The Pentlatch, Pentl’ach, Puntlatch, Puntlatsh or Puntledge language is a

Salishan The Salishan languages ( ), also known as the Salish languages ( ), are a family of languages found in the Pacific Northwest in North America, namely the Canadian province of British Columbia and the American states of Washington, Oregon, Ida ...

language that is spoken on

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Vancouver Island Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The island is in length, in width at its widest point, and in total area, while are of land. The island is the largest ...

in a small area between Comox and

Nanaimo, British Columbia Nanaimo ( ) is a city of about 100,000 on the east coast of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. "The Harbour City" was previously known as the "Hub City", which was attributed to its original layout design with streets radiating fr ...

. The

Pentlatch people The Pentlatch, Pentl’ach, Puntlatch, Puntlatsh or Puntledge language is a Salishan language that is spoken on Canada's Vancouver Island in a small area between Comox and Nanaimo, British Columbia Nanaimo ( ) is a city of about 100,000 on ...

formerly numbered at least 3,000 with at least 90 settlements in the area. The language became extinct after the death of the last fluent speaker Joe Nim Nim in 1940, but researchers from

Qualicum First Nation The Qualicum First Nation is a First Nations band government located in Qualicum Bay at the mouth of the Big Qualicum River, near Qualicum Beach on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Pro ...

declared it to be a living language in December 2023. There are currently two people who are semispeakers of Pentlach, and 20 people are learning it. In 2017, Qualicum Elder Bill Recalma, a speaker of Pentlatch, began working to record and teach what he knew of the language. He and his son Jessie have been working together to help revive it. The Pentlatch celebrated a ceremony celebrating the language's reawakening due to their efforts. In 2023, the Pentlatch language was reclassified by Qualicum researchers as a living language and was added to the list of official First Nations' languages in British Columbia.

Variants

The name of this people and their language survives on the modern map as that of the

Puntledge River The Puntledge River is a small river on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. It joins the Tsolum River to form the Courtenay River, which enters the Strait of Georgia at the city of Courtenay. Name origin The name is derived from that of ...

, the

Comox Valley The Comox Valley is a region on the east coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada, that includes the city of Courtenay, the town of Comox, the village of Cumberland, and the unincorporated settlements of Royston, Union Bay, Fann ...

locality of Puntledge and the name of the Pentledge 2 Indian Reserve, now allocated to the K'ómoks First Nation band government.BC Names entry "Pentledge 2 (Indian Reserve)"
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References

External links

from the

Yinka Dene Language Institute The Yinka Dene Language Institute (YDLI) is an organization based in Stoney Creek, British Columbia, whose purpose is the study and maintenance of the language and culture of Dakelh and other First Nations people in northern British Columbia. H ...

"Pentlatch" at ethnologue.com
Extinct languages of North America Coast Salish languages Mid Vancouver Island Languages extinct in the 1940s 1940s disestablishments in North America Reconstructed languages {{BritishColumbia-stub