Opuscula: Essays chiefly Philological and Ethnographical

by R. G. Latham

With this preliminary observation let us ask what will be the Kamskadale for seven when nittanu=two, and kumdas=five. The answer is either nittanu-kumdas or kumdas-nittanu. But the Kamskadale happens to have a separate word for six, viz. kiekoas. What then? The word for seven may be one of two things: it may be either = 6 + 1, or 5 + 2. The former being the case, and kemmis=one, the Kamskadale for seven should be either kemmis-kilkoas or kilkoas-kemmis. But it is neither one nor the other. It is ittakh-tenu. Now as eight=tshok-tenu we know this word to be compound. But what are its elements? We fail to find them amongst the simpler words expressive of one, two, three, four, five. We fail to find them amongst these if we look to the Kamskadale only—not, however, if we go farther. The Aleutian for one=attak-on; the Aleutian for six=attu-on. And what might be the Aleutian for seven? Even attakh-attun, little more than ittakh tenu in a broader form.

The Jukahiri gives a similar phenomenon.

Such is the notice of the care with which certain comparisons should be made before we venture to commit ourselves to negative statements.

There is an affinity amongst the American languages, and (there being this) there are also the elements of a classification. The majority, however, of the American languages must be classified according to types rather than definitions. Upon the nature of this difference, as well as upon the cause I have written more fully elsewhere. It is sufficient for present purposes to say that it applies to the languages of North America in general, and (of these) to those of the parts beyond the Rocky Mountains more especially. Eskimo characteristics appear in the Athabaskan, Athabaskan in the Koluch forms of speech. From these the Haidah leads to the Chimmesyan (which is, nevertheless, a very outlying form of speech) and the Hailtsa, akin to the Billechula, which, itself, leads to the Atna. By slightly raising the value of the class we bring in the Kutani, the Nutkan and the Chinuk.

In the Chinuk neighbourhood we move via the Jakon, Kalapuya, Sahaptin, Shoshoni, and Lutuami to the languages of California and the Pueblos; and thence southwards.

In American languages simple comparison does but little. We may test this in two ways. We may place, side by side, two languages known to be undoubtedly, but also known to be not very closely, allied. Such, for instance, are the German and Greek, the Latin and Russian, the English and Lithuanic, all of which are Indo-European, and all of which, when placed in simple juxta-position, by no means show themselves in any very palpable manner as such. This may be seen from the following table, which is far from being the first which the present writer has compiled; and that with the special view of ascertaining by induction (and not a priori) the value of comparisons of the kind in question.

English.	Latin.	Cayuse.	Willamet.
man	homo	yúant	atshánggo.
woman	mulier	pintkhlkaiu	pummaike.
father	pater	píntet	sima.
mother	mater	penín	sinni.
son	filius	wái	tawakhai.
daughter	filia	wái	tshitapinna.
head	caput	talsh	tamutkhl.
hair	crinis	tkhlokomot	amutkhl.
ear	auris	taksh	pokta.
eye	oculus	hăkamush	kwalakkh.
nose	nasus	pitkhloken	unan.
mouth	os	sumkhaksh	mandi.
tongue	lingua	push	mamtshutkhl.
tooth	dens	tenif	púti.
hand	manus	epip	tlakwa.
fingers	digiti	épip	alakwa.
feet	pedes	tish	puüf.
blood	sanguis	tiweush	méëuu.
house	domus	nisht	hammeih (—fire).
axe	securis	yengthokinsh	khueshtan.
knife	culter	shekt	hekemistāh.
shoes	calcei	taitkhlo	ulumóf.
sky	cœlum	adjalawaia	amiank.
sun	sol	huewish	ampiun.
moon	luna	katkhltóp	utap.
star	stella	tkhlikhlish	atuininank.
day	dies	eweiu	umpium.
night	nox	ftalp	atitshikim.
fire	ignis	tetsh	hamméih.
water	aqua	iskkainish	mampuka.
rain	pluvia	tishtkitkhlmiting	ukwíï.
snow	nix	poi	nukpeik.
earth	terra	lingsh	hunkhalop.
river	rivus	lushmi	mantsal.
stone	lapis	ápit	andi.
tree	arbor	lauik	huntawatkhl.
meat	caro	pithuli	umhók.
dog	canis	náapang	mantal.
beaver	castor	pieka	akaipi.
bear	ursa	limeaksh	alotufan.
bird	avis	tianiyiwa	pōkalfuna.
great	magnus	yaúmua	pul.
cold	frigidus	shunga	pángkafiti.
white	albus	tkhlaktkhláko	kommóu.
black	niger	shkupshkúpu	maieum.
red	ruber	lakaitlakaitu	tshal.
I	ego	ining	tshii.
thou	tu	niki	máha.
he	ille	nip	kak.
one	unus	na	wáän.
two	duo	leplin	kéën.
three	tres	matnin	upshin.
four	quatuor	piping	táope.
five	quinque	táwit	húwan.
six	sex	nóiná	taf.
seven	septem	nóilip	pshinimua.
eight	octo	nōimát	kĕëmúa.
nine	novem	tanáuiaishimshin	wanwaha.
ten	decem	ningitelp	tínifia.

Again—the process may be modified by taking two languages known to be closely allied, and asking how far a simple comparison of their vocabularies exhibits that alliance on the surface, e. g.:—

English.	Beaver Indian.	Chippewyan.
one	it la day	ittla hĕ.
two	onk shay day	nank hay.
three	ta day	ta he.
four	dini day	dunk he.
five	tlat zoon e de ay	sa soot la he.
six	int zud ha	l'goot ha hé.
seven	ta e wayt zay	tluz ud dunk he.
eight	etzud een tay	l'goot dung he.
nine	kala gay ne ad ay	itla ud ha.
ten	kay nay day	hona.
a man	taz eu	dinnay you.
a woman	iay quay	tzay quay.
a girl	id az oo	ed dinna gay.
a boy	taz yuz é	dinnay yoo azay.
interpreter	nao day ay	dinnay tee ghaltay.
trader	meeoo tay	ma kad ray.
moose-deer	tlay tchin tay	tunnehee hee.
rein-deer	may tzee	ed hun.
beaver	tza	tza.
dog	tlee	tlee.
rabbit	kagh	kagh.
bear	zus	zus.
wolf	tshee o nay	noo nee yay.
fox	e yay thay	nag hee dthay.

The difference is great: but the two forms of speech are mutually intelligible. On the other hand, the Cayuse and Willamet are more alike than the English and Latin.