Coeur d'Alene
Snchitsu’umshtsn
Native toUnited States of America
Regionnorthern Idaho
EthnicityCoeur d'Alene people
Native speakers
4 (2007)[1]
Salishan
Language codes
ISO 639-3crd
Glottologcoeu1236
ELPCoeur d'Alene
Coeur d'Alene is classified as Critically Endangered by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger

Coeur d'Alene (Cœur d'Alène, Snchitsu’umshtsn) is a Salishan language. It was spoken by only two of the 80 individuals in the Coeur d'Alene Tribe on the Coeur d'Alene Reservation in northern Idaho, United States in 1999.[2] It is considered an endangered language. However, as of 2014, two elders in their 90s remain who grew up with Cœur d'Alène as their first language, and the use of the language is spreading among all age groups.[3]

The Coeur d'Alene Names-Places Project visits geographic sites on the reservation recording video, audio, and still photos of Tribal elders who describe the site in both English and Coeur d'Alene languages.[4]

The Coeur d'Alene Tribal Language Program and elders have actively promoted the use of the language,[5][6] and have created computer sounds that use Snchitsu’umshtsn phrases.[7] Radio station KWIS FM 88.3 in Plummer, Idaho offers programming to preserve the Snchitsu’umshtsn language.[3][8]

Lawrence Nicodemus, "a retired judge and former tribal council member," [3] became a scholar of the language. He had worked with linguist Gladys Reichard in his youth, and went on to create a grammar, dictionary, and instructional materials. Nicodemus taught language classes until his death at age 94. The Coeur d'Alene Tribe's language program has "taught classes and worked with the language department to record more than 2,000 hours of audio and video."[3] Classes are also available at North Idaho College.

Orthography

There are three different orthographies, giving the interpretations of previous scholarly works. Coeur d'Alene examples have been taken from the works of Nicodemus et al.[9] as well as from the COLRC website.[10]

Coeur d'Alene Orthographies (Doak and Montler 2000 modified)[11]
Salishan/LPO Nicodemus/Bitar Reichard English Examples Nicodemus:[9] Coeur d'Alene Examples
aaafɑtherɑnsh ‘angel’
eeä, êyesesel ‘two’
Iiimachinehsil ‘five’
ooɔlawhoy ‘Quit it!’
uuuJupiterupen ‘ten’
əno formᴇ,ι, ụsofano example
pppspillpipe’ ‘father’
pʼpʼpʼsp’it’m ‘bitterroot’
bbbboybins ‘beans’
mmmmommus ‘four’
mʼʼmmʼ
wwwwagonwi’ ‘he/she shouted’
wʼʼwwʼs'wa’ ‘cougar’
tttstarsti’m ‘what’
tʼtʼtʼt'ish ‘sugar’
ddddogtmidus ‘tomatoes’
nnnnownune' ‘mother’
nʼʼnnʼ'nitshn ‘hotel’
ssssunsikwe’ ‘water’
ctststsitsi flytsunchtm ‘seven’
cʼtsʼts’ts’or ‘salt/sour’
šshcshellshenn ‘he/she worked’
ǰjdjjarlejp ‘he/she was stabbed’
čchtcchurchchche’ye’ ‘mother’s mother’
čʼch’tc’
yyyyardspeyiy ‘enjoyment’
yʼʼyyʼ'yitsh ‘sleeping [Noun]’
ɡʷɡw, ɡuɡw, ɡulinguistGwich ‘he/she saw’
kʷkw, k, ku, kokʷ, kuqueenskwitstm ‘morning’
kʼʷkʼw, kʼu, kʼokʼʷ, kʼu, kʼụ
xʷkhw, khu, khoxʷ, xu*tsetkhw ‘house’
qqqqine’ ‘father’s mother’
q’q’q’
qʷqw, qu, qoqʷ‘oqws ‘she/she drank’
qʼʷq’w, qʼu, qʼoqʼʷ, qʼu*sq’wtu ‘Cataldo’
x̣qhx̣
x̣ʷqhw, qhu, qhox̣ʷ*qhwatqhwat ‘duck’
llllikelut ‘no/not’
lʼʼllʼ
ɬłł
rrrfarSharshart ‘difficult’
rʼʼrrʼ
ʕ(, )Rst(in ‘antelope’
ʕʼʼ(, ʼ)Rʼ'(ewp ‘it dripped’
ʕʷ(w, (urʷ(wi(lsh ‘he/she vomited’
ʕʼʷʼ(w, uʼ(ṛʼʷ
ʔʼʼuh-uhtso'ot ‘he/she sobbed’
hhhhenhiskwist ‘my name’

