The Ts’msyen Sm’algyax Language Authority has been working with elders and speakers of the Sm’algyax language to document the Indigenous language, a process which involves recording audio and transcribing words to form a Sm’algyax-English dictionary.
Sm’algyax is the language of the Ts’msyen peoples in Lax Kxeen, or Prince Rupert. The number of fluent speakers has dwindled due to colonial settlers forbidding the use of the language for the past century, and Sm’algyax is at risk of becoming extinct if not preserved.
Wil Uks Batsga Galaaw (Jeremy Pahl) works for the Ts’msyen Language Authority and is a Sm’algyax speaker. He is so dedicated to renewing the language to Ts’msyen and settlers that he released his latest album (under the name Saltwater Hank) in Sm’algyax.
An event will be held on Saturday, January 20 to build a language immersion program together as a community of Ts’msyen and settlers alike.
