Natsilingmiutut facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Natsilik
Nattiliŋmiutut
Native to	Canada
Region	North America
Ethnicity	Netsilik Inuit
Native speakers	(unknown)
Language family	Eskimo–Aleut Eskimo Inuit Inuktitut Natsilik
Inuit dialects. (Broader) Netsilik is the dark green in the center.
Natsilingmiutut is classified as Vulnerable by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger
This page contains IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Unicode characters.

Natsilik (also called Netsilik or Nattilik) is a special way of speaking the Inuit language. People in western Nunavut, Canada, who are part of the Netsilik Inuit group, use this language.

The name Natsilingmiut (which means 'people from Natsilik') comes from a few Inuit words put together. It starts with natsik meaning 'seal'. Then comes -lik, which means 'a place with something'. Finally, -miut means 'inhabitants of'. So, Natsilik means 'people from the place of seals'.

Different Ways to Speak Natsilik

The Natsilik language has three main ways of speaking, called dialects. Think of them like different accents or small variations within the same language.

• The main Natsilik dialect, sometimes called Natsilik proper.
• The Arviligjuaq dialect.
• The Illuiliq dialect.

Special Sounds and Letters

The Natsilik dialect uses some special letters that help show unique sounds. These letters are š, ř, and ŋ. Some Nattiliŋmiut speakers use them.

The š Sound

The letter š [ʂ] makes a sound a bit like "shr" in English. It's different from the usual 's' sound you hear in English words. It's also different from the 'h' sound.

Here are some examples of words with the š sound:

• ᐅᖅᓱᖅᑑᖅ Uqšuqtuuq means 'Gjoa Haven' (a place).
• ᒥᒃᓵᓄᑦ mikšaanut means 'about'.
• ᓯᒃᓯᒃ hikšik means 'ground squirrel' or 'marmot'.

New ways to write these sounds in digital text (called Unicode) were added in 2021. This makes it easier to use these special letters on computers and phones.

The ř Sound

The letter ř [ɟ] sounds a bit like a special 'r' in English. It's different from the 'r' sound in other Inuit dialects, which is more like the 'r' in French.

Here are some words with the ř sound:

• ᐃᖨ iři means 'eye'.
• ᐅᒡᖪᒃ ugřuk means 'bearded seal'.
• ᑭᐅᖪᖅ kiuřuq means 's/he replies' or 'answers'.
• ᐊᐱᕆᖪᖅ apiriřuq means 's/he asks'.

The ŋ Sound

The letter ŋ is used by some Inuit speakers instead of 'ng'. Even though 'ng' uses two letters, it often makes just one sound. In the Inuit writing system (syllabics), this sound is shown with a single character. Using ŋ helps make it clearer when there are two different 'n' and 'g' sounds together, or just one long 'ng' sound.

Here are some examples:

• ᐊᕕᓐᖓᖅ avinŋuaq means 'lemming'.
• ᑭᙵᖅ kiŋŋaq means 'mountain'.

How Natsilik Compares to Other Dialects

This table shows how some words are said differently in Natsilik compared to other Inuit dialects. It helps you see the unique sounds of Natsilik.