This is one of the first recordings of fluent speaker Bobby Sport from the Huuʕayʔaht First Nation in 1996 in Port Alberni, B.C.
Language Notes:
1) Willie and some other Huu-ay-aht speakers say n̓aačsa “seeing”, where others say n̓aacsa (same for qačc̓a ~ qacc̓a “three”).
2) ʔuuyuqʷa is the same as ʔuukʷił (object marker), a word Huu-ay-aht shares with Ditidaht.
(3) ʔuuḥw̓ink means “using”, ʔuucḥw̓ink means “using somebody else’s property” (same as ʔuuḥw̓ał and ʔuucḥw̓ał).
A prayer to say before eating a meal spoken by the late Barbara Touchie of the Ucluelet First Nation.
This is a conversation between Henry Kammler and Bob Mundy about Bob’s pet cat, Mootʕis. Listen along with the recording.
ʔaaqičiłḥak (what do you…) ƛ̓uu (remember) ʔuumac̓uk̓ʷaƛquuk
(when you talk about) yaqitiik (that which was your) maḥt̓ii (house) qʷiyiyiik
(when you were) meʔiƛqacʔis (a little boy)? ʔayaaqƛ̓asitḥasuu (were lots of
you living together)? — wik (no) ʔanimtukʷitaḥ (there was only my…) ʔumʔiiqsu
(mother) ʔaḥʔaaʔaƛ (and) neʔiiqsu (uncle) ʔaḥʔaaʔaƛ (and) ʔaya (many) piišpiš
(cat). — ʔunaakitḥak (did you have) piišpiš (cat)? — ʔunaakitaḥ (I had)
piišpiš (cat) ʔaya (many). — ʕaʕimtnakitḥaʔał (did they have names)? –haaʔa
(yes). — ƛ̓uučiƛḥak (do you remember)? — čawaakitma (one did) ʔukłaa (have
as name) Mootʕis. — ʔaqaqḥa (what is) ʔaḥ (that)? — Mootʕis. — Mootʕis? —
ʔanaḥisukʷitma (just that its … was) sit̓a (tail) mutqyuu (amputated).
—Nanaʔamaḥ (I understand). — ʔapḥtaak̓aƛ (now it was half) — ʔapḥtaak̓aƛ
(it was half now) sit̓aatʔi (its tail) — sit̓aatʔi (its tail). [Mootʕis means
“Little Amputated One”]