East Cree, also known as James Bay (Eastern) Cree, and East Main Cree, is a group of Cree dialects spoken in Quebec, Canada on the east coast of lower Hudson Bay and James Bay, and inland southeastward from James Bay. Cree is one of the most spoken non-official aboriginal languages of Canada. Four dialects have been tentatively identified including the Southern Inland dialect (Iyiniw-Ayamiwin) spoken in Mistissini, Oujé-Bougoumou, Waswanipi, and Nemaska; the Southern Coastal dialect (Iyiyiw-Ayamiwin) spoken in Nemaska, Waskaganish, and Eastmain; the Northern Coastal Dialects (Iyiyiw-Ayimiwin), one spoken in Wemindji and Chisasibi and the other spoken in Whapmagoostui. The dialects are mutually intelligible, though difficulty arises as the distance between communities increases.
East Cree is not considered an endangered language thanks to the large population of younger people who speak it (Mela S.; Mali A. 2009). There are estimated to be more than 18,000 first-language speakers.[3]
Phonology
The long vowels *ē and *ā have merged in the northern coastal dialects but remain distinct in the southern coastal and southern inland dialects; southern inland has merged *s with *š, which remain distinct in the coastal dialects. Neighbouring Naskapi has both.[clarification needed]
In East Cree you have Primary Derivation, Secondary Derivation, and Composition.
Primary Derivation
Words constructed by primary derivation, are made up of two or more stems, that are not words that stand on their own.
For example, the verb ᐱᓱᐸᔨᐤ pisupiyiu, s/he/it goes slow is made up of an initial pisu- and a final piyi- that are not words themselves.
pisu
piyi
u
Initial
Final
Personal Suffix
Stem
Stem
Inflection
English Translation: She/he/it goes slow.
Secondary Derivation
Words constructed by secondary derivation, are made up of core word stems and at least one other stem-building elements.
For example, the verb ᐱᓱᐱᔨᐦᑖᐤ pisupiyihtaau s/he makes it go slow is made up of the stem of the existing verb ᐱᓱᐱᔨᐤ pisupiyiu and the causative final -htaa.
pisu
piyi
htaau
Initial
Final
Causative final/Personal suffix
Initial
Final
Stem
Stem
Inflection
English Translation: she/he/it makes it go slow.
Composition
Words constructed by composition contains independent elements, like two existing word stems, or a preform and another word stem.
For example, the noun ᒥᔥᑎᑯᓈᐹᐤ mishtikunaapaau carpenter is made by conjoining two other noun stems: ᒥᔥᑎᒄ mishtikw wood and ᓈᐹᐤ napaau man.
Independent elements forming with Verbs
miyu
chiishinkaau
preverb
verb stem
good
it is day
English Translation: It is a good day
Independent elements forming with Nouns
mishtikw
napaau
stem
stem
wood
man
English Translation: carpenter
Gender, number, person
Gender
Gender is a grammatical distinction. East Cree has 'Animate' and 'Inanimate' gender differentiation. However, it is not possible to know for sure if words are animate or inanimate at first glance.
Animate nouns refer to humans, animals, and general living creatures, as well as some plants and some personal belongings, such as pants and sleds. To indicate the plural, you generally add the suffix -ich; in some cases, when the word ends in -w, you drop the -w and add -uch.
Number
Word
Translation
Singular
paayikw awaashish
one child
Plural
niishu awaashishiich
two children
Some more examples of Animate nouns are:
Number
Word
Translation
Single
piyichiis
pair of pants
Plural
piyichiisich
pairs of pants
Single
mishtikw
tree
Plural
mishtikuch
trees
Single
utaapaanaaskw
sled
Plural
utaapaanaaskuch
sleds
Inanimate plural is formed with the suffix -h.
Number
Word
Translation
Single
paayikw mischin
one shoe
Plural
niishu mischinh
two shoes
Number
As shown above we can see that the Number is dependent on the Gender therefore if we have an Animate word then the ending for the plural will be ich in most cases and in some cases when the word ends in a w the ending will be uch after you drop the w. On the other hand, for Inanimate words the ending to indicate the plural will be adding an h to the end of the word.
