Tl’átl’el te th’ístels te smúsmes li te élqsels

Tl’átl’el te th’ístels te smúsmes li te élqsels means “(They) attach a cow’s horn on the end of it”, or “A cow’s horn is attached on the end of it”.

Audio: Elizabeth Herrling

Structure and Vocabulary

• (s)tl’átl’el – (be) attached
• te – a, the (Halq’eméylem uses the same words for ‘a’ and ‘the’)
• th’ístel – horn (or an animal), antler
• -s here, translates roughly as ‘of‘. Literally it marks that a ‘third person’ (neither you nor me) possesses the object.
• (s)músmes – cow (Note that Elizabeth adds an s-. The s- prefix, used in this way, is a noun marker, and speakers are quite variable in whether they use it or not with certain nouns.)
• li – this is a general preposition which can mean in, on, at or on, here the best translations is on
• élqsel – tip, end

Note that there is no overt word for ‘it‘ in this sentence; as is common in the language, this meaning is just understood from context.