Endangered Languages Project

ALSO KNOWN AS		Smith River, Chetco-Tolowa, Tolowa-Chetco, Smith River Athabaskan, Chetco, Siletz Dee-ni
CLASSIFICATION		Athabaskan-Eyak-Tlingit, Athabaskan, Pacific Coast Athabaskan
CODE AUTHORITY		ISO 639-3
LANGUAGE CODE		tol
VARIANTS & DIALECTS		Chetco Tolowa
DOWNLOAD		As csv
MORE RESOURCES		OLAC search

Compare Sources (8)

Information from: “California Indian Languages” (61-200) . Victor Golla (2011) University of California Press

Awakening
MORE ON SPEAKER NUMBERS
With the exception of 2 or 3 elderly rememberers of Tolowa at Smith River or of Lower Rogue River at Siletz, no native speaker of any Oregon Athabaskan variety survive[d] in 2010. The last fully fluent first-language speakers of Chetco-Tolowa and Rogue River died before 1990 ... Since 1980 a number of learners have acquired some degree of second-language fluency in Tolowa ... Much of the success of the Tolowa language revival is due to Loren Bommelyn, and the revitalization effort he spearheads has a broad cultural and religious base.

OTHER LANGUAGES USED BY THE COMMUNITY

PLACES: USA

LOCATION DESCRIPTION: Sileltz and Grand Ronde reservations in Oregon, Smith River in northwest California

Awakening
Ethnic population
1,000
SEMI SPEAKERS
1
MORE ON SPEAKER NUMBERS
"One elderly semispeaker in 2001 but growing numbers of younger emerging speakers with limited competence"(Golla 2007).

DATE OF INFO: 2007

MORE ON VITALITY

"Some language revival efforts."

PLACES: USA

LOCATION DESCRIPTION: "California, Smith River Rancheria, near Crescent City."

Critically endangered

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available
1
Native speakers worldwide

PLACES: USA

LOCATION DESCRIPTION: Oregon, California

Critically endangered

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available
4
Native speakers worldwide

Critically endangered

80 percent certain, based on the evidence available
3
Native speakers worldwide

SPEAKER NUMBER TRENDS
TRANSMISSION

PLACES: USA

LOCATION DESCRIPTION: California: in and around Smith River

Awakening
SEMI SPEAKERS
1
MORE ON SPEAKER NUMBERS
Tolowa is spoken by a few individuals at the Smith River Rancheria near Crescent City, California. It is nearly extinct as a first language (one elderly semi-speaker survives in 2001) but there is one fully fluent second-language speaker in his 40s.

OTHER LANGUAGES USED BY THE COMMUNITY

PLACES: USA

LOCATION DESCRIPTION: Oregon, California: Smith River Rancheria near Crescent City, California.

PLACES: USA

LOCATION DESCRIPTION: Oregon, California

Dormant
0
Native speakers worldwide
MORE ON SPEAKER NUMBERS
5 second language speakers of Siletz Dee-ni, one dialect variety of Tolowa.