Notes on writing systems

  1. LPO, the linguistic phonetic orthography, is a third orthographic system based on a variant of the American Phonetic Alphabet (with some symbols shared with the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)). Many Salishan scholars, such as Lyon Greenwood, call the LPO orthography the Salishan orthography. This system will also be used by the Coeur d'Alene Dictionaries Project in conjunction with the Bitar system.[11]
  2. Bitar is another name referring to Lawrence Nicodemus's orthography.[11] Lawrence Nicodemus was one of Gladys Reichard's language consultants, and in collaboration with Joseph Bitar of the Southwest Research Associates of Albuquerque, he created a second orthography, which is less accurate phonetically but reflects the native speaker's interpretation of the sounds, symbols, and words of Coeur d'Alene.[11]
  3. Gladys Reichard and James Teit, students of Franz Boas. Reichard conducted early scholarly work of the Coeur d'Alene. Reichard and Teit developed an orthographic system, slightly varied from the Boasian system, which was consistent with phonetic transcriptions of native speakers Reichard worked with as well as consistent with transcriptions from Teit's previous data. This system has come to be known as the Reichard orthography.[11]
  4. In Doak and Montler,[11] /e/ is used in the LPO orthography, equated with /ɛ/. Doak[12] explains that /ɛ/ ranges freely between [e], [ɛ], and [æ] with /ɛ/ being the most common variant. This gives clarity to her variance in representing the sound in vowel inventories of her website and her dissertation as /e/ or /ɛ/.
  5. Doak and Montler,[11] Doak,[12] and Doak[13] use the notation /x̣/ while Lyon[14] uses the notation /x̌/ to indicate the same phoneme and orthographic symbol. Okanagan[15] also utilizes the wedge notation for this same phoneme: /x̌/.
  6. Standard Salishan (LPO)[11] and Doak[12][13] uses the notation /ɬ/ while Lyon,[14] and Greenwood,[16] Nicodemus et al.,[9] and Reichard used the notation /ł/ in consonant inventories and orthographies in reference to the same sound which Doak[12] describes as bilateral.

Phonology

Consonants

In Coeur d'Alene, there are eleven places of articulation: labial, alveolar, palatoalveolar, lateral, labiovelar, uvular, labio-uvular, coronal pharyngeal, pharyngeal, labiopharyngeal, and laryngeal.[11][12] Doak identifies six manners of articulation: plain and glottalized voiceless stops and affricates, voiced stops and affricate, voiceless fricatives, and plain and glottalized resonants.[12][13][14][17]

Labial Alveolar Palatal Velar Uvular Pharyngeal Glottal
plainsibilantlateral labial plainlabial plain labial
Stop tenuis p t t͡s ⟨c⟩ t͡ʃ ⟨č⟩ kʷ q qʷ ʔ
ejective pʼ tʼ t͡sʼ ⟨cʼ⟩ t͡ʃʼ ⟨čʼ⟩ kʼʷ qʼ qʼʷ
voiced b d d͡ʒ ⟨ǰ⟩ ɡʷ
Fricative s ɬ ⟨ł⟩ ʃ ⟨š⟩ xʷ χ ⟨x̣⟩ χʷ ⟨x̣ʷ⟩ h
Sonorant plain m n l j ⟨y⟩ w ʕ ʕʷ
glottalized ˀm ˀn lˀ jˀ ⟨yʼ⟩ wˀ ʕˀ ʕʷˀ
Rhotic plain r
glottalized rˀ

Vowels

Vowel inventory [13]
Front Central Back
High i u
Mid e[lower-alpha 1] (ə)[lower-alpha 2] o
Low a
  1. ↑ Doak[12] explains that /ɛ/ ranges freely between [e], [ɛ], and [æ] with /ɛ/ being the most common variant. Above, the phoneme /e/ has been used as Doak[13] does.
  2. ↑ The schwa /ə/ only occurs unstressed as a reduced form of some unstressed vowels.[13] It is also used by speakers to break up consonant clusters.

Morphology and syntax

Coeur d'Alene is a morphosyntactically polysynthetic language. In Coeur d'Alene, a full clause can be expressed by affixing pronominal arguments and morphemes expressing aspect, transitivity and tense onto one verb stem (Doak,[13] 1997, p. 38). These affixes are discussed below.

