Kinship

Carrier divides up relatives differently from English. In some cases it makes distinctions that English does not, while in other cases it uses the same word for relations that are distinguished in English. In general, there is no simple relationship between Carrier kinship terms and English kinship terms.

Most kinship terms are inalienably possessed. That is, in their basic form they cannot be used as words by themselves. They must either be part of a compound word or have a possessive prefix attached. In other words, you can say “my father”, “his father”, “your father”, and so forth, but not, strictly speaking, “father”. If you want to refer to a relative without specifying whose it is, you have to use the indefinite possessor form, e.g. 'uba “someone's father, a father”.

Except as otherwise noted, all kinship terms make their plural by adding -ke, e.g. schai “my grandchild”, schaike “my grandchildren”.

The Nuclear Family

“husband” ki and “wife” 'at are unusual in that they are not inalienably possessed. “wife” has the irregular plural 'atkoo, but the regular plural 'atke is also heard.

“father” is -ba, “mother” -loo. The parents together are -dus̲ne, which also has a double plural -dus̲neke.

There are two words for “daughter” and two for “son”, depending on whether the “possessor”, that is, the parent with whom the relationship is considered, is male or female. “man's daughter” is -t̲s̲e', “woman's daughter” -yats'e.“man's son” is -ye', “woman's son” -yaz. If the relationship mentioned is with the father and mother together either term may be used. Thus, “their son” may be either buye' or buyaz, and “their daughter” may be either but̲s̲e' or buyats'e.

“child” when unpossessed is ts'oodun, with the plural ts'oodun-ne. The possessed stem is -z̲keh, with plurals -uz̲kehke and -uz̲kehne. Possessive forms may not be based on ts'oodun.

Dakelh has no words exactly equivalent to the English words “brother” and “sister”. There are specific terms for “older brother” -oono and “older sister” -yat, “younger brother” -chul and “younger sister” -dis. There are also broader terms which do not distinguish older from younger, but these are broader still than “brother” and “sister”. -ulhtus denotes “sister or female first cousin”, -ulhutsin “brother or male first cousin” . The relationships among these are illustrated in the following chart.

“younger brother” has the irregular plurals -chisle and -chulikoo. The regular plural -chulke is also heard.

Grandparents and Grandchildren

“grandmother” is -tsoo, “grandfather” -tsiyan. These terms have a broader use than in English. Your grandparents' sisters are also your -tsoo; your grandparents' brothers are also your -tsiyan. In other words, there is no distinction between “grandmother” and “great-aunt” or between “grandfather” and “great-uncle”.

“great-grandfather” is either -tsiyanjut or -tsiyancho. Similarly, “great-grandmother” is either -tsoojut or -tsoocho. Some people consider -tsiyanjut and -tsoojut rude because the core meaning of the suffix -jut is “rotten”, but most people consider these terms inoffensive.

A grandchild is -chai. There is no gender distinction. This term too is broader than its English counterpart. Your brothers' and sister's grandchildren are also your -chai. In other words, there is no distinction among “grand-child”, “grand-niece”, and “grand-nephew”. “great-grandchild” is -nanijai.

In-laws

• brother's wife's brother
• sister's husband's wife
• husband's brother's wife
• husband's sister's husband
• wife's sister's husband
• wife's brother's wife

For example, if two women are married to brothers, they are in the -loh relationship.

Nieces and Nephews

The terminology for nieces and nephews is in flux. Many people now use -gwaz for any niece or nephew. In what appears to be the older system, -gwaz is the term used for a woman's sister's children of either sex and -t̲s̲oo is the term used for a man's sister's children, again of either sex. For both men and women, a brother's son is -chul, like a younger brother, and a brother's daughter is -dis, like a younger sister.

Aunts and Uncles

There are to words for “aunt” and two words for “uncle”. Unfortunately, speakers do not all agree on which word aunts and uncles each word refers to. Four types of aunt are relevant:

• mother's sister
• father's sister
• mother's brother's wife
• father's brother's wife

Similarly, four types of uncle are relevant:

• mother's brother
• father's brother
• mother's sister's husband
• father's sister's husband

What appears to be the most common system at present is a distinction between father's side and mother's side.

Some people have a system in which one term is used for the sibling of the same sex, that is, mother's sister or father's brother, and the other term is used for the other three kinds of aunt or uncle.

Still other systems are found in other dialects. In some dialects the distinction between is between blood relatives and relatives by marriage. In others the distinction is between cross and parallel aunts and uncles. A cross aunt or uncle is one related via relatives of opposite sexes. A parallel aunt or uncle is one related via relatives of the same sex. Your cross aunts are your father's sister and your mother's brother's wife. Your parallel aunts are your mother's sister and your father's brothers wife. Your cross uncles are your mother's brother and your father's sister's husband. Your parallel uncles are your father's brother and your mother's sister's husband.

Additional Uses of the Indefinite Form

The indefinite form of kinship terms has two additional uses with kinship terms for people older than you are or of a higher generation. One is as a vocative, that is, as the form you use to address that person. If you want to get your father's attention, you say 'uba “(hey) dad!”. That is the vocative form.

The indefinite form is also used to refer to a relative when whose relative it is is clear from the context. Thus, if it is clear that you are talking about your own mother, you will refer to her as 'uloo rather than as sloo. Similarly, if you want to ask a friend about his or her mother, you will refer to her as 'uloo rather than as nloo. For example, you could say 'Uloo dant'oh? “How is your mother?”.

Other Relatives

Cousins and other distant relatives for which there is no more specific term are -nadun, plural -natneke. The latter serves among other things for “family, relations” since it can include relatives of a variety of types.

One's ancestors are t̲s̲oda'ne. This is the term normally used possessed. There are other terms, e.g. 'uda'dunene for the ancestors in the larger sense, that is, the people of long ago, with whom one does not necessarily have a known kinship relationship.

“step-son” is -ulhye', “step-daughter” -ulht̲s̲e'. “step-father” is -tai, the same as one's paternal uncle. “step-mother” is -ak'i, the same as one's maternal aunt. These are very rarely used - Dakelh people generally don't care whether or not the relationship is biological. Terms for “half-brother”, “half-sister”, “step-brother”, and “step-sister” do not exist.

No longer in current use is -ulht'en “co-wife”, the term used to refer to the relationship between two women married simultaneously to the same man.

For a deceased person there are several equivalents of “the late”, all of which follow the name or kinship term: inle', uzdani', and hoolil.

An ex-relative may be designated by adding inle' to the kinship term, e.g. s'at inle' “my ex-wife”. Out of context this is ambiguous as it is also used for a deceased person. Thus, s'at inle' may also mean “my late wife”.

An orphan is ts'unoh, a widow or widower t̲s̲andilh.

There are terms for a number of groups of relatives, consisting of X and the one(s) who call that person X, e.g. “paternal aunt together with her niece or nephew”, lhbizyanke. Other examples include: lhyazke, lht̲s̲e'ke, lhye'ke, and lhghundanke. By the same principle, a married couple is either lh'atke or lhkike.

The Trinitarian Formula

Something often heard in the Carrier community is the Trinitarian formula, which Roman Catholics recite before many prayers, as part of baptisms, and when making the sign of the cross. It is also used by some Protestant denominations.

The use of ba “father” and ye' “son” without possessive prefixes is very unusual. In ordinary speech, it would be Neba cha ooye' cha Ndoni cha buboozi', where neba is “our father” and ooye' is “his son”.

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