Nuxalk D is spoken by the people of the Nuxalk Nation who live primary in the Bella Coola valley on the central coast.
The Nuxalk Nation territory is made up of an amalgamation of four main territorial divisions; Taliyuumc, Sutslhmc, Kwalhnmc and Nuxalkmc. Each group spoke the same language but had its own dialect. In the early 1900’s after the devastation of European influences the people of Taliyuumc, Sutslhmc, Kwalhnmc, moved to the Nuxalk village of Q’umk’uts’. From this event all of these ancestral divisions now use the designation of Nuxalkmc (Nuxalk people) as their nation’s name.1
Though the number of fluent speakers has not increased, the language is now taught in both the Provincial school system and the Nuxalk Nation's school, Acwsalcta (which means "a place of learning). Nuxalk language classes, if taken to at least the Grade 11 level, are considered adequate second language qualifications for entry to the major B.C. universities.
| First Nation | Population | Fluent Speakers | Understand or Speak Somewhat | Learning Speakers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nuxalk Nation4 | 14793 | 40 | 80 | 140 |
| Total | 1479 | 40 | 80 | 140 |