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About a thousand distinct Native American languages are
presently spoken by indigenous peoples in North and South America, and hundreds
more have become extinct since the first European contact. In many areas people
often spoke not only their native language but also the languages of groups
with whom they had frequent contact. In various cases one language served as a
common language for a multilingual region; examples include Tucano (western
Amazon area) and Quechua (Andean region). Some regions had a traders' language
or pidgin, a simplified language or mixture of several languages, helpful to
traders of different native languages; among these were Chinook Jargon (Pacific
Coast, North America), Mobilian (United States, South-east), and lingua geral
(Brazil). Linguists have grouped many of the Native American languages into
roughly 180 families, but many other languages have no known relatives;
scholars differ in proposing more distant relationships among families.
Grammatical traits, sound systems, and word formation often vary from family to
family, but families in a given region often influence one another
the indigenous languages
of the native peoples of North, Middle, and South America. The precise number
of Native American languages is unknown; estimates are that about 200 distinct
languages are still spoken in North America (that is, north of Mexico). Perhaps
300 to 400 more were spoken at the time of first European contact. In Middle
America (Mexico and Central America) about 350 languages are known. South
America has been the least studied, linguistically. About 450 languages are in
use there today; information survives for 120 extinct languages, and another
1,500 to 2,000 languages are mentioned in documents.
For the number of
past and present speakers of these languages, only rough estimates can be
given, useful for comparison. It is believed that when Europeans arrived in the
Americas, about 1.5 million people spoke Native American languages in North
America (down to about 200,000 today), about 5 million in Middle America (up to
about 6 million today), and about 10 to 20 million in South America (about 11
to 12 million today).
In present-day
North America the indigenous languages with the most speakers are Navajo (about
80,000), Ojibwa (about 40,000), and Inupiaq, or Inuktitut (see Inuit). Inupiaq has more than 60,000 speakers
and its Greenlandic variety serves as a national language. In Middle America,
Nahuatl (Aztec) is spoken by more than 1 million people, the various Mayan
languages by about 2 million, and a number of other languages by several
hundred thousand each. In South America, Quechua, with more than 8 million
speakers, is the most widely used of all Native American tongues today. Guaraní
is the only Native American language to have become a national and literary
language spoken by large numbers of non-Native Americans (half of its 2 million
speakers are Paraguayans of European descent). In the Andes, Aymara has about
800,000 speakers, and in Chile, Araucanian has about 200,000. The vast majority
of Native American languages, however, have from a few hundred to a few
thousand speakers; many have fewer than 50 or 100 speakers; still many other
languages have only 2 or 3 surviving speakers.
Native American
and European colonial languages have borrowed words from one another; Native
American languages have taken words from Dutch (in the Antilles), English,
Spanish, Portuguese, Russian (in Alaska), and French (in Canada and Louisiana).
In turn, many of the European languages took over Native American place names
and terms for plants and animals; examples include Alaska, from the Aleut name
for the Alaskan Peninsula; Connecticut, from Mohegan (Algonquian-Ritwan), “long
river”; Minnesota, from Dakota, or Sioux, “cloudy water”; Mexico and Guatemala,
from Nahuatl; and Nicaragua, from an Aztec dialect, Pipil. English has many
loanwords from Native American languages, among them kayak (Eskimo); chipmunk,
opossum, raccoon, tomahawk, moccasin, squash (Algonquian); abalone (Costanoan);
tomato, coyote, chilli, chocolate, peyote (Nahuatl); puma, condor, pampa,
llama, alpaca (Quechua); canoe, maize, tobacco, potato (Taino—Arawakan stock).
In Latin America, the Spanish language has influenced and been influenced by
Quechua, Guaraní, and Nahuatl, in particular.
The classification
of Native American languages into families is not without controversy. By the
mid-20th century, many scholars classified the North American languages into
roughly 60 different language families, recognizing no demonstrable genetic
relationships among them. In Middle America they proposed 19 different
families, and in South America, perhaps 80 families. Other scholars proposed
fewer families, claiming to see genetic relationships among most of the Native
American languages. Although it is believed that the original population of the
Americas came from Asia via the Bering Strait, the great genetic diversity of
American languages suggests that the New World may have been populated by
multiple migrations.
A major aim of
linguistic work with Native American languages is their genetic
classification—the organization of this vast diversity into manageable family
schemes. The immensity of the body of data, coupled with the steady
disappearance of language after language, makes the task awesome. In 1891 the
American ethnographer, geologist, and linguist John Wesley Powell proposed 58
families for North America, mainly on the basis of superficial resemblances. At
about the same time, the American linguist Daniel Brinton proposed 80 families
for South America. Although methods of classification have since become more
rigorous, these two schemes form the basis of all subsequent classifications.