Basic intransitive clause structure

The basic format of an intransitive thought as Doak[12] identifies can be found below:

Subject – Aspect – Root

Intransitive person markers

The intransitive subjects of Coeur d'Alene appear as clitics (Doak,[12] 1997, p. 53), and their forms as well as examples from Doak (1997,[12] p. 53-54) are found below:

Intransitive Subject Clitics
Singular Plural
1st Person Nom. čnč
2nd Person Nom. kʷukʷup
3rd Person Abs. Ø (null)Ø (null) (-ilš)
Example
Singular Plural
1st person

čngʷič

čngʷič

‘I saw.’

čgʷič

čgʷič

‘We saw.’

2nd person

kʷugʷič

kʷugʷič

‘You saw.’

kʷupgʷič

kʷupgʷič

‘You folks saw.’

3rd person

gʷič

gʷič

‘He saw.’

gʷič(ilš)

gʷič(ilš)

‘They saw.’

Plural –ilš

To clarify, the parentheses used around the suffix, -ilš, are meant to show that it is optional. This 3rd person plural, optional morpheme is used to give clarity that something within the sentence has plurality, whether it is the subject or the object is a matter of context. To illustrate this more clearly, Doak (1997,[12] p. 59) gives the example:

(1)
ʔácqʔəmstusilš

ʔacqɛʔ

go.out

-m

-m

-st(u)

-CAUS.TR

-Ø

-3.ABS

-s

-3.ERG

-ilš

-PL

ʔacqɛʔ -m -st(u) -Ø -s -ilš

go.out -m -CAUS.TR -3.ABS -3.ERG -PL

‘He took them out.’/ ‘They took it out.’ / ‘They took them out.’

Determiners

There are three determiners and one oblique marker that help specify participants by joining clauses and their main predicates. Doak (1997,[12] p. 46-48).

Detlabelexample
xʷεdet₁examples 2,3,4
cεdet₂example 4
ɬεdet₃example 1
ʔεobliqueexample 3

As a general rule, adjuncts that are introduced with a determiner specify the absolutive, accusative and nominative pronominal arguments, while both the determiner and oblique marker introduce ergative arguments. When an indefinite participant is not indicated on the predicate, the oblique alone is used to indicate this participant. — Doak (1997,[12] p. vii)

Examples:

(1)

ɬuʔ

prox₃

niʔt̓εk̓ʷus

lay.in.fire

ɬa

det₃

stqʷíl̇k̇ʷup

fire

 

 

ɬuʔ niʔt̓εk̓ʷus ɬa stqʷíl̇k̇ʷup

prox₃ lay.in.fire det₃ fire

He lay in the fire.

(2)

ni

Q

kʷup

you.folks

ʔáccqεʔ

go.out.PL

xʷε

det₁

Lynn

Lynn

hiɬ

CONN

kʷu

you

ʔε

person

 

 

ni kʷup ʔáccqεʔ xʷε Lynn hiɬ kʷu ʔε

Q you.folks go.out.PL det₁ Lynn CONN you person

Did you go out with Lynn?

(3)

xεmínčs

he.likes

xʷε

det₁

čεsčšípnc

he.will.chase.it

xʷε

det₁

ʔε

OBL

sčíčεʔ

horse

 

 

xεmínčs xʷε čεsčšípnc xʷε ʔε sčíčεʔ

he.likes det₁ he.will.chase.it det₁ OBL horse

The horse likes to chase.

(4)

xʷε

det₁

ʔε

OBL

núnεʔs

their.mother

hiɬ

and

cε

det₂

pípεʔs…

their.father…

 

 

xʷε ʔε núnεʔs hiɬ cε pípεʔs…

det₁ OBL their.mother and det₂ their.father…

Their mother and their father ...

Basic transitive clause structure

The construction of a transitive sentence in Coeur d'Alene[12] is:

Aspect – Root – Transitivizer – Object – Subject

Transitivizers

There are three types of transitives in Coeur d'Alene: simple, causative, and applicative. The different transitivizers in Coeur d'Alene are listed below as described by Bischoff (2011,[17] p. 27 modified).

