Preface
ʔáwə c xʷanítəm ʔəɬ qʷáʔqʷiʔəxʷ! nəxʷsƛ̕ay̕əmúcən cxʷ! —wətə́nəx̣ən
This grammar of the Klallam language, nəxʷsƛ̕ay̕əmúcən, was begun in the summer of 1999 as four essential lessons created to prepare those scheduled to teach Klallam language classes in the Port Angeles schools. By the time the school year started, ten chapters were quickly put together for use in Jamie Valadez’s beginning high school Klallam language class. The grammar has undergone steady revision and expansion since then. Yearly and sometimes twice‑yearly intensive sessions with native‑speaking elders and teachers have served to check and double‑check both the details of the Klallam language and the clarity of its presentation in this volume. Versions of this book have been used in beginning, intermediate, and advanced language classes in the Port Angeles High School and in teacher training at the Klallam reservations.
In 2007 work on this grammar was suspended so that the linguist, elders, and teachers could focus on the development of the Klallam Dictionary. The dictionary was completed and appeared in print at the end of 2012. Focus returned, then, to the grammar, which has undergone a complete revision.
Although this book was written to be accessible to fourteen- to eighteen-year‑olds, it is not only for high school students. This is intended to be a pedagogically oriented reference grammar. Anyone—adult tribal members, linguists, the general public—wanting to find out about the Klallam language will find a great deal of information here. A considerable amount of effort has been put into avoiding technical linguistic jargon. Where some new terminology has been unavoidable, detailed explanations are given. An index of technical terms at the end points technical linguistics experts to sections of interest.
This book was begun in 1999, but it is the product of a much longer history of effort by linguistic researchers and tribal members. Here is a list of all Klallam speakers who shared their language on recordings that were used in the analysis that formed the basis of this presentation. This list gives the name of the native-speaking elder, his or her area of origin, approximate dates of recording, and the name of the persons doing the recording.
The distribution of the contribution of each of these elders in terms of amount of recorded material is uneven. Four of these elders are outstanding in the number and length of recorded words and stories that have gone into this grammar: Edward Sampson, Thomas Charles, Martha John, and Amy Allen. It is worth noting that these four represent the four current Klallam areas: Elwha, Becher Bay, Port Gamble, and Jamestown.
Two of the elders listed stand out as contributing a truly heroic amount of effort to this project: Beatrice Charles and Adeline Smith. They listened to and helped interpret and transcribe the tape‑recorded material from the rest of the elders listed. The three of us have spent many tedious though happy hours bent over a machine listening to and deciphering sometimes very noisy and faint Klallam recordings. It has been an honor to work with Bea and Adeline. They clearly saw the beauty and importance of their language and dedicated their retirement years to its preservation and revitalization.
Two of the elders listed stand out as contributing a truly heroic amount of effort to this project: Beatrice Charles and Adeline Smith. They listened to and helped interpret and transcribe the tape‑recorded material from the rest of the elders listed. The three of us have spent many tedious though happy hours bent over a machine listening to and deciphering sometimes very noisy and faint Klallam recordings. It has been an honor to work with Bea and Adeline. They clearly saw the beauty and importance of their language and dedicated their retirement years to its preservation and revitalization.
