The most southern old town, which the Chikkasah first settled, after the Chokchoomah,[[27]], Choktah, and they, separated on our side of the Missisippi, into three different tribes, they called Yanèka, thereby inverting Yahkàne, the name of the earth; as their former brotherhood was then turned into enmity[[XVII]]. The bold Creeks on the opposite, or north side of them, they named Yahnàbe, “killing to God,” or devoting to death; for the mid consonant expresses the present time. And their proper names of persons, and places, are always expressive of certain circumstances, or things, drawn from roots, that convey a fixed determinate meaning.
[XVII]. They call the earth Yahkàne, because Yah formed it, as his footstool, by the power of his word. In allusion also hereto, Nakkàne signifies a man, because of the mother-earth; and Nakke a bullet, or arrow. When the Cheerake ask a person, Is it not so? they say, Wahkane? The divine essential name, and Kane, are evidently the roots of these words.
With the Muskohge, Algeh signifies “a language,” or speech: and, because several of the Germans among them, frequently say Yah-yah, as an affirmative, they call them Yah-yah Algeh, “Those of the blasphemous speech;” which strongly hints to us, that they still retain a glimpse of the third moral command delivered at Sinai, “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain,” or apply the name of Yohewah, thy Elohim, to vain, or created things. {66}
These Indians, to inculcate on their young people, that YO He Wah is the Author of vegetation, call the growth of vegetables, Wahráah, “moved by Yohewah;” for Aàh signifies to walk, or move; and the consonant is an expletive of distinction. In like manner, Wah-àh signifies, that “the fruits are ripe,” or moved to their joy, by Yohewah. They likewise call the flying of birds, Wahkáàh; as Yohewah gave them that swift motion. And, when young pigeons are well feathered, they say, Patche hishshè oolphotàháh—Patchè signifies “a pidgeon,” Hishshè, “leaves, hair, or feathers,” oolpha, or oolpho, “a bud,” ta, a note of plurality, and háh of admiration, to make it a plural superlative. But, when the pigeons, in winter, fly to a moderate climate in great clouds, they use the word, Wah-àh, which in every other application describes vegetation, and say, Patche Wah-àh, “the pigeons are moved to them by Yohewah;” which seems to allude to the quails in the wilderness, that were miraculously sent to feed the Israelites.
Clay basons they call Ai-am-bo, and their old round earthen forts, Aiambo Cháah, this last word signifying “high,” or tall: but a stockade, or wooden fort, they term, Hoorèta, and to inswamp, Book-Hoore, from Bookse, “a swamp,” and Hoorèta, “a fort, or place of difficult access.” High waters, conveys to them, an idea only of deepness; as Ookka phobe, “deep waters.” And they say, Ookka chookòma intáa, “The water glides, or moves along pleasantly, or goodly.” That the word Intâa, has Ya-ah for its radix, is apparent from their name for a rapid current, Yahnāle, “it runs with a very extraordinary force;” the mid consonant is placed there, to give the word a suitable vehemence of expression—and the word is compounded of יה, Yah, and אל, Ale, two names of God. In like manner[manner], Yahnhà signifies “a pleurisy,” fever, and the like; because they reckon, when Yah says ha in anger, to any of their vicious people, he immediately fires the blood, and makes it run violently through all the veins of the body. Ashtahále signifies the reflection of the celestial luminaries, which is composed of two of the divine names; as אש, Ash, the celestial, cherubimical name of God, signifying fire, ta, a contraction of the conjunction copulative, and אל, Ale, the strong, or omnipotent. They say a river, or warm victuals, is A-shu-pa; that is, the former is become fordable, and the latter eatable. They here divide Ash into two syllables; and the termination alludes to the word, Apà, which signifies eating. {67}
Páàh signifies to raise the voice, Vocifero—for פי, Phi, signifies “the mouth,” and Aàh, “to move.” Opáe is the name of a war-leader, because he is to move his mouth to O E A, or invoke YO He Wah, while he carries the beloved ark to war, and is sanctifying himself and his party, that they may obtain success against the enemy. But Pae-Minggo signifies a far-off, or distant chieftain. Pa yak Matàháh, is the high name of a war-leader, derived from Páah, to raise the voice to Yah, and Tahàh, “finished,” meaning his war-gradation: the M prefixed to it, makes it a substantive, according to the usage of the Hebrews. Any thing liquid they term Ookche, from Ookka and che: and Ookchaah signifies “alive.” It is drawn from Ookka, “water,” Ch, a note of resemblance, and Aàh, “moving;” i. e. a living creature resembles moving water. In like manner, Ookchà signifies to awake out of sleep; and also to plant any vegetable substance, alluding to their three different states—they first were enabled to move about—then rest, or sleep is necessary, and also being planted in the earth—but they hope that in due time, they shall be moved upward, after they have slept a while in the earth, by the omnipotent power of Yah. They have an idea of a resurrection of the dead body, according to the general belief of the Jews, and in conformity to St. Paul’s philosophical axiom, that corruption precedes generation, and a resurrection.
Keenta signifies “a beaver,” Ookka “water,” and Heenna “a path;” but, for a smooth cadence, they contract them into one word, Keentookheenna; which very expressively signifies “a beaver-dam.”
