INTRODUCTION
The following texts and myths were obtained on the Queen Charlotte islands, British Columbia, during the winter of 1900–01. They comprise all those procured at Skidegate, the more southern of the two towns on these islands still regularly occupied, which is made up of people from a number of towns that formerly existed along the eastern and western coasts, whose speech differed in certain particulars from that of the Haida on the northern coast. Since, however, all now live at Skidegate, their language is conveniently called the Skidegate dialect. For a similar reason the language of the northern Haida is called the Masset dialect, although it is spoken also in three Alaskan towns—Howkan, Klinkwan, and Kasaan. For study and comparison one text in each dialect has been given with interlinear translation, and twelve others with translations on the page opposite. Although the remaining stories were also obtained in Haida, English versions only are given, but they are kept as close to the original as possible.
I have tried to handle the translations in such a way as to assist the philologist without too far obscuring the meaning. Where obscure passages occur the notes will usually clear them up.
My interpreter was Henry Moody, who belongs to the principal family of Skedans, Those-born-at-Qā′gials, and has since become its chief.
For identifications of many of the plants and animals named in these stories I am indebted to Dr. C. F. Newcombe, of Victoria, British Columbia.
Alphabet
For convenience in study phonetic signs have been adopted similar to those employed in the publications of the Jesup North Pacific Expedition on the tribes of the northwest coast of America, and for [[6]]a more particular explanation of them the reader is referred to those publications. The vowels are ā, a, ä, ᴀ, ē, e, ê, ī, i, î, ō, o, ū, u, pronounced in the continental manner. There is, however, no real distinction between corresponding e and i vowels on the one hand and o and u vowels on the other. Apparently, two continental sounds answer to one Haida sound that lies midway between them. Very slight u- or a- sounds accompanying consonants occur in the Masset dialect and in Tlingit words, and are indicated by u and a. Â (English aw) and ô (like o in stop) sometimes occur in songs. The consonants are the following:
| Sonans | Surd | Fortis | Spirans | Nasal | |
| Velar | g̣ (ʻ) | q | qꜝ | x | … |
| Palatal | g | k | kꜝ | x̣ | ñ |
| Alveolar | d | t | tꜝ | s | n |
| Dental | dj | tc | tcꜝ | … | … |
| Labial | b | p | … | … | m |
| Lateral | ʟ̣ | ʟ | ʟꜝ | ł | … |
| and l, h, y, w. | |||||
A laryngeal catch (ʻ) takes the place of g̣ in the Masset dialect: x is also pronounced softer, more like h. The fortes are accompanied by a slight pause or explosion in utterance, and the laterals are related to l’s, coming nearest in intonation, however, to the combinations dl and tl or kl; x is like German ch in ach; x̣ is formed farther forward; ñ is identical with ng in thing. The remaining sounds are similar to the English sounds which their signs represent. Prolongation of a sound is indicated by ⁺. Hyphens are used to separate some compound words, but more often to mark that two successive vowel sounds do not form a diphthong. A pause or the omission of a vowel is indicated by an apostrophe. [[7]]