Frequently asked questions
The following links lead to responses to some frequently asked questions about our society and what we do.
About our society
1. When was TTS founded?
2. Who are your directors?
3. How should I pronounce your name?
4. What does your name mean?
5. How can I contact you?
6. How can I join TTS?
About our work
7. What do your materials cost?
8. Are your materials copyrighted?
9. Do you provide translation services?
About our languages
10. Why is the Nuuchahnulth language called quuquuʔaca and ciiqciqasa?
11. What is the difference amongst kʷak̓ʷala, bak̓ʷəmk̓ala, and kʷakʷəkəw̓akʷ?
12. What is a dialect?
13. Why do I need to worry about local dialects?
Answers
1. Q. When was TTS founded? A. Tashii-Texela Language Society was registered in 2023.
2. Q. Who are your directors? A. We are led by a board of five directors. Our directors during 2025-2026 are President ƛaaʔaqsa Trinity Babichuk, Vice President c̓uxʷc̓əʔadᶻəmǧa Gretchen Riel, Secretary məllidi Mercedes Webb, Treasurer ƛiisƛiisaʔapt̓ Adam Werle, and Director sičquuʔuƛ Samantha Touchie.
3. Q. How should I pronounce your name? A. Our name is written t̓ašii-t̓əxəla in the Nuuchahnulth and Liqwala alphabets, or [t’əʃiːt’əxʲəla] in the International Phonetic Alphabet. If you don’t know how to pronounce our languages, but want to say our name as accurately as possible using English sounds, you can say tuh/shèe tuh/kyuh/láh, with the main stress on the last syllable, and weaker stress on the second syllable, as in Retùrn of the Kíng.
4. Q. What does your name mean? A. Nuuchahnulth and Kwakwala are related by common descent from the Proto-Wakashan language, which was spoken by our ancestors in time immemorial. Nuuchahnulth t̓ašii and Kwakwala t̓əxəla come from the same root, meaning ‘way, path, door’, that is, a means of getting from one place to another. Our name means that we are trying to follow a good path.
5. Q. How can I contact you? A. See our contact page.
6. Q. How can I join TTS? A. If you would like to join our society, please email us the following information. (1) Say that you want to join TTS, (2) name an existing member who vouches for you, and (3) say whether you identify as Nuuchahnulth, or Kwakwakawakw, or Indigenous, or some combination of these identities, or none of them. Once you are approved, you must pay dues of $20 CAD per year.
7. Q. What do your materials cost? A. TTS shares language materials for free when possible, or at cost when necessary.
8. Q. Are your materials copyrighted? A. Materials by TTS are shared under a Creative Commons BY licence (CC BY 4.0). We forbid irresponsible uses of our materials, such as to make money, or in personal disputes.
9. Q. Do you provide translation services? A. TTS provides translations into Nuuchahnulth in order to support Nuuchahnulth language revitalization. TTS supports the Wordshare Project. See our Translation page.
10. Q. Why is the Nuuchahnulth language called quuquuʔaca and ciiqciqasa? A. There is no traditional name for the Nuuchahnulth language, because we did not see ourselves as one nation in traditional times. The name Nootka was put on us by outsiders, and was never our own name for ourselves. The name Nuuchahnulth (nuučaan̓uł), meaning ‘along the mountains’, was proposed in 1979 by our late elder Abel John. When we talk about our language in the language, we usually say quuquuʔaca ‘speaking Indigenous language’ or ciiqciqasa ‘speaking the real way’. Or we talk about local dialects, such as yuuyuułuʔiłʔatḥa, ʔiiʔiiḥatisʔatḥa, and so on. The name t̓aat̓aaqsapa was used for our language by the 1991 Taataaqsapa Dictionary, but is not used much today.
11. Q. What is the difference amongst kʷak̓ʷala, bak̓ʷəmk̓ala, and kʷakʷəkəw̓akʷ? A. In short, our language is Kwakwala (kʷak̓ʷala) or Bakwemkala (bak̓ʷəmk̓ala), and our people are the Kwakwekewakw (kʷakʷəkəw̓akʷ). In our language, we call our dialects liq̓ʷala, kʷak̓ʷala, n̓ak̓ʷala, ɢuc̓ala, and so on. Partly because of its central location, the name of the dialect of the Kwakiutl (kʷaguʔł) of Fort Rupert has come to to describe the entire language, that is Kwakwala, and the Kwakwala-speaking nations are called the Kwakwekewakw, meaning ‘those who speak Kwakwala’. The word bak̓ʷəmk̓ala means ‘speaking Indigenous language’, from bak̓ʷəm ‘Indigenous person’. All three words are stressed on the first syllable: kwáh/kwah/la, bá/kwum/kyah/la, kwáh/kwuh/ki/wahkw.
12. Q. What is a dialect? A. Every region and village has its own way of speaking. These local ways of speaking are called dialects. The longer people live in a place, the more their dialect develops in unique ways. There are more Indigenous dialects than English dialects in North America because Indigenous peoples have been here much longer.
13. Q. Why do I need to worry about local dialects? A. Wherever you live and work, it is appropriate to respect the people of the land. One way to respect the people is to acknowledge their dialect, to whatever extent you can.