I'll try to analyze the first story included in
Seliš Sm̓im̓iʔ 1:
A Beginning Course in Salish & Pend d’Oreille Dialect, Stories 1-16 (it can be found here:
https://sites.google.com/site/salishlanguage/stories-1). This version has been adapted from the
qlispé snuwewlštn,
Kalispel Stories (Kalispel dialect). Stories 1 -16.
Each chapter is composed of a vocabulary and a translation of the story, but it lacks a grammar explanation. I will try to do it.
The name of the story is
Coyote story for Martin and Lucy.
Here is the text. After each line I will provide a literal translation:
Sqʷl̓lumt x̣ʷl̓ Maltá u Lusí(Coyote story for Martin and Lucy)
1.
es n̓esséʔelsi ɫu Maltá u Lusí.
(lit.: they are twins Martin and Lucy).
2.
es ayéʔew̓ti l̓ q̓l̓nʔítx̣ʷeʔ.
(They live in Camas Prairie)
3.
tam č̓
l̓kʷut u l̓cíʔiʔ ɫu qéʔeneʔs u sx̣éʔepeʔs.
(It is not far that they live their grandmother and their grandfather.)
4.
t nk̓ʷasq̓t es mx̣ʷpmi l̓ sč̓
luxʷ u x̣lítis t sx̣éʔepeʔs ɫu n̓essél̓s.
(It is one day it is snowing in the evening that he called their grandfather the twins)
5. «
ha p es n̓télsi p qs cxʷúyi p qs susunúm̓ti t sqʷl̓lumt?» ɫu séʔewis.
(«interr. you all want you all come here you all listen to Coyote stories?» he asked them.)
6.
tkʷuʔút ɫu Maltá u Lusí č̓
sx̣épeʔ u qéneʔ cíʔitxʷs.
(They walked Martin and Lucy to grandfather and grandmother their house.)
7.
ƛ̓e es č̓m̓pmi pn̓ es mistéʔes t čen u qs šiyúʔusti.
(It is already getting dark but they know where is it that they are going to pass through)
8. «
i qs n̓x̣l̓x̣elm ɫu Lusi» ɫu scn̓telsts Maltá.
(«I will scary her Lucy» thought Martin)
9.
ɫu es xʷíʔisti u Lusí ɫu es šʔitʔ.
(They are walking and Lucy is ahead). (The textbook translates erroneously "Lucy was walking in the lead")
10.
ɫu čx̣ʷéʔect t es iliil.
(They passed by it is a bush.)
11.
k̓ʷɫč̓
l̓xʷmncut ɫu Maltá u wékʷist.
(He went behind it Martin and hide.)
12.
ta sneč̓núnmt ɫu Lusí u t́l ci es xʷísti.
(Not realized Lucy and from there she walked.)
13.
ƛ̓e č̓
ɫl̓kʷut ɫu Lusí u wékʷist ɫu Maltá.
(Already far Lucy and hide Martin.)
14.
i ɫkʷk̓ʷi u ck̓ʷɫʔiq̓iyáq̓ist tl̓ es iliil.
(It is slowly that he peeked off from behind the bushes.)
15.
es n̓te qs ac̓x̣ms ɫu Lusí n̓e mipnúis u i čɫn̓aqsm.
(He wants he (-s) will see her Lucy when she realized it that she is alone)
16. «
x̣ʷa čen̓» n̓tels ɫu Maltá(«Where (she)» thought Martin.)
17.
i kʷem̓t u séwneʔ tʔe t stem̓ l̓ snč̓míčis.
(It is then that he heard something in his back.)
18.
es nʔexʷkʷúncnm t skʷtismyé !
(It sounds like a mountain lion !)
19.
cčč̓
ʔitm ɫu nexʷkʷúnm.
(It got close to him the sound.)
20.
n̓x̣eɫ ɫu Maltá!
(Got scared Martin !)
21.
i kʷem̓t u séwneʔmis ɫu Lusí es oy̓ncúti.
(It is then that he heard her Lucy is laughing.)
22.
k̓ʷ še tam skʷtismyé, k̓ʷ še Lusí!
(It's not mountain lion, it's rather Lucy!)
(The literal translation is very bad for an English speaker, but I think it's better to see how exactly the language builds the sentence)
Here is a Youtube video with a native speaker reading the text!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bo6eLwhWLOYIn the next post I will attempt to analyze the text.