TRANSMISSION

PLACES: USA

LOCATION DESCRIPTION: Oregon

		2012	Tribe Revives Language on Verge of Extinction					New York Times			http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/04/us/siletz-language-with-few-voices-finds-modern-way-to-survive.html?_r=2	Kirk Johnson	Kirk Johnson. 2012. "Tribe Revives Language On Verge of Extinction." NY Times. Online: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/04/us/siletz-language-with-few-voices-finds-modern-way-to-survive.html?_r=2.			0			5 second language speakers of Siletz Dee-ni, one dialect variety of Tolowa.		5		Dormant ()	15			USA	Oregon
978-0520266674		2011	California Indian Languages		61-200		University of California Press		Berkeley, CA	UC Berkeley		Victor Golla						Awakening	With the exception of 2 or 3 elderly rememberers of Tolowa at Smith River or of Lower Rogue River at Siletz, no native speaker of any Oregon Athabaskan variety survive[d] in 2010. The last fully fluent first-language speakers of Chetco-Tolowa and Rogue River died before 1990 ... Since 1980 a number of learners have acquired some degree of second-language fluency in Tolowa ... Much of the success of the Tolowa language revival is due to Loren Bommelyn, and the revitalization effort he spearheads has a broad cultural and religious base.			English	Awakening ()				USA	Sileltz and Grand Ronde reservations in Oregon, Smith River in northwest California
	3rd	2010	Atlas of the World’s Languages in Danger				UNESCO Publishing		Paris		http://www.unesco.org/culture/en/endangeredlanguages/atlas	Christopher Moseley (ed.)	Moseley, Christopher (ed.). 2010. Atlas of the World’s Languages in Danger, 3rd edn. http://www.unesco.org/culture/en/endangeredlanguages/atlas. (03 June, 2011.)	ll_pub		1		1-9					Critically Endangered (20 percent certain, based on the evidence available)				USA	Oregon, California	41.9566,-124.1915
		2008	North America	Atlas of the World's Languages	7-41	Chris Moseley and Ron Asher	Routledge		London			Victor Golla and Ives Goddard and Lyle Campbell and Marianne Mithun and Mauricio Mixco	Victor Golla, Ives Goddard, Lyle Campbell, Marianne Mithun and Mauricio Mixco. 2008. "North America." In Atlas of the World's Languages, edited by Chris Moseley and Ron Asher. 7-41. Routledge.					Awakening	Tolowa is spoken by a few individuals at the Smith River Rancheria near Crescent City, California. It is nearly extinct as a first language (one elderly semi-speaker survives in 2001) but there is one fully fluent second-language speaker in his 40s.	1	1	English	Awakening ()				USA	Oregon, California: Smith River Rancheria near Crescent City, California.
		2009	"The Tolowa (TOL) Athabaskan Lexicon and Text Collection Project: Recording the Last Speakers of the Tolowa Dee-ni' Language" NSF DEL Abstract								http://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward.do?AwardNumber=0854556&WT.z_pims_id=12816	Underriner, Janne	Underriner, Janne 2009. "The Tolowa (TOL) Athabaskan Lexicon and Text Collection Project: Recording the Last Speakers of the Tolowa Dee-ni' Language" NSF DEL Abstract.			3		1-9					Critically Endangered (80 percent certain, based on the evidence available)	15		15	USA	California: in and around Smith River
	2nd edition	2010	Endangered Languages of the United States	Atlas of the World’s Languages in Danger of Disappearing	108-130	Christopher Moseley	UNESCO		Paris			Christopher Rogers, Naomi Palosaari and Lyle Campbell	Christopher Rogers, Naomi Palosaari and Lyle Campbell. 2010. "Endangered Languages of the United States." In Atlas of the World’s Languages in Danger of Disappearing, edited by Christopher Moseley. 108-130. UNESCO.														USA	Oregon, California	41.9566,-124.1915
			World Oral Literature Project								http://www.oralliterature.org		"World Oral Literature Project." Online: http://www.oralliterature.org.			4		1-9					Critically Endangered (20 percent certain, based on the evidence available)
	18th	2015	Ethnologue: Languages of the World, 18th Edition			Lewis, M. Paul, Gary F. Simons, and Charles D. Fennig	SIL International		Dallas, Texas		http://www.ethnologue.com		Lewis, M. Paul, Gary F. Simons, and Charles D. Fennig (eds.). 2015. Ethnologue: Languages of the World, Eighteenth edition. Dallas, Texas: SIL International. Online version: http://www.ethnologue.com.		1,000		2007	Awakening	"One elderly semispeaker in 2001 but growing numbers of younger emerging speakers with limited competence"(Golla 2007).	1	1		Awakening ()		"Some language revival efforts."		USA	"California, Smith River Rancheria, near Crescent City."

Tolowa

Language metadata

Language information by source

Awakening

Awakening

Critically endangered

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available

1

Critically endangered

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available

4

Critically endangered

80 percent certain, based on the evidence available

3

Awakening

Dormant

0

Discussion

Tolowa

Language metadata

Language information by source

Awakening

Awakening

Critically endangered

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available

1

Critically endangered

20 percent certain, based on the evidence available

4

Critically endangered

80 percent certain, based on the evidence available

3

Awakening

Dormant

0

Discussion

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