Transitivizing Morphemes
Simple -t
-nt
Causative -st(u)
Applicative -łt
-tułt
-š(i)t

The lone -t and directive -nt transitivizers

The lone -t (-t) and the directive transitivizer -nt (-dt) are the most commonly used in Coeur d'Alene (Bischoff,[17] 2011, p. 27). Doak (1997,[12] p. 115) suggests that these two are alternative forms of one another with the lone -t appearing before a limited number of roots. The person markers that follow these forms are the same in function and form: agent subjects and patient objects. Most often, these transitivizers indicate that the subject is an agent in control of his or her actions (Bischoff,[17] 2011, p. 27).

(1)
t'ápncɛs

√t'áp

√shoot

-nt

-DIR.TR

-sɛ

-1.ACC

-s

-3.ERG

√t'áp -nt -sɛ -s

√shoot -DIR.TR -1.ACC -3.ERG

He shot me.' (Doak,[12] 1997, p. 114)

(2)
číłtəm

√číł

√give

-t

-TR

-Ø

-3.ABS

-m

-NTE

√číł -t -Ø -m

√give -TR -3.ABS -NTE

'He was given it.' (Bischoff,[17] 2011, p. 28) Unknown glossing abbreviation(s) (help);

Causative transitivizer -st(u)

The causative transitivizer -st(u) (-ct) has three primary functions. It is used to indicate customary aspect, causative construction where the subject causes something or someone to be something, and topical object construction (Doak,[12] 1997, p. 124). A unique set of m-initial objects for first and second person singular replace the s-initial morphemes when the construction is with a causative -st(u) transitivizer (Bischoff,[17] 2011, p. 29).

(1)
ʔɛcɡʷíčstmit

ʔɛc-

cust-

√ɡʷíč

√see

-st(u)

-CAUS.TR

-mi

-2.ACC

-t

-1PL.ERG

ʔɛc- √ɡʷíč -st(u) -mi -t

cust- √see -CAUS.TR -2.ACC -1PL.ERG

'We see you.' (Doak,[12] 1997, p. 126)

(2)
čicxʷúystmɛs

čic-

DIR-

√xʷuy

√go

-st(u)

-CAUS.TR

-mɛ(l)

-1.ACC

-s

-3.ERG

čic- √xʷuy -st(u) -mɛ(l) -s

DIR- √go -CAUS.TR -1.ACC -3.ERG

'He took me there.' (Doak,[12] 1997, p. 125-126)

Applicative transitivizers

Applicative transitivizers introduce a third participant into the argument structure, and alter the role of the object. This means the participant represented by the object person marking morpheme serves as a possessor or dative with the possessor applicative transitivizer -łt (-pra) and as a beneficiary or dative with the benefactive transitivizer -š(i)t (-bt). There is also a third, much less frequent, applicative -tułt. can also indicate a dative construction, indicating the object to which something is given. It is also worthwhile to note that third person arguments are only understood from context because Coeur d'Alene only marks two arguments on the predicate using person marking morphemes (Bischoff,[17] 2011, p. 30).

Possessor applicative transitivizer -łt

In transitive constructions with the possessor applicative -łt (-pra), the object marking on the predicate indicates the possessor, rather than the possessed, such as in Examples 1a and 1b below. In some cases, as in Example 1c below, -łt (-pra) serves to indicate a dative construction. In these cases, the role of the object shifts to dative (Bischoff,[17] 2011, p. 30-31).

(1a)
q'ʷíc'łcn

√q'ʷíc’

√fill

-łt

-POSS.APL.TR

-si

-2.ACC

-n

-1.ERG

√q'ʷíc’ -łt -si -n

√fill -POSS.APL.TR -2.ACC -1.ERG

'I filled it for you.' (Doak,[12] 1997, p. 144)

(1b)
cúnmɛʔɬcn

√cúnmɛʔ

√teach

-łt

-POSS.APL.TR

-si

-2.ACC

-n

-1.ERG

√cúnmɛʔ -łt -si -n

√teach -POSS.APL.TR -2.ACC -1.ERG

'I showed you how it's done.' (Doak,[12] 1997, p. 150)

(1c)
kʼʷnɛʔcuúʼcunmʼɛyʼłtɛlis

kʼʷnɛʔ

soon

√cunmɛy+CVC

√teach+REDUP<aug>

-łt

-POSS.APL.TR

-ɛlis

-1PL.ACC

-s

-3.ERG

kʼʷnɛʔ √cunmɛy+CVC -łt -ɛlis -s

soon {√teach+REDUP<aug>} -POSS.APL.TR -1PL.ACC -3.ERG

'He will show us [how to do it].' ('He will teach 'x' to us.') (Bischoff,[17] 2011, p. 31; Doak,[12] 1997, p. 149)

Benefactive applicative transitivizer -š(i)t

In constructions with the benefactive applicative -š(i)t (-bt), the argument indicated by the ergative is agent and that by accusative/absolutive the beneficiary. The benefactive applicative may also function to characterize an object as a recipient (Bischoff,[17] 2011, p. 31).

