Editing Tlingit language

{{Short description|Na-Dene language of Alaska and Canada}}
{{More footnotes|date=February 2023}}
{{use dmy dates |date=March 2024}}
{{Infobox language
| name             = Tlingit
| nativename       = {{lang|tli|Lingít}}
| pronunciation    = {{IPA|/ɬɪ̀nkɪ́tʰ/}}
| states           = [[United States]], [[Canada]]
| region           = [[Alaska]], [[British Columbia]], [[Yukon]], [[Washington (state)|Washington]]
| ethnicity        = 10,000 [[Tlingit]] (1995)<ref name=e25>{{e25|Tlingit}}</ref>
| speakers         = ~170 total
| date             = 2016–2020
| ref              = 
| speakers2        = ~50 highly-proficient L1 speakers, 10 highly-proficient L2 speakers (2020, United States)<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.commerce.alaska.gov/web/Portals/4/pub/ANLPAC/ANLPAC%202020%20Report%20to%20the%20Governor%20and%20Legislature.pdf |access-date=11 March 2024 |title=2020 Biennial Report to the Governor and Legislature |publisher=The Alaska Native Language Preservation & Advisory Council |page=6 }}</ref><br>120 in Canada (2016 census)<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/as-sa/98-200-x/2016022/98-200-x2016022-eng.cfm|title=Census in Brief: The Aboriginal languages of First Nations people, Métis and Inuit|website=www12.statcan.gc.ca|date=25 October 2017|language=en|publisher=Statistics Canada|access-date=2017-11-01}}</ref>
| familycolor      = Na-Dené
| fam1             = [[Dene-Yeniseian languages|Dene-Yeniseian]]?
| fam2             = [[Na-Dene languages|Na-Dene]]
| script           = [[Tlingit alphabet]] ([[Latin script]])
| nation           = {{flag|Alaska}}<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2014/04/21/305688602/alaska-oks-bill-making-native-languages-official|title=Alaska OKs Bill Making Native Languages Official|newspaper=NPR|date=21 April 2014|last1=Chappell|first1=Bill}}</ref>
| iso2             = tli
| iso3             = tli
| notice           = IPA
| glotto           = tlin1245
| glottorefname    = Tlingit
| map              = Tlingit-map.png
| mapscale         = 
| map2             = Lang Status 20-CR.svg
| mapcaption2      = {{center|{{small|Tlingit is classified as Critically Endangered by the [[UNESCO]] ''[[Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger]]''}}}}
}}
{{Infobox ethnonym|root=[[Tlingit|Lingít]]<br/><small>"People of the Tides"</small>|person=|people=[[Tlingit]]|language=Lingít|country=[[Southeast Alaska|Tlingit Aaní]]}}
[[File:WIKITONGUES- Lgeik'i and Naakil.aan speaking Lingít.webm|thumb|Two Tlingit speakers, recorded in the [[United States]].]]
The '''Tlingit language''' ({{IPAc-en|lang|audio=Tlingit English pronunciation.mp3|ˈ|k|l|ɪ|ŋ|k|ɪ|t}} {{respell|KLING|kit}};<ref>Laurie Bauer, 2007, ''The Linguistics Student's Handbook'', Edinburgh</ref> ''{{lang|tli|Lingít}}'' {{IPA|tli|ɬɪ̀nkɪ́tʰ}})<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last1=Maddieson |first1=Ian |last2=Smith |first2=Caroline L. |last3=Bessell |first3=Nicola |date=2001 |title=Aspects of the Phonetics of Tlingit |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/30028779 |journal=Anthropological Linguistics |volume=43 |issue=2 |pages=135–176 |jstor=30028779 |issn=0003-5483}}</ref> is an Indigenous language of the northwestern coast of North America, which is spoken by the [[Tlingit]] people of [[Southeast Alaska]] and [[Western Canada]] and is a branch of the [[Na-Dene languages|Na-Dene language family]]. Extensive effort is being put into revitalization programs in Southeast [[Alaska]] to revive and preserve the Tlingit language and culture.

Missionaries of the [[Russian Orthodox Church]] were the first to develop a written version of Tlingit by using the [[Cyrillic script]] to record and translate it when the [[Russian Empire]] had contact with Alaska and the coast of North America down to [[Sonoma County, California]]. After the [[Alaska Purchase]], English-speaking missionaries from the [[United States]] developed a written version of the language with the [[Latin alphabet]].

==History==
The history of Tlingit is poorly known, mostly because there is no written record until the first contact with Europeans around the 1790s.  Documentation was sparse and irregular until the early 20th century. The language appears to have spread northward from the [[Ketchikan, Alaska|Ketchikan]]–[[Saxman, Alaska|Saxman]] area towards the [[Chilkat Peninsula|Chilkat]] region since certain conservative features are reduced gradually from south to north. The shared features between the [[Eyak language]], found around the [[Copper River (Alaska)|Copper River]] delta, and [[Tongass Tlingit]], near the [[Portland Canal]], are all the more striking for the distances that separate them, both geographic and linguistic.

==Classification==
Tlingit is currently classified as a distinct and separate branch of Na-Dene, an [[indigenous languages of the Americas|indigenous language family of North America]]. [[Edward Sapir]] (1915) argued for its inclusion in the Na-Dené family, a claim that was subsequently debated by [[Franz Boas]] (1917), [[Pliny Earle Goddard|P.E. Goddard]] (1920), and many other prominent linguists of the time. This tribe is commonly known for being a big part of “touching spirit bear”

Studies in the late 20th century by (Heinz-)Jürgen Pinnow (1962, 1968, 1970, int. al.) and [[Michael E. Krauss]] (1964, 1965, 1969, int. al.) showed a strong connection to [[Eyak language|Eyak]] and hence to the [[Athabaskan languages]].

Sapir initially proposed a connection between Tlingit and [[Haida language|Haida]], but the debate over Na-Dene gradually excluded Haida from the discussion. Haida is now considered an [[language isolate|isolate]], with some borrowing from its long proximity with Tlingit. In 2004, the Haida linguist John Enrico presented new arguments and reopened the debate. [[Victor Golla]] writes in his 2011 ''California Native Languages'', "John Enrico, the contemporary linguist with the deepest knowledge of Haida, continues to believe that a real, if distant, genetic relationship connects Haida to Na-Dene[.]"<ref name="Golla2011">{{cite book|last=Golla|first=Victor|author-link=Victor Golla|title=California Indian Languages|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B_yqdSE1F8wC&pg=PA303|year=2011|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-26667-4|page=303}}</ref>

==Geographic distribution==
The Tlingit language is distributed from near the mouth of the [[Copper River (Alaska)|Copper River]] down the open coast of the [[Gulf of Alaska]] and throughout almost all of the islands of the [[Alexander Archipelago]] in [[Southeast Alaska]]. It is characterized by four or five distinct dialects, but they are mostly mutually intelligible. Almost all of the area where the Tlingit language is endemic is contained within the modern borders of [[Alaska]].

