Tlingit

American  

[tling-git] / ˈtlɪŋ gɪt /

noun

plural

Tlingits,

plural

Tlingit

1. a member of any of a number of Indigenous peoples of the coastal regions of southern Alaska and northern British Columbia.

2. the language of the Tlingit, a Na-Dene language.

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Tlingit British  

/ ˈtlɪŋɡɪt /

noun

1. a member of a seafaring group of North American Indian peoples inhabiting S Alaska and N British Columbia

2. the language of these peoples, belonging to the Na-Dene phylum

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Etymology

Origin of Tlingit

First recorded in 1865–70; from Tlingit tłingít “human being, person, Tlingit”

Example Sentences

“We are a far cry from where we were last year,” said Roald Helgesen, chief operating officer of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska based in Juneau.

From The Wall Street Journal • Aug. 13, 2025

Ayers: Alaska’s beauty is unprecedented, and spending time in Glacier Bay National Park and the surrounding communities gives you a taste of the Tlingit and their culture.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 17, 2025

Hall was born into the Tlingit tribe in a small fishing village in Alaska.

From Salon • Dec. 26, 2024

Yet North American societies like the Kwakwaka’wakw, Coast Salish, and Tlingit were seen as outliers on an evolutionary ladder that led from foraging to farming to complex states and the origins of modern society.

From Science Magazine • Nov. 29, 2023

“Animals are symbols. Tlingit tribes have two divisions—the Ravens and the Wolves. Closely related members form smaller clans. I’m from the Killer Whale clan.”

From "Touching Spirit Bear" by Ben Mikaelsen