Learning Lushootseed

The foundation of our collective is based on a Lushootseed traditional narrative. We feature Lushootseed in our name and in many of our programs, with the goal of honoring the territories where we work and sharing the language with new audiences. There are 13 different tribes in the Puget Sound region in Washington state that speak Lushootseed — however there are dialectal differences. The yəhaw̓ collective works across tribal territories, and attempts to use both Northern and Southern dialects when possible. You can learn more about the Lushootseed language, and proper protocols for sharing traditional narratives, through resources provided by local tribes like the Puyallup Tribal Language Program, and the Tulalip Lushootseed Language Department.

Play the audio clip below to hear how to pronounce the Lushootseed word yәhaw̓ that means to proceed, go forward, do the work.