Ikta Dale McCreery yaka t’ɬap (Part 3)
Our friend Dale McCreery PhD sometimes shares notes on his encounters with Chinook Jargon in his daily life in Bella Coola, British Columbia.
If I could just take a second to describe Dale’s work a little, I’d tell you he’s actively involved with revitalizing a number of Indigenous languages, and researching how & why to do so.
I’ve personally witnessed his astonishing ability to speak Michif, Tsimshian, Nuxalk, Chinuk Wawa…and English on top of all that.
Dale yaka hayu-wawa ikta yaka chaku-kəmtəks (image credit: RILL)
Another of Dale’s gifts is that he’s good at getting people chatting. If you’re in our Saturday morning Chinook Jargon sessions (message me for an invitation), and Dale is there, you’ll be drawn right into the fun.
Here’s a tidbit from a conversation Dale had, that teaches us an especially charming local phrase in northern-dialect Chinuk Wawa…
August 16, 2016: talking to an old guy yesterday and mentioned regularly going to somewhere I wasn’t allowed to go (trespassers will be prosecuted and such).
His response was you’ll have to “moccasin cooley”.
I asked him about it and he said it was Chinook — so there’s something new for me! Moccasin being used in Jargon…another Algonkian word, though via English, and the phrase put together with cooley meaning to sneak or to go on the down low.
I was talking about picking mushrooms so it wasn’t about running.
Dave here again: kuli in northern-dialect Chinuk Wawa normally just means ‘travel; move about’.
