Fox language
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Fox (known by a variety of different names, including Mesquakie (Meskwaki), Mesquakie-Sauk, Mesquakie-Sauk-Kickapoo, Sauk-Fox, and Sac and Fox) is an Algonquian language, spoken by a thousand Meskwaki, Sauk, and Kickapoo in various locations in the Midwestern United States and in northern Mexico.
Dialects
The three distinct dialects are:
- Fox or Script error: No such module "Lang". (Meskwaki language)[4][failed verification] (also called Mesquakie, Meskwaki)
- Sauk or Script error: No such module "Lang". (Thâkîwaki language) (also rendered Sac), and
- Kickapoo or Kiikaapoa (also rendered Script error: No such module "Lang".; considered by some to be a closely related but distinct language).[5]
If Kickapoo is counted as a separate language rather than a dialect of Fox, then only between 200 and 300 speakers of Fox remain. Extinct Mascouten was most likely another dialect, though it is scarcely attested.[citation needed]
Revitalization
Most speakers are elderly or middle-aged, making it highly endangered. The tribal school at the Meskwaki Settlement in Iowa incorporates bilingual education for children.[4][6] In 2011, the Meskwaki Sewing Project was created, to bring mothers and girls together "with elder women in the Meskwaki Senior Center sewing traditional clothing and learning the Meskwaki language."[7]
Prominent scholars doing research on the language include Ives Goddard,[8] Lucy Thomason of the Smithsonian Institution, and Amy Dahlstrom of the University of Chicago.
Phonology
Until the early 1900s, Fox was a phonologically very conservative language and preserved many features of Proto-Algonquian; records from the decades immediately following 1900 are particularly useful to Algonquianists for this reason. By the 1960s, however, an extensive progression of phonological changes had taken place, resulting in the loss of intervocalic semivowels and certain[which?] other features.[9]
Consonants
The consonant phonemes of Fox are given in the table below.
| Labial | Alveolar | Postalveolar or palatal |
Velar | Glottal | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m | n | ||||
| Plosive | plain | p | t | tʃ | k | |
| preaspirated | ʰp | ʰt | ʰtʃ | ʰk | ||
| Fricative | s | ʃ | h | |||
| Approximant | j | w | ||||
- Other than those involving a consonant plus Script error: No such module "IPA". or Script error: No such module "IPA"., the only possible consonant cluster is Script error: No such module "IPA"..
Vowels
The Fox language has eight vowel phonemes:
| Front | Back | |
|---|---|---|
| High | i iː | o oː |
| Low | e eː | a aː |
Grammar
According to A Concise Dictionary of the Sauk Language by Gordon Whittaker,Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found. the language's nouns can be divided into animate and inanimate groups. Animate nouns end in -a (ex: tîtîwa /ˈti:.ti:.wa/, "blue jay (bird)"). To pluralise most animate nouns, the ending is transformed from -a to -aki (ex: tîtîwa -> tîtîwaki). The few exceptions that exist have specific forms, according to the Dictionary.
Inanimate nouns typically end in -i (ex: mâtethi /ˈma:.tet.hi/, "knife"). To pluralise most inanimate nouns, the ending is transformed from -i to -ani (ex: mâtethi -> mâtethani). Like the animate nouns, the few exceptions that exist also have specific forms, according to the Dictionary.Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.
Verbs can be divided into transitive and intransitive; transitive involves two parties (i.e "I give it to you!" / "Kemînêwene!"), while intransitive is one party (i.e "You're alive." / "Kepemâtethi.")