(1)
nkʷínšicn

√nkʷín

√sing

-šit

-BEN.APL.TR

-si

-2.ACC

-n

-1.ERG

√nkʷín -šit -si -n

√sing -BEN.APL.TR -2.ACC -1.ERG

'I sang to you.' (Doak,[12] 1997, p. 156)

Dative applicative transitivizer -tułt

The dative applicative -tułt is very rare, and the role of this applicative is uncertain other than that it introduces another participant into a sentence structure (Doak,[12] 1997, p. 157). The only examples Doak[12] gives only occur with third person or non-topic ergative person marking morphemes (Bischoff,[17] 2011, p. 32).

(1)
támtułc

√tám

√scorch

-tułt

-DAT.APL.TR

-Ø

-3.ABS

-s

-3.ERG

√tám -tułt -Ø -s

√scorch -DAT.APL.TR -3.ABS -3.ERG

'He burned it for somebody.' (Doak,[12] 1997, p. 159)

Transitive person markers

Below are the transitive object morphemes, which appear as suffixes. The 3rd person is null. The following examples are taken from Doak (1997,[12] p. 55-64).

Transitive Objects
Singular Plural
1st Person Acc. -sɛ(l)/-mɛ(l)-ɛl(i)
2nd Person Acc. -si/-mi-ulm(i)
3rd Person Abs. Ø (null)Ø (null) (-ilš)

Notes on Transitive Objects

  1. The alternate forms of the 1st person singular accusative -sɛl/-mɛl and 2nd person singular accusative -si/-mi are selected with respect to the transitivizer used in the predicate, those occurring with m primarily occur with the causative transitivizer -st(u)- while all other transitivizers take those with s form. (Bischoff,[17] 2011, p. 16)
  2. The /l/ in parentheses indicates optionality in phonetic articulation, due to phonological reductions. The phoneme /l/ appears as in examples 1a and 1b before the non-topic ergative object -m and with the 2nd person plural ergative subject -p.

Transitive object examples

(1a)
c’úw’ncɛlm

√c’uw’

√hit

-nt

-DIR.TR

-sɛl

-1.ACC

-m

-NTE

√c’uw’ -nt -sɛl -m

√hit -DIR.TR -1.ACC -NTE

'I got hit.'[12] Unknown glossing abbreviation(s) (help);

(1b)
púlustmɛlm

√pulut

√kill

-st(u)

-CAUS.TR

-mɛl

-1.ACC

-m

-NTE

√pulut -st(u) -mɛl -m

√kill -CAUS.TR -1.ACC -NTE

'I got killed.'[12] Unknown glossing abbreviation(s) (help);

(1c)
číłšitɛlit

√čił

√give

-šit

-bt

-ɛli

-1PL.ACC

-t

-NTE

√čił -šit -ɛli -t

√give -bt -1PL.ACC -NTE

'We were given some.'[12] Unknown glossing abbreviation(s) (help);

(1d)
c’úw’ncis

√c’uw’

√hit

-nt

-DIR.TR

-si

-2.ACC

-s

-3erg

√c’uw’ -nt -si -s

√hit -DIR.TR -2.ACC -3erg

'He hit you.'[12]

(1e)
púlustmit

√pulut

√kill

-st(u)

-CAUS.TR

-mi

-2.ACC

-t

-NTE

√pulut -st(u) -mi -t

√kill -CAUS.TR -2.ACC -NTE

'You got killed.'[12] Unknown glossing abbreviation(s) (help);

(1f)
miʔmiʔšítulmit

√mɛy’+CVC

√know+{CVC}

-šit

-bt

-ulmi

-2PL.ACC

-t

-NTE

√mɛy’+CVC -šit -ulmi -t

√know+{CVC} -bt -2PL.ACC -NTE

'You folks were told stories.'[12] Unknown glossing abbreviation(s) (help);

