" to native English speakers.
Comparison with West Greenlandic
| Pronunciation | |
|---|---|
| Inuktun | West Greenlandic |
| a Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". [a] | |
| aa Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". [a] | |
| ai Script error: No such module "IPA". | aa Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". [a]
ai Script error: No such module "IPA". [b] |
| au Script error: No such module "IPA". | aa Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". [a] |
| g Script error: No such module "IPA". | |
| gg Script error: No such module "IPA". | gg Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| gh Script error: No such module "IPA". | ss Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| gl Script error: No such module "IPA". | ll Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| h Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". (see above) | s Script error: No such module "IPA". [c] |
| i Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". [a] | i Script error: No such module "IPA".
e Script error: No such module "IPA". [a] |
| ii Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". [a] | ii Script error: No such module "IPA".
ee Script error: No such module "IPA". [a] |
| j Script error: No such module "IPA". | |
| k Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". [b] | k Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| kp Script error: No such module "IPA". / Script error: No such module "IPA". [d] | pp Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| kt Script error: No such module "IPA". / Script error: No such module "IPA". [d] | tt Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| l Script error: No such module "IPA". | l Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| ll Script error: No such module "IPA". | ll Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| m Script error: No such module "IPA". | |
| n Script error: No such module "IPA". | |
| ng Script error: No such module "IPA". | |
| ngm Script error: No such module "IPA". / Script error: No such module "IPA". [d] | mm Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| ngn Script error: No such module "IPA". / Script error: No such module "IPA". [d] | nn Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| p Script error: No such module "IPA". | |
| q Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". [b] | q Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| qp Script error: No such module "IPA". | rp Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| qt Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". [e] | rt Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". [f] |
| r Script error: No such module "IPA". | |
| rl Script error: No such module "IPA". | rl Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| rm Script error: No such module "IPA". | rm Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| rn Script error: No such module "IPA". | rn Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| rng Script error: No such module "IPA". | |
| rh Script error: No such module "IPA". | rs Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| rv Script error: No such module "IPA". (may be Script error: No such module "IPA". for older speakers) | rf Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| s Script error: No such module "IPA". | |
| ss Script error: No such module "IPA". | |
| t Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". [e] | t Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". [f] |
| ts Script error: No such module "IPA". | |
| u Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". [a] | u Script error: No such module "IPA".
o Script error: No such module "IPA". [a] |
| uu Script error: No such module "IPA"., Script error: No such module "IPA". [a] | uu Script error: No such module "IPA".
oo Script error: No such module "IPA". [a] |
| v Script error: No such module "IPA". (may be Script error: No such module "IPA". for older speakers) | v Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| vv Script error: No such module "IPA". (may be Script error: No such module "IPA". for older speakers) | ff Script error: No such module "IPA". |
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Notes
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- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Greenland - People | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2022-12-26.
- ^ 770 in Greenland, and perhaps 20% more in Denmark. Greenlandic at Ethnologue (16th ed., 2009) Closed access icon
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Holtved, Erik (January 1952). "Remarks on the Polar Eskimo Dialect". International Journal of American Linguistics. 18 (1): 20–24. doi:10.1086/464143. S2CID 143645596.
- ^ Fortescue 1991. page 1
References
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- Fortescue, Michael, 1991, Inuktun: an introduction to the language of Qaanaaq, Thule, Institut for Eskimologi 15, Københavns Universitet
External links
- Pax Leonard, Stephen. "Scientist lives with Arctic Innuguit for a year to document and help save disappearing language." The Guardian.
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