Catawba language

Catawba
Ye Iswąˀ
Native toUnited States
RegionSouth Carolina
EthnicityYe Iswąre (Catawba)
Extinct1959, with the death of Samuel Taylor Blue
Revival1989[1]
Language codes
ISO 639-3chc
Glottologcata1286
ELPCatawba
Linguasphere64-ABA-ab
Pre-contact distribution of the Catawba language.
Catawba is classified as Extinct by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger
[2]

Catawba (/kəˈtɔːbə/) is one of two Eastern Siouan languages of the eastern US, which together with the Western Siouan languages formed the Siouan language family.

The last native, fluent speaker of Catawba was Samuel Taylor Blue, who died in 1959.[3] The Catawba people are now working to revitalize and preserve the Catawba language.

Phonology

Consonants

Labial Alveolar Palatal Velar Glottal
Plosive voiceless p t k ʔ
voiced b d
Affricate tʃ
Nasal m n
Fricative s ʃ h
Trill r
Approximant w j
  • /ʃ/ rarely occurs.
  • There is also a [ɡ] sound, which occurs as an allophone of /k/.

Vowels

  • Short vowel sounds /i, e, a, u/ can be heard as lax, ranging to [ɪ, ə~ɛ, ɑ, ʊ].
  • /u/ can range to [o], and a short /a/ can range to a back vowel sound [ɑ].[4]

Orthography

A Catawba alphabet was created by the Catawba Language Project for the Catawba language, as part of a revitalization effort for the language and the creation of an app for it.[5] [further explanation needed]

(Ye Iswąʔre) Catawba alphabet
A a Ą ą Aa aa α B b Č č
[a~ɑ] [ã] [aː] [ʌ~ə] [b] [t͡ʃ]
D d E e Ę ę Ee ee Ɛ ɛ G g
[d] [e] [ẽ~ɛ̃] [eː] [ɛ] [g]
H h I i Į į Ii ii K k M m
[h] [i] [ĩ] [iː] [k] [m]
N n P p R r S s T t U u
[n] [p] [r] [s~ʃ] [t] [u~ʊ]
Ų ų Uu uu W w Y y ʔ ʰ
[ũ] [uː] [w] [j] [ʔ] [ʰ]
Á á ά É é έ Í í Ú ú
[á~ɑ́] [ɑ́~ə́] [é] [ɛ́] [í] [ú~ʊ́]
Ą́ ą́ Ę́ ę́ Į́ į́ Ų́ ų́
[ã́] [ẽ́~ɛ̃́] [ĩ] [ṹ~ʊ̃́]
  • The aspirated ⟨ʰ⟩ is used in the word: hawuʰ 'thank you'.
  • The ⟨ʔ⟩ is written in different ways like ⟨ɂ⟩ and ⟨ˀ⟩ in some texts.
  • The ⟨o⟩ and ⟨ǫ⟩ is some time occurs in words like example, "mǫ(hare)" meaning ask, "wǫ" meaning call, "mǫhee" meaning ice, and "sota" meaning Santee Tribe

Vocabulary

Some Catawba lexicon is presented below.

Word lists

Numbers
English Catawba
One dαpinɛ
Two nąpαri
Three naminα
Four pαrapαri
Five paktαri
Six dipkuura
Seven wasisiniyα
Eight dαbusa
Nine wąɁča
Ten pičinɛ
Eleven pičinɛ dαpinɛ hαksα
Twelve pičinɛ nąpαri hαksα
Thirteen pičinɛ naminα hαksα
Fourteen pičinɛ pαrapαri hαksα
Fifteen pičinɛ paktαri hαksα
Sixteen pičinɛ dipkuura hαksα
Seventeen pičinɛ wasisiniyα hαksα
Eighteen pičinɛ dαbusa hαksα
Nineteen pičinɛ wąɁča hαksα
Twenty pičinɛ nąpαri
Thirty pičinɛ naminα
Forty pičinɛ pαrapαri
Fifty pičinɛ paktαri
Sixty pičinɛ dipkuura
Seventy pičinɛ wasisiniyα
Eighty pičinɛ dαbusa
Ninety pičinɛ wąɁča
One hundred pičinε harε
One thousand pičinε harε iksα namuwaʔ


Greetings
Catawba English
Tαnakɛ Hello
Kuri Good
Yawab kuri Good morning
Yab kuri Good day
Wičawaséɂ kuri Good evening
Wiičawa kuri Good night
Tiine yiiéduu How are you
Yį yat tanenɛ What is your name
... nii yat My name is ...
Dehare It's me
Tiine wiiéduu How are you all
Tαną kureɂ How goes
Tαnąčuharɛ Ok (I'm alright)
Baraɂharɛ It's not good
Wanαsárɛ I feel sick
Síiɂserɛ I am tired
Mąsačure I am so happy
Hawuʰ Thank you
Katé Later (goodbye)