(1g)
miʔmiʔšítmɛt

√mɛy’+CVC

√know+{CVC}

-šit

-bt

-Ø

-3.ABS

-mɛt

-1PL.ERG

√mɛy’+CVC -šit -Ø -mɛt

√know+{CVC} -bt -3.ABS -1PL.ERG

'We told him stories.'[12]

(1h)
číɬšitmilš

√čiɬ

√give

-šit

-bt

-Ø

-3.ABS

-m

-NTE

-ilš

-3PL

√čiɬ -šit -Ø -m -ilš

√give -bt -3.ABS -NTE -3PL

'They were given some.'[12] Unknown glossing abbreviation(s) (help);

There is also a second set of transitive objects in Coeur d'Alene also appear as suffixes, which Doak[12] identifies as non-topic ergative objects (NTE). Following examples from Doak (1997,[12] p. 57-63)

Non-Topic Ergative Objects
Singular Plural
1st NTE -m-t
2nd NTE -t-t
3rd NTE -m-m (-ilš)

Non-topic ergative object examples

(1a)
púlustmɛlm

√pulut

√kill

-st(u)

-CAUS.TR

-mɛl

-1.ACC

-m

-NTE

√pulut -st(u) -mɛl -m

√kill -CAUS.TR -1.ACC -NTE

'I got killed.'[12] Unknown glossing abbreviation(s) (help);

(1b)
číɬšitɛlit

√čiɬ

√give

-šit

-bt

-ɛli

-1PL.ACC

-t

-NTE

√čiɬ -šit -ɛli -t

√give -bt -1PL.ACC -NTE

'We were given some.'[12] Unknown glossing abbreviation(s) (help);

(1c)
púlustmit

√pulut

√kill

-st(u)

-CAUS.TR

-mi

-2.ACC

-t

-NTE

√pulut -st(u) -mi -t

√kill -CAUS.TR -2.ACC -NTE

'You got killed.'[12] Unknown glossing abbreviation(s) (help);

(1d)
cúnmɛʔntɛlit

√cun

√point

√mey

√know

-nt

-DIR.TR

-ɛli

-2PL.ACC

-t

-NTE

√cun √mey -nt -ɛli -t

√point √know -DIR.TR -2PL.ACC -NTE

'We were taught.'[12] Unknown glossing abbreviation(s) (help);

'He got hit on the side.'[12]

(1f)
číɬšitmilš

√čiɬ

√give

-šit

-bt

-Ø

-3.ABS

-m

-NTE

-ilš

-3PL

√čiɬ -šit -Ø -m -ilš

√give -bt -3.ABS -NTE -3PL

'They were given some.'[12] Unknown glossing abbreviation(s) (help);

The transitive subjects of Ergative case also appear as suffixes in Coeur d'Alene, and examples from Doak (1997,[12] p. 56-63) are given below.

Ergative Transitive Subjects
Singular Plural
1st Person Erg. -n-(mɛ)t
2nd Person Erg. -xʷ-p
3rd Person Erg. -s-s (-ilš)
NTE -m/-t-t/-m

Ergative transitive subject examples

(1a)
t’ápn

√t’ap

√shoot

-nt

-DIR.TR

-Ø

-3.ABS

-n

-1.ERG

√t’ap -nt -Ø -n

√shoot -DIR.TR -3.ABS -1.ERG

'I shot him.'[12]

(1b)
máqʷəntmɛt

√maqʷ

√stack

-nt

-DIR.TR

-Ø

-3.ABS

-mɛt

-1PL.ERG

√maqʷ -nt -Ø -mɛt

√stack -DIR.TR -3.ABS -1PL.ERG

'We piled up rocks, sacks of wheat.'[12]

(1c)
q’ʷíc’ɬcɛxʷ

√q’ʷic’

√fill

-ɬt

-POSS.APL.TR

-sɛl

-1.ACC

-xʷ

-2.ERG

√q’ʷic’ -ɬt -sɛl -xʷ

√fill -POSS.APL.TR -1.ACC -2.ERG

'You filled it for me.'[12]

(1d)
q’ʷíc’ɬcɛlp

√q’ʷic’

√fill

-ɬt

-POSS.APL.TR

-sɛl

-1.ACC

-p

-2PL.ERG

√q’ʷic’ -ɬt -sɛl -p

√fill -POSS.APL.TR -1.ACC -2PL.ERG

'You folks filled it for me.'[12]

(1e)
c’úw’ncis

√c’uw’

√hit

-nt

-DIR.TR

-si

-2acc

-s

-3.ERG

√c’uw’ -nt -si -s

√hit -DIR.TR -2acc -3.ERG

'He hit you.'[12]

