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Hokan
The Hokan language family is a hypothetical grouping of a dozen small language families that were spoken mainly in California, Arizona and Baja California. Etymology The name ''Hokan'' is loosely based on the word for "two" in the various Hokan languages: ''*xwak'' in Proto-Yuman, ''c-oocj'' (pronounced ) in Seri, ''ha'k'' in Achumawi, etc. History of the proposal In the first half-century after the "Hokan hypothesis" was first proposed by Roland B. Dixon and Alfred L. Kroeber, and further elaborated by Edward Sapir, little additional evidence was found that these families were related to each other. But since about 1950, increased efforts to document Hokan languages and to establish sound correspondences in proposed lexical resemblance sets have added weight to the Hokan hypothesis, leading to its acceptance by many specialists in the languages of California, Oregon, and Mesoamerica. However, some skepticism remains among scholars. The Yurumanguí language of Colombia was cla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jicaquean Languages
Jicaquean, also known as Tolan, is a small language family of Honduras. There are two attested Jicaquean languages, Tol (Eastern Jicaque) and Western Jicaque (Holt 1999), which Campbell (1997) reports were about as distant as English and Swedish. Only Tol survives. Classification Prior to an influential paper by Greenberg and Swadesh in 1953 Tol (a.k.a. Eastern Jicaque) was thought to be a language isolate, i.e., there existed no knowledge as to its possible genetic affinities. They argued that Tol should be added to the Hokan stock, a large language stock, phylum or family, which was proposed by R. B. Dixon and Alfred D. Kroeber in 1913. In 1977, David Oltrogge proposed to link Tol to the extinct Subtiaba language of Nicaragua, and also to Chontal of Oaxaca, also known as Tequistlateco. This indirectly amounted to a mere sub-classification, since all of the three languages in question were part of the proposed Hokan stock. A couple of years later, Campbell and Oltrogge publis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yana Language
The Yana language (also Yanan) was formerly spoken by the Yana people, who lived in north-central California between the Feather and Pit rivers in what is now the Shasta and Tehama counties. The last speaker of the southernmost dialect, which is called Yahi, was Ishi, who died in 1916. When the last fluent speaker(s) of the other dialects died is not recorded. Yana is fairly well documented, mostly by Edward Sapir. The names ''Yana'' and ''Yahi'' are derived from ''ya'' "people" plus an obligatory suffix, ''-na'' in the northern two dialects and ''-hi'' or ''-xi'' in the southern two dialects. Regional variation There are four known dialects: * Northern Yana * Central Yana * Southern Yana * Yahi Northern Yana, Central Yana, and Yahi were well recorded by Edward Sapir through work with Betty Brown, Sam Batwi, and Ishi respectively. Only a small collection of words and phrases of Southern Yana (more properly, Northern Yahi) were recorded by Sapir in his work with Sam Batwi, w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Karuk Language
Karuk or Karok ( kyh, Araráhih or kyh, Ararahih'uripih) is the traditional language of the Karuk people in the region surrounding the Klamath River, in Northwestern California. The name ‘Karuk’ is derived from the Karuk word ''káruk'', meaning “upriver”. Karuk is classified as severely endangered by UNESCO with only around 12 fluent native speakers of the language left. Most members of the Karuk nation now use English in their everyday lives. Since 1949, there have been efforts to revitalize the language and increase the number of speakers led by linguists such as Dr. William Bright and Susan Gehr, as well as members of the Karuk community. History and usage The Karuk language originated around the Klamath River between Seiad Valley and Bluff Creek. Before European contact, it is estimated that there may have been up to 1,500 speakers. Linguist William Bright documented the Karuk language. When Bright began his studies in 1949, there were "a couple of hundred flu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oto-Manguean Languages
The Oto-Manguean or Otomanguean languages are a large family comprising several subfamilies of indigenous languages of the Americas. All of the Oto-Manguean languages that are now spoken are indigenous to Mexico, but the Manguean branch of the family, which is now extinct, was spoken as far south as Nicaragua and Costa Rica. Oto-Manguean is widely viewed as a proven language family. However, this status has been recently challenged. The highest number of speakers of Oto-Manguean languages today are found in the state of Oaxaca where the two largest branches, the Zapotecan and Mixtecan languages, are spoken by almost 1.5 million people combined. In central Mexico, particularly in the states of Mexico, Hidalgo and Querétaro, the languages of the Oto-Pamean branch are spoken: the Otomi and the closely related Mazahua have over 500,000 speakers combined. Some Oto-Manguean languages are moribund or highly endangered; for example, Ixcatec and Matlatzinca each has fewer than 250 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chimariko Language
Chimariko is an extinct language isolate formerly spoken in northern Trinity County, California, by the inhabitants of several independent communities. While the total area claimed by these communities was remarkably small, Golla (2011:87–89) believes there is evidence that three local dialects were recognized: ''Trinity River Chimariko,'' spoken along the Trinity River from the mouth of South Fork at Salyer as far upstream as Big Bar, with a principal village at Burnt Ranch; ''South Fork Chimariko,'' spoken around the junction of South Fork and Hayfork Creek, with a principal village at Hyampom; and ''New River Chimariko,'' spoken along New River on the southern slopes of the Trinity Alps, with a principal village at Denny. Genetic relations Proposals linking Chimariko to other languages in various versions of the hypothetical Hokan family have been advanced. Roland Dixon suggested a relationship between Chimariko and the Shastan and Palaihnihan families. Edward Sapir' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Washo Language
