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1
6
ON ALGONfclN NAMES FOR MAN.
/
Bt J. HAMMOND TRUMBULL.
(From tlie Transactions of the Anieiicnn Philological Association, 1871.]
lini] ,
ON ALGONKIN NAMES FOR M/lN.
The Indian speaker never generalized. His language sup-
plied him with specific names for all known objects, qualities,
and relations, and its marvelous possibilities of synthesis eh-
abled him to frame new terms as often as new distinctions were
required. It grew by progressive diflerentiation, — from genera
to species, from species to varieties and individual peculiarities.
There is not, perhaps, in the Indian mind — certainly not in
the structure of Indian languages — absolute incapacity for
generalization, but the scrupulous avoidance of it as a defect,
whether in thought or speech, is a characteristic of the race.
Though the Algonkin languages are poor in general names,
yet we find in all of them certain elements of synthesis which
may be regarded — from one point of view, or another, — as
rudiments, or as vestiges, of such names. These aie not used
as independent words, but in composition they take the place
of the ground-word, or principal root — their denotation being
limited or directed by the attributive prefixed. Such, for
example, is the (Chip.) terminal -abo (after a vowel, -ooaho ;
Abnaki, -aPhco, -wabo),') denoting " drink," found in many spe-
cific names, but never without a prefix : as in Chip. miasH-
abo (meat-drink) broth, ishkote-mabo (fire-drink) whiskey or
other ardent spirit, mashki/d-mabo (herb-drink) liquid medi-
cine, totosh-abo (breastdiink) milk, etc. In a few instances,
such a generic expression which in one dialect is inseparable,
in others has attained — or has not yet lost — independent
positiorfasa speeific name. In the Massachusetts language,
-min, denoting " small fruit" (berry, nut, or grain), does not
appear to have been used without an attributive, e. g. wuttahi-
min (Chip. odSimiii) heart-fruit, a strawberry, weno-min, twine-
fruit, a grape, wompi-min white-fruit, a chestnut, etc. : in the
Delaware and in some western Algonkin languages, -min is
similarly employed in composition, but is also used inde-
On Algonkin Names for Man.
3
N.
lis language sup-
objects, qualities,
of synthesis eh-
distinctionswere
3n, — from genera
iual peculiarities.
- certainly not in
te incapacity for
of it as a defect,
istic of the race,
in general names,
f synthesis which
or another, — as
'hcse aie not used
»ey take the place
r denotation being
ixed. Such, for
p a vowel, -coaho ;
)und in many spe-
» in Chip, mtass-
Irink) whiskey or
ink) liquid medi-
i a few instances,
ect is inseparable,
ost — independent
jhusetts language,
r grain), does not
tive, e. g. wuttahi-
y, weno-min, twine-
itnut, etc. : in the
languages, -min is
s also used inde-
pendently as the name of a single species — the bill)crry or
huckleberry.
Other grammatical devices by which the deficiency of these
languages in general names is compensated need not here be
pointed out. That such a deficiency exists is indisputable,
yet it lias l)ecn often disregarded in tlic selection of words for
comparison of different languages and dialects. No one lias
recogni/.ed more clearly than did Mr. (Jallatin "llie extreme
precision of tlie Indian languages," and their poverty in "ge-
neric designations or words,"* but of the first twenty English
words in bis " Comparative Vocabulary of fifty-tliree tribes"
(ill Trans. Am. Antiq, Society, vol. i., pp. .307 and after,) fif-
teen are relative and general names not one of which can be
accurately translated by a single word in any Indian language.
Every Algonkin dialect has names for an " elder brotiier," a
" younger brother," a " twin-brother," a " son of tlio same
father," and a " son of the same mother," and lias moreover
two forms of some or all of these names, one used exclusively
by men, the other by women. But in no dialect can there
be found the precise equivalent of tlie English " l)rother," in
its largest denotation. The nearest approximation to it is,
perhaps, l)y a term which, in some languages, designates
" one of the other sex, born of the same parents ;" spoken by
a woman, this word means " brother," — by a man, " sister."
The names by which Man has been designated, by difi'erent
triljcs, or, more accurately, which most nearly correspond to
the English appellative in its two meanings, " an individual
of the human race " (homo), and " one possessing in a high
degree the distinctive qualities of manhood " (vir), have occa-
sioned much perplexity to vocabulary makers. Mr. Hale,
in a note to his Vocabularies of North America (Tm/fs. Am.
