sch’áletstel

chair

Sch’áletstel is the Halq’eméylem word for ‘chair’. Literally it means ‘device for putting your rear end on’.

Pronunciation

• Sch’áletstel sounds like SCHA-uh-lit-still.
• After the ch, there is a catch in the throat (glottal stop).
• Many speakers do not say the s- at the start.  This is also ‘correct’.
• Many speakers also say the word with ts instead of ch.  This is also ‘correct’.

Audio: Elizabeth Herrling, Elizabeth Phillips

Related words

The base for sch’áletstel is ch’á, ts’á, which means ‘be on top’. Ch’á, ts’á is also the base for many related words, including these examples:

• sts’ts’á – be on top of
  

  sts’ets’á

• Ts’á’í:les – Chehalis
• sts’á:ltexw – top of roof, roof planks
  

  sts’á:ltexw

The -lets part of sch’áletstel is the ending (é)lets, which refers to the ‘bottom‘ or ‘rear end’. This ending also occurs in many words, for example:

• shxw’áthelets – bottom
• tl’epláts – bottom of a creek
• Th’émexwlats – tail end of Seabird Island

The -tel ending in sch’áletstel refers to ‘tools’ or ‘devices’. This ending occurs in many other words, including:

• kw’í:tstel – knife
  

  kw’ítstel

• éx̲wtel – broom
  

  broom

• kwōwethtel – coho net

Plural form

To talk about chairs, you can use a special form of sch’áletstel, like this: sch’ech’áletstel – chairs (audio here).  Elders make this kind of plural by partly doubling (‘reduplicating’) the first part of the word.

sch’ech’áletstel