In 1929 the American anthropologist Edward Sapir grouped the families into 6
superstocks, or phyla, in North America and 15 in Middle America. Recently,
however, areal studies—investigations of the borrowings of grammatical and
other traits from one family to another, within a given geographic area—have
shown that many remote relationships proposed earlier must now be reconsidered.
The United States linguist Joseph Greenberg and others have proposed that the
native languages of the Americas can be classified into just three
families—Eskimo-Aleut, Na-Dene, and Amerind (with 11 branches).
Given their
extreme genetic diversity, it is not surprising that Native American languages
differ greatly from one another in their phonology (sound systems) and grammar.
No linguistic trait exists, however, that is the exclusive property of Native
American languages. This diversity is illustrated by the broad range of traits
listed below, which show the structural characteristics of Native American
languages.
Native American languages show great variety in
their sound systems.
Glottalized
consonants are produced by closing the vocal cords while articulating the sound
under increased pressure. Such sounds are found in North America in the
Athabascan, Siouan, and Salishan languages, among others; in Middle America in
Mayan and other languages; and in South America in Quechua, Aymara, and others.
Aspirated
consonants are produced with a puff of air after the release of the consonant
(the t in English tip, for example). The Siouan, Pomoan, and Yuman families
have such sounds in North America, as do Tarascan and the Otomanguean languages
in Middle America and Island Carib (Arawakan stock), Quechua, and others in
South America.
Retroflexed
consonants are produced by curling the tip of the tongue up and back towards
the hard palate; examples include certain d and t sounds heard in the English
spoken by natives of India. Pomoan, Yuman, and various California languages
have such consonants in North America; they also occur in the Mamean and
Kanjobalan branches of Mayan in Middle America and in the Panoan and Tacanan
families, Araucanian, and other languages in South America.
Uvular consonants
are produced even farther back in the mouth than k or g; they are also found in
Hebrew and Arabic (the stop transliterated as q). They occur in the
Eskimo-Aleut family, the northern Uto-Aztecan languages, and California
Athabascan in North America; in Totonacan and Mayan in Middle America; and in
Toba (Opayé-Guaicurú family), Quechua, and Aymara in South America.
The velar nasal
consonant is the ng sound of English song. It occurs in Eskimo, Haida, Yuman,
the California Athabascan languages, and the northern Uto-Aztecan languages in
North America; in Mayan and Zoque in Middle America; and in Araucanian, Jívaro,
and other languages in South America.
Voiceless nasals and
glides are sounds similar to whispered m, n, w, and y. In North America they
occur in eastern Pomo dialects and in Tuscarora (Iroquoian); in Middle America
in Nahuatl, in the Otomanguean languages, and as final consonants in Quiché
Maya and Totonac; and in South America as final consonants in Toba and as
nasals in Zamuco.
Voiceless I (like
a whispered I) is found in some Yupik Eskimo, in various California languages,
and in the Athabascan, Salishan, and Muskogean families in North America; in
Tequistlatec in Middle America; and in Araucanian, Itonama, and others in South
America.
Lateral affricates
resemble a forcefully aspirated tl sound. The Athabascan, Sahaptian, and
Wakashan families have such sounds in North America, as do Nahuatl and Totonac
in Middle America.
Voiceless, or whispered, vowels are found in
North America in Zuñi, Hopi, and Keresan (all spoken by Pueblo peoples), in the
Plateau Shoshone languages (Uto-Aztecan), and in Cheyenne (Algonquian-Ritwan);
in Middle America in Totonacan and some Otomanguean languages; and in South
America in the Ticuna and others.
Nasalized vowels
(as in French bon) occur in North America in the Athabascan, eastern
Algonquian, Iroquoian, Siouan, Muskogean, and Kiowa-Tanoan groups. They are
also found in Middle America in the Otomanguean languages and in South America
in various languages, notably in the Macro-Gê, Tupian, and Panoan groups.
The vowel i, a
high, central, unrounded sound, occurs in North America in Comanche (Plateau
Shoshone) and Coast Tsimshian, and in Middle America in the Mixe-Zoquean
family, Cholan and Yucatecan Mayan, Otomí (Otomanguean), and others. It is
common in South America, occurring in Araucanian, Guaraní, Guaymí (Chibchan),
the Panoan and Tucanoan families, and elsewhere.
In tonal or pitch
accent, a difference in pitch distinguishes words that would otherwise sound
the same. Tonal accent is found in North America in the Athabascan languages;
Mohawk and Cherokee (Iroquoian); Crow (Siouan); Cheyenne, Arapaho, Penobscot
(Algonquian-Ritwan); and some Pomo dialects. In Middle America it occurs in
Yucatec and Uspantec Mayan, the Otomanguean languages, and others, and in South
America in Tucano and in the Panoan, Chibchan, and Huitotoan families.