Person
To indicate possession, noun stems take a personal prefix. In East Cree there are Independent and Dependent nouns.
Independent nouns are ones that can appear without personal prefixes. Therefore, they can stand alone as a word, and if you want to indicate to whom it belongs to, you would add the prefix. Example shown below.
Gender
Number
Noun
Translation
Inanimate
Singular
mischisin
shoe
Inanimate
Singular
nimischisin
my shoe
Inanimate
Plural
mischisinh
shoes
Inanimate
Plural
nimischisinh
my shoes
We can see that for this example the noun is Independent because it can stand alone, also, we see that it is an inanimate noun because the plural form adds an h at the end when the plural is indicted. Please refer to Gender to understand the relationship of Animate and Inanimate nouns in respect to gender.
Dependent nouns are those that can not stand alone without a prefix. These type of nouns express kinship, body parts, and personal belongings, like certain pieces of clothing.
Gender
Noun
Translation
Animate
nimushum
my grandfather
Inanimate
nishtikwaan
my head
Below is the table of Prefixes and Suffixes for some Dependent Nouns that are Animate
Possessors
Animate noun
Translation
2
chimis
your older sister
1
nimis
my older sister
2p
chimisiwaau
your (plural) older sister
21p
chimisinuu
our (including you) older sister
1p
nimisinaan
our (excluding you) older sister
3
umis-h
his/her older sister(s)
3pe
umisiwaauh
their older sister(s)
3'(p)
umisiyuuh
his/her/their older sister(s)
Classification on verbs
East Cree adds suffixes on verbs in order to distinguish classes based on two factors, transitivity and gender. When referring to transitivity it means if the verbs is intransitive or transitive, and when referring to gender, it means if the subject or object of the verb is animate or inanimate. When we are looking at intransitive verbs, we see that the animacy of the subject matters. However, when we are looking at a transitive verb, we see that the animacy of the object is what matters. Below is a table that describes the differences between the transitive, intransitive and animate, inanimate in regards to the verbs and their role.
Animate
Inanimate
One Role (Intransitive)
masinaasuu
masinaateu
Two Roles (Transitive)
masinahweu
masinaham
Verbs
Gloss
Classification
masinahweu
She writes him (his name) down
Transitive Animate (VTA)
masinaham
She is writing it
Transitive Inanimate (VTI)
masinaasuu
She (her name) is written down
Animate Intransitive (VAI)
masinaateu
It is written
Inanimate Intransitive (VII)
Different classes have different endings. Below is a table that describes the different ending for each classification. The classifications are, Verb Transitive Animate (VTA), Verb Intransitive Inanimate (VII), Verb Transitive Inanimate (VTI), Verb Animate Intransitive (VAI).
Verb Intransitive Inanimate (VII) only have one role (intransitive) filled by an inanimate subject. These verbs have endings such as, -n or vowels.
Verb
Gloss
chiinaau
It is pointed
wiihkan
It is tasty
waaskamaau
It is a clear day
yuutin
It is windy
Verb Transitive Inanimate (VTI) have two roles (transitive) filled by an animate subject and an inanimate object. These verbs have an -am ending. They can be found in all orders with all persons.
Verbs
Gloss
masinaham masinahiikaniyuu Ruth
Ruth is writing a book
iiskupatam utaas
He is pulling up his socks
manaham chiistaaskwaanh
She is pulling out nails
Verb Transitive Animate (VTA) have two roles (transitive) filled by an animate subject and an animate object. Both the agent and the patient are animate. They can end in many endings, but one of them is -eu.
Verb
Gloss
misinahuweu utawaashiimh Luci
Luci is enrolling her child
chispahweu waahkupaanikiikh Daisy
Daisy is mixing fish-egg pancakes
wepaashtimeu umuusuuyaanimh Marguerite
Marguerite let her moosehide blow away
Verb Animate Intransitive (VAI) usually only have one role (intransitive) filled by an animate subject. They end in -n and -vowels'.
