Terrace Standard, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Dr. Mique’l Dangeli’s toddler, Hayetsk, is the first among two successive generations in his family to have Sm’algyax as his primary language. 

Dangeli jests that his maternal grandmother worries she might find it difficult to communicate with her grandson who knows more of the language than she ever has her whole life. 

“I tell her not to worry, Hayetsk will teach you,” said Dangeli whose battle to revive the dialect of the Tsimshian people is slowly materializing as a tiny army of toddlers begin to adopt it as a first language.