The exception is an area known as "Inland Tlingit" that extends up the [[Taku River]] and into northern [[British Columbia]] and the [[Yukon]] around [[Atlin Lake]] (''Áa Tleen'' "Big Lake") and [[Teslin Lake]] (''Desleen'' < ''Tas Tleen'' "Big Thread") lake districts, as well as a concentration around [[Bennett Lake]] at the end of the [[Chilkoot Trail]] (''Jilkhoot''). Otherwise, Tlingit is not found in [[Canada]]. Tlingit legend tells that groups of Tlingit once inhabited the [[Stikine River|Stikine]], [[Nass River|Nass]], and [[Skeena River|Skeena]] river valleys during their migrations from the interior. There is a small group of speakers (some 85) in [[Washington (state)|Washington]] as well.<ref>[http://www.mla.org/map_data_states&mode=lang_tops&lang_id=866 "Tlingit territory"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070817053334/http://www.mla.org/map_data_states%26mode%3Dlang_tops%26lang_id%3D866 |date=2007-08-17 }}, Modern Language Association</ref>

=== Use and revitalization efforts ===
Golla (2007) reported a decreasing population of 500 speakers in Alaska. The [[First Peoples' Cultural Council]] (2014) reported 2 speakers in Canada out of an ethnic population of 400.<!--sourced from ethnologue-->

As of 2013, Tlingit courses are available at the [[University of Alaska Southeast]].<ref name = "ktoo201310">{{Cite episode
| publisher = KTOO, [[Juneau, Alaska]]
| credits = Lisa Phu (Director)
| title = UAS and Yukon College partnership advances Native language efforts
| access-date = 2013-10-24
| date = 2013-10-22
| minutes = 3:44
| url = http://www.ktoo.org/2013/10/22/uas-and-yukon-college-partnership-advances-native-language-efforts/
}}</ref> In April 2014, Alaska HB 216 recognized Tlingit as an official language of Alaska, lending support to [[language revitalization]].<ref>{{Cite news
| last = Twitchell
| first = Lance A
| title = HB 216 and the emotions of language revitalization
| work = Alaska Dispatch
| access-date = 2014-05-05
| date = 2014-04-23
| url = http://www.alaskadispatch.com/article/20140423/alaskas-official-indigenous-languages-and-emotions-revitalization
| archive-date = 2014-04-26
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140426125850/http://www.alaskadispatch.com/article/20140423/alaskas-official-indigenous-languages-and-emotions-revitalization
| url-status = dead
}}</ref>

==Dialects==
Tlingit is divided into roughly five major dialects, all of which are essentially mutually intelligible:
* The Northern dialect is also called the Yakutat (''Yakhwdaat'') dialect, after its principal town and is spoken in an area south from [[Lituya Bay]] (''Litu.aa'') to [[Frederick Sound]].
* The Transitional dialect, a two-tone dialect like the Northern dialect but has phonological features of the Southern, is historically spoken in the villages of [[Petersburg, Alaska|Petersburg]] (''Gántiyaakw Séedi'' "Steamboat Canyon"), [[Kake, Alaska|Kake]] (''Khéixh' '' "Daylight"), and [[Wrangell, Alaska|Wrangell]] (''Khaachxhana.áak'w'' "Khaachxhan's Little Lake"), and in the surrounding regions although it has almost disappeared.
* The similarly-moribund Southern dialects of ''Sanya'' and ''Heinya'' are spoken from [[Sumner Strait]] south to the Alaska-Canada border, excepting [[Annette Island]], which is the reservation of the [[Tsimshian]], and the southern end of [[Prince of Wales Island (Alaska)|Prince of Wales Island]], which is the land of the Kaigani [[Haida people|Haida]] (''K'aayk'aani'').
* The [[Inland Tlingit]] dialect is spoken in Canada around [[Atlin Lake]] and [[Teslin Lake]].
* The Tongass Tlingit dialect was once spoken in the Cape Fox area south of [[Ketchikan, Alaska|Ketchikan]] but recently died with its last speakers in the 1990s.

The various dialects of Tlingit can be classified roughly into two-tone and three-tone systems. Tongass Tlingit, however, has no tone but a four-way [[register (phonology)|register]] contrast between short, long, glottalized, and "fading" vowels. (In the last type, the onset of the vowel is articulated normally but the release is [[murmured voice|murmured]], essentially a rapid opening of the glottis once articulation is begun.)

The tone values in two-tone dialects can be predicted in some cases from the three-tone values but not the reverse. Earlier, it was hypothesized that the three-tone dialects were older and that the two-tone dialects evolved from them. However, [[Jeff Leer]]'s discovery of the Tongass dialect in the late 1970s has shown{{citation needed|date=September 2015}} that the Tongass vowel system is adequate to predict the tonal features of both the two-tone and three-tone dialects, but none of the tonal dialects could be used to predict vocalic feature distribution in Tongass Tlingit. Thus, Tongass Tlingit is the most conservative of the various dialects of Tlingit, preserving contrasts which have been lost in the other dialects.

The fading and glottalized vowels in Tongass Tlingit have also been compared with similar systems in the [[Coast Tsimshian dialect]]. However, Krauss and Leer (1981, p.&nbsp;165) point out that the fading vowels in Coastal Tsimshian are the surface realization of [[underlying representation|underlying]] sequences of vowel and glottalized sonorant, {{IPA|VʔC}}. That is in contradistinction to the glottal modifications in Tongass Tlingit, which Leer argues are symmetric with the modifications of the consonantal system. Thus, a fading vowel {{IPA|V̤}} is symmetric{{clarify|date=September 2015}} with an aspirated consonant {{IPA|Cʰ}}, and a glottalized vowel {{IPA|Vʔ}} is symmetric with an ejective (glottalized) consonant {{IPA|Cʼ}}. That implies that the two systems have no familial relationship. Leer (1978) speculated that the maintenance of the pretonal system in Tongass Tlingit was caused by the proximity of its speakers around the Cape Fox area near the mouth of the [[Portland Canal]] to speakers of Coastal Tsimshian, just to the south.

==Phonology==

Tlingit has a complex [[phonology|phonological]] system compared to [[Indo-European languages]] such as English or [[Spanish language|Spanish]]. It has an almost complete series of [[ejective]] consonants accompanying its stop, fricative, and affricate consonants. The only missing consonant in the Tlingit ejective series is {{IPA|[ʃʼ]}}. The language is also notable for having several [[lateral consonant|laterals]] but no voiced {{IPA|[l]}} and for having no [[labial consonant|labials]] in most dialects, except for {{IPA|[m]}} and {{IPA|[p]}} in recent English [[loanword]]s.