Ethnol. Society, ii. 74), remarks that " in general, there was
no means of ascertaining witii precision the existence of this
distuiction." He has, however, nearly indicated its true
character by the suggestion that, in vocabularies, the term
" answering to vir will usually bo found under man or hus-
* Transactions of the Am. Ethnological Society, vol. ii., p. cxxxi.
J. H. Tfumhully
,»
hand;' and tlie " terra answering to homo, under ' Indian, na-
tive r The truth is, it is as impossible to find an Indian
equivalent for hmo as for man. By resorting to the Latin,
we only halve the difficulty, not remove it. Tliere is not in
any American language any single name ai)pli';able alike to
the red man and the white, to native and foreigner, to ally .
and enemy, to chief and counselor and to prisoner and slave,
and in its largest sense common to both sexes. For vir a
term nearly correspondent may be found in every dialect —
though seldom, if ever, as a primary word ; but homo is un-
translatable by an Indian.
In Algonkiu languages— and the same probably is true of
all others spoken by North American nations — we have three
classes of names for Man, into the composition of which enter
three or more different roots. These are indicated, not very
clearly, by Roger Williams, in the introduction to. his Key
into the Language of America (1643) :
"I cannot observe that they ever had (before the coming
of the English, French or Dutch amongst them) any names
to dilference themselves from strangers, for they knew none ;
hut two sorts of names they had, and have, amongst them-
selves. First, general, l)elonging to all natives, as Ninnuock,
NinnimissinnHtvock, Eniskectompaiiwog , which signifies mm,
folk, or 'people. Secondly, particular names, peculiar to the
several nations of them amongst themselves, as Nanhiggane-
uek, Massachuseuck," etc.
Of the three " general " names, the second, ninni-missinnu-
wock, is formed from missin (with indef. suffix, missin-nin,)
a derivative of missi great, much (multus), and comprehends
all homines who are not viri, corresponding etymologically
and in its denotation to the Greek ol naWiA, or tiie Latin mul-
titudo. It was a general name for tributaries, captives, slaves,
— that is, for all mankind, the speaker's nation and its allies
excepted. The prefix ninni-, however, limits it to inferiors
of the speaker's own race, as will presently be shown. Eliot
employs missinnin for " man " {homo) in Gen. vi. 7, and in the
plural, missinninnvog, for " people," Exod. xxiv. 2, 3, Deut.
iv. 33, etc. In Jonah, i. 8, howa4 missinnin ken? " of what
On Algonkin Names for Man.
nder ' Indian, na-
find an Indian
ting to tlie Latin,
Tliert) is not in
i|)pli';able alike to
foreigner, to ally .
risoner and slave,
sexes. For vir a
n every dialect —
; but homo is im-
probably is true of
s — we have three
;ion of wliicli enter
indicated, not very
uction to. his Key
before the coming
them) any names
r they knew none ;
,ve, amongst them-
itives, as Ninnuock,
liich signifies rnen,
as, peculiar to the
'es, as Nankiggane-
md, rdnni-musinnur-
sufiix, mUsin-nin,')
), and comprehends
ling etymologically
f)(, or tlie Latin mul-
•ies, captives, slaves,
nation and its allies
mits it to inferiors
y be shown. Eliot
Jen. vi. 7, and in the
)d. xxiv. 2, 3, Deut.
nnin ken? " of what
people art thou?" would convey to an Indian tlie meaning of
" what kind of slave (or, whose servant) art tliou ?"
In Williams's otiier names, ninnu-ock (_ninnu-og, Eliot) and
enuhcetompaii-wog, both plarals, we find two roots common to
all Algonkin languages. They vary in pronunciation (and in
the phonetic notation employed by different writers), one as
m'/t, nen, enin, aren, len, illin, etc.; the other as omp,a"be, ahe,
dpi', dp, etc. These two roots are combined in the Abnaki
aren-a"b(' and the Delaware len-dp^, and the former is repeated,
as a prefix, in the Delaware tribe-name lenni lendpe.
Mr. Heckewelder, who received with unquestioning faith
the legends of his chosen i»eople, the Delawares, and was
convinced that theirs was the parent stock from which all
Algonkin nations were derived, found in this tribe-name
new evidence of their high antiquity and purity of race.
