North American Languages | A fragmentary survey with focus on Siouan languages

Siouan language family tree

5. October 201524. September 2015 s. by s.

Siouan language family tree representation.

A Sign Language of the Plains Indians – Part 1

1. October 201524. September 2015 s. by s.

The sign language of the North American Plains Indians was in use from Manitoba in Canada in the northern Plains to New Mexico in the south, and it was used to overcome language barriers between individuals or groups of the various tribes.

Finno-Ugric language tree after Taagespera

Origins and branching of Uralic languages — Part 1 of 2: Traditional approaches

25. September 201524. September 2015 s. by s.

At least seven regions around the Urals are favoured among scholars as original home area of Proto-Uralic peoples. Similarly, etymology of Uralic languages is disputed or in parts apparently non-determinable. This article summarizes traditional approaches to historical linguistics concerning Uralic and specifically Finno-Ugric.

Two minor problems with nasals in the Omaha Ponca notation system

13. September 201513. September 2015 s. by s.

This article describes two minor shortcomings in current Omaha-Ponca notation with regard to nasalized sounds.

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Rotational Combination 1 (Animation)

7. September 20155. September 2015 s. by s.

A semi-abstract animation involving several connected rotating elements; resulting strange movements.

Positional auxiliaries ‘stand/sit/lie’ and aspect marking in Mandan

5. September 201513. September 2015 s. by s.

Mandan employs positional auxiliaries specifying the stance as sitting, lying, standing or moving, like other Siouan languages. Semantically implicit is durative aspect, which makes them candidates for aspect marking. These positional auxiliaries can be attached to nouns, thus classifying them by their positional configuration (stance).

A Dakota Ghost Story

2. September 20155. September 2015 s. by s.

A very short ghost story as told by an Omaha, transcribed in Omaha with English gloss. A natural English translation is given at the bottom.

A Ponka Ghost Story

1. September 20155. September 2015 s. by s.

A Ponca story told by the Omaha Indian Frank La Flèsche to James Owen Dorsey, published in 1890. The text is transcribed in Ponca using the Omaha-Ponca notation, interleaved with Dorsey’s English gloss. There is also a natural English translation of the story provided.

An overview over proofing methods for distant etymologic relationship

1. September 20151. September 2015 s. by s.

To establish, verify and prove connections between languages in historical linguistics, i.e. the affiliation to language families, the the primary and basic method is the comparative method. For (possible) distant etymologic relationship however additional specific[…]

Doubly stative verbs in Osage

1. September 201513. September 2015 s. by s.

Active and stative verbs in Osage Osage is a split-intransitive, or active-stative language (cf. Lakhota, a split-intransitive (active-stative) language). “Stative verbs are those that do not inflect with the agent inflectional markers but instead use[…]

‘Some’-related indefinite quantifying language elements in Osage

1. September 20154. September 2015 s. by s.

hépe ADJ, N ‘a small amount, ca. half a container; piece, part, some, a bit’ tóa ADJ, PRON ‘any’ / ‘some’ / marker of the head in a relative clause hó᷈õpa wĩ ‘some day, some[…]

An Omaha story: The Dakota who was scared to death by a ghost

1. September 201522. September 2015 s. by s.

Ghost story told by an Omaha to James Owen Dorsey, published in 1890. Original text in Omaha-Ponca, gloss and natural English translation.

The indefinite quantifier ‘some’ and related elements in Lakhota

31. August 20154. September 2015 s. by s.

Quantifiers (all, some, many, none, every, etc.) play an essential role in semantics. In Chomskyan Universal Grammar theory quantifiers are considered archetypical language elements the notion of which is hard-wired into the brain and thus[…]

Positional continuative markers in Dakotan languages

31. August 20154. September 2015 s. by s.

Siouan languages and most of all the Degiha-branch languages feature a rich classificatory system based on positional markers. Different stages of grammaticalization can be observed within this system. The positional stative verbs ‘be sitting, be standing, be lying’ are inherently continuative by semantics and are predestined for an aspectual function.

North Eurasian animal bones preservation rites

30. August 20156. May 2019 s. by s.

A common traditional practice among northern Siberian, but also northern European and even some Northern American peoples is the preservation of animal bones of game animals.

Diachronic syntax: Grammaticalization of Omaha-Ponca ama in different stages — Part 2 of 2

29. August 201522. September 2015 s. by s.

This article (part 2 of 2) describes the process of grammaticalization of the Omaha-Ponca (Siouan, North American) morpheme ama in terms of RRG, including examples employing it in its various stages of grammaticalization.

Diachronic syntax: Grammaticalization of Omaha-Ponca ama in different stages — Part 1 of 2

29. August 20156. September 2018 s. by s.

The three main syntactic functions of the Omaha-Ponca morpheme ama (auxiliary, article, evidential) in their various uses and their semantics and functional variants are analysed under the hypothesis of grammaticalization in different stages. This is part 1 of 2 parts of the article.

The Osage vowel and consonantal systems

29. August 201529. August 2015 s. by s.

All information on the Osage vowel and consonantal systems stems from Quintero’s Osage Grammar (Quintero 2004: 16-42). The Osage vowel system front central back unrounded rounded nasal unrounded rounded unrounded rounded nasal high i (u)[…]

Lakhota, a split-intransitive (active-stative) language

28. August 20153. September 2015 s. by s.

Lakota is a paramount example for a split-intransitive language (or active-stative language) distinguishing between active and stative verbs.

Active-stative languages (split-intransitive languages)

28. August 201529. August 2015 s. by s.

Active-stative languages differ from accusative and ergative languages; they distinguish two basic types of verbs: stative verbs, i.e. verbs expressing states (being sick), and active verbs, i.e. verbs expressing actions (running). In active-stative languages, or[…]

The Omaha and Ponca migration

27. August 20158. September 2015 s. by s.

During the great migration of the Degiha tribes, after the Omaha and Ponca separated from the Osage and the Kansa, they continued north to the sacred pipestone quarries, where they encountered resistance by the Dakota and finally had to relocate to the Plains.

North American languages map before European contact

27. August 20153. September 2015 s. by s.

A map depicting the geographic distribution of North American Indian language families / languages at the time of European contact.

The Osage (wažáže)

26. August 20156. May 2019 s. by s.

An historic summary and basic linguistic information on the language of the Osage (wažáže ‘the water people’) people, including language examples.

Degiha tribes migration

26. August 20156. May 2019 s. by s.

Orally transmitted history of the great Degiha tribes migration to their later homelands in the Great Plains (Omaha, Ponca, Osage, Kansa, Quapaw) and accounts by Europeans from the 16th and 17th century on.