===Consonants===
The consonants in the table are given in the IPA, with the popular orthography equivalents in brackets.

:{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"
|-
! rowspan=2 colspan=2| 
! rowspan=2 | [[Labial consonant|Labial]]
! colspan=3 | [[Alveolar consonant|Alveolar]]
! rowspan=2 | [[Palato-alveolar consonant|Palato-<br />alveolar]]
! colspan=2 | [[Velar consonant|Velar]]
! colspan=2 | [[Uvular consonant|Uvular]]
! colspan=2 | [[Glottal consonant|Glottal]]
|- 
! <small>plain</small> || <small>[[sibilant]]</small> || <small>[[lateral consonant|lateral]]</small>
! <small>plain</small> || <small>[[labialisation|labial]]</small>
! <small>plain</small> || <small>labial</small>
! <small>plain</small> || <small>labial</small>
|-
! rowspan=3 | [[Plosive]]
! <small>unaspirated</small>
| 
| {{IPA link|t}} {{angbr|d}}
| {{IPA link|ts}} {{angbr|dz}}
| {{IPA link|tɬ}} {{angbr|dl}}
| {{IPA link|tʃ}} {{angbr|j}}
| {{IPA link|k}} {{angbr|g}}
| {{IPA link|kʷ}} {{angbr|gw}}
| {{IPA link|q}} {{angbr|gh}}
| {{IPA link|qʷ}} {{angbr|ghw}}
| {{IPA link|ʔ}} {{angbr|.}}
| {{IPA link|ʔʷ}} {{angbr|.w}}{{efn|name=Leer|Leer (1991) argues the existence of two labialized glottal consonants, {{IPA|[ʔʷ]}} and {{IPA|[hʷ]}}, which could be written in the popular orthography as ''.w'' and ''hw''. The latter sound does appear in the speech of some speakers, but only in the highly variable word ''oohwaan'' ("first person plural independent pronoun"). This particular word is also pronounced (and hence spelled) ''oohaan'', ''hoowaan'', and ''oowaan'' among other variations. The labialized glottal stop is not attested in any Tlingit transcriptions or recordings, although speakers seem to be able to produce it when requested.}}
|-
! <small>[[aspiration (phonetics)|aspirated]]</small>
| 
| {{IPA link|tʰ}} {{angbr|t}}
| {{IPA link|tsʰ}} {{angbr|ts}}
| {{IPA link|tɬʰ}} {{angbr|tl}}
| {{IPA link|tʃʰ}} {{angbr|ch}}
| {{IPA link|kʰ}} {{angbr|k}}
| {{IPA link|kʷʰ}} {{angbr|kw}}
| {{IPA link|qʰ}} {{angbr|kh}}
| {{IPA link|qʷʰ}} {{angbr|khw}}
| 
|
|-
! <small>[[ejective consonant|ejective]]</small>
| 
| {{IPA link|tʼ}} {{angbr|tʼ}}
| {{IPA link|tsʼ}} {{angbr|tsʼ}}
| {{IPA link|tɬʼ}} {{angbr|tlʼ}}
| {{IPA link|tʃʼ}} {{angbr|chʼ}}
| {{IPA link|kʼ}} {{angbr|kʼ}}
| {{IPA link|kʷʼ}} {{angbr|kʼw}}
| {{IPA link|qʼ}} {{angbr|khʼ}}
| {{IPA link|qʷʼ}} {{angbr|khʼw}}
| 
| 
|-
! rowspan=2 | [[Fricative]]
! <small>[[voiceless]]</small>
| 
|
| {{IPA link|s}} {{angbr|s}}
| {{IPA link|ɬ}} {{angbr|l}}
| {{IPA link|ʃ}} {{angbr|sh}}
| {{IPA link|x}} {{angbr|x}}
| {{IPA link|xʷ}} {{angbr|xw}}
| {{IPA link|χ}} {{angbr|xh}}
| {{IPA link|χʷ}} {{angbr|xhw}}
| {{IPA link|h}} {{angbr|h}}
| {{IPA link|hʷ}} {{angbr|hw}}{{efn|name=Leer}}
|-
! <small>ejective</small>
| 
|
| {{IPA link|sʼ}} {{angbr|sʼ}}
| {{IPA link|ɬʼ}} {{angbr|lʼ}}
| 
| {{IPA link|xʼ}} {{angbr|xʼ}}
| {{IPA link|xʷʼ}} {{angbr|xʼw}}
| {{IPA link|χʼ}} {{angbr|xh’}}
| {{IPA link|χʷʼ}} {{angbr|xhʼw}}
| 
| 
|-
! colspan=2 | [[Sonorant]]
| {{IPA link|m}} {{angbr|m}}{{efn|The consonant ''m'' is a variant of ''w'' found in the Interior dialect; ''amsikóo'' "(he) knew it" would be ''awsikóo'' in the Coastal dialects. It is not strictly an [[allophone]], as Interior speakers appear to distinguish the two; it is more likely that the distinction is allomorphic.}}
| {{IPA link|n}} {{angbr|n}}
|
| {{IPA link|l}} {{angbr|ll}}{{efn|The consonant ''ll'' is an allophone of ''n'' now mostly obsolete, but still occasionally heard among the oldest speakers, particularly in the Interior dialect. However, its former allophony with ''n'' is still evident in many Tlingit loanwords in which ''n'' replaces the {{IPA|[l]}} in the source language, such as ''sgóon'' "school".}}
| {{IPA link|j}} {{angbr|y}}
| {{IPA link|ɰ}} {{angbr|ÿ}}{{efn|The consonant ''ÿ'' ({{IPA|/ɰ/}}) has recently merged with ({{IPA|/j/}}) ''y'' or ({{IPA|/w/}}) ''w'', depending on the phonological environment, with ''w'' next to [[roundedness|rounded]] vowels and [[labialisation|labialized]] consonants, and ''y'' elsewhere. It occurs as  ''g'' occasionally in placenames derived from Tlingit during the 18th and the 19th centuries as well as in some broad transcriptions by earlier anthropologists: "Gan Gulihashee Hit" for ''Ÿan Ÿuliháshi Hít'' "Drifted Ashore House" as recorded by Olson, today written ''Yan Wuliháshi Hít''. Because the use of ''y'' versus ''w'' is predictable from context where it was originally a ''ÿ'', this graph is used consistently in linguistic transcription, but not in ordinary writing. Note that this consonant has been erroneously referred to as "gamma", confused with the similar {{IPA|[ɣ]}} which is however the [[voiced velar fricative]], not an [[approximant]].}}
| {{IPA link|w}} {{angbr|w}}
| 
| 
| 
| 
|}
{{Notelist}}

[[Nasal stop|Nasal consonants]] [[assimilation (linguistics)|assimilating]] with {{IPA|/n/}} and the [[velar consonant|velar]] and [[uvular consonant|uvular]] [[stop consonant|plosives]] is common among Tlingit-speakers of all dialects. For example, the sequence ''ng'' ({{IPA|/nk/}}) is often heard as {{IPA|[ŋk]}} and ''ngh'' ({{IPA|/nq/}}) as {{IPA|[ɴq]}}. Native speakers in a teaching position may admonish learners when they produce these assimilated forms, deriding them as "not Tlingit" or "too English", but it is common to later hear such speakers producing those forms themselves. It is uncertain whether this assimilation is autochthonous or if it arose from contact with English, but the former is more likely from a purely articulatory perspective.

