Th’ístel means ‘horn’ (of an animal), or ‘antler’.
Pronunciation
Elders pronounce th’ístel in two ways:
- TSEE-stull, but with a catch in the throat (glottal stop) after the TS
- T-THEE-stull, but (again) with a catch in the throat after the TH
Both pronunciations are ‘correct’.
Audio: Elizabeth Herrling, Elizabeth Phillips
Plural form
Th’ístel has a special plural form, like this: th’áth’istel – horns, antlers. Some Elders instead say th’ith’álestel for the plural. (Audio for both versions is here.)
Elders make this type of plural by doubling (‘reduplicating’) the first part of the word, in this case also with some vowel changes.
Related words
Th’ístel comes from the same root as a number of other words, including:
- th’estel – metal nail (the –tel ending marks tools and devices, the same ending occurs in th’ístel itself)
- th’íset – to nail (it), to tack (it)
- th’estíyelhp – poplar tree (the –elhp ending marks trees and whole plants)
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