Language
The Ahtna are an Athabaskan languages speaking tribe of the Subarctic Cultural Area, which classifies them as both Athabaskan and Subarctic Indians. Depending on the communities location along the Copper River, dialectal differences may occur. The Lower Ahtna (Ahtna'ht'aene) are near the river's mouth which opens into the Gulf of Alaska, the Middle Ahtna (Dan'ehwt'aene) are upriver a distance, and the Upper Ahtna (Tate'ahwt'aene) live on the upper parts of the river. The Tanaina people of the west are their closet linguistic relatives. About 80 Ahtnas are believed to still speak the language. In 1990 a dictionary was published by James Kari, in order to preserve the language.
Read more about this topic: Ahtna People
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