akʼah
/ʔɑ̀kʼɑ̀h/
The Navajo word for "oil" is akʼah.
akʼah refers to liquid fat.
Meaning: liquid fat (noun)
How do you pronounce it?
/ʔɑ̀kʼɑ̀h/
Did you know?
- The phrase akʼah belongs to a language family that includes languages spoken in Alaska and Canada. This means the word for 'oil' has distant relatives thousands of miles away from the American Southwest.
- The word akʼah is built using a prefix that denotes an indefinite possessive. This suggests the language conceptually treats 'oil' or 'liquid fat' as something that belongs to someone or something.
- The Proto-Athabaskan root *-qʼɑx̣ shows that this word has been part of the language family for thousands of years, long before modern cooking oils existed.
Examples in context
- díí tązhii éí akʼah bee sitʼéAudio: (file) this turkey was deep-fried in oil.This sentence shows how to use akʼah in the context of deep-frying a turkey.
Example conversation
Sarah and Tyler are cooking together in the kitchen.
- Sarahakʼah łééʼ yee naʼałtah.Fry it with some oil.
- TylerDíí akʼah éí tʼáá áání.This oil is enough.
- SarahTʼáá áání, tʼaaí.Yes, it is enough.
- TylerTʼééh lą́ʼí yee naʼałtah.I will fry it quickly.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry akʼah, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries akʼah, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0.
