Counting in Okanagan

Language overview

Forty-two in Okanagan Okanagan language, also known as Colville-Okanagan, or Nsyilxcən (n̓səl̓xcin̓), is an interior Salish language of the Salishan language family. While most of its actual speakers live in British Columbia, Canada, it was spoken by the indigenous people in the Okanagan River Basin and the Columbia River Basin in both Canada and United States. Highly endangered with only 150 deeply fluent speakers, while rarely learned, the langage is currently revitalized.

Due to lack of data, we can only count accurately up to 100 in Okanagan. Please contact me if you can help me counting up from that limit.

Okanagan numbers list

  • 1 – naqs
  • 2 – ʔasíl̓
  • 3 – kaʔłís
  • 4 – mus
  • 5 – čilkst
  • 6 – ta̓q̓m̓kst
  • 7 – sisp̓l̓k̓
  • 8 – tim̓ł
  • 9 – x̌əx̌n̓ut
  • 10 – ʔupn̓kst
  • 11 – ʔupn̓kst uł naqs
  • 12 – ʔupn̓kst uł ʔasíl̓
  • 13 – ʔupn̓kst uł kaʔłís
  • 14 – ʔupn̓kst uł mus
  • 15 – ʔupn̓kst uł čilkst
  • 16 – ʔupn̓kst uł ta̓q̓m̓kst
  • 17 – ʔupn̓kst uł sisp̓l̓k̓
  • 18 – ʔupn̓kst uł tim̓ł
  • 19 – ʔupn̓kst uł x̌əx̌n̓ut
  • 20 – ʔasl̓ʔúpn̓kst
  • 30 – kaʔłl̓ʔúpn̓kst
  • 40 – msłʔupn̓kst
  • 50 – člkł̓ʔupn̓kst
  • 60 – tq̓m̓kłʔupn̓kst
  • 70 – səsp̓l̓k̓̓łʔupn̓kst
  • 80 – tm̓łʔupn̓kst
  • 90 – x̌əx̌n̓łʔupn̓kst
  • 100 – x̌čəčikst

Okanagan numbering rules

Now that you’ve had a gist of the most useful numbers, let’s move to the writing rules for the tens, the compound numbers, and why not the hundreds, the thousands and beyond (if possible).

  • Digits from one to nine are rendered by specific words, namely naqs [1], ʔasíl̓ [2], kaʔłís [3], mus [4], čilkst [5], ta̓q̓m̓kst [6], sisp̓l̓k̓ [7], tim̓ł [8], and x̌əx̌n̓ut [9].
  • Tens are formed starting with the multiplier digit with no vowel, directly followed by the word for ten (ʔupn̓kst) with no space, except for ten itself: ʔupn̓kst [10], ʔasl̓ʔúpn̓kst [20], kaʔłl̓ʔúpn̓kst [30], msłʔupn̓kst [40], člkł̓ʔupn̓kst [50], tq̓m̓kłʔupn̓kst [60], səsp̓l̓k̓̓łʔupn̓kst [70], tm̓łʔupn̓kst [80], and x̌əx̌n̓łʔupn̓kst [90].
  • Compound numbers are formed starting with the ten, then the conjonction uł, and the unit (e.g.: ʔupn̓kst uł ta̓q̓m̓kst [16], kaʔłl̓ʔúpn̓kst uł tim̓ł [38]).
  • The word for hundred is x̌čəčikst [100].

Write a number in full in Okanagan

Let’s move now to the practice of the numbering rules in Okanagan. Will you guess how to write a number in full? Enter a number and try to write it down in your head, or maybe on a piece of paper, before displaying the result.

Books

Source

  • N̓səlx̓čin̓ 1: A Beginning Course in Colville-Okanagan Salish (2021)

Salishan languages

Comox, Halkomelem, Klallam, Lushootseed, Moses-Columbia, Okanagan, Saanich, Shuswap, and Squamish.

Other supported languages

As the other currently supported languages are too numerous to list extensively here, please select a language from the full list of supported languages.