Cayuse is an extinct unclassified language once spoken by the Cayuse people (autonym: Liksiyu [1] ) of Oregon.
| Cayuse | |
|---|---|
 Pre-contact distribution of the Cayuse language | |
| Native to | United States |
| Region | Oregon |
| Ethnicity | Cayuse |
| Extinct | 1930s [2] |
Unclassified | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | xcy |
xcy | |
| Glottolog | cayu1241 |
 Cayuse is an extinct language according to the classification system of the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger [3] | |
The first written vocabulary of the Cayuse language was published by Horatio Hale in 1846. As a member of the United States Exploring Expedition, he had visited the Pacific Northwest in 1841. Missionary Marcus Whitman was credited for providing "much valuable information" about the Cayuse people and other natives nearby Waiilatpu. [4] In his Waiilatpuan language family, Hale put Cayuse and the Molala language as the sole members. [5]
In 1910 or 1911, Stephens Savage, a Molala speaker, had told Leo Frachtenberg that the following five words were identical in both Cayuse and Molala: [6]
| sorrel horse | qasqasi tasiwitkwi |
| spotted horse | yuꞏk tasiwitkwi |
| black horse | múkimuki tasiwitkwi |
| comb | taꞏsps |
| spoon | ƚúꞏpinc |
In 1929 Edward Sapir grouped Cayuse with Molala as part of the Waiilatpuan branch of the Plateau Penutian languages. [7]
Bruce Rigsby reexamined the Cayuse-Molala lexical pairs provided by Hale in 1969 and found only a tenth to be potentially related terms. Whitman was credited as the origin of the Waiilatpuan linguistic family. The words presented by Savage were concluded by Rigsby to likely be loanwords. Upon his review of extant Molala and Cayuse linguistic data, Rigsby concluded "I do not see how the two languages could have possibly been mutually intelligible." [8]
Cayuse pronouns listed by Hale: [6]
| I | iniŋ |
| you (sg.) | nikí |
| you (du.) | nkímiš |
| he | nip |
| we | námək |
| you (pl.) | mkímiš |
| they | nípik |
Cayuse pronouns listed by McBean: [6]
| I | in ning |
| you (sg., pl.) | in kai |
| he | neepe |
| we | nung naw naw |
| they | cap pick |
Cayuse verb paradigms documented by Henry W. Henshaw: [6]
| I am hungry. | wi-tu-tŭnt |
| I was hungry. | kler-ka-wĭ-tu-tŭnt |
| I will be hungry. | wí-tu-näk-sŭnt |
| You and I are hungry. | swi-tu-ter-yìk |
| You and I were hungry. | swi-tu-te-lì-kai-ĭk |
| You and I will be hungry. | nĭng-i-li-pʔl-swi-tu-nak-stunk-a-wak |
| You are hungry. | tu-swi-tu-tuñg-a |
| You were hungry. | swi-tu-til-kutla |
| You will be hungry. | swi-tu-nak-stung-at-la |
| I am thirsty. | nĭs-ka-mu-tiñg |
| I was thirsty. | nĭs-ka-mu-til |
| I will be thirsty. | nĭs-ka-mu-näk-skĭn |
| You are thirsty. | tu-mĭs-ka-mu-tĭñg |
| You were thirsty. | mĭs-ka-mu-til-hă |
| You will be thirsty. | mĭs-ka-mu-na-stĭnk-la |
Limited lexical items in Cayuse have been collected by Rigsby, Melville Jacobs, Verne Ray, and Theodore Stern. Their Cayuse informants had highly limited knowledge of the language and were more fluent in either Sahaptin or Nez Perce.
A word list of Cayuse with nearby 200 lexical items was documented by Hale. [9] The word list has been reproduced below.
