Seth Cable Recordings Collection, 1972-2011 | Sealaska Heritage Institute Archives

This collection consists of reports and recordings generated by linguistic scholar Seth Cable for his research on the Tlingit language as a Visiting Scholar at the Sealaska Heritage Institute from 2005 to 2008, along with his further research from 2011. During this period Cable interviewed fluent speakers of the Tlingit language about aspects of the Tlingit language, such as its syntax and semantics, among other subjects. This research contributed to his 2010 publication, The Grammar of Q: Q-Particles, Wh-Movement, and Pied-Piping, published by Oxford University Press.

Box 1 of the collection primarily consists of audio recorded interviews with fluent Tlingit speakers, with transcriptions and translations usually provided by Seth Cable. Most interviews were with Johnny Marks, with others by David Katzeek, Fred White, and Anita Lafferty. Also included in the collection are several reports of Cable’s research, with focus on Tlingit syntax and semantics.

Further components of this collection include ten audio recording of Tlingit speakers Beatrice Brown, Margaret Dutson, William Fawcett, and Helen Sarabia. These recording were collected in August 2011 by Seth Cable for use in his 2011 publication, Report on Empirical Findings from Field Research on Tlingit: Distributive numerals, Plural Marking of Predicates, Plural Root Suppletion. Though the recordings contained in this collection possess some detailing of the grammatical intricacies of the Tlingit language they center on a broad range of topics from cultural knowledge to the personal histories of the previously mentioned Tlingit speakers Beatrice Brown, Margaret Dutson, William Fawcett, and Helen Sarabia.

Box 2 of the collection primarily consists of audio recorded interviews with fluent Tlingit speakers Margaret Dutson, Selena Everson and William Fawcett. No transcriptions/translations are available for these recordings. Box 2 also contains linguistic analysis of the Tlingit phrases developed by the Tlingit speakers, which discusses future and Potential Inflection, Conditionals and Decessive Suffix.