Halkomelem

[hal-kuh-mey-uh-luhm]

noun

1. a Coast Salish language spoken by more than 40 peoples along the Fraser River and its tributaries, on the coast of mainland British Columbia, on Vancouver Island, and in northern Washington State.

adjective

1. of or relating to Halkomelem, a Coast Salish language of British Columbia and Washington State, or to its speakers.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Halkomelem¹

First recorded in 1900–05; from Halkomelem Halq̓eméylem (Upriver dialect), Hul̓q̓umín̓um̓ (Island dialect), and hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ (Downriver dialect), a self-designation

Example Sentences

The so-called Sasquatch—or “hairy man” in Halkomelem, a language of the First Nations tribes—allegedly stalks the Pacific Northwest, the wilds of the Sierra National Forest and the imaginations of Americans.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The family spoke Halkomelem, a native language that was widely spoken in what is now British Columbia but also in the Nooksack River valley until the mid-20th century; it eventually largely replaced the original Nooksack language, Lhechalosem.

Read more on New York Times

Mr. Foot, who also went by the name Sasquatch, or Sásq’ets in the original Halkomelem, was 4,000 years old.

Read more on Time