| gloss | Cayuse |
|---|---|
| man | yúant |
| woman | pintχlkaíu; watχlóa |
| boy | láutlaŋ |
| girl | staítχləŋ; staítlaŋ |
| infant; child | skútχla |
| father | pintét; títʃa |
| mother | penín; nínʃa |
| husband | ináiu |
| wife | inχlkaío |
| son | wái |
| daughter | wái |
| brother | pnákən; pənátaŋ |
| sister | pənátiaŋ; pənwaíəq |
| Indian; people | - |
| head | talʃ; táəlʃ |
| hair | tχlókomot |
| face | léequkʃ |
| forehead | penátχliʃ |
| ear | takʃ |
| eye | hăkaməʃ |
| nose | pitχlóken |
| mouth | səmqakʃ |
| tongue | puʃ |
| teeth | tenif |
| beard | ʃimkéməʃ |
| neck | yet |
| arm | tiélaq |
| hand | épip |
| fingers | épip |
| nails | ʃíŋiʃ |
| body | ʃilăməʃ |
| leg | maúwət |
| foot | tiʃ |
| toes | tiyəyáu |
| bone | pápət |
| heart | - |
| blood | tiwéə̈ʃ |
| town; village | - |
| chief | iatóiaŋ |
| warrior | lotéwa |
| friend | enlápoit |
| house | niʃt |
| kettle | tχlípaniʃ |
| bow | hífoit |
| arrow | lalχ |
| axe; hatchet | yeŋgókinʃ |
| knife | ʃekt |
| canoe; boat | tχláap |
| shoes | täítχlo |
| pipe | iptnχlónʃ |
| tobacco | hanʃ |
| sky; heaven | ndjălawaía, tíŋpap |
| sun | huéwiʃ |
| moon | hátχltóp |
| star | tχlítχliʃ |
| day | ewéiə̈ |
| night | ftalp |
| light | notawásim |
| darkness | ʃilímtiŋk |
| morning | tétχlpəna |
| evening | wəχaía |
| spring | ʃuatoluŋátntiŋ; kiátim |
| summer | ʃqáätim |
| autumn | təŋ |
| winter | wit |
| wind | húntilχp |
| thunder | tiŋtululutéʃin |
| lightning | ʃniktawíŋtiŋ |
| rain | tiʃtkitχlmítiŋ |
| snow | pói |
| hail | puŋiós |
| fire | tetʃ |
| water | iʃkáiniʃ |
| ice | tók |
| earth; land | liŋʃ |
| sea | yamué-iʃkaíniʃ |
| river | luʃmi |
| lake | fuŋʃ |
| valley | paniákp |
| hill; mountain | téit |
| island | liŋtkaíli |
| stone | ápit |
| salt | kamtiʃímpen |
| iron | qauqauítχliínik |
| tree | laúik |
| wood | hútiʃ |
| leaf | qaisós |
| bark | pétimi |
| grass | tχleft; qə́ïʃt |
| pine | laúikʃ |
| flesh; meat | pítχli |
| dog | náapaŋ |
| buffalo | - |
| bear | liméakʃ; nokoláo |
| wolf | tχlaíu; tsóilaχs |
| deer | aitχléwa |
| elk | yútiŋʃ |
| beaver | pīeká |
| tortoise | atsík |
| fly | tqaínʃiʃ; katχlísaŋ |
| mosquito | píŋkii |
| snake | waíimaʃ |
| bird | tianíyiwa |
| egg | lópitχl |
| feathers | tiaqaímutχl |
| wings | haŋ |
| duck | əʃimtχl |
| pigeon | súuku |
| fish | wiaíiʃ |
| salmon | milóqli |
| sturgeon | - |
| name | peʃp |
| affection | atíŋp; tiʃktaʃewetáuŋko |
| gloss | Cayuse |
|---|---|
| white | tχlaktχláko |
| black | ʃkupʃkúpu |
| red | lakaítlakaítu |
| blue | yotsyóts |
| yellow | qəʃqə́ʃu |
| green | yotsyóts |
| great | yaúmua; yiyímu (pl.) |
| small | etsáŋua |
| strong | ntáloa; naantáloa |
| old | kuiátsu |
| young | itsáŋu |
| good | suaíu; sasuáiu (pl.) |
| bad | luastu; laluástu (pl.) |
| handsome | hapútsu; suaíu |
| ugly | huástu |
| alive | wióko |
| dead | úwaa |
| cold | ʃúŋa |
| warm | lokóia |
| gloss | Cayuse |
|---|---|
| I | íniŋ |
| thou | nikí |
| he | nip |
| we | námək |
| ye | mkímiʃ; nkímiʃ (dual) |
| they | nípik |
| this | qe, qă, ke |
| that | qá, ká |
| all | naŋináo |
| many (much) | yíphea |
| who | iʃ |
| gloss | Cayuse |
|---|---|
| near | piáfi |
| today | páməŋ |
| yesterday | iétin |
| tomorrow | tetχlp |
| yes | i |
| no | téehu |
| gloss | Cayuse |
|---|---|
| one | na |
| two | lépli |
| three | mátnin |
| four | pípiŋ |
| five | táwit |
| six | nōiná |
| seven | nóilip |
| eight | nōimát |
| nine | tanáuiaiʃímʃim |
| ten | niŋítelp |
| eleven | nántetχle |
| twelve | leplin-ntétχle |
| twenty | lépuik |
| thirty | mátuík |
| one hundred | niŋítalpuík |
| one thousand | - |
| gloss | Cayuse |
|---|---|
| to eat | pitáŋa |
| to drink | pasqunstáŋa |
| to run | pqíntuql |
| to dance | iókseak |
| to sing | tuŋséaql |
| to sleep | ʃpíʃiŋql |
| to speak | úlipkin |
| to see | miskaléntənt |
| to love | ktáʃo |
| to kill | piaíitχltiŋ |
| to sit | ifníql; ifníkta |
| to stand | laútsiŋ |
| to go | wintúkstaŋa; wintúql (imp.) |
| to come | wintúkum |
In grammar, a noun is a word that represents a concrete or abstract thing, such as living creatures, places, actions, qualities, states of existence, and ideas. A noun may serve as an object or subject within a phrase, clause, or sentence.
In grammar, a part of speech or part-of-speech is a category of words that have similar grammatical properties. Words that are assigned to the same part of speech generally display similar syntactic behavior, sometimes similar morphological behavior in that they undergo inflection for similar properties and even similar semantic behavior. Commonly listed English parts of speech are noun, verb, adjective, adverb, pronoun, preposition, conjunction, interjection, numeral, article, and determiner.
