Kalaallisut
Greenlandic
Eskimo-Aleut (Inuit)
Also known as: Greenlandic, Kalaallisut
Greenlandic (Kalaallisut) is the only Eskimo-Aleut language with sole-official status in a sovereign-equivalent polity (Greenland, since 2009 self-rule). Spoken by ~57K. Highly polysynthetic — single words can express full sentences via productive suffix chains (e.g. illoqarpunga "I have a house"). Three main dialects: West (standard Kalaallisut), East (Tunumiit), Polar North (Inuktun). Latin script standardized 1973; literary tradition since the 1721 Hans Egede mission, with the first Greenlandic novel published 1914 (Mathias Storch).
Where it is spoken
20 core words in Greenlandic
Water
imeq
/imeq/
Fire
ikuallaq
/ikuaɬːaq/
Sun
seqineq
/seqineq/
Moon
qaammat
/qaːmːat/
Mother
anaana
/anaːna/
Father
ataata
/ataːta/
Eat
nerivoq
/neɾivoq/
Drink
imerpoq
/imeɾpoq/
Love
asaaq
/asaːq/
Heart
uummat
/uːmːat/
Tree
orpik
/oɾpik/
House
illu
/iɬːu/
Dog
qimmeq
/qimːeq/
Cat
qitsuk
/qitsuk/
Hand
assak
/asːak/
Eye
isi
/isi/
Hello
aluu
/aluː/
Thank you
qujanaq
/qujanaq/
One
ataaseq
/ataːseq/
Good
ajunngilaq
/ajuŋːilaq/
Sources
Words compared
Compared with related Eskimo-Aleut (Inuit) languages
| Meaning | Greenlandic | Inuktitut | Inupiaq | Central Alaskan Yupik | Classical Nahuatl | Old Prussian | Konso |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | imeq /imeq/ | ᐃᒪᖅ /imaq/ | imiq /imiq/ | meq /meq/ | ātl /aːtɬ/ | undan /undan/ | inanta /inanta/ |
| Fire | ikuallaq /ikuaɬːaq/ | ᐃᑯᒪ /ikuma/ | igniq /iɡniq/ | keneq /keneq/ | tlētl /tɬeːtɬ/ | panno /panːo/ | iya /ija/ |
| Sun | seqineq /seqineq/ | ᓯᕿᓂᖅ /siqiniq/ | siqiñiq /siqiŋiq/ | akerta /akerta/ | tōnatiuh /toːnatiw/ | saule /saule/ | kawa /kawa/ |
| Moon | qaammat /qaːmːat/ | ᑕᖅᑭᖅ /taqːiq/ | tatqiq /tatqiq/ | iraluq /iraluq/ | mētztli /meːtstɬi/ | menins /menins/ | ayeena /ajeːna/ |
| Mother | anaana /anaːna/ | ᐊᓈᓇ /anaːna/ | aaka /aːka/ | aana /aːna/ | nāntli /naːntɬi/ | mūti /muːti/ | eedda /eːdːa/ |
| Father | ataata /ataːta/ | ᐊᑖᑕ /ataːta/ | aapa /aːpa/ | ata /ata/ | tāhtli /taːtɬi/ | tāws /taːws/ | abba /abːa/ |
| Eat | nerivoq /neɾivoq/ | ᓂᕆ- /niʁi/ | niġiruq /niʁiruq/ | ner'uq /nerʔuq/ | tlacua /tɬakʷa/ | īst /iːst/ | ihaa /ihaː/ |
| Drink | imerpoq /imeɾpoq/ | ᐃᒥᖅ- /imiq/ | imiġuq /imiʁuq/ | mertuq /mertuq/ | ātli /aːtɬi/ | poūton /poʊton/ | inakkaa /inakːaː/ |
| Love | asaaq /asaːq/ | ᓇᒡᓕᒍᓱᒃ- /naɡliɡusuk/ | piqpaġiyaa /piqpaʁijaː/ | kenka /kenka/ | tlazōhtla /tɬasoːhtɬa/ | milīt /miliːt/ | jaalla /dʒaːlːa/ |
| Heart | uummat /uːmːat/ | ᐆᒻᒪᑦ /uːmːat/ | uumman /uːmːan/ | irua /irua/ | yōllōtl /joːlːoːtɬ/ | sīran /siːran/ | onna /onːa/ |
| Tree | orpik /oɾpik/ | ᓇᐹᖅᑐᖅ /napaːqtuq/ | napaaqtaq /napaːqtaq/ | napa /napa/ | cuahuitl /kʷawitɬ/ | garrin /ˈɡarin/ | ergaa /erɡaː/ |
| House | illu /iɬːu/ | ᐃᒡᓗ /iɡlu/ | iglu /iɡlu/ | ena /ena/ | calli /kalːi/ | butt /butː/ | mana /mana/ |
| Dog | qimmeq /qimːeq/ | ᕿᒻᒥᖅ /qimːiq/ | qimmiq /qimːiq/ | qimugta /qimuɣta/ | itzcuīntli /itskʷiːntɬi/ | sūns /suːns/ | kareta /kaɾeta/ |
| Cat | qitsuk /qitsuk/ | ᐱᓯᒃᑎ /pisikti/ | pussiq /pusːiq/ | qassraaraq /qassraːraq/ | mīztōn /miːstoːn/ | katto /katːo/ | adurree /aduɾːeː/ |
| Hand | assak /asːak/ | ᐊᒡᒑᖅ /aɡːaːq/ | argak /arɡak/ | unirak /unirak/ | māitl /maːitɬ/ | rancko /ranko/ | harka /haɾka/ |
| Eye | isi /isi/ | ᐃᔨ /iji/ | iri /iri/ | ii /iː/ | īxtli /iːʃtɬi/ | ackis /akis/ | ila /ila/ |
| Hello | aluu /aluː/ | ᐊᐃ /aj/ | paglagvik /paɡlaɡvik/ | waqaa /waqaː/ | niltze /niltse/ | kaīls /kaiːls/ | akkam /akːam/ |
| Thank you | qujanaq /qujanaq/ | ᓇᑯᕐᒦᒃ /nakuʁmiːk/ | quyanaq /qujanaq/ | quyana /qujana/ | tlazōhcāmati /tɬasoːhkaːmati/ | dīnkun /diːnkun/ | galta /ɡalta/ |
| One | ataaseq /ataːseq/ | ᐊᑕᐅᓯᖅ /atausiq/ | atausiq /atausiq/ | ataucik /atautʃik/ | cē /seː/ | ains /ains/ | takka /takːa/ |
| Good | ajunngilaq /ajuŋːilaq/ | ᐱᐅᔪᖅ /piujuq/ | nakuuruq /nakuːruq/ | assirtuq /asːirtuq/ | cualli /kʷalːi/ | labs /labs/ | fayye /fajːe/ |
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