Languages of Northern Canada

[vijayjohn]

For the purposes of this thread, "Northern Canada" consists of the Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut.

Most of the indigenous languages of Northern Canada are Northern Athabaskan languages. The only exceptions appear to be Uummarmiutun and the varieties listed here as Inuvialuktun, all of which are spoken by Inuit. The Northern Athabaskan languages of Northern Canada are, broadly speaking, as follows: Tutchone, Gwich'in, Hän, Tagish, Slavey, Dogrib, and Dene Suline. Out of these, Gwich'in and Hän are closely related, as are Slavey and Dogrib. "Dogrib" is a calque on the endonym Tłįchǫ.

[vijayjohn]

The languages of the northern Yukon are all spoken across the border in Alaska: North Alaska Iñupiatun, Gwich'in, and Hän (from north to south). Upper Tanana is again spoken to the southwest of Hän, but Northern Tutchone is spoken to the southeast of Hän. Southern Tutchone is, of course, spoken south of that. Tlingit and another language called Tagish are, in turn, spoken to the southeast of that. Tagish's relative, Kaska, is spoken in the southeastern Yukon. North Slavey and South Slavey are spoken to the east of all of these languages in the Northwest Territories.

Dene Suline is spoken in the southern part of the Northwest Territories and in Nunavut. Dogrib is spoken in the Northwest Territories as well, to the northeast of South Slavey and to the northwest of Dene Suline.