Lenni lendpe, he says (^History of the Indian Nations, p. 25),
" signifies original people, a race of human beings who are
the same that they were in the beginning, unchanged and
unmixed.'''' As to the analysis of the name, he is not quite
clear. Lenno, he says, signifies "a man;" in the names
of quadrupeds," a male." Lendpe signifies man — "in a
more extended sense," — and "in the name of the Lenni
LmapS, it signifies people, but the word lenni which precedes
it has a ditferent signification and means original, and some-
times common, plain, pure, unmixed.'" " Under this general
description [and very general it is, certainly,] the Indians
comprehend all that they believe to iiave been first created in
the order of things." {Corre»p. "'lih Dvponceau, pp. 368, 412.)
Mr. Cass, in the North Amerion^ Review for January, 1826,
remarked the " confusion in Hecuewelder's ideas of the name
in question," and offered another — and a worse — translation
of it. Lenee, he says, " generally and properly means * male',"
and " the true meaning of lenaupS is ' common'." He was
as far as was Mr. Heckewelder from detecting the connection
between lenno " man " and a word meaning " original, com-
mon, plain," etc.
To discover the primary signification of each of the two
roots found in len-dp4, we will look first to the Massachusetts
./. li. Tnuiibull,
huvma^o, where the materials for oty.n.^logical research are
more abundant and, generally, more trustworthy than in the
Delaware. . ,
Every savage believes in the superiority of his own triDe
and nation to all others. lie and his arc the rei.l m,;i : il>e
rest are servants, tril)utaries, mkxuminnwHj. Wliatovor is
greater than himself passes out of his order of being auil l)e-
eomes to him manitou 'preternatural.' The llhno.s, says
Marquette, call themselves The Men, " comme si Ics autres
sauvages au pr<5s d'eux ne passoient que pour des /.^s•^'S.
This conviction of personal and tribal excellence stmnps itselt
on every savage language. In some of the North American
ton.nies its traces are very plainly marked. Notwithstanding
the want of a substantive verb, " I am " is a constant clement
of Algonkin grammar. The demonstratives and relatives
which" in Indo-European languages ai.pear to have been de-
rived from the primitive pronoun of the third person arc in
the Massachusetts and other eastern Algonkin dialects mani-
festly related to the pronoun of the first person. The Indian
conception of man was as one ' like ' himself. Men of his own
nation were " such as I," Hox^mf.^s, and his was the "original,
"common," normal, type of humanity.
The cMass.) pronoun of the first person singular is mn ; as
? prefix, n'; plural nin-amm. The demonstrative of inanimate
obiects is ni .• of animate beings, m (n./., Eliot) ; of place, na
there. The distributive 'some,' 'any,' 'of the kind of,
is 'nni or ,mm. Resemblance or identity was expressed by
,a--imrti C"^""^. Eliot) such as this, or wa« same ; m-mm the
same thing, «ona» the same person; %mr7t (Eliot), 'rmiw (K.
W ) it is .so, or it is the same ;' nanad {namve Eliot) common,
usual, i. e. ' such as ' ours, or ' of our kind,' hence, ' native,
' indigenous.' Eliot wrote namve mminMunuog " common
people," Mark xii. 37 (= ninnimissinniiwoelc of Roger Wil-
"* C.,n.p. Chip. !n-, /«/-, prefixcl to verbs, " to signify a certain „.«^ or manner
■ T- .1 In,, L ,1nnP or used " etc ■ c. s. iN-a'.i he so k)oks ; od 'if^abanmn
u whuli something IS (lone or usca, cic, <-■ " ,. ,„,j' <.:f
he .0 sees him; imffode "ithanRSSo: nin,l ^nan,a ■' I «..«W. h.m n.A U
is cooked in a certain manner" (so) ; i^.gini " he is so large; ino .t .s so
Baraga.
On Algonkin Names for Man.
cal rcrtoarch are
i-thy than in the
1)1' his o-.vii trilie
c rci.l iiifii : iho
r. Whatever is
)t' l)oiiijj; anil he-
lic Illinois, says
line si Ics antres
our (los /<(•,s•^'s."