The Indian compounded words, are generally pretty long; but those that are radical, or simple, are mostly short: very few, if any of them, exceed three or four syllables. And, as their dialects are guttural, every word contains some consonants; and these are the essential characteristics of language. Where they deviate from this rule, it is by religious emblems; which obviously proceeds from the great regard they paid to the names of the Deity; especially, to the four-lettered, divine, essential name, by using the letters it contains, and the vowels it was originally pronounced with, to convey a virtuous idea; or, by doubling, or transposing them, to signify the contrary. In this they all agree. And, as this general custom must proceed from one primary cause, it seems to assure us, they were not in a {68} savage state, when they first separated, and variegated their dialects, with so much religious care, and exact art. Blind chance could not direct so great a number of remote and warring savage nations to fix on, and unite in so nice a religious standard of speech. Vowels are inexpressive of things, they only typify them; as Oo-E-A, “to ascend, or remove:”—O E A, a most sacred affirmation of the truth. Similar to these are many words, containing only one consonant: as To-e-u, “it is very true;” O-se-u, “very good;” Y-O-U, “evil, or very bad;” Y-â-a, “he moves by the divine bounty;” Nan-ne Y-a, “the divine hill, or the mount of God,” &c. If language was not originally a divine gift, which some of our very curious modern philosophers deny, and have taken great pains to set aside; yet human beings are possessed of the faculties of thinking and speaking, and, in proportion to their ideas, they easily invented, and learned words mixed with consonants and vowels, to express them. Natural laws are common and general. The situation of the Indian Americans, has probably been the means of sinking them into that state of barbarism we now behold—Yet, though in great measure they may have lost their primitive language, not one of them expresses himself by the natural cries of brute-animals, any farther than to describe some of the animals by the cries they make; which we ourselves sometimes imitate, as Choo-qua-lê-qua-lôô, the name they give that merry night-singing bird, which we call “Whip her will my poor wife,” (much like our cuckoo) so termed from its musical monotony. No language is exempt from the like simple copyings. The nervous, polite, and copious Greek tongue had the loud-sounding Böô Böao, which the Romans imitated, by their bellowing Boves Böum; and the Indians say Pa-a, signifying the loud noise of every kind of animals, and their own loud-sounding war Whoô Whoóp. Where they do not use divine emblems, their words have much articulation of consonants. Their radicals have not the inseparable property of three consonants, though frequently they have; and their words are not so long, as strangers conjecturally draw them out. Instead of a simple word, we too often insert the wild picture of a double, or triple-compounded one; and the conjugation of their verbs, utterly deceives us. A specimen of this, will shew it with sufficient clearness, and may exhibit some useful hints to the curious searchers of antiquity.
A-nô-wa signifies “a rambler, renegadoe, or a person of no settled place of abode.” A-nó-wah, the first person, and Ish-na, the second person {69} singular, but they have not a particular pronoun for the third; they distinguish it by custom. Si-a, or Sy-ah, is “I am;” Chee-a, or Chy-ah, “you are;” and Too-wah, “he is.” Ay-ah signifies “to go;” Ay-a-sa, “I remain;” Ish-i-a-sa, “you remain;” A-sa, “he remains.” A-OO-E-A is a strong religious emblem, signifying “I climb, ascend, or remove to another place of residence.” It points to A-nó-wah, the first person singular, and O-E-A, or YO He Wah; and implies, putting themselves under his divine patronage. The beginning of that most sacred symbol, is, by studious skill, and a thorough knowledge of the power of letters, placed twice, to prevent them from applying the sacred name to vain purposes, or created things. In like manner they say, Nas-sap-pe-O Ish-OO-E-A, “You are climbing a very great acorn-tree,” meaning an oak; for Nas-se is the name of an acorn; and the mid part of that triple compounded word, is derived from Ap-pê-la, “to help;” Che-ap-pê-la A-wa, “I do not help you.” The termination, according to their mixed idiom, magnifies it to a superlative. Quoo-ran-hê-qua, a noted old camping place, fourteen miles above the settlement of Ninety-six, and eighty-two below the Cheerake, signifies, in their dialect, “the large white oaks.” Oos-sak is the name of a “hickory-nut,” and Oos-sak Ap-pe-O as above. Oot-te signifies “a chestnut;” Noot-te, “a tooth;” Soot-te, “a pot;” and Oo-te, “to make a fire,” which may be called an Indian type for eating boiled chestnuts.
When they say, “He is removing his camp,” they express it in a most religious manner, Al-bé-na-OO-E-A. Al-be-nâs-le signifies “I camped;” Al-be-nâs-le-chû, “I shall, or will, camp:” but, according to their religious mode of speaking, Al-bé-na A-OO-E-A-re, expresses the former, and Al-bé-na A-OO-E-A-ri-chû, the latter phrase; likewise, Al-bé-na OO-E-As signifies Castra Moveto, imperatively. It is worthy of notice, that as they have no pronoun relative to express the third person singular, they have recourse to the first syllable of the essential word, Toowah, “He is.” In allusion to that word, they term the conjunction copulative, Ta-wah, and Tee-U-Wah, “resting.” So mixed a train of nice and exact religious terms, could not be invented by people, as illiterate and savage as the Indians now are, any more than happen by accident.