(1f)
ʔácqʔəmstusilš

√ʔacqɛʔ

√go.out

-m

-m

-st(u)

-CAUS.TR

-Ø

-3.ABS

-s

-3.ERG

-ilš

-PL

√ʔacqɛʔ -m -st(u) -Ø -s -ilš

√go.out -m -CAUS.TR -3.ABS -3.ERG -PL

'He took them out.'/ 'They took it out.' / 'They took them out.'[12]

Genitive structures are used to create possessives in Coeur d'Alene (Doak 1997,[12] p. 169). Examples below are taken from Doak (1997,[12] p. 69-71).

Genitive Pronouns
Singular Plural
1st Person Gen. hn--ɛt
2nd Person Gen. in--mp
3rd Person Gen. -s-s (-ilš)

Genitive pronoun examples

(1a)
histíʔ

hn-

1.GEN-

stiʔ

thing

hn- stiʔ

1.GEN- thing

'It's mine.'[12]

(1b)
cɛtxʷɛt

cɛtxʷ

house

-ɛt

-1PL.GEN

cɛtxʷ -ɛt

house -1PL.GEN

'It's our house.'[12]

(1c)
istíʔ

in-

2.GEN-

stiʔ

thing

in- stiʔ

2.GEN- thing

'It's yours.'[12]

(1d)
cɛtxʷmp

cɛtxʷ

house

-mp

-2PL.GEN

cɛtxʷ -mp

house -2PL.GEN

'It's your (pl.) house.'[12]

(1e)
stiʔs

stiʔ

thing

-s

-3.GEN

stiʔ -s

thing -3.GEN

'It's his/hers.'[12]

(1f)
stíʔsilš

stiʔ

thing

-s

-3.GEN

-ilš

-3PL

stiʔ -s -ilš

thing -3.GEN -3PL

'It's theirs.'[12]

Predicate Pronominal forms may stand alone as predicates or may serve as emphatic adjuncts. The forms are constructed as intransitive predicates with morphology and unanalyzable roots used nowhere else, and examples are given below (Doak, 1997,[12] p. 72-73).

Predicate pronominal examples

[12]
Singular Plural
1st person čn ʔɛngʷt č lípust
2nd person kʷu ʔɛngʷt kʷup lípust
3rd person cɛnil cənílilš

Aspect

There are three aspects in Coeur d'Alene. The first is the completive, which has no morpheme marker. The completive aspect refers to an action that was completed in the past (Bischoff, 2011,[17] p. 22; Reichard, 1938,[18] p. 574).

(1)
čn mílʼxʷ

čn-

1.NOM-

Ø-

COMP-

√mílxʷ

√smoke

čn- Ø- √mílxʷ

1.NOM- COMP- √smoke

'I smoked.' (Doak, 1997,[12] p. 83)

The second is the customary aspect, characterized by the prefix morpheme, ʔɛc- (Doak, 1997,[12] p. 85).

(2)
čʔɛcʼkʼʷúl’

č-

1PL.NOM-

ʔɛc-

CUS-

√kʼʷúl

√work

č- ʔɛc- √kʼʷúl

1PL.NOM- CUS- √work

'We work.' (Doak, 1997,[12] p. 85)

The third aspect is the continuative, indicated by the prefix morpheme y’c-.

(3)
čiʔcɡʷíčəm

čn-

1.NOM

y’c-

CONT-

√ɡʷíč

√see

čn- y’c- √ɡʷíč

1.NOM CONT- √see

'I am seeing.' (Doak 1997,[12] p. 106)

Tense

In addition to aspect in Coeur d'Alene, there is evidence of realis and irrealis. Realis and irrealis marks a distinction between time that the speaker can directly perceive through his or her own knowledge or senses (realis) and that which is conjectured known of hypothetically, distantly, or by hearsay (irrealis). Only examples of irrealis are attested in Coeur d'Alene (Doak 1997,[13] p. 188).

Irrealis is indicated in the same way as an aspect marker, by a particle occurring before the verb. The irrealis particle is nεʔ. There are no examples of both an aspect marker and irrealis occurring in the same predicate (Doak 1997, [13] p. 189).

