Gwichʼin language
| Gwichʼin | |
|---|---|
| Dinjii Zhuʼ Ginjik | |
| Native to | Canada, United States |
| Region | Canada (Northwest Territories, Yukon), United States (Alaska) |
| Ethnicity | 3,000 Gwichʼin people (2007) |
Native speakers | ca. 560 (2007–2016) |
| Dialects |
|
| Latin (Northern Athabaskan alphabet) | |
| Official status | |
Official language in | Canada (Northwest Territories) United States(Alaska) |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-2 | gwi |
| ISO 639-3 | gwi |
| Glottolog | gwic1235 |
| ELP | Gwich'in |
Gwich'in is classified as Severely Endangered by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger | |
| People | Dinjii Zhuu Gwichʼin |
|---|---|
| Language | Dinju Zhuh Kʼyuu |
| Country | Gwichʼin Nành, Denendeh ᑌᓀᐣᑌᐧ |
The Gwichʼin language (Dinju Zhuh Kʼyuu) belongs to the Athabaskan language family and is spoken by the Gwich'in First Nation (Canada) / Alaska Native People (United States). It is also known in older or dialect-specific publications as Kutchin, Takudh, Tukudh, or Loucheux. Gwich'in is spoken primarily in the towns of Inuvik, Aklavik, Fort McPherson (aka Teetł'it Zheh), and Tsiigehtchic (formerly Arctic Red River), all in the Northwest Territories and Old Crow in Yukon of Canada. In Alaska of the United States, Gwichʼin is spoken in Fort Yukon, Chalkyitsik, Birch Creek, Venetie and Arctic Village.
The ejective affricate in the name Gwichʼin is usually written with symbol U+2019 ’ RIGHT SINGLE QUOTATION MARK, though the correct character for this use (with expected glyph and typographic properties) is U+02BC ʼ MODIFIER LETTER APOSTROPHE.