Native American
languages display striking differences in grammatical structure. Following are
some common grammatical traits.
Languages are often classified into basic
word-order types because word order often correlates with other grammatical characteristics.
For example, languages with the basic order subject-verb-object (as in English)
also tend to have the orders adjective-noun and preposition-noun. On the other
hand, languages having the basic order subject-object-verb tend to place the modifiers
after nouns, for example, noun-adjective and noun-postposition.
Although the role
of word order may vary in its importance and function from one language to
another, the following Native American languages have distinguishable word
orders. The subject-verb-object word order occurs in Totonac and Tarascan in
Middle America. The subject-object-verb order is found in Zapotec in Middle
America, the Panoan languages in South America, and several California
languages. Still other word orders occur: verb-subject-object in Guaraní,
verb-object-subject in Quiché Mayan, object-subject-verb in Haida.
2. Ergative Typology
The concept of ergative typology refers to a
case system that is different from the nominative-accusative system found in
English, German, and most familiar languages. In such familiar languages, the
subject of the sentence is in the nominative case—that is, the subject has the
same form and function, whether the sentence is transitive (has a direct
object) or intransitive (lacks an object). In ergative-absolutive languages,
however, the subject of a transitive verb has one form (called the ergative
case), but the subject of an intransitive verb has a different form—the same
form as the object of a transitive verb (the absolutive case). In North
America, ergative-absolutive case distinctions are made in eastern Pomo,
Tsimshian, and a few other languages. The system is found in Mayan and
Mixe-Zoquean languages in Middle America and in a few languages in South
America.
3. Switch Reference
Languages that have switch reference indicate
whether a subject or object of a clause is the same as or different from the
subject or object of an earlier clause. In English, for example, if someone
says “Sam met John coming out of his house”, the listener does not know who was
coming or whose house was involved, because English lacks switch reference.
Algonquian, southern Paiute, Papago, and Yuman have this trait in North
America, Jicaque in Middle America, and Ecuadorian Quechua in South America.
4. Grammatical Distinctions
Various grammatical distinctions that are marked
(indicated) on a certain word category (such as nouns) in one language may be
marked on another category (such as verbs) in another language.
Languages such as Russian
and Latin, which distinguish the role of a noun (such as subject, direct
object, or indirect object) by case marking are said to have nominal case
systems. Eskimo makes this distinction, as do Yuman, Nez Percé (Sahaptian), and
various California languages in North America, and the Uto-Aztecan languages in
North America and Middle America.
In some languages
certain nouns occur only in possessed form. Usually they are kinship terms and
names of body parts. This distinction, called inalienable possession, occurs in
Eskimo and in the Algonquian, Wakashan, Salishan, Iroquoian, and Siouan
language families in North America, in Uto-Aztecan, Mayan, and most other
languages in Middle America, and in a few languages in South America.
In languages with
dual number, singular (one) is contrasted with dual (two) and with plural (more
than two). Dual number is found in Eskimo and in the Athabascan, Siouan,
Iroquoian, Muskogean, and Plateau Shoshone groups in North America, and
Araucanian and others in South America. Some languages have dual constructions
only with pronouns, as in Tehuelche ma, “you” (sing.), makma, “you two”, and
mešma, “you” (pl.).
Languages with
inclusive/exclusive we have different terms for we, according to whether the
listener is included. In Quechua, for example, ñuquayku means “we” in the sense
of “he, she, or they and I”, and ñuquancis means “we” in the sense of “you and
I”. In North America this distinction occurs in the Plateau Shoshone,
Iroquoian, and some Siouan languages, in Blackfoot and Cheyenne
(Algonquian-Ritwan), and other languages. It is found in Middle America in
Cholan Mayan and some Otomanguean languages, and in South America in the
Cariban family, Quechua, and other languages.
Masculine and
feminine gender are distinguished in South America in the Arawakan, Huitotoan,
and Tucanoan languages, in North America in Coast Salishan and a few other
languages, and—for pronouns only—in Pomo and Iroquoian. Animate and inanimate
gender are distinguished in Algonquian, Dakota, Kowa, Comanche, and other
languages in North America, and in a few languages in South America.
Numeral
classifiers are forms occurring with counted nouns to indicate what kind of
object is being counted. They are somewhat akin to English “four loaves of
bread”. They occur in North America in Menominee and Ojibwa
(Algonquian-Ritwan), Wakashan, Salishan, Tlingit, and Tsimshian; in Middle
America in Mayan, Tarascan, Nahuatl, and Totonac; and in South America in Auca
(Peba-Zápara).
