New mobile app lets Apple users text in syllabics

The new syllabics app for Apple, Naqittautit, looks like this. (PHOTO BY DAVID MURPHY)

Texting in Inuktut is now a reality.

The Government of Nunavut and the Pirurvik Centre released a new app June 16 called ‘Naqittautit’ which lets you type different Inuktut characters on handheld Apple devices.

“For years, Inuktut speakers have been unable to type in syllabics using their iPad and iPhone and iPods,” the president of Pirurvik, Leena Evic, said in a June 16 GN press release.

That’s now changed: you can touch type in syllabics or Roman orthography on iPhones and iPads with this new app.

When you download Naqittautit, you’ll have three keyboards at your disposal. It works almost identically to the English keyboard on iPhones and iPads.

All you have to do is choose between Inuktut or English by clicking an icon next to the space bar when you start a new message.

One of the three Inuktut keyboards is Kiputtijjut: a conversion keyboard that lets you type in Roman orthography, but converts your text to syllabics automatically on the screen.

“Many Inuktut speakers are more comfortable typing Inuktut in Roman but prefer reading their language in syllabics,” one of the developers of the keyboards, Gavin Nesbitt, said in the release.

The second keyboard, Qaniujaaqpait, lets you type directly in syllabics.

And the third, Qaliujaaqpait, is basically a typical English keyboard with the addition of some different characters for other Inuktut dialects.

“[Qaliujaaqpait] is a Roman Inuktut keyboard that includes the ł character for speakers of the North Qikiqtaaluk and Kivalliq dialects, and the š and ř characters for Nattilingmiutut,” the press release said.

Nunavut’s minister of languages George Kuksuk said this app might encourage people to start using Inuktut more often.

“We hope they will help improve and facilitate the greater use of our language on popular mobile phones and tablets.

The app can be downloaded at the Apple App Store on iPads and iPhones here.

There’s a step-by-step installation video guide showing you how to download the keyboards, found on YouTube here.

Pirurvik has also made an easy instructional video showing you how to use the keyboards.

The app, however, is only available for Apple users, and not Android phones.

This isn’t the first app Pirurvik has made. Pirurvik also produced an app for Inuktut learners, called Tusaalanga.