Young speakers and second-language learners are increasingly making a [[voice (phonetics)|voiced/unvoiced]] distinction between consonants, rather than the traditional [[aspiration (phonetics)|unaspirated/aspirated]] distinction. That is because of the influence of English, which makes a similar distinction. For speakers who make the voiced/unvoiced distinction, the distribution is symmetrical with the unaspirated/aspirated distinction among other speakers.

Phonetic analysis shows that all Tlingit word final non-ejective stops are phonemically unaspirated, although there is a wide variation in ordinary speech, ranging from unreleased {{IPA|[t̚]}} to a very delayed aspiration {{IPA|[tːʰ]}}.<ref name=":0" /> The underlying phoneme is the unaspirated stop, since this form is consistently produced when the word is suffixed. The orthography usually but not always reflects that: ''hít'' "house" is written ''(du) hídi'' "(his) house" when marked with the possessive suffix ''-ÿí''. It is possible but has not been verified that aspirated and unaspirated stops are collapsed into a single phoneme word-finally.

Phonetic analysis also shows that the [[ejective consonant|ejective]] [[fricative consonant|fricatives]] in Tlingit are in fact true ejectives, with complete closure of the glottis before frication begins and the larynx raising in the same manner as with ejective stops.<ref name=":0" /> This contrasts with common analyses in some other languages with ejective fricatives, which considers them a sequence of fricative and glottal stop.<ref name=":0" />{{Verify source|date=April 2025}}

Characteristically, the ejective fricatives in Tlingit feature a much smaller aperture for frication than is found in ordinary fricatives. That articulation provides increased resistance to counter the continual loss of dynamic airstream pressure. Also, ejective fricatives appear to include tightening of the pharyngeal muscles, which reduces the diameter of the air column and so further increases pressure. That pharyngeal constriction is not true pharyngealization, however, since the diameter is still greater than what is found in pharyngealized consonants in other languages.

===Vowels===

Tlingit has eight [[vowel]]s, four vowels further distinguished formally by [[vowel length|length]]. However, the length distinction is often in terms of [[tenseness]] rather than length, particularly in rapid speech. For the Northern dialect, the dominant spoken dialect of Tlingit and the standard for written Tlingit, every vowel may take either high or low [[tone (linguistics)|tone]]; in the orthography high tone is indicated by an [[acute accent]] (''áa'') and low tone is unmarked (''aa''). The Southern and Transitional dialects have a mid tone which is unmarked and additional low tone which is marked by a [[grave accent]] (''àa'').

The Inland Tlingit orthography does not use vowel digraphs. Instead, short high vowels are marked with an acute accent, long high vowels are marked with a [[circumflex]], and long low vowels are marked with a grave accent. Short low vowels are unmarked. Coastal Tlingit <áa> and <aa> are Inland <â> and <à> respectively. Coastal <éi> and <ei> are Inland <ê> and <è>, Coastal <ée> and <ee> are Inland <î> and <ì>, and Coastal <óo> and <oo> are Inland <û> and <ù>.

:{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"
|-
! rowspan=2|
! colspan=3| [[Long vowel|Tense/Long]]
! colspan=3| [[Lax vowel|Lax/Short]]
|-
! <small>[[Front vowel|front]]</small> || <small>central</small> || <small>[[Back vowel|back]]</small>
! <small>[[Front vowel|front]]</small> || <small>[[Central vowel|central]]</small> || <small>[[Back vowel|back]]</small>
|-
! [[Close vowel|close]]
| {{IPA link|iː}} {{angbr|ee}}
| 
| {{IPA link|uː}} {{angbr|oo}}
| {{IPA link|ɪ}} {{angbr|i}}
| 
| {{IPA link|ʊ}} {{angbr|u}}
|-
! [[Mid vowel|mid]]
| {{IPA link|eː}} {{angbr|ei}}
| 
| 
| {{IPA link|ɛ}} {{angbr|e}}
| 
| {{IPA link|ʌ}} {{angbr|a}}
|-
! [[Open vowel|open]]
| 
| {{IPA link|aː}} {{angbr|aa}}
| ({{IPA link|ɒː}} {{angbr|aa}}){{efn|Allophone of {{IPA|/aː/}} which is realized as {{IPA|[ɒː]}} under the influence of uvular consonants. However this is not consistent for all speakers. The backness influence arises from articulation with uvular consonants and so the word {{lang|tli|kháa}} "person" is often spoken as {{IPA|[qʰɒ́ː]}}, but the word {{lang|tli|(a) káa}} "on (its) surface" is said as {{IPA|[(ʔʌ) kʰáː]}} by the same speakers.}}
| 
| ({{IPA link|ɐ}} {{angbr|a}})
| 
|}
{{notelist}}

Word onset is always consonantal in Tlingit and so words never begin with a vowel. Where a vowel would theoretically have occurred, such as by prefixing or compounding, the vowel is always followed by either {{IPA|[ʔ]}} or {{IPA|[j]}}. The former is universal in single words, and both are found in word-medial position in compounds. The orthography does not reflect the {{IPA|[ʔ]}} in word-initial position, but either ''.'' or ''y'' may be seen in medial position. For example:

{{interlinear|indent=3
|top={{IPA|[qʰuːwʌtʼáː]}}{{br}}khoowat'áa
|khu- ÿu- ÿa- t'áa
|{{gcl|INDH|indefinite human}}.OBJ- PERF- {{gcl|(ø, -D, +I)|classifier}}- hot
|"the weather is hot"}}

But when the perfective prefix ''ÿu-'' is word-initial, the glottal stop appears to ensure that the word begins with a consonant.