Slice stamps itself
North American
Notwithstanding
constant clement
es and relatives
to have been de-
ird person arc in
un dialects mani-
(on. The Indian
Men of his own
as the "original,"
,iii<>;ular is nin ; as
a live of inanimate
liot) ; of |)lace, na
'of the kind of,'
was expressed by
same ; ni-nan the
(Eliot), '««m (R-
we Eliot) common,
I,' hence, 'native,'
linnuog " common
)ck of Roger Wil-
a certain way or manner
a so looks ; oil 'itiabaman
resemble, him ; iNirfe " it
f) large;" iNo"it is so"
liams, before quoted), and namve wut-eptstli'-vm Jude for " the
general epistle" etc.*
'Nnln-ii (enhi), pi. ninnuog, which Roger Williams gives as
one of the '"general names belonging to all natives" and "sig-
nifying men," was occasionally used by Ehot in the plural
and, with an attriimtive prelixed, in the singular, for ' man,'
' men ;' l)ut the Indians restricted its denotation to men like
thrmxilves, of the commuH or native type, of the speaker's
kind (though not necessarily of his tril)e or nation). It
is o|)posed io penmivi (^khw. pirmi) strange, foreign, of another
kind.
In other Algonkin dialects, the Massachusetts 'ninnu or ,
enin-u becomes (Abnaki) ufcni, (Quinnipi)iac) ren, (Dela-
ware) hnno, (Illinois) illini, (Cree) etfiiriu, etc., — meaning
* Sohleicher ( Veiyl. Gminmatik, 2te Auti. p. 042) considers the root of the 1st
Hiiifi;. pronoun in liido Kuropenn liiii;rua};es — ma 'I,' 'mc,' — identical with the
verbal root ma ' to tliink,' ' to measure,' and with the ma in Sansk. ma-nii, Goth.
ma-n ' tlic thinker,' 'man': for since "we must not a'cril* to the jirimitivo
langnafie the abstract com eption of the A'70, — what," he asks, " should ' 1 ' he,
originally, hut 'man ' !" The likeness of the corrcspondinj; roots in AI};onkin
lani;naKOS is as noticeable — and the ])robability of their original indentity is at
least as great — as in the Indo European. Compare Ch^p. nin I, me, ini so, such,
!NiN-( man, and iii'iid' iNKN-fAim (intrnns.) I think, sup|K)se, it seems to me, I am
(so) minded, niiid' iNKS-ddn (trans, inanimate) I think of it, think it (so), nind'
iNKN-/wa (trans, nnim.) I think of him, think him (so). But I do not believe
■ that the Iiulian — of Asia or America — waited for the demonstration " cogito,
ergo sum," as a necessary i)reliinitmry to self as.scrtion or to the vocal designa-
tion of his fellow-savage. Without rising to " the abstract conception of the
lujo," he in some way discovered and expressed the distinction Iffitween ' this, —
me ' and 'that, — my Like,' — alter tyo. His mental states and activities, — his
likes and dislikes, opinions, regards, emotions, — how he was affected by an exter-
nal object, what he thomjht of it, how he estimated or measured it, — he would
naturally express by "it is so to me" (though perhaps tiot so to another); " / so
regard, feel, esteem, lielieve, think it." Of the same object, one might say nin
mino-f.ndan I well think it, it to me Is gooil ; another, nin Jin(/-KK-dan 1 hate it, it
to me is odious ; toward the same individual and with reference to the same act
one would ex|)ress his emotion by nin-nis/ik-Kt<-ima I am angry minded at him, an-
other by nin hiip-iKBH im I am laughter-minded, joyful; what one rememlHirs
(mikwindiin = mikoa-K-H-ddn finds in thought), another forgets {wanfndan =
ivani-uv-dan misses in thought, or bon-en-ddn ceases thinking of).
In Chip, inindam (= Del. e^'n(/aw. Aim. ererrfa w, Mass. unantam), only^n rep-
resents the root : -dam is the grammatical formative, and the prefixed in- is the
the adverbial 'so, 'in such manner,' which is dropped when the verb receives
any other prefix — as in minwEvdam, nlshk&siman, etc.
