Nsyilxcən
/n.səˈjəlx.tʃən/noun
Nsyilxcən is the Indigenous language of the Syilx (Okanagan) people of the Pacific Northwest.
Did you know?Nsyilxcən is also called Colville-Okanagan, but many speakers and communities prefer the Indigenous name because it centers the Syilx people rather than colonial geography.
Etymological Timeline
Pre-contact
Nsyilxcən
nsyilxcən
“The language associated with the Syilx people; the original spoken form predates alphabetic records.”
19th Century
English records
Okanagan
“An English rendering of the regional and ethnolinguistic name used for the people and their language.”
Late 19th–20th Century
English and linguistic literature
Colville-Okanagan
“A scholarly and administrative label for the language variety spoken across the Okanagan and Colville regions.”
Modern English
English
Nsyilxcən
“The community-preferred Indigenous name for the language, increasingly used in education, revitalization, and cultural institutions.”
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