MultiTree:

Name: Carrier Type: Dialect Group Alternate Names: Central Carrier; Upper Carrier; Nagailer; Dakelh; Taculli Spoken in: Canada Number of speakers: 2,060 (2001 Canada census). Canada Census does not separate Babine [bcr], Central Carrier[crx], and Southern Carrier L1 speakers in Canada 20,090 (1998 Statistics Canada). Ethnic population: 2,100 (1987 SIL) (Ethnologue) Number of speakers: 1500 (World Oral Literature Project) Code: crx Code Standard: ISO 639-3 Documentation: SIL Families: Athabaskan-Eyak-Tlingit (Eyak-Athabaskan, Na-Dene, Dene-Yeniseian) Parent Subgroup: Babine-Carrier (babi) Brief Description: "Carrier is the general term for a complex of Athabaskan dialects in central British Columbia, adjoining (but clearly distinct from) Babine on the northwest and Chilcotin on the south. Carrier (locally called Dakelh) is spoken in a number of local varieties, traditionally divided into 'Upper Carrier' (the communities to the north of Fort St. James, around Stuart and Trembleur Lakes) and 'Lower Carrier' in communities to the south. More recent research indicates that Lower Carrier should be split into a Fraser/Nechako dialect group (Prince George, Cheslatta, Stoney Creek, Nautley, and Stellakoh) and a Blackwater dialect group (Ulkatcho, Kluskus, Nazko, Red Bluff, and Anahim Lake). A Carrier lingua franca was established by Catholic missionaries (most notably Father A.G. Morice) in the nineteenth century, based on the dialect around Fort St. James, and a syllabic writing system introduced." Victor Golla, Atlas of the World's Languages 2007 pg. 11

Endangerment Status

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Ethnologue Status: Not listed Sutherland's Red List: Not listed