{{interlinear|indent=3
|top={{IPA|[ʔʊwʌtʼáː]}}{{br}}uwat'áa
|∅- ÿu- ÿa- t'áa
|3.{{gcl|NEU|neutral}}.OBJ- PERF- {{gcl|(ø, -D, +I)|classifier}}- hot
|"it is hot"}}

==Writing system==
{{Main|Tlingit alphabet}}
Until the late 1960s, Tlingit was written exclusively in phonetic transcription in the works of linguists and anthropologists except for a little-known Cyrillic alphabet used for publications by the [[Russian Orthodox Church]]. A number of amateur anthropologists doing extensive work on the Tlingit had no training in linguistics and so left numerous samples in vague and inconsistent transcriptions, the most famous being [[George T. Emmons]]. However, such noted anthropologists as [[Franz Boas]], [[John R. Swanton]], and [[Frederica de Laguna]] have transcribed Tlingit in various related systems that feature accuracy and consistency but sacrifice readability.

Two problems ensue from the multiplicity of transcription systems used for Tlingit. One is that there are many of them, thus requiring any reader to learn each individual system depending on what sources are used. The other is that most transcriptions made before Boas's study of Tlingit have numerous mistakes in them, particularly because of misinterpretations of the short vowels and ejective consonants. Accuracy of transcription can be increased by checking against similar words in other systems, or against a modern work postdating Naish and Story's work in the 1960s.

==Grammar==

Tlingit grammar at first glance appears to be highly [[Fusional language|fusional]], but this is an incorrect assumption. There are predictable processes by which the basic phonetic shapes of individual morphemes are modified to fit various phonological requirements. These processes can be described with a regular language, and such descriptions are given here on a per morpheme basis by giving rule schemas for the context sensitive phonological modification of base morphemes. Analyzing all the possible combinations of morphemes and phonological contexts in Tlingit and constructing a regular language to describe them is a daunting but tractable task.{{citation needed|date=April 2019}}

Despite not being a fusional language, Tlingit is still highly [[synthetic language|synthetic]] as an [[agglutinating language]], and is even [[polysynthetic language|polysynthetic]] to some extent. The verb, as with all the Na-Dené languages, is characteristically [[Incorporation (linguistics)|incorporating]]. Nouns are in comparison relatively simple, with many being derived from verbs.

===Word order===

Tlingit [[word order]] is [[subject–object–verb|SOV]] when non-[[pronominal]] [[Agent (grammar)|agent]] and [[Object (grammar)|object]] [[phrase]]s both exist in the sentence. However, there is a strong urge to restrict the argument of the [[verb phrase]] to a single non-pronominal [[noun phrase]], with any other phrases being extraposed from the verb phrase. If a noun phrase occurs outside of the verb phrase then it is typically represented in the verb phrase by an appropriate pronoun.

===Nouns===
:''See main article: [[Tlingit noun]]''

===Pronominals===

Tlingit has a complex system of [[Pronoun|pronominals]], which vary depending on their relationship to the verb. The subject pronominals are incorporated into the verb in its subject slot. The object pronominals are also technically incorporated into the verb (i.e. the verb "complex"), but most are graphically independent. They are divided into three classes, the verbal object, nominal object, and postpositional object. There are also the independent pronominals which are completely separate from the verb and can be used in dependent clauses or in subject or object position.

The pronominals all have related semantic values, and their organization can hence easily be visualized in a table.

:{| class="wikitable"
!rowspan=2|'''Type''' !!rowspan=2| '''Subject''' !!colspan=3| '''Object''' !!rowspan=2| '''Independent'''
|-
!                                   VO    !!  NO  !!  PO
|-
| 1 <small>SINGULAR</small>    || xha-||xhat, axh|| axh  || xha- || xhát
|-
| 1 <small>PLURAL</small>    || too-|| haa     || haa  ||      || uháan
|-
| 2 <small>SINGULAR</small>    || ee- || i-      || i    ||      || wa.é
|-
| 2 <small>PLURAL</small>    || yi- || yee-    || yee  ||      || yeewáan*
|-
| 3 <small>RECESSIVE</small>   ||     || a-, 0-  || a    || a-   ||
|-
| 3 <small>NEUTRAL</small>   || 0-  || a-, 0-  || du   || u-   || hú
|-
| 3 <small>SALIENT</small>   ||     || ash     || ash  ||      ||
|-
| <small>REFLEXIVE</small>   ||     || sh-, 0- || chush||      ||
|-
| <small>RECIPROCAL</small>  ||     || woosh   || woosh||      ||
|-
| <small>INDEFINITE<br />HUMAN</small>   ||du-||khu-, khaa-|| khaa || khu- ||
|-
| <small>INDEFINITE<br />NON HUMAN</small>   ||     || at-     || at   ||      ||
|-
| <small>PARTITIVE</small>   ||     || aa-     ||      ||      ||
|}

The numbers in the first column represent the usual concept of person, i.e. first, second, or third. Story and Naish identified a [[fourth person]], but this term is inappropriate since they did not describe a clear separation between the so-called fourth person and the other impersonal pronominals.{{citation needed|date=September 2020}}

When analyzing a sentence, the pronominal type is given first, then the form (subject, object, independent) is given following a period. This uniquely represents the pronominal as a two dimensional unit. Thus 1<small>SINGULAR SUBJECT</small> is the first person singular subject pronominal, realized as ''xhat''. The <small>RECIPROCAL</small> does not uniquely identify one of the two reciprocal pronominals, but since they are both phonetically identical as ''woosh'', it is generally unnecessary to uniquely identify them.

There is also a notional zeroth person which can be of subject, object, or independent form. This is not realized in Tlingit, instead it is an empty placeholder for analysis.

====Subject pronominals====

The subject pronominals are all incorporated into the verb. Thus when the subject is represented as a pronominal, the subject position of the sentence is empty.

====Object pronominals====

Object pronominals are divided into three classes, the verbal, nominal, and postpositional.

The verbal object pronominals function similarly to the subject pronominals in that they preclude an explicit object when used.

The nominal object pronominals are similar in some respects to the possessive pronouns of English. They precede a noun and represent the object of the noun, typically implying possession of the noun.

Postpositional object pronominals function as objects to which postpositions are attached. They act as the object of a postposition in a manner similar to an ordinary noun suffixed with a postposition.

===Directionals===

Strictly speaking, the Tlingit directionals can be classified as nouns on the basis of their syntactic function. However, they form a distinct semantic set of nouns which indicate direction relative to some stated position. They also show stem variation depending locative suffixation, in particular with the allative suffix ''-dei''. These stem variants also occur with the adverb construction ''N<sub>1</sub>''-da-''N<sub>2</sub>''-(i)n "''N<sub>2</sub>'' ''N<sub>1</sub>''-ward" where ''N<sub>2</sub>'' is an anatomic noun and ''N<sub>1</sub>'' is a directional stem.

