Chokma! Saholhchifoat Labaachi'. Chikashsha saya. Kowishto' iksa micha Imatapoo aamintili. Chikashsha _i_yaakni' atali. Chikashshanompa' kanihmo'si ith_a_nali. Ithanali.
Hello! My name is Labaachi' (the one that talks all the time). I am a Chickasaw. I come from the panther clan and their lean-to-tent people. I live in the Chickasaw Nation. I know a little bit of the Chickasaw language. I am learning it.
Chickasaws are a tribe traditionally in parts of Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, and Kentucky, but forcefully relocated to Indian Territory by the United States government starting in 1837. There are less than fifty speakers of Chickasaw left, making my ancestral tongue severely endangered. I want to make this so people can know words of their language, to hear what their ancestors would've said. Note that this is my own variety of Chickasaw and not every speaker speaks the exact same way.
Glottal Stop ('): A stop in the throat when noted. In the English "Uh-oh" and sometimes unconsciously used as a "T" substitute.
Voiceless Lateral Fricative (Lh): A soft "Th" sound or a breeze but in the position of an "L."
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