In noun
incorporation, some nouns, such as the receiver of an action, are incorporated
directly into the verb, as in English to babysit or in Nahuatl ni-tlaškal-ciwa,
“I-tortillas-make”. In North America noun incorporation occurs in northern
Athabascan, Tsimshian, some Caddoan, the Iroquoian, Uto-Aztecan, and Tanoan
families, and other languages; it is found in Nahuatl, Mayan, and Totonac in
Middle America and is common in South America.
A verbal
directional is an element incorporated into the verb to indicate the direction
of the action (usually towards or away from the speaker or hearer). In Mohawk,
for example, tasatáweya’t means “come in”, but ya’satáweya’t means “go in”.
Verbal directionals are found in North America in the Uto-Aztecan, Algonquian,
Athabascan, Iorquoian, Siouan, and other families; in Middle America in Mayan,
Uto-Aztecan, Otomanguean, Tarascan, and Totonacan languages; and in South
America in Quechua, Itonama, Toba, and Záparo.
Languages with
classificatory verb systems use different verbs for nouns representing
different shapes or other characteristics (roughly akin to the English use of
to drink for liquids and to eat for solids). Classificatory verbs occur in
North America in Muskogean, Siouan, Athabascan, Iroquoian, and other families;
in Middle America in Mayan and Tarascan; and in South America in the Chibchan
and Tucanoan families and elsewhere.
In many languages,
verbal aspect (distinguishing, for example, the duration, repetition, or
completion of an event) is relatively more important than verbal tense (the
time of the event). Verbal aspect is stressed in Tsimshian and the Salishan,
Athabascan, and Iroquoian families in North America, in most Mayan languages in
Middle America, and in Jébero (Jívaroan family) and other languages in South
America. In many Native American languages, however, tense is relatively more
important than aspect.
Instrumental verb
affixes (prefixes, suffixes, infixes) are attached to verbs to indicate the
instrument or means by which an action is performed. In Karok, for example, the
prefix pa- indicates use of the mouth. Thus pácup means “to kiss” and paxut
means “to hold in the mouth”. Such prefixes occur in Haida, Tlingit, and other
languages in North America, in Uto-Aztecan, Totonac, and other languages in
Middle America, and in Jébero in South America.
In some Native
American languages, distinct forms of speech are used by or for women as
opposed to men. Such distinctions occur in North America in Yana, Muskogean,
and Atsina, and in South America in several languages, including Island and
Black Carib (Arawakan), Cocoma (Tupian), and Tacaná. Ritual languages—special
forms of speech for ceremonies—exist within Zuñi, Iroquoian, Mayan, Nahuatl,
Quechua, and some other languages. In a few multilingual regions, trade jargons
emerged. These reduced, simplified languages include Chinook jargon, Mobilian,
and Delaware trade jargon in North America. A few languages developed forms of
whistle speech, in which the melody of the whistling parallels the tones of the
language. Whistle languages are used for purposes such as courtship. Such
languages occur in Kickapoo (Algonquian-Ritwan) in Mexico near Texas; several
Otomanguean languages, Nahuatl dialects, and the Totonacan languages in Middle
America; and the Aguaruna (Jívaroan) and the Sirionó (Tupian) in South America.
The Incas, speakers of Quechua, employed the quipu (a knotted cord used for numerical calculations) as a device for recording information; they also painted some sort of communication on beans and wove iconographic symbols into textiles. All these communicate information, but none approaches true writing. In North America, due to stimulus from—or, in most cases, direct study of—European writing, several groups developed interesting forms of writing. Examples include the syllabaries (writing systems in which each symbol represents the sound of a different syllable) of the Cherokee, Micmac, Cree, and Inuit.
True pre-Columbian
writing systems developed only in Middle America. Hieroglyphic writing was used
at least by the Aztecs, the Mixtecs, the Zapotec of Oaxaca, the Mixe-Zoque
speakers, and the Maya. Most Middle American hieroglyphs are based on morpheme
signs; that is, they are logograms, in which the sign represents a whole word.
These signs were augmented by the rebus principle (pictorial punning), in which
the sign for one word is used to represent another word that sounds the same
(for example, in English, using a picture of an eye to represent both eye and
I). In classic Mayan, in addition, phonetic signs were developed that had the
syllabic value of a consonant plus a vowel (CV). The typically one-syllable
Mayan roots (consisting of a vowel between two consonants) could be “spelt”
with two signs (CV-CV), with the last vowel understood to be silent.
The study of
Native American languages has provided rich insights for linguistic theory,
language change, the prehistory of the Americas, and the relation of language
to culture as well as to modes of thought and perception. Many of these
languages will soon become extinct and therefore deserve urgent attention. It
is encouraging that, in the 20th century, more and more native speakers have
become involved with the formal study of their own languages.