>ii;Slft#^^
8
J. H. Trunihill,
always, a • common man,' of the speaker's kin or kind. Used
a^ an adjoctive, the Mass. nanmi, Al)n. areni, Del. lenni, de-
notes the 'common,' 'usual' or 'native,' as distinguished
from prnmwl, Abn. pirmi, the ' strange,' ' foreign,' of ' other
kind': e.g. Al)n. areni (ndama common or native tohacco,
iiren-aihnr' lie speaks Abnaki (comp. pinn-a'dai/'- lie speaks a
foreign language) ; Del. len-nchpoan, common (i. e. Indian)
bread, lenna-meek commonfisli (the sucker, found in almost
uU streams), hn-rhum common or Indian dog, (distinguished
from tiu! species introduced i)y Europeans), etc. Zcisberger
translates " Lennape, an Indian ; Linni lenape, Indians of the
same nation."
Ill Imdpr, we have this adjective in synthesis with an in-
separal)lo generic. Heckcwelder {Corrrsp. with Dupmceaa,.
411) says that the termination ap or upe " belongs to animals
walking in an erect posture ; hence, lenape man." It is
found in all pure Algonkin languages (Mass. -omp, Abn. -a'b^',
Penobscot -omAe^, C\\\\). dhe, etc), but nowhere as an inde-
pendent word. As a generic suffix it denotes ' an adult male.'
With a demonstrative prefixed (7i') it designates ' the male,'
or as an adjective, simply, ' male.' The primary meaning of
the root may have been nearly tliat which Heckewelder sug-
gests. It appears in the Mass. oMPa-, Chip. oMBt-, a prefix
to vorl)s of lifting, raising, erecting, etc.: e. g. Mass. OMPa-
ndeu '' he lifts himself up," from a stooping position, John viii.
7 ; Chip. 0MBi/irt« " he lifts or raises it up," omidbate " the
smoke ascends," omb«8/«"« "the bread rises," etc. (comp.
Abnaki ABrfst a standing tree) ; as all adjective, in Mass.
n()MP«a« male, nouPusliim male beast, pish noMVait/euw kah
squalyeuco there-shall male-be and female-be (Gen. vi. 19) ;
ill Chip. MADE male, nin-nxBEm " my husband" (Baraga), etc.
The dependence of the Indian warrior and hunter on his bow
is expressed in its designation as "belonging to the adult
male," and by transferring it from the class of inanimate
(' ignoble ') objects to the animate or ' noble ' : Mass. ohtoup,
Abnaki '<a"bi, Powhatan a«AWP or auk i.
Lm-dp6 (= Abnaki aren-abe, mod. Penobscot aln-ombe,^
On Ahjonkin Names for Man,
n or kind. Used
mi, Del. lenni, de-
as (llstingiiiHlied
)ioigii,' of ' other
)r native tol»acco,
a'dm/'' he speaks a
lion (i. 0. Indian)
, found in ahiiost
[)g, (distinguished
), etc. ZeiHl)orger
ipe, Indians of the
thesis with an in-
. with DufKinceau,.
)elong8 to animals
ape uiau." It is
i.-iimp, Abn. -o"6<*,
?hcre as an inde-
3s ' an adult male.'
gnates ' the male,'
rimary meaning of
Heckewelder sug-
lip. OMBt-, a prefix
e. g. Mass. oMPa-
position, John viii.
I," oMBdbate " the
ises," etc. (comp.
Ijective, in Mass.
ih noyivait/eua> kah
be (Gen. vi. 19) ;
id" (Baraga), etc.
hunter on his how
iging to the adult
jlass of inanimate
le ' : Mass. o/<<omp,
nobscot aln-ombe,')
denotes " a common adult male," i. e. an Iiidiiin man ; hnno
liii-iipi', iJM Indian of our tiil»o or nation, and (!onso(|U(Mitly,
)'ii\ •' a man of men." The roots, hn and a"/!, coriospond
more nearly to noxtroK and vias tlian to homo nnd vir ; l»ut
tlio former is as exclusively masculine as the latter, and can-
not We prefixed to a feminine noun-generic.
lleeurriiig now to lloger Williams's division of names into
" general, lielongiiig to all natives," and '' particidar, peculiar
to the several nations amongst themselves," we will first
trace these two princi[)al roots, under their dialectic modifi-
cations, through the several Algonkin languages, and after-
wards notice some of the names for men of inferior race, —
for enemies, strangers, and foreigners, — into the composition
of which neither of these two roots may enter.
1. Man of the ' common' or ' native ' typo ; of the speaker's
kin or kind ; noatrax. Root, 'xkn, 'ren, 'lkn, — from an ear-
lier t\ V with a demonstrative prefix, or reduplication. As
an adjectival, it denotes "•common,' 'indigenous,' sometimes
'mere.' Formed as a verb, 'to be a man (like ourselves),'
lience, in many dialects, ' to //y«.'