:{|class="wikitable"
!                !! Noun !! ''N''-dei !! ''N''-naa !! Adverb (+15)
|-
| up above || (di-)kée || (di-)kín-dei || (di-)kee-naa || kei, kéi
|-
| down below || (di-)yée || (di-)yín-dei || (di-)yee-naa || yei, yéi, yaa
|-
| upstream || naakée || nán-dei || naa-nyaa ~ naa-naa || –
|-
| downstream || ix-kée, éex || íx-dei || ixi-naa || –
|-
| from landshore, interior || dáakh || dákh-dei || dakhi-naa || daakh
|-
| toward landshore || éekh || íkh-dei || ikhi-naa || yeikh ~ eekh
|-
| toward seashore || yán || yán-dei || — || yan
|-
| from seashore, out to sea || dei-kí || dák-dei || daki-naa ~ diki-naa || daak
|-
| across, other side || diyáa || diyáa-dei || — || yan
|-
| inside || neil || neil-dei || — || neil
|-
| outside || gáan || gán-dei || — || —
|-
| back || — || khúxh-dei || — || khuxh
|-
| aground, shallow water || — || kúx-dei || — || kux
|}

===Particles===

Particles function as neither noun nor verb. They are restricted to positions relative to phrases in the sentence.

====Focus particles====

The focus particles follow the left periphery ("forephrase" per Leer) of a sentence. The Naish-Story term for them is "post-marginals". Many of them may be suffixed with a demonstrative (''-yá'', ''-hé'', ''-wé'', ''-yú''), and they may also be combined with the interrogative (''-gé''). Focus particles are stylistically written as separate words, but phonetically, they may be indivisible from the preceding utterance.

* ''sá'' — wh-question
* ''gé'' — dubitative, unlikelihood, "perhaps", "maybe, "it would seem..."
* ''á'' — focus
* ''ágé'' — interrogative (< ''á'' + ''gé'')
* ''ásé'' — discovery, understanding of previously unclear information, "oh, so..."
* ''ásgé'' — second hand information, "I hear...", "they say..." (< ''ásé'' + ''gé'')
* ''khu.aa'' — contrastive, "however"
* ''xháa'' – softening, "you see"
* ''shágdéi'' — dubitative, likelihood, "perhaps", "probably"
* ''dágáa'' — emphatic assertion, "indeed", "for sure"
* ''shéi'' — mild surprise
* ''gwáa'', ''gu.áa'' — strong surprise
* ''gwshéi'', ''gushéi'' — rhetorical interrogative, request for corroboration, "I wonder", "perhaps"
* ''óosh'' — hypothetical, "as if", "even if", "if only"

The combination of the focus ''á'' with the demonstratives gives the frequently used particles ''áyá'' and ''áwé'', and the less common ''áhé'' and ''áyú''. Combination of the interrogative ''ágé'' with the demonstratives gives the confirmative particles ''ákwé'' and ''ákyá'' (''ák-hé'' and ''ákyú'' are uncommon), used to elicit a yes/no response from the listener.

The interrogative ''ágé'' also usually contracts to ''ág'' before ''tsú'' "also": ''ág tsú'' "also?" < ''ágé'' + ''tsú''.

The particle ''sá'' is obligatory in forming [[Interrogative word|wh-question]] phrases. It can be combined with a demonstrative, the dubitative, the rhetorical interrogative, and the emphatic assertion:

* ''sáwé'' (< ''sá'' + ''áwé''), ''sáyá'', ... — focused question, "... is that?"
* ''sgé'' (< ''sá'' + ''gé'') — dubitative question, "maybe?", "perhaps?"
* ''ságwshéi'' — "I wonder?"
* ''sdágáa'' (< ''sá'' + ''dágáa'') — "(what) on earth?", "really?"

====Phrasal particles====

Phrasal particles may occur after focus particles that occur with or without demonstrative finals. The following are postphrasal particles, thus they may only occur after the phrase that they modify.

* ''tsá'' — "only then"
* ''tsú'' — "also"
* ''s'é'' — "first", "really!"
* ''déi'' — "now", "this time"
* ''x'wán'' — "be sure to"
* ''tsé'' — "be sure not to"

Except for ''x'wán'' and ''tsé'', the above may occur after the focus particles.

The following are prephrasal particles, i.e. they occur before the phrase that they modify. Naish and Story call these "pre-marginals".

* ''ch'a'' — "just", "the very"
* ''ch'as'' — "only", "just"
* ''ch'ú'' — "even"
* ''tlaxh'' — "very"

====Mobile particles====

These particles may occur before or after any phrase in a clause.

* ''tlei'' — "just," "simply," "just then"
* ''déi'' — "already," "by now"
* ''tsu'' — "again", "still", "some more"

Compare the mobile particle ''tsu'' with the postphrasal particle ''tsú''. Both the sentence ''káaxwei '''tsu''' eetéenaxh xhat yatee'' "I need more coffee" and the sentence ''káaxwei '''tsú''' eetéenaxh xhat yatee'' "I also need coffee" are acceptable. However the sentence ''*'''tsú''' káaxwei eetéenaxh xhat yatee'' is syntactically inadmissible because the particle ''tsú'' is postphrasal, i.e. it cannot precede the phrase it modifies, in this case the noun phrase ''káaxwei''. The corresponding sentence with the ''tsu'' particle in front, '''''tsu''' káaxwei eetéenaxh xhat yatee''  "I need coffee again/still" is in contrast syntactically acceptable. Thus a Tlingit listener will recognize the ''tsu'' particle in a phrase-initial position without confusion but tone is necessary to distinguish it in a phrase-final position. For this reason the ''tsu'' particle is often used prephrasally although it is syntactically admitted in either position. Thus the song name ''Tsu Héidei Shugaxhtootaan'' could also be ''héidei tsu shugaxhtootaan'', but placing the ''tsu'' in front has the advantage of unambiguity, and thus seems more [[Euphony|euphonious]] to native speakers.

====Sentence-initial particles====

These particles may only occur at the front of a sentence. Naish-Story term these "clause marginals".

* ''tléik'', ''l'' — negative, "not"
* ''gwál'' — dubitative, "perhaps"
* ''gu.aal'' — optative, "hopefully"
* ''khaju'', ''xhaju'' — contrary, "actually", "in fact"
* ''khashde'' — "I thought..."

==Tlingit-language media==
The [[Republic of Ireland|Irish]] TV series ''[[An Klondike]]'' (2015–17), set in Canada in the 1890s, contains Tlingit dialogue.

The American comedy-drama [[Northern Exposure]] contains Tlingit dialogue.

