Sqe’ó:les is the Halq’eméylem word for a ‘tear’. Literally it means ‘water of the eyes’.
Author Archive | Stolo Shxweli
tsmeth’ó:les
Tsmeth’ó:les is the Halq’eméylem word for ‘blue eye(s)’. You can also use it for ‘to have blue eyes’.
peq’ó:les
P’eq’ó:les is the Halq’eméylem word for ‘cataract’. Literally it means ‘white eye’. P’eq’ó:les is also the name of a place, across the Fraser river from Deroche, B.C.
kw’elōweqw
Kw’elōweqw is the Halq’eméylem word for ‘skin on the head’ or ‘scalp’. Kw’elōw means ‘skin’, and -eqw is the ending for ‘on the top of the head’.
sp’ótl’em
Sp’ótl’em is the Halq’eméylem word for ‘smoke’. Some people also use sp’ótl’em for ‘cigarette’, or ‘tobacco’. Note that this word is a noun, describing the thing, as for example in Tsel hóqwelexw te sp’ótl’em. – ‘I smell smoke’. …
kw’elōw
Kw’elōw is the Halq’eméylem word for ‘skin’. You can use it for human skin, as well as for a pelt or hide…
shxwtále’álá
Shxwtále’álá is the Halq’eméylem word for ‘purse’, or ‘wallet’. Literally it means ‘container for money’…
sméth’qel
Sméth’qel is the Halq’eméylem word for ‘brain’. Literally it means ‘blue in the head’. Some Elders use a related but different word: sméth’elheqw.
lhí:ts’et
Lhí:ts’et is the Halq’eméylem word for ‘to cut (it)’.
kw’éts’tel
Kw’éts’tel is the Halq’eméylem word for ‘butchering knife’, or ‘butchering tool’. It is related to the verb kw’íts’et – ‘to cut (it) up, to butcher (it)’. You can use kw’éts’tel for both the traditional Stó:lō tool (as in the first illustration above) and for modern butchering knives.