01(1 Ali^oukin (Nipissiiiir), /n"ii".' niH-i'iiini/n "1 nm a mnn." Howse.
Cliippewny, inini, pi. iniiii-wak. Ottawa, aiiini.
Miissacluisctts, -inin, pi. -imnnnnrj; ninnu " male," Eliot (Mark x. 6.)
Nnrrn^ransi'tt, 'nnin, inin ; pi. ninnnntj. R. W,
Mfiioiiiiiii, /'im. I'otawatomi, H»i/ (Lykins), eiim M (P. Jones).
Saki (Sank), mr.nni. Miiximil. Musqiiaki (Fox(!s), iiini.
Montajii iis, irini-un |lii' isj man; irinion-in "life." IjC Jeunc, 1634.
Ahnaki i Ivennelicc), aren-i ; as adjective 'simple,' 'plain,' 'mere.'
Qiiinnippiac, ren (pi. rciifWfi^) man. Peirson, 1658.
New Sweden, "rAeniis, Mann : renrt/)/?/, jMenniskia." Cainpanius.
Delaware, lenno, pi. kivnowak. Zeisb.
Shawnee, ilinl "man," linAwai " Indian ;" lindwai-wi " he lives." Howse.
ddnoieh " Indian." Whipple.
Illinois, iUini. ^
Miami, elaniah (Volncy), aUanuah (Barton).
Micmac, eVim, I'nmi (Maiil.), cd'nu (Howse).
Montagnais of Labrador, il'no.
Cree, ethMti " man, an Indian," Howse ; Western Crce, hiijenu, Maximilian.
[Comp. 1st pers. pronoun rtitha I, and net'itin I do so, I so act. Howse
remarks that " the ih is so softly uttered that a nice car only can detect
it," and, among the western Crees, it " is lost in the J or ,y ; nitha becomes
nil/a [= ni'la], ethinu is lyinu. The western Crees call themselves
2
-^jsA'tSi*-
10
J. n. Trumhdl.
may„6c, which Dr. Haydcn translates: "those who speak the same
tonKUC." OfA'^-'^/ioici'/t, the equivalent in the dialect of the Hudson
Bay Crecs, Howsc makes "exact l.ei.igs, or people," and Sir John
Eichardsdu, "exact or complete men."]
Shycnne, ita'ni (adj. male, of man) ; Hahdo " people." Hayden.
Atsina, uilhun'a. Comp. nathan'i-mta " to live." Ilaydrn.^
Arapaho, inpii', pi. inen'a. Comp. miiiek'tlna " to he alive."
! Blackfcet, mnmw, ncnow. Howse. Haydcn has nin'a "chief," hut for In-
dian, ni-ii-lsnia'-pi. Comp. mstiiia [--= Crce nifa] I, nihinan mme.
Powhatan. The pencric name appears in such compounds as Strachey's
rawKiiV^svwh " an old man." For " man," John Smith has nemaro'igh
(hv a misi)rint, prohahlv. for ncmatongh), and Straehey, nmatewh. This
is 'the equivalent of nemat (Straehey; and so in the Massachusetts dia-
lect,) "my hrother," my mate, with the vcrhal formative (= Mass. ne-
mut-oH he is my hrother, or mate).
Nanticoke, ihn, Un, " Indian." Wohacki, for " man " in Gallatin s vocabu-
lary, means 'his body,' 'himself,' = Mass. ivahhogki (Eliot), Narrag.
wMock (li. Vf ■).
The characteristic n of tlie pronominal root is constant
thronghout. Tlie prefixed demonstrative, or reduplication,
varies, with changes of dialect, as n, I, r, and (rarely) y; is
lost in strong aspiration of the following vowel ; becomes a
soft, scarcely audilde th in the speech of the eastern Crecs
and the Atsinas of the northwest, and among the Shyennes
is repi-esenled by t.
