The Deg Xinag language is a Northern Athabaskan language spoken by the Deg Hit’an

Deg Hit’an

Deg Hit’an is a group of Northern Athabascan peoples in Alaska. Their native language is called Deg Xinag. They reside in Alaska along the Anvik River in Anvik, along the Innoko River in Shageluk, and at Holy Cross along the lower Yukon River...

 peoples in Shageluk

Shageluk, Alaska

Shageluk is a city in Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 129.-Geography:Shageluk is located at ....

 and Anvik

Anvik, Alaska

Anvik is a city, home to the Deg Hit'an people, in the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska, United States. The name Anvik, which became the common usage despite multiple names at the time, may have come from early Russian explorers. The native name in the Deg Xinag language is Deloy Ges...

 and at Holy Cross

Holy Cross, Alaska

Holy Cross is a city in Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska, United States...

 along the lower Yukon River

Yukon River

The Yukon River is a major watercourse of northwestern North America. The source of the river is located in British Columbia, Canada. The next portion lies in, and gives its name to Yukon Territory. The lower half of the river lies in the U.S. state of Alaska. The river is long and empties into...

 in Alaska

Alaska

Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...

.

The language was referred to as Ingalik by Osgood (1936). While this term sometimes still appears in the literature, it is today considered pejorative. The word "Ingalik" from Yup'ik (Central Alaskan Yup'ik

Central Alaskan Yup'ik language

Central Alaskan Yup'ik or just Yup'ik is a Yupik language of the Eskimo language family, in turn a member of the Eskimo–Aleut language group, spoken in western and southwestern Alaska. Both in ethnic population and in number of speakers, Central Alaskan Yup'ik is the largest of the languages...

) Eskimo language: < Ingqiliq "Indian".

Engithidong Xugixudhoy (Their Stories of Long Ago), a collection of traditional folk tales in the Deg Xinag language by the elder Belle Deacon, was published in 1987 by the Alaska Native Language Center

Alaska Native Language Center

The Alaska Native Language Center, established in 1972 in Fairbanks, Alaska, is a research center focusing on the research and documentation of the Alaska's Native languages. It publishes grammars, dictionaries, folklore collections and research materials, as well as hosting an extensive archive of...

. A literacy manual with accompanying audiotapes was published in 1993.

Examples

• q'unt'ogh airplane
• ggagg animal
• ggagg chux bear (lit 'big animal')
• sraqay children
• dran day
• xik'ugił'anh doctor, nurse
• łegg fish
• łek dog
• sileg my dog
• vileg her dog
• tso tl'ogh iy mammoth
• dina' k'idz doll (lit. 'little person')
• xidondiditey door
• ngan' dit'anh earthquake
• sito' my father
• vito' her father
• yix house
• tinh ice
• dangan iron, metal
• deloy mountain
• vanhgiq Indian ice cream
• choghlugguy (in Anvik) ; niq'asrt'ay (in Shageluk) fox
• vinixiłyiq in the morning
• giłiq one
• teqa two
• togg three
• denhch'e four
• niłq'osnal giłiggi viq'idz iy eleven

External links

• Deg Xinag - Language of the Deg Hit'an
• Deg Xinag (ANLC)
• Rescuing a language: College course unites far-flung students and elders in an effort to save Deg Xinag
• Word-Lists of the Athabaskan, Yup'ik and Alutiiq Languages by Lt. Laurence Zagoskin, 1847 (containing Deg Xinag on pages 3–8)
• The Order for Morning Prayer, translated by John Wight Chapman in 1896, digitized by Richard Mammana 2010