| Subject | Verb (Sauk) | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| ne(t)- (I/me) | nepemâtethi | I am alive |
| ke(t)- (you) | kepemâtethi | you are alive |
| -wa (s/he) | pemâtethiwa | s/he is alive |
| ne(t)- ... -pena (we [exclusive]) | nepemâtethipena | we (exclusive; think "We, but not YOU.") are alive |
| ke(t)- ... -pena (we [inclusive]) | kepemâtethipena | we (inclusive; think "We and you.") are alive |
| ke(t)- ... -pwa (you [plural]) | kepemâtethipwa | you (plural) are alive; you all are alive |
| -waki (they) | pemâtethiwaki | they are alive |
| Subject | Verb (Sauk) | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| -wi (it) | kehkyêwi | it is old |
| -wani (they [inanimate]) | kehkyâhiwani | they (inanim.) are old |
| Subject | Verb (Sauk) | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| ke(t)- ... -ene (I -> you) | netahkawâpatene | I take care of you (ahkawâpatamwa can also mean to watch out [for] / look out [for]) |
| ke(t)- ... -enepwa (I -> you [plural]) | netahkawâpatenepwa | I take care of you (plural); I take care of you all |
| ne(t)- ... -âwa (I -> him/her) | netahkawâpatâwa | I take care of him/her |
| ne(t)- ... -âwaki (I -> them) | netahkawâpatâwaki | I take care of them |
| ke(t)- ... -i (you -> me) | ketahkawâpati | you take care of me |
| ke(t)- ... -âwa (you -> him/her) | ketahkawâpatâwa | you take care of him/her |
| ke(t)- ... -ipena (you -> us) | ketahkawâpatipena | you take care of us |
| ke(t)- ... -enepena (we -> you) | ketahkawâpatenepena | we take care of you |
| ne(t)- ... -ekwa (s/he -> me) | netahkawâpatekwa | s/he takes care of me |
| ke(t)- ... -ekwa (s/he -> you) | ketahkawâpatekwa | s/he takes care of you |
| -êwa (s/he -> him/her/them) | ahkawâpatêwa | s/he takes care of him/her/them |
| ne(t)- ... -ekonâna (s/he -> us [exc.]) | netahkawâpatekonâna | s/he takes care of us (exc.) |
| ke(t)- ... -ekonâna (s/he -> us [inc.]) | ketahkawâpatekonâna | s/he takes care of us (inc.) |
| ke(t)- ... -ekowâwa (s/he -> you [plural]) | ketahkawâpatekowâwa | s/he takes care of you (plural); s/he takes care of you all |
| ne(t)- ... -âpena (we [exc.] -> him/her/them) | netahkawâpatâpena | we (exc.) take care of him/her/them |
| ke(t)- ... -âpena (we [inc.] -> him/her/them) | ketahkawâpatâpena | we (inc.) take care of him/her/them |
| ke(t)- ... -ipwa (you [plural] -> me) | ketahkawâpatipwa | you (plural) take care of me; you all take care of me |
| ke(t)- ... -âpwa (you [plural] -> him/her/them) | ketahkawâpatâpwa | you (plural) take care of him/her/them; you all take care of him/her/them |
| ne(t)- ... -ekôki (they -> me) | netahkawâpatekôki | they take care of me |
| ke(t)- ... -ekôki (they -> you) | ketahkawâpatekôki | they take care of you |
| -êwaki (they -> him/her/them) | ahkawâpatêwaki | they take care of him/her/them |
| ne(t)- ... -ekonânaki (they -> us [exc.]) | netahkawâpatekonânaki | they take care of us (exc.) |
| ke(t)- ... -ekonânaki (they -> us [inc.]) | ketahkawâpatekonânaki | they take care of us (inc.) |
| ke(t)- ... -ekowâwaki (they -> you [plural]) | ketahkawâpatekowâwaki | they take care of you (plural); they take care of you all |
| Subject | Verb (Sauk) | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| ne(t)- ... -a (I -> it/them) | netahkawâpata | I take care of it/them (ahkawâpatamwa can also mean to watch out [for] / look out [for]) |
| ke(t)- ... -a (You -> it/them) | ketahkawâpata | You take care of it/them |
| -amwa (S/He -> it/them) | ahkawâpatamwa | S/He takes care of it/them |
| ne(t)- ... -âpena (We [exc.] -> it/them) | netahkawâpatâpena | We (exc.) take care of it/them |
| ke(t)- ... -âpena (We [inc.] -> it/them) | ketahkawâpatâpena | We (inc.) take care of it/them |
| ke(t)- ... -âpwa (You [plural] -> it/them) | ketahkawâpatâpwa | You [plural] take care of it/them |
| -âmoki (They -> it/them) | ahkawâpatamwâmoki | They take care of it/them |
This conjugation is only for verbs that end in -amwa; all other animate transitive verbs take the same conjugation as the animate intransitive verbs.Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.
Vocabulary
Sauk numerals are as follows:[10]
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | one |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | two |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | three |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | four |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | five |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | six |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | seven |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | eight |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | nine |
| Script error: No such module "Lang". | ten |
Writing systems
Besides the Latin script, Fox has been written in two indigenous scripts.Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.
Fox I
"Fox I" is an abugida based on the cursive French alphabet (see Great Lakes Algonquian syllabics). Consonants written by themselves are understood to be syllables containing the vowel Script error: No such module "IPA".. They are:
| 𝓁[a] | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| 𝓉 | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| 𝓈 | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| 𝒸𝓁 | Script error: No such module "IPA".[b] |
| 𝓉𝓉 | Script error: No such module "IPA".[c] |
| ℐ[d] | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| 𝓌 | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| 𝓂 | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| 𝓃 | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| 𝒦 | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| 𝛿[e] | Script error: No such module "IPA".[f] |
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- ^ Written as a tall loop, similar to a cursive b or l.
- ^ Character ⟨d⟩ for Script error: No such module "IPA". derives from French ⟨ch⟩.
- ^ Character ⟨tt⟩ for Script error: No such module "IPA". derives from French ⟨tch⟩.
- ^ The cursive form of capital I is a more graphically accurate approximation for Script error: No such module "IPA".; the actual character is a small clockwise loop with a long tail.
- ^ The actual character for Script error: No such module "IPA". or Script error: No such module "IPA". is shaped more like a cursive g or a with a long, winding tail that goes in a loop, almost like a figure-8 shape.