(1)
nεʔ uɬčicʔʔεĺəĺ xʷε inú…..

nεʔ

IRR

uɬ-čic

again-LOC

√ʔεĺ+C₂

√move+NCR

xʷε

det₁

in

2.GEN

√nunεʔ

√mother

nεʔ uɬ-čic √ʔεĺ+C₂ xʷε in √nunεʔ

IRR again-LOC √move+NCR det₁ 2.GEN √mother

"When your mom gets back ..." (Doak 1997, [13]p. 188.) Unknown glossing abbreviation(s) (help);

(2)
nεʔ ʔεkʷústmεt xʷε q̀ʷadəlqs

nεʔ

IRR

√ʔεkʷun-stu-ø-mεt

√say-CAUS.TR-3.ABS-1PL.ERG

xʷε

det

√q̀ʷεd=alqs

√black=clothes

nεʔ √ʔεkʷun-stu-ø-mεt xʷε √q̀ʷεd=alqs

IRR √say-CAUS.TR-3.ABS-1PL.ERG det √black=clothes

"We'll tell the black robes" [or monks] (Doak 1997,[13] p. 189.)

References

  1. ↑ "UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in danger". www.unesco.org. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  2. ↑ Lewis, M. Paul (ed.) (2009). "Coeur d'Alene: Ethnologue report for language code: crd". Ethnologue: Languages of the World (16th ed.). Dallas, TX: SIL International. Retrieved 2012-12-26. {{cite book}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  3. 1 2 3 4 Kramer, Becky (2014-01-25). "North Idaho College offers instruction in Coeur d'Alene language". The Spokesman-Review, Spokesman.com. Retrieved 2014-02-27.
  4. ↑ "Native Names: Rural broadband access preserves Native American cultural history" (PDF). Media Democracy Fund. Retrieved 2012-12-26.
  5. ↑ "Coeur d' Alene Tribe - Language Dept". Archived from the original on 2013-06-26. Retrieved 2012-12-26.
  6. ↑ "Coeur d'Alene: Cultural Preservation: Language Center". L³ - The Lewis And Clark Rediscovery Project. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2012-12-26.
  7. ↑ "Audio Alerts in snchitsu'umshtsn for Computers". Coeur d'Alene Tribe. Archived from the original on 2011-11-25. Retrieved 2012-12-26.
  8. ↑ Becky Kramer (2009-01-09). "SR.com: Tribe gets OK for radio station". Retrieved 2012-12-26.
  9. 1 2 3 Nicodemus, L., Matt, W., Hess, R., Sobbing, G., Wagner, J. M., & Allen, D. (2000). Snchitsu’umshtsn: Coeur d'Alene reference book. Plummer, ID: Coeur d'Alene Tribe.
  10. ↑ Bischoff, S., Doak, I., Fountain, A., Ivens, J., & Vincent, A. (2013). The Coeur d'Alene Online Language Resource Center. Retrieved from The Coeur d'Alene Online Language Resource Center: http://lasrv01.ipfw.edu/COLRC/ Archived 2015-04-10 at the Wayback Machine
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Doak, I. G., & Montler, T. (2000). Orthography, lexicography and language change. Proceedings of the fourth FEL Conference. Charlotte, NC: Foundation for Endangered Languages.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 Doak, I. G. (1997). Coeur d'Alene grammatical relations (Doctorate dissertation). Austin, TX: University of Texas at Austin.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Doak, I. G., & Montler, T. (2006). Coeur d'Alene Phonology. 17 July 2006. Web. Jan. 2015. Online: http://ivydoak.com/Coeurd'Alene/grammar/crphon.htm
  14. 1 2 3 Lyon, J. (2005). An edition of Snchitsu’umshtsn: volume II: A root dictionary (Master's thesis). Missoula, MT: University of Montana.
  15. ↑ Pattison, Lois C. (1978). Douglas Lake Okanagan: Phonology and Morphology. M.A. thesis, University of British Columbia.
  16. ↑ Lyon, J., & Greene-Wood, R. (2007). Lawrence Nicodemus's Coeur d'Alene dictionary in root format. Missoula, MT: UMOPL.
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Bischoff, S. (2011). Formal notes on Coeur d'Alene clause structure. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholar Press.
  18. ↑ Reichard, G. A. (1938). Coeur d'Alene. In F. Boas, Handbook of American Indian languages Part 3 (pp. 515–707). New York: J. J. Augustin, Inc.
  • Nicodemus, Lawrence (1975). Snchitsu’umshtsn: The Coeur d'Alene Language : a Modern Course, Albuquerque, NM Southwest Research Associates.
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