Lexical semantics, as a subfield of linguistic semantics, is the study of word meanings. It includes the study of how words structure their meaning, how they act in grammar and compositionality, and the relationships between the distinct senses and uses of a word.
The Salishan languages are a family of languages of the Pacific Northwest in North America. They are characterised by agglutinativity and syllabic consonants. For instance the Nuxalk word clhp’xwlhtlhplhhskwts’, meaning "he had had [in his possession] a bunchberry plant", has twelve obstruent consonants in a row with no phonetic or phonemic vowels.
The Cayuse are a Native American tribe in what is now the state of Oregon in the United States. The Cayuse tribe shares a reservation and government in northeastern Oregon with the Umatilla and the Walla Walla tribes as part of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation. The reservation is located near Pendleton, Oregon, at the base of the Blue Mountains.
Penutian is a proposed grouping of language families that includes many Native American languages of western North America, predominantly spoken at one time in British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and California. The existence of a Penutian stock or phylum has been the subject of debate among specialists. Even the unity of some of its component families has been disputed. Some of the problems in the comparative study of languages within the phylum are the result of their early extinction and limited documentation.
Linguistic determinism is the concept that language and its structures limit and determine human knowledge or thought, as well as thought processes such as categorization, memory, and perception. The term implies that people's native languages will affect their thought process and therefore people will have different thought processes based on their mother tongues.
Sahaptian is a two-language branch of the Plateau Penutian family spoken by Native American peoples in the Columbia Plateau region of Washington, Oregon, and Idaho in the northwestern United States.
Tokelauan is a Polynesian language spoken in Tokelau and historically by the small population of Swains Island in American Samoa. It is closely related to Tuvaluan and is related to Samoan and other Polynesian languages. Tokelauan has a co-official status with English in Tokelau. There are approximately 4,260 speakers of Tokelauan, of whom 2,100 live in New Zealand, 1,400 in Tokelau, and 17 in Swains Island. "Tokelau" means "north-northeast".
Plateau Penutian is a family of languages spoken in northern California, reaching through central-western Oregon to northern Washington and central-northern Idaho.
The Molala are a Native American people of Oregon that originally resided in the Western Cascades. Descendants of the Molala reside on the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon, Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, and the Klamath Tribes. In the 1950s 141 of the 882 Grand Ronde Reservation members claimed Molala descent.
Two types of language change can be characterized as linguistic drift: a unidirectional short-term and cyclic long-term drift.
Nez Perce, also spelled Nez Percé or called nimipuutímt, is a Sahaptian language related to the several dialects of Sahaptin. Nez Perce comes from the French phrase nez percé, "pierced nose"; however, Nez Perce, who call themselves nimiipuu, meaning "the people", did not pierce their noses. This misnomer may have occurred as a result of confusion on the part of the French, as it was surrounding tribes who did so.
Takelma is the language that was spoken by the Latgawa and Takelma peoples and the Cow Creek band of Upper Umpqua, in Oregon, USA. The language was extensively described by the German-American linguist Edward Sapir in his graduate thesis, The Takelma Language of Southwestern Oregon (1912). Sapir’s grammar together with his Takelma Texts (1909) are the main sources of information on the language. Both are based on work carried out in 1906 with language consultant Frances Johnson, who lived on to become the last surviving fluent speaker. In 1934, with her death at the age of 99, the language became extinct. An English-Takelma dictionary is currently being created on the basis of printed sources with the aim of reviving the language.
Mosan is a hypothetical language family consisting of the Salishan, Wakashan, and Chimakuan languages of the Pacific Northwest region of North America. It was proposed by Edward Sapir in 1929 in the Encyclopædia Britannica. Little evidence has been adduced in favor of such a grouping, no progress has been made in reconstructing it, and it is now thought to reflect a language area rather than a genetic relationship. The term persists outside academic linguistic literature because of Sapir's stature.
Sahaptin or Shahaptin, endonym Ichishkin, is one of the two-language Sahaptian branch of the Plateau Penutian family spoken in a section of the northwestern plateau along the Columbia River and its tributaries in southern Washington, northern Oregon, and southwestern Idaho, in the United States; the other language is Nez Perce or Niimi'ipuutímt.
The Pauwasi languages are a likely family of Papuan languages, mostly in Indonesia. The subfamilies are at best only distantly related. The best described Pauwasi language is Karkar, across the border in Papua New Guinea. They are spoken around the headwaters of the Pauwasi River in the Indonesian-PNG border region.
Tutelo, also known as Tutelo–Saponi, is a member of the Virginian branch of Siouan languages that were originally spoken in what is now Virginia and West Virginia in the United States.
Molala is an extinct language once spoken by the Molala people of Oregon. Currently it is included among the Plateau Penutian language family, with Klamath and Sahaptin being considered the closest related.
The indigenous languages of the Americas form various linguistic areas or Sprachbunds that share various common (areal) traits.
Italics indicate extinct languages | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Indigenous |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Immigrant |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
