Xwehíwel means ‘to go upriver’ or ‘to go upstream’.
Pronunciation
Xwehíwel sounds like shwuh-HEE-wull, except that instead of a sh, the first sound is the Halq’eméylem soft-x, here made with rounded lips (xw).
To make this sound, you touch the back of your tongue gently to the roof of your mouth.
Audio: Elizabeth Herrling
-ing form
Xwehíwel has a special –ing form to describe an ongoing action, like this: xwehí:wel – going upriver, going upstream (audio here).
Elders make this type of –ing form by making the vowel slightly longer, and adding a sharply falling pitch.
Related words
Xwehíwel comes from the root word ehíw – (be) upriver.
The xwe prefix means to become, and the -el ending also marks a change of state.
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