Washo (or Washoe; endonym ) is an endangered language, endangered Native Americans in the United States, Native American language isolate spoken by the Washo people, Washo on the California–Nevada border in the drainages of the Truckee River, Truckee and Carson River, Carson Rivers, especially around Lake Tahoe. While there are only 20 elderly native speakers of Washo,Victor Golla (2011) ''California Indian Languages'' since 1994 there has been a small immersion school that has produced a number of moderately fluent younger speakers. The immersion school has since closed its doors and the language program now operates through the Cultural Resource Department for the Washoe Tribe. The language is still very much endangered; however, there has been a renaissance in the language revitalization movement as many of the students who attended the original immersion school have become teachers. Ethnographic Washo speakers belonged to the Great Basin culture area and they were the only ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Esselen Language
Esselen was the language of the Esselen (or self-designated ''Huelel'') Nation, which aboriginally occupied the mountainous Central Coast of California, immediately south of Monterey, California, Monterey (Shaul 1995). It was probably a language isolate, though has been included as a part of the hypothetical Hokan proposal. Names The name ''Esselen'' was derived from a village name. The Esselen people referred to their own language as ''Huelel''. The name was recorded by Felipe Arroyo de la Cuesta on May 18, 1832 at Soledad Mission from his informant Eusebio (native name ''Sutasis'') (cf. ''villel'' 'tongue' as recorded by Dionisio Alcalá Galiano) (Shaul 1995). Historical background French explorer Jean-François de Galaup, comte de Lapérouse , Jean La Perouse, who visited Monterey in 1786, reported: Esselen may have been the first Californian language to become extinct language, extinct. Although it was spoken by many of the early converts at Mission Carmel, its use rapid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Salinan Language
Salinan was the indigenous language of the Salinan people of the central coast of California. It has been extinct since the death of the last speaker in 1958. The language is attested to some extent in colonial sources such as Sitjar (1860), but the principal published documentation is Mason (1918). The main modern grammatical study, based on Mason's data and on the field notes of John Peabody Harrington and William H. Jacobsen, is Turner (1987), which also contains a complete bibliography of the primary sources and discussion of their orthography. Two dialects are recognized, ''Antoniaño'' and ''Migueleño'', associated with the missions of San Antonio and San Miguel, respectively. Antoniaño is "sometimes also termed Sextapay, associated with the area of the Franciscan Mission of San Antonio de Padua in Monterey County." There may have been a third, ''Playano'' dialect, as suggested by mention of such a subdivision of the people, but nothing is known of them linguisticall ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Seri Language
Seri ( sei, cmiique iitom, link=no) is an indigenous language spoken by between 716La situación sociolingüística de la lengua seri en 2006. and 900 Seri people in Punta Chueca and El Desemboque, two villages on the coast of Sonora, Mexico. The language is generally considered an isolate, but attempts have been made to include it in the theoretical Hokan language family. No concrete evidence has been found for connections to other languages. The earliest records of the Seri language are from 1692, but the population has remained fairly isolated. Extensive work on Seri began in 1951 by Edward and Mary Beck Moser with the Summer Institute of Linguistics. The language is viable within its community and is used freely in daily life. Exceptions include primary and secondary school, some parts of local church services, and communications with Spanish speakers outside of the Seri community. Most members of the community, including youth, are fluent in their language, but the populat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Palaihnihan Languages
Palaihnihan (also Palaihnih) is a language family of northeastern California. It consists of two closely related languages, both now extinct: # Atsugewi ''(†)'' # Achumawi ''(†)'' (ís siwa wó disi, also known as Achomawi, Pit River Indian) Reconstruction The original reconstruction of proto-Palaihnihan suffered from poor quality data. David Olmsted's dictionary depends almost entirely upon de Angulo, who did not record the phonological distinctions consistently or well, and carelessly includes Pomo vocabulary from a manuscript in which he (de Angulo) set out to demonstrate that Achumawi and Pomo are not related. William Bright has also pointed out problems with Olmsted's methods of reconstruction. The reconstruction is being refined with newer data. Good, McFarland, & Paster (2003) conclude there were at least three vowels, *a *i *u, and possibly marginal *e, along with vowel length and ablaut. Consonants were as follows: Genetic relations The Palaihnihan family is oft ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Comecrudan Languages
Comecrudan refers to a group of possibly related languages spoken in the southernmost part of Texas and in northern Mexico along the Rio Grande of which ''Comecrudo'' is the best known. Very little is known about these languages or the people who spoke them. Knowledge of them primarily consists of word lists collected by European missionaries and explorers. All Comecrudan languages are extinct. Family division The three languages were: # Comecrudo (also known as Mulato or Carrizo) ''(†)'' # Garza ''(†)'' # Mamulique (also known as Carrizo de Mamulique) ''(†)'' Genetic relationships In John Wesley Powell's 1891 classification of North American languages, Comecrudo was grouped together with the Cotoname and Coahuilteco languages into a family called Coahuiltecan. John R. Swanton (1915) grouped together the Comecrudo, Cotoname, Coahuilteco, Karankawa, Tonkawa, Atakapa, and Maratino languages into a Coahuiltecan grouping. Edward Sapir (1920) accepted Swanton's propos ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shastan Languages
The Shastan (or Sastean) family consisted of four languages, spoken in present-day northern California and southern Oregon: # Konomihu ''(†)'' # New River Shasta ''(†)'' # Okwanuchu ''(†)'' # Shasta (also known as Shastika) ''(†)'' Konomihu appears to have been the most divergent Shastan language. Okwanuchu may have been a dialect of Shasta proper, which is known to have had a number of dialects. The entire Shastan family is now extinct. Shasta was the last language that was spoken. Three elderly speakers were reported in the 1980s. Shastan has often been considered to be in the hypothetical Hokan stock. References *Mithun, Marianne, ed. ''The Languages of Native North America''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by Henry VIII of England, King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press A university press is an academic publishing hou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