- ^ Character ⟨q⟩ for Script error: No such module "IPA". derives from French ⟨q(u)⟩.
Vowels are written by adding dots to the consonant:
| 𝓁 | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| 𝓁. | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| 𝓁· | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| 𝓁.. | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
Fox II
"Fox II" is a consonant–vowel alphabet. According to Coulmas, Script error: No such module "IPA". is not written (as Script error: No such module "IPA". is not written in Fox I). Vowels (or Script error: No such module "IPA". plus a vowel) are written as cross-hatched tally marks.
| + | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| 𝒞 | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| ⵕ | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| 𝒾 | Script error: No such module "IPA".[a] |
| ñ | Script error: No such module "IPA".[b] |
| ═ | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| ƧƧ | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| 𐌎 | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| ⵌ | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| 𝒞ʼ | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| Ƨ𝒞 | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| x | Script error: No such module "IPA". |
| ʜ | Script error: No such module "IPA".[c] |
| ⱶʜ | Script error: No such module "IPA".[d] |
| ʜʜ | Script error: No such module "IPA".[e] |
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- ^ Without the dot/tittle
- ^ Actually like one script n stacked on another.
- ^ This is like a small capital H with the cross-bar sticking out on either side.
- ^ Resembles Chinese Template:Hani but lower and wider.
- ^ Resembles Chinese Template:Hani, but lower and wider.
See also
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Notes
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- ^ Cite error: The named reference
e24was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía. (2015). Lenguas indígenas en México y hablantes (de 3 años y más) al 2015. Script error: No such module "webarchive".
- ^ Lenguas indígenas y hablantes de 3 años y más, 2020 Script error: No such module "webarchive". INEGI. Censo de Población y Vivienda 2020.
- ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Mission & Philosophy". Meskwaki Settlement School. Archived from the original on July 23, 2019. Retrieved July 23, 2019.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Moctezuma Zamarrón, José Luis (2011). El sistema fonológico del Kickapoo de Coahuila analizado desde las metodologías distribucional y funcional (PDF) (in español). México: INALI. ISBN 978-607-7538-39-4. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 4, 2014.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Meskwaki Education Network Initiative (MENWI)". American Indian Studies Research Institute at Indiana University. Archived from the original on January 3, 2004. Retrieved July 19, 2012.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Scandale, Maria (February 21, 2011). "Meskwaki Tribe Receives Grant for Sewing and Language Project". Indian Country Today Media Network. Archived from the original on May 26, 2024. Retrieved July 19, 2012.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Nelson, John (July 27, 2008). "Talking the talk". The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier. Archived from the original on August 6, 2020. Retrieved July 19, 2012.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Ringe, Don; Eska, Joseph F. (2013). "Language change in the speech community: change by loss of a stylistic register". Historical Linguistics: Toward a Twenty-First Century Reintegration. Cambridge University Press. p. 57. ISBN 978-0521583329.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Sauk Counting Worksheet (Sac and Fox)". Archived from the original on October 28, 2019. Retrieved March 17, 2019.
References
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Bloomfield, Leonard (1925). "Notes on the Fox Language". International Journal of American Linguistics. 3 (2/4): 219–232. doi:10.1086/463756.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Coulmas, Florian (1999). The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Writing Systems. Blackwell Publishing.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Dahlstrom, Amy. "Meskwaki Syntax (Manuscript)". Lucian. University of Chicago.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Goddard, Ives (1991). "Observations Regarding Fox (Mesquakie) Phonology". Papers of the Twenty-Second Algonquian Conference. 22: 157–181.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Jones, William (1906). "An Algonquian syllabary". In Lanfer, Berthold (ed.). Boas anniversary volume: Anthropological papers written in honor of Franz Boas. New York: G.E. Stechert. pp. 88–93.
{{cite book}}:|work=ignored (help) - Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Voorhis, Paul H. (1974). Introduction to the Kickapoo Language. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. ISBN 978-0-87750-177-0.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Whittaker, Gordon (2005). A Concise Dictionary of the Sauk Language (PDF). Stroud, OK: The Sac & Fox National Public Library. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 29, 2020.
Further reading
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Jones, William (1907). Boaz, Franz (ed.). Fox texts. Publications of the American Ethnological Society. Vol. 1. Leyden: Brill.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Michelson, Truman, ed. (1895). The Autobiography of a Fox Indian Woman (in Sac and English).
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link) - Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Michelson, Truman, ed. (1921). The Owl Sacred Pack of the Fox Indians. Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin. Vol. 72. Smithsonian Institution.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Last Meskwaki code talker remembers". USA Today. Tama, IA. Associated Press. July 4, 2002. Retrieved July 19, 2012.
External links
- Native Languages of the Americas: Mesquakie-Sauk
- Meskwaki Language - Alphabet
- OLAC resources in and about the Meskwaki language
- OLAC resources in and about the Kickapoo language
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