Verbs
Gloss
masinaasuu nuushimish
My grandchild's name is on the list
weyikaapuu Daisy che niimit
Daisy stands ready to dance
utaamikachisheshin John
John falls on his behind
Space and time
Space
In East Cree there are Demonstrative Pronouns this are distinguished by three areas. The Proximal noted by uu, which can occur with suffixes. The proximal is used to indicate either a person or an object that is close to the speaker and in sight of the speaker. Then there is the Distal noted by an at the beginning of a word. The distal is used to indicate something or something specific that is slightly farther away from the speaker. In addition, there is the Remote noted as (a)naa or (a)nwaa and is used to indicate that someone or something is far away from the speaker. In East Cree, there are two sets of demonstratives. One is to use in a normal speech setting which means, to just speak to one another and the other form is used with gestures such as hand gestures, to point or signal.
Below is a table demonstrating the relation of prefixes on the words using the proximal, distal, and the remote for Animate Pronouns. Simple Speech no gestures required.
Pronoun
Proximate
Obviative
Singular
Plural
Singular or Plural
Proximal
uu
uuchii / uuch
uuyuuh / uuyeyuuh
Distal
an
anichii / anich
anuyuuh / anuyeyuuh
Remote
(a)naa / (a)nwaa
(a)nechii / (a)nech
(a)neyuuh
Below is a table demonstrating the relation of prefixes on the words using the proximal, distal, and the remote for Inanimate Pronouns.
Pronoun
Proximate
Obviative
Singular
Plural
Singular
Plural
Proximal
uu
uuyuuh / uuhii
uuyuu / uuyeyuu
uuyuuh / uuyeyuuh
Distal
an
aniyuuh / anihii
aniyuu / aniyeyuu
aniyuuh / aniyeyuuh
Remote
(a)ne
(a)neyuuh / (a)nehii
aneyuu
aneyuuh
Time
East Cree tense is marked on the preverbs attached to the pronoun. There is an indicative of past and future tense on the preverb such as, che, chii, kata, chika, nika, chechii, wii, nipah, chipah, e, kaa, uhchi. These preverbs indicate different aspects of the tense and when you use each one. Below is a table that shows the different environment for each preverb.
Preverb
Usage
Example
Gloss
che
Future marker for conjunct verbs
1. che nikamuyaan
2. che nikamuyin
3. che nikamut
1. I will sing
2. You will sing
3. S/he will sing
chii
Past tense marker
1. nichii miichisun
2. chichii miichisun
3. chii miichisuu
1. I ate
2. You ate
3. S/he ate
kata
Future preverbs for independent verbs used only with 3p.
kata miichisuu utaakushiyiche
S/he will eat this evening
chika
future preverb for independent verbs used with second and third persons
1. chika miichisuu utaakushiyiche
2. chika miichisun utaakushiche
1. S/he will eat this evening
2. S/he will eat this evening
nika
future preverb for independent verbs used with first persons
nika miichisun utaakushiche
I will eat this evening
chechii
conjunct preverb
1. wanichischisuu chechii petaat aniyuu akuhpiyuu
2. nituweyimaau chechii ihtuutahk
1. He forgot to bring that jacket
2. I want him to do it
chii
can always preceded by a future preverb
1. nika chii ihtuhten
2. chika chii ihtuten
3. chika chii ihtuteu
4. che chii ihtuhtewaane
1. I can go
2. You can go
3. S/he can go
4. If I can go
wii
want
1. niwii miichisun
2. chiwii miichisun
3. wii miichisuu
1. I want to eat
2. You want to eat
3. S/he wants to eat
nipah
should used with first persons
shaash nipah kuushimuun uu e ishpishipayich
I should be in bed at this hour
chipah
should used with second and third persons
shaash chipah kuushimuun uu e ishpishipayich
You should be in bed at this hour
e
conjunct preverb
1. nimiyeyihten e masinahiicheyaan
2. chimiyeyihten e masinahiicheyin
3. miyeyihtam e masinahiichet
1. I like to write
2. You like to write
3. S/he likes to write
kaa
Conjunct preverb
1. kaa ayimiyaan
2. kaa ayimiyin
3. kaa ayimit
1. When I spoke
2. When you spoke
3. When s/he spoke
uhchi
from, because used in the negative independent with namui or in the negative conjunct with ekaa
1. namui uhchi chii nipaau e chii kushtaachit
2. namui nuuhchi chii nipaan e chii kushtaachiyaan
1. S/he could not sleep because s/he was afraid
2. I could not sleep because I was afraid
Word order
In East Cree, all six word orders SVO, SOV, OVS, OSV, VOS, and VSO are grammatical. Below is a chart to see how they could all be used to construct the sentence, The children killed some ducks
Word order
Example
Gloss
SVO
awasisak nipahewak sisipa
children killed ducks
SOV
awasisak sisipa nipahewak
children ducks killed
VSO
nipahewak awasisak sisipa
killed children ducks
VOS
nipahewak sisipa awasisak
killed ducks children
OVS
sisipa nipahewak awasisak
ducks killed children
OSV
sisipa awasisak nipahewak
ducks children killed
Case
There is a ranking system of the grammatical functions where the subject outranks the object. This appears on the transitive verb with an animate object in order to indicate the person hierarchy, whether it be aligned (DIRECT) or crossed (INVERSE). Below is a table that demonstrates the hierarchy and the functions.
