Western Apache language facts for kids

The Western Apache language is spoken by the Western Apache in east-central Arizona. It's a type of Southern Athabaskan language. About 14,000 Western Apache people live in this area.

Around 6,000 speakers live on the San Carlos Reservation. Another 7,000 live on the Fort Apache Reservation. Some experts believe Western Apache has five main ways of speaking, called dialects:

• Cibecue
• Northern Tonto
• Southern Tonto
• San Carlos
• White Mountain

However, other researchers think there are three main types of Western Apache, with smaller groups inside them:

• San Carlos
• White Mountain
• Tonto

Western Apache is closely related to other Southern Athabaskan languages. These include Navajo, Chiricahua Apache, Mescalero Apache, Lipan Apache, Plains Apache, and Jicarilla Apache.

In 2011, the San Carlos Apache Tribe started a program to save their language. This program works with 14,000 tribal members in different areas. Sadly, only about 20% of them still speak the language fluently.

Why Place Names Are Important

Many Western Apache place names used today were created by their ancestors. Keith Basso, a famous expert on the Western Apache language, says that ancestors often traveled for food. They needed to remember specific places. So, they made up hundreds of descriptive place names. These names helped them remember details about each location.

Basso also explains that place names do more than just describe a spot. They also show how people see these places. Place names are a key part of how Western Apache people communicate. Basso calls this "speaking with names." It helps them connect places to important stories and traditions.

How Place Names Are Used

Place names can describe a location or honor an event. They can also help identify different family groups, called clans. Social groups often use place names to talk about things. For example, they might use a place name to explain what happened to them. If a story is linked to a place, they can use it to relate to something or as a warning.

This way of using place names is known as "shooting with stories." It means they share information with each other, like shooting arrows of knowledge.

How Western Apache Grammar Works

Western Apache uses a special verb system. It's similar to the Jicarilla and Mescalero Apache languages. This system uses "classificatory verbs." These verbs change based on the type of object you are talking about.

For example, Basso explains the difference between nato sentii and nato sen’a. Both mean "hand (me) the tobacco." But --tii is used for a single, long object, like a cigarette. –‘a is used for a single, compact object, like a pack of cigarettes. So, the verb tells you more about the tobacco.

Classifying Objects with Verbs

When you speak Western Apache, you pick a verb that matches the object you're talking about. You have to put objects into categories. Then you use the right verb form for that category. Here are some ways objects are classified in the Western Apache verb system:

• Animal or Not Animal: This category has two parts. "Animal" includes all animals. "Not animal" includes plants, liquids, rocks, and most man-made things.
• Enclosed or Not Enclosed: This describes if an object is inside a container or not.
• State: This has three parts: "solid," "plastic" (like mud or wet clay), and "liquid."
• Number: This describes if there is "one," "two," or "more than two" of an object.
• Rigidity: This describes if an object is "rigid" (stiff) or "non-rigid" (bends). An object is rigid if it doesn't bend when held at one end.
• Length: This describes if an object is "long" (at least three times longer than its width or height) or "not long."
• Portability: This describes if an object is "portable" (light enough for one person to carry) or "non-portable" (needs two or more people to carry).

How Western Apache Sounds Are Made

Consonants

Western Apache has 31 consonant sounds. These are sounds like 'p', 't', 'k', 's', and 'm'. Some sounds are made with your lips, some with your tongue behind your teeth, and some further back in your mouth.

Vowels

Western Apache has 16 vowel sounds. These are sounds like 'a', 'e', 'i', 'o', 'u'. Some can be short or long, and some can be nasal (like when you say "hmm").

A mark like /á/ means a high-pitched sound. Low-pitched sounds are not marked.

How Western Apache Is Written

A picture of symbols from a book about the Western Apache language and culture.

The only writing system created by the Western Apache people themselves was made in 1904. A man named Silas John Edwards created it. He used symbols to write down 62 prayers that he believed came from heaven.

A Silas John prayer-text is written on buckskin or paper. The symbols are in lines, read from left to right, going down the page. Each symbol is separated by a space. Each symbol stands for one line of a prayer. This line could be a single word, a phrase, or even a few sentences. What's cool is that this writing system also has symbols for actions, not just words!

Alphabet and Pronunciation

Western Apache uses a special version of the Latin alphabet, which is the one English uses. Here's how some of the letters and sounds work:

How Western Apache Is Used

Where things happen is very important in Western Apache stories. All their stories are tied to specific places on the land. They include exact descriptions of these locations. This is common in many Native American languages. Basso called this way of focusing on places "speaking with names."

Basso says that "speaking with names" has many uses. When someone describes a place, it can do all of these things:

• Help you imagine a specific place.
• Bring up old stories, like historical tales.
• Show the importance of old rules and wisdom from ancestors.
• Be polite and show care for others.
• Offer kind words and support.
• Give helpful advice for tough situations.
• Change sad thoughts into hopeful ones.
• Help heal troubled feelings.

However, Basso also notes that "speaking with names" only works if people know the same traditional stories. Many elders in Western Apache communities know these stories. But fewer young people know the place names and old stories. This makes it harder for them to use "speaking with names."

Examples of Western Apache Phrases

Here are some common phrases in Western Apache:

• Hat' ii baa nadaa? – What are you doing? / What are you busy with?
• Shiyoo' baa nashaa. – I am doing my beading.
• Doo shaa nadaa da. – Don't bother me.
• Naa naghaa. – S/he is bothering you.

Efforts to Save the Language

Western Apache is an endangered language, meaning fewer people are speaking it. There are efforts to teach more people to speak it. One way is called the Total Physical Response (TPR) Method. This method focuses on teaching commands, especially when you first start learning. It's good for teaching simple grammar, like yes-or-no questions. Other grammar exercises can also be added to help.