Catawba Vocabulary
English Catawba
Tree yap
Grass sαrak
Cloud nɛmą
God (creator) yahrúweh
Devil (evil spirit) yehuręče
And derα, ka
Yes himbá
No waharé
That ma
River iswą
Water yą
Earth mánuuwa
Sun nųti
Moon wičawa nųti
Blessings dúupa wiiyukαrį
Loss dečere
Dog tąsi
Cat hapkę
Horse witsakway
Turtle kayaɁ
Fish yii
Butterfly dapanenei
Earthworm kučiri
Deer widαbuye
Bird kučin
Blue jay tiinde
Woodpecker wačαk
Robin wiispαkpαk
Goose ahą
Eagle wikčiči
Owl wimbá
Chipmunk dɛpendαtaksusuɁ
Squirrel payą
Rabbit pvⁿwaⁿ (pąwą)
Beaver čapi, tąʔse amúre
Bison (Buffalo) wideé
Snake yaɁ
Wolf tąsisúre
Fox dαpαyamuye
Bear nimęɁ
Chicken watką
Duck kasą́
Dove itúsi
Turkey witką teruu
Corn kus
Milk witas
Potato witiki
Sweet Potato witiki čuwa
Egg hinu
Acorn Tumu
Apple triɁi
Blueberry wuuii aru
Pear tri
Food nuuyą
Vegetable kus mirúu
Fruit trii
Dry Goods nuuyą yiire
Family yemą
Grandfather tatéwa
Grandmother isčuu
Father nane
Mother yaksu
Husband yį kiča
Wife yaa kiča
Son kuríi
Daughter ɛnuwa
Brother mbarana
Sister yaanáa
Drum tushakehi
Rattle sę́sαreʔha
Office suukiatéru
House suuk
Bathroom ísuk
Kitchen hiriʰsahęʰ
Farm Yabsigre
Cash register yekąwą dyákere
Dollar suntarúu
Hunter yękurepahą
Body ihaakyuu
Head iskąʔ
Hair iskąsi
Face hinen
Forehead itaap
Ear duksuuʔ
Eye hįtuuʔ
Nose ipįsuuʔ
Mouth isumuuʔ
Tongue hisumuuʔ­se
Tooth hiyaap, niyaap
Beard yisumuuʔ­see
Neck idát
Arm iksa
Hand iksapiya
Fingers iksa ičaa
Nails iksa pis
Belly ipą
Feet h­įpapiya
Foot n­įpapiya
Toes i­įpaičaaʔ
Bone hipasaap, nusaap
Heart dihaa
Chief yę miirá
Red siiką
Blue wuuii
Green wiiyą
Yellow wiiyę
White takčii
Black hawakče
Day of the Catawbas yáp ye iswą
Ache warepa
Over (Beyond) αkę́
Armpit hinų́ksu
Ashes yáči
Ask mǫ(hare)
Axe (knife) sįpé
Back įtak
Hold pąʔ
Shoulder híriit
Bare (husked) sαráhę́ʔ
Root tet
Pot (Basket) (i)tus
Be ri
Blood iit
Blow puu
Brain mųtu
Reed (cane) wąsa
Burn wiirą
Call (shout) wǫ
Carry (go) kida
Flint wą
Cold čiʔ
Cry ake
Cut kąʔ
Dance bari
Day yáp
Then αn
There či
Dig ʔare
Do (make) ʔǫči
Cause če
Dream hímbare
Ground mánuu
Inside hákαpaʔ
Step peʔ
Ice mǫhee
Go ra
At tak
Sit wą
Sleep imų
Tobacco ųpaa
Small sų́wα
Town,

Village

wee
House, hut suuk
Creek yátru ihaterú
Catawba River iswą katabare
Board River iswą hápide
Congaree River iswą karaʔre
Santee River iswą tii
Savannah River isundiga
Wateree River iswą wátraʔre,

wátra

Sugeree creek iswą sígrii
Catawba Tribe ye iswąʔre
Wateree Tribe ye iswą wátraʔre
Cheraw Tribe sarα
Cherokee Tribe ye matεra
Chickahominy tribe ye kusi
Chickasaw Tribe ye imohčékεre
Choctaw Tribe ye čákere
Congaree Tribe ye iswąkaraʔre
Creek Tribe ye kusáʔre
Eno Tribe ye íinare
Etiwa Tribe itawa
Kiawah Tribe kaya
Lumbee Tribe kerúkeruʔre,

ye makeruɁre

Pamunkey Tribe mákiis
Pedee Tribe ye piiɁre
Santee Tribe są́ta, sota
Saponi Tribe yepą
Sawee Tribe ye sαwiiʔre
Shawnee Tribe sawana
Sugeree Tribe ye sígriiʔre
Tuscarora Tribe taskaruni, ye atεra
Waxhaw Tribe ye hiskapeteʔre
Woccon Tribe wakų
Yamasee Tribe yeemusi
Yuchi Tribe yučikere

Errata

Red Thunder Cloud, an impostor, born Cromwell Ashbie Hawkins West, claimed to be Catawba and the last speaker of the Catawba language. He was promoted by anthropologist Frank Speck, who introduced West to the Catawba community. The Catawba told Speck that West was not Catawba, but Speck ignored them and continued to promote West and include him in his work, even recommending him as an expert to other anthropologists. (Speck is also the source of the theory that Catawba is a Siouan language; at one time he also insisted that the Cherokee language is Siouan.) At his death in 1996 it was revealed that West was neither Catawba nor even Native American, but had learned what he knew of the language from books, and from listening to the last known native speaker, Samuel Taylor Blue and his half-sister, Sally Gordon, when Speck brought him to the Catawba reservation.[6] This had apparently been enough to fool the non-Native ethnologists who wrote about him.[6]

References

  1. ^ "Catawba Language". Catawba Nation Archives. Retrieved 2024-05-09.
  2. ^ Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger (Report) (3rd ed.). UNESCO. 2010. p. 9.
  3. ^ Thomas J. Blummer, Catawba Indian Nation: Treasures in History (The History Press, 2007), p. 101
  4. ^ Rudes, Costa, Blair, David (2003). Essays in Algonquian, Catawban, and Siouan Linguistics in Memory of Frank T. Siebert, Jr.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. ^ "Catawba Language Project". catawbalanguage.org. Retrieved 2024-08-22.
  6. ^ a b Goddard, Ives (2000). "The Identity of Red Thunder Cloud" (PDF). The Newsletter -- Society for the Study of the Indigenous Languages of the Americas. 19 (1): 7–10. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 October 2023. Retrieved 5 April 2021.


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