American Indian Languages of Western Oregon
1999 Don Macnaughtan

Click here for a language map of Western Oregon

Athapaskan Languages

• Lower Columbia Athapaskan
• Umpqua
• Coquille-Tututni
• Galice-Applegate
• Chetco-Tolowa

• Tillamook

• Chinookan
• Alsean
• Siuslawan
• Coosan
• Molalan
• Northern Kalapuyan
• Central Kalapuyan
• Yoncalla
• Takelma

• Oregon Shasta

Penutian and Hokan languages are thought to form the oldest strata of languages in Western Oregon, perhaps going back 10,000 years. At some time in the last 2-3,000 years, a new infusion of peoples entered the region. These were Athapaskan migrants from Northern Canada, and their languages were unrelated to the Penutian and Hokan speakers. The Athapaskans filled in valleys and coastal inlets between Penutian speakers, such as the upper Coquille Valley, the Umpqua Valley, the Applegate Valley, and the Lower Rogue River. The isolated Tillamook language was at some point separated from other Salish languages, which are mainly found in Washington and British Columbia. It is possible that Chinookan speakers came down the Columbia River from Central Oregon and split apart the Salish language family at the mouth of the Columbia. At the southern end of Western Oregon, a small pocket of Shastan speakers spilled over the Siskiyou Mountains from Northern California into the Bear Creek Valley, near modern Ashland.

the Clatskanie dialect on the Upper Nehalem & Clatskanie Rivers (south shore of the Lower Columbia River)

B. the Umpqua Language consisting of:

the Upper Umpqua dialect spoken in the Umpqua Valley & along the North Umpqua River (southwestern Oregon interior)

C. the Coquille-Tututni Language consisting of:

the Coquille dialect spoken in the Upper Coquille Valley (southwestern Oregon interior)

the Kwatami dialect spoken along the Sixes River & at Floras Lake (southern Oregon coast)

several Tututni dialects spoken along the Lower Rogue & Pistol Rivers (southern Oregon coast)

the Chastacosta dialect spoken along the Rogue River Gorge (southwestern Oregon interior)

D. the Galice-Applegate Language consisting of:

the Taltushtuntede dialect spoken along Galice Creek (southwestern Oregon interior)

the Dakubetede dialect spoken in the Applegate Valley (southwestern Oregon interior)

the Gusladada dialect (?) spoken in the Upper Illinois Valley (southwestern Oregon interior)

E. the Chetco-Tolowa Language consisting of:

the Chetco dialect spoken along the Chetco & Winchuck Rivers (southern Oregon coast)

several Tolowa dialects spoken along the Smith River & around Lake Earl (extreme northwestern California)

the Tillamook dialect spoken around Tillamook Bay & along the Tillamook, Trask, and Wilson Rivers

the Nestucca dialect spoken along the Nestucca River (northern Oregon coast)

the Neschesne dialect spoken around the Salmon River estuary (northern Oregon coast)

the Siletz dialect spoken around Siletz Bay & along the Siletz River (northern Oregon coast)

the Clatsop dialect spoken around the Columbia River mouth & the Clatsop Plains (northwestern Oregon)

B. the Middle Chinookan Language consisting of:

the Kathlamet dialect spoken along the south bank of the Lower Columbia River (northwestern Oregon)

the Wahkiakum dialect spoken along the north bank of the Lower Columbia River (southwestern Washington)

the Multnomah dialect spoken at Sauvie Island & in the Portland Basin (northwestern Oregon)

the Clackamas dialect spoken along the Clackamas & Sandy Rivers (northwestern Oregon)

the Watlala dialect spoken along the Columbia Gorge (north-central Oregon)

C. the Alsean Language consisting of:

the Yaquina dialect spoken around Yaquina Bay & along the Yaquina River (central Oregon coast)

the Alsea dialect spoken around Alsea Bay & along the Alsea & Yachats Rivers (central Oregon coast)

D. the Siuslawan Language consisting of:

the Siuslaw dialect spoken along the Siuslaw River & around Siltcoos Lake (central Oregon coast)

the Kuitsh dialect spoken around Winchester Bay & along the Lower Umpqua & Smith Rivers (central Oregon coast)

E. the Coosan Language consisting of:

several (?) Hanis dialects spoken around Coos Bay and along the Coos River (southern Oregon coast)

one or two (?) Miluk dialects spoken around South Slough Coos Bay & along the Lower Coquille River (southern Oregon coast)

F. the Molalan Language consisting of:

the Northern Molala dialect spoken in the northern Oregon Cascade mountains

the Upper Santiam Molala dialect spoken along the Upper Santiam River (central Oregon Cascades)

the Southern Molala dialect spoken in the southern Oregon Cascade mountains

G. the Northern Kalapuya Language consisting of:

the Tualatin dialect spoken along the Tualatin River, Lake Wapato, and the lower Willamette River (northern Willamette Valley)

the Yamhill dialect spoken along the Yamhill River (northwestern Willamette Valley)

H. the Central Kalapuya Language consisting of:

the Ahantchuyuk dialect spoken along the Pudding & Molalla Rivers (northeastern Willamette Valley)

the Santiam dialect spoken along the Lower Santiam River (central Willamette Valley)

the Luckiamute dialect spoken along the Luckiamute River (central Willamette Valley)

the Chepenafa dialect spoken along Mary's River (central Willamette Valley)

the Chemapho dialect spoken along Muddy Creek (central Willamette Valley)

the Chelamela dialect spoken along the Long Tom River (southwestern Willamette Valley)

the Tsankupi dialect spoken along the Calapooia River (southeastern Willamette Valley)

the Winefelly-Mohawk dialects spoken along the McKenzie, Mohawk, and Coast Fork Willamette Rivers (southeastern Willamette Valley)

I. the Yoncalla Language consisting of:

two or three (?) dialects along Elk & Calapooya Creeks (southwestern Oregon interior)

J. the Takelma Language consisting of:

the Cow Creek dialect (?) spoken along the South Umpqua River, Myrtle Creek, & Cow Creek (southwestern Oregon interior)

the Latgawa dialect spoken along the Upper Rogue River (southwestern Oregon interior)

the Lowland Takelma dialect spoken in the Rogue Valley (southwestern Oregon interior)

since 1 August 2007