In 2023, the [[Central Council of the Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes]] (Tlingit & Haida) announced the release of the first of nine Tlingit-language children's books and animated videos. As a collaborative effort between Tlingit & Haida, the Goldbelt Heritage Foundation, Cedar Group, and illustrators [[Kelsey Mata]] and [[Nick Alan Foote]], the project is funded under a three-year grant through the [[United States Department of Education]]'s Alaska Native Education Program. The first book is titled ''Kuhaantí (2023)'' and was released on October 27, 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |title=FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: First Lingít Language Immersion Book & Animated Video Produced Under Kei Naltseen Haa Sgóoni Partnership |url=https://myemail.constantcontact.com/FOR-IMMEDIATE-RELEASE--First-Ling-t-Language-Immersion-Book---Animated-Video-Produced-Under-Kei-Naltseen-Haa-Sg-oni-Partnership.html?soid=1124597381696&aid=lksbCDcc5is |access-date=2023-10-12 |website=Central Council Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
{{Refbegin}}
* {{cite book |last=Beck |first=David |year=2001 |chapter=Conventionality and lexical classes |pages=19–26 |title=Proceedings of WSCLA 5: The Workshop on Structure and Constituency in Languages of the Americas |editor-last1=Gessner |editor-first1=Suzanne |editor-last2=Oh |editor-first2=Sunyoung |editor-last3=Shiobara |editor-first3=Kayono |volume=5 |series=Working Papers in Linguistics |publisher=University of British Columbia |location=Vancouver |chapter-url=https://lingpapers.sites.olt.ubc.ca/files/2019/11/WSCLA_5_Beck.pdf}}
* {{cite book |last=Bird |first=Sonya |year=2001 |chapter=What is a word? Evidence from a computational approach to Navajo verbal morphology |pages=27–35 |title=Proceedings of WSCLA 5: The Workshop on Structure and Constituency in Languages of the Americas |editor-last1=Gessner |editor-first1=Suzanne |editor-last2=Oh |editor-first2=Sunyoung |editor-last3=Shiobara |editor-first3=Kayono |volume=5 |series=Working Papers in Linguistics |publisher=University of British Columbia |location=Vancouver |chapter-url=https://lingpapers.sites.olt.ubc.ca/files/2019/11/WSCLA_5_Bird.pdf}}
* {{cite journal |last=Boas |first=Franz |year=1917 |url=https://archive.org/details/cu31924027108970 |title=Grammatical notes on the language of the Tlingit Indians |location=Philadelphia |publisher=University of Pennsylvania |journal=The University Museum Anthropological Publications |volume=8 |issue=1}}
* {{cite report |last=Cable |first=Seth |year=2004 |title=A metrical analysis of syncope in Tlingit |url=https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/document?repid=rep1&type=pdf&doi=775212961669e23beda44fbf8a9db489feec5ef4}}
* {{cite book |editor-last1=Dauenhauer |editor-first1=Nora M. |editor-link1=Nora Marks Dauenhauer |editor-last2=Dauenhauer |editor-first2=Richard |editor-link2=Richard Dauenhauer |year=1987 |title={{lang|tli|Haa Shuká}}, Our Ancestors |volume=1 |series=Classics of Tlingit Oral Literature |publisher=University of Washington & Sealaska Heritage Foundation |location=Seattle |isbn=0295964944 |lccn=87002164}}
* {{cite book |editor-last1=Dauenhauer |editor-first1=Nora M. |editor-last2=Dauenhauer |editor-first2=Richard |year=1990 |title={{lang|tli|Haa Tuwunáagu Yís}}, For Healing Our Spirit |volume=2 |series=Classics of Tlingit Oral Literature |publisher=University of Washington & Sealaska Heritage Foundation |location=Seattle |isbn=0295968494 |lccn=90043234}}
* {{cite book |editor-last1=Dauenhauer |editor-first1=Nora M. |editor-last2=Dauenhauer |editor-first2=Richard |year=1994 |title={{lang|tli|Haa K̲usteeyí}}, Our Culture: Tlingit life stories |volume=3 in |series=Classics of Tlingit Oral Literature |publisher=University of Washington & Sealaska Heritage Foundation |location=Seattle |isbn=0295974001 |lccn=94028657}}
* {{cite book |last1=Dauenhauer |first1=Nora M. |last2=Dauenhauer |first2=Richard |year=1995 |chapter=A Tlingit ceremonial speech by Willie Marks |pages=239–244 |editor-last1=Dürr |editor-first1=M |editor-last2=Renner |editor-first2=E. |editor-last3=Oleschinski |editor-first3=W. |title=Language and Culture in Native North America: Studies in honor of Heinz-Jürgen Pinnow |volume=2 |series=LINCOM Studies in Native American Linguistics |publisher=LINCOM |location=Munich |isbn=3-89586-004-2}}
* {{cite book |last1=Dauenhauer |first1=Nora M. |last2=Dauenhauer |first2=Richard |year=2000 |title=Beginning Tlingit |edition=4th |publisher=Sealaska Heritage Foundation Press |location=Juneau |isbn=0-9679311-1-8 |orig-year=1994}}
* {{cite book |last1=Dauenhauer |first1=Nora M. |last2=Dauenhauer |first2=Richard |year=2002 |title={{lang|tli|Lingít X̲'éinax̲ Sá!}} Say it in Tlingit: A Tlingit phrase book |publisher=Sealaska Heritage Institute |location=Juneau |isbn=0-9679311-1-8}}
* {{cite book |last1=Dauenhauer |first1=Nora M. |last2=Dauenhauer |first2=Richard |year=2012 |title=Intermediate Tlingit (draft) |url=https://tlingitlanguage.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Intermediate-Tlingit-2012.pdf}}
* {{cite thesis |last=Dauenhauer |first=Richard |year=1974 |title=Text and context of Tlingit oral tradition |type=PhD dissertation |publisher=University of Wisconsin |location=Madison}}
* {{cite journal |last=Dryer |first=Matthew |year=1985 |title=Tlingit: An object-initial language? |journal=Canadian Journal of Linguistics |volume=30 |issue=1 |doi=10.1017/S0008413100010653 |pages=1–13|s2cid=149665991 }}
* {{cite journal |last=Goddard |first=Pliny Earle |date=December 1920 |title=Has Tlingit a genetic relationship to Athapascan? |journal=International Journal of American Linguistics |volume=1 |number=4 |pages=266–279|doi=10.1086/463725 }}
* {{cite book |last=Leer |first=Jeff |year=1979 |title=Proto-Athabaskan Verb Stem Variation, Part One: Phonology |volume=1 |series=Alaska Native Language Center Research Papers |publisher=Alaska Native Language Center |location=Fairbanks |lccn=80622238}}