Without intending to follow the Algonkin name beyond
the presumed limits of the Algonkin group, I may be permit-
ted to allude to the fact that the Crecs and Atsinas are neigh-
bors of Athapascan tribes, suggesting the possibility of rela-
tionshii) between the Cree Uhinu, Atsina nithun'a, and
Shyenne i<a'«/,— and the Chepcwyan dinnie, TakuUi tenni,
Umkwa tiine, Navajo tennai and Apache n'de, all having the
same meaning, "man, native." - likeness of the east-
Algonkin 'min-u, inin-i, to Labrador-Ei^kimo innuk, pi. innmt,
ma"), innu-wok alive, vna he, this, ingna the same, etc., is not
less noticeable.
II. An adult male : designated by the inseparable noun-
generic -a"k, -dp, -omp, or other dialectic modification of the
root a"b With n' demonstrative prefixed it designates ' the
male,' or as an adjectival, simply, ' male.' With a pronomi
nal prefix, it may mean ' husband,'-e. g. Chip, ne-nabem
[the final m is possessive,] my husband ; but Baraga m his
On Algonkin Names for Man.
11
3 who speak tlio siuiic
1 (liali'ct of tin- lludfon
people," and Sir John
" Haydcn.
aydrn.
aliv(!."
hi "chief," but for In-
i] I, nitsinan mine.
mi)0unds as Strachey's
hn Smith has nemaroiigh
[raclu'y, nimatewh. This
n the MassiK'hnsetts dia-
formative (= Mass. ne-
I " in Gallatin's vocabu-
Mogki (Eliot), Narrag.
1 root is constant
, or reduplica'ion,
and (rarely) y ; is
vowel ; becomes a
the eastern Crees
long the Shyennes
nkin name beyond
p, I may be permit-
I Atsinas are neigh-
possibility of rela-
sina nithun'a, and
mie, TakuUi tenni,
I'de, all having the
keness of the east-
no innuk, pi. innuit,
lie same, etc., is not
3 inseparable noun-
modification of the
i it designates ' the
.' With a pronomi
. g. Chip, ne-nabem
; but Baraga in his
Otchipwe Dietionari/, marks this use of the word as " unpo-
lite." Witli tlie prefix 'nm (^ren, len,') it denotes a ' common
man,' i. c. an Indian adult male. With other attributives, it
forms class-immes and tribe-names.
1. With the demonstrative prefix, designating ' the male' ;
and, with the possessive suffix (-o»i, -cm, -w), ' husband' : —
Algonkin and Chippcway, ndhl: ; ni-nAliem [ray male,] my husband.
Ottawa, mlpi' ; ni-nd-boin.
Menom., imiipe.-om, ndpium, " husband." Dr. James.
Pi)ti\wt\t. , nawbam ; n/(i-»m«j6aHi "my husband."
Miami, [mipein husband,] nenapeina my husband. Volney.
Illinois, nampehe.man husband. Galliitin.
Monfagnais, nnpiou "man," ndpen "husband" (naapen. Gabriel).
Naskapi (Scollie), nnahonh "man," naahpen "husband."
Abnaki, mt"hi-, prefixed to names of male animals.
Massachusetts, noinp ads male, a male ; nomp-oshim, nomp-oshlmwiis a male
(juadruped; nompai-yeHoo [he is] male, Gen. vi. 19. Eliot. Kopcr Wil-
liams does not use omp- or nomp- as a prefix ; but for a male beast has
enewdshim, = Del. lenno-wechum (Zeisberger).
Crcc, 7>dpai/oo miin, ]A. napei/umk: ne-nabem " my husband." Ilowse.
Nanticoke, nddp. Heckw. Pamptico, mtppin " Indian." Law-son.
2. With the prefix 'nen, (ren, hn,') ' common,' ' native,' ' of
our kind ;' designating an Indian adult male :
Abnaki 'Kennebec), aren-o"6(5 "homo " Rnsles. ., '
(Penobscot), a/iioHiW; aZnamiuy. Vetromile.
Delaware (N. Sweden), renappi, Campanius — who has, incorrectly, plri
renappi (or " strangers."
(Unami) fen-(J/)e "an Indian," pi. ;e«'t2/>eu;afc. Zeisb.
Mississauga, /iHiy; ;' [" linneep." Barton.]
3. With Other attributives, forming class and tribe names ,:
Mass. Nitomp, Narrag. nildp, Abii. nida'bS, Del. (N. Swed.)
nltappi, Powhatan netab, pi. netapeivh (Strachey), nitoppu
(J. Smith), — the familiar ^^ netop'^ of the early colonists,
sometimes translated " brother," but by Roger Williams