For the Direct we can see that the Proximant is reflected on the Subject and the Agent while the Obviative is reflected through the Object and the Patient.
For the Inverse we can see that the Proximate is reflected inversely through the Object and then through the Patient, then we can see that the Obviative is reflected through the Subject and then through the Agent.
For the Passive we can see that the Proximate is reflected through the Subject then through the Patient. Then we see the Obviative through the Object and then the Agent.
The notation in the example is represented with an X to indicate the switch.
------
DIRECT
INVERSE
PASSIVE
Gloss
S/hePROX likes her/himOBV
S/heOBV likes her/himPROX
S/hePROX is liked
------
PROX______OBV
PROX______OBV
PROX_______ OBV
------
↓__________↓
______X________
↓___________↓
------
SUBJ_____ OBJ
SUBJ______ OBJ
SUBJ______ (OBJ)
------
↓____________↓
↓___________↓
______X______
------
Agent______ Patient
Agent______ Patient
Agent______ Patient
------
Miyayim-e-u
Miyeyim-iku-u
Miyeyim-aakanu-u
------
like-DIR(3›3')-3
like-INV(3‹3')-3
like-PASS-3
Possession
East Cree marks its possessions on the nouns by adding a secondary suffix to a possessed noun with a third-person prefix. See examples below that indicate the addition of suffixes and prefixes. There is a difference in which suffix and prefix you use if the noun in questions is animate or inanimate.
------
Noun
Possessed Noun
Verb "S/he has..."
Verb "I have..."
Word
maschisin
umaschisin
umaschisinuu
numaschisinin
Gloss
shoe
his/her shoe
umaschisinuu
I have shoes
Word
awaash
utawaashishiimh
utawaashishiimuu
nutawaashishiimin
Gloss
child
his/her child
s/he has a child/children
I have a child/children
Complements
In East Cree sometimes one sentence is contained within another sentence, this is known as a subordinate or embedded clause. The verb of the subordinate clauses have conjunct suffixes and often a conjunct preverb. Below is a table detailing the subordinate clauses.
The bold part of the sentence indicates the subordinate clause in both languages.
------
Complement clauses
Sentence
nichischeyihtaan e waapach waskahiik
Gloss
I know that the house is white
Sentence
nichii kukwechimaau wiyaapaach waaskah
Gloss
I asked if the house is white
Sentence
nichischeyihten ekaa waapaach waaskahiika
Gloss
I know that the house is not white
Adverbial clauses is when the subordinate clause provides information about the time at which something happened, or the frequency with which it happens. Below are some examples of adverbial clauses.
------
Adverbial Clauses
Sentence
kaa nipaat chitakushiniyuuh
Gloss
While she was sleeping, he arrived
Sentence
iy aahkusich-h maatuu
Gloss
Whenever s/he is sick, it rains
Relative Clauses is when the subordinate clause functions as a complement to a noun. Below is an example.
------
Relative Clauses
Sentence
Waapahtam muuhkumaan kaa piikupayiyic
Gloss
She sees the knife that is (was) broken (the broken knife)
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