* {{cite book |last=Leer |first=Jeffery A. |year=1990 |chapter=Tlingit: A portmanteau language family? |editor-first=P. |editor-last=Baldi |title=Linguistics change and reconstruction methodology |pages=73–98 |publisher=Mouton de Gruyter |location=Berlin |doi=10.1515/9783110886092.73|isbn=978-3-11-011908-4 }}
* {{cite thesis |last=Leer |first=Jeffery A. |year=1991 |title=The Schetic Categories of the Tlingit verb |type=PhD dissertation |publisher=University of Chicago |location=Chicago}}
* {{cite book |last=Leer |first=Jeff |year=2000 |chapter=The negative/irrealis category in Athabaskan–Eyak–Tlingit |pages=101–138 |title=The Athabaskan Languages: Perspectives on a Native American Language Family |editor-last=Fernald |editor-first=Theodore B. |editor-last2=Platero |editor-first2=Paul R. |volume=24 in |series=Oxford Studies in Anthropological Linguistics |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |isbn=0-19-511947-9 |doi=10.1093/oso/9780195119473.003.0007}}
* {{cite book |last1=Leer |first1=Jeff |last2=Hitch |first2=David |last3=Ritter |first3=John |year=2001 |title=Interior Tlingit Noun Dictionary: The dialects spoken by Tlingit elders of Carcross and Teslin, Yukon, and Atlin, British Columbia |publisher=Yukon Native Language Center |location=Whitehorse, YT |isbn=1-55242-227-5}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Maddieson |first1=Ian |last2=Smith |first2=Caroline L. |last3=Bessell |first3=Nicola |year=2001 |title=Aspects of the phonetics of Tlingit |journal=Anthropological Linguistics |volume=43 |issue=2 |pages=135–176}}
* {{cite thesis |last=Naish |first=Constance M. |year=1966 |title=A syntactic study of Tlingit |degree=MA |publisher=University of North Dakota}}
* {{cite book |last1=Naish |first1=Constance M. |last2=Story |first2=Gillian L. |year=1973 |url=https://archive.org/details/rosettaproject_tli_morsyn-1 |title=Tlingit verb dictionary |publisher=Summer Institute of Linguistics |isbn=0-933769-25-3}}
* {{cite book |last1=Naish |first1=Constance M. |last2=Story |first2=Gillian L. |year=1996 |title=The English-Tlingit dictionary: Nouns |edition=3rd |editor-first=H. |editor-last=Davis |editor-first2=J. |editor-last2=Leer |publisher=Sheldon Jackson College |location=Sitka, AK}} (Revision of the [https://archive.org/details/rosettaproject_tli_number-1 Naish-Story dictionary of 1963].)
* {{cite journal |last=Pinnow |first=Heinz-Jürgen |year=1958 |title=Zwei Probleme der historischen Lautlehre der Na-Dene-Sprachens |trans-title=Two problems of the historical phonology of Na-Dene languages |journal=Zeitschrift für Phonetik und allgemeine Sprachwissenschaft |volume=11 |issue=2–3 |pages=128–159 |doi=10.1524/stuf.1958.11.14.128|s2cid=180392855 }}
* {{cite book |last=Pinnow |first=Heinz-Jürgen |year=1966 |title=Grundzüge einer historischen Lautlehre des Tlingit: ein Versuch |location=Wiesbaden |publisher=Harrassowitz |oclc=3175377}}
* {{cite book |last=Pinnow |first=Heinz-Jürgen |year=1976 |title=Geschichte der Na-Dene-Forschung |series=Indiana (Berlin, Germany) |volume=5 |location=Berlin |publisher=Mann |isbn=3-7861-3027-2}}
* {{cite book |last=Swanton |first=John |author-link=John Swanton |year=1911 |url=https://archive.org/stream/tlingitmythstexts00swanrich |title=Tlingit Myths and Texts |publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |location=Washington, DC}}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
{{incubator|code=tli}}
* [http://tlingitlanguage.com/ Lingít Yoo X̲'atángi: The Tlingit Language]
** [http://tlingitlanguage.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Grammar-of-Tlingit-Language.pdf A Grammar of the Tlingit Language]
* [http://ankn.uaf.edu/~tlingitverbs/examples.html Tlingit Example Sentences with Audio] Collection of over 1,500 audio recordings of spoken Tlingit example sentences, compiled as part of a Sealaska Heritage Institute project funded by the Administration for Native Americans between 2005 and 2009. (Online since Oct 2022.)
* [http://www.alaskool.org/language/indexing/tlingindex.htm Tlingit Teaching and Learning Aids]
** [http://www.alaskool.org/language/dictionaries/akn/dictionary.asp Tlingit Noun Dictionary]
** [http://www.alaskool.org/language/dictionaries/akn/tlingit/information/Index_Verb.html Tlingit Verb Dictionary (unfinished)]
** [http://www.alaskool.org/native_ed/literature/TongassTexts/Intro_TT.htm Tongass Text]
* [http://www.asna.ca/alaska/index.html#tlingit Alaskan Orthodox texts (Tlingit)], 1812–1920 (cf. [http://www.archdiocese.ca/articles/alaskan-orthodox-texts-project-celebrates-its-10th-anniversary The Alaskan Orthodox Texts Project celebrates its 10th anniversary], May 2015)
* [https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/russian/russch8.html The Russian Church and Native Alaskan Cultures: Preserving Native Languages]
* [http://www.ynlc.ca Yukon Native Language Centre]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060117194706/http://home.bluemarble.net/~langmin/miniatures/tlingit.htm Talking about Beliefs: The Alaskan Tlingit language today]
* [http://starling.rinet.ru/cgi-bin/response.cgi?root=new100&morpho=0&basename=new100\nde\tli&limit=-1 Tlingit basic lexicon at the Global Lexicostatistical Database]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080330034434/http://anashinteractive.com/ Anash Interactive]
* [https://ids.clld.org/contributions/228 Tlingit] ([[Intercontinental Dictionary Series]])
* [http://www.languagegeek.com/isolate/tlingit.html Tlingit Information at Languagegeek]
* [https://www.sealaskaheritage.org/programs/Language%20Resources/Tlingit_dictionary_web.pdf Dictionary of Tlingit], 2009, Keri Edwards, Sealaska Heritage Institute, Juneau, Alaska; Tlingit-English/English-Tlingit, grammar at the end

{{Languages of Alaska}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Tlingit Language}}
[[Category:Tlingit culture|+]]
[[Category:Na-Dene languages]]
[[Category:Subject–object–verb languages]]
[[Category:Northern Northwest Coast Sprachbund (North America)]]
[[Category:Northwest Coast Sprachbund (North America)]]
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