UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Overview of Tłı̨chǫ Yatıı̀

Tłı̨chǫ yatıı̀ (formerly known as Dogrib) is a language spoken throughout the region between Great Slave Lake and Great Bear Lake, primarily in the communities of Behchokǫ̀, Whatı̀, Gamètı̀, and Wekweètı̀. A distinct, but mutually understandable, variety of Tłı̨chǫ, sometimes called Wıılıı̀deh, is also spoken in the communities of Yellowknife, Ndılǫ, and Dettah. In total, Tłı̨chǫ yatıı̀ has somewhere between 2000 and 3000 speakers, most of whom are over the age of 35.

Tłı̨chǫ yatıı̀ is a member of the Dene language family, a large group of related languages spoken from the Alaskan interior in the north to the Mexican-American border in the South. Within this family, Tłı̨chǫ is most closely related to North Slavey, but it also shares close ties with South Slavey and Dënesųłı̨né (Chipewyan). Tłı̨chǫ yatıı̀ and the other Dene languages share many sounds, common vocabulary items, and elements of basic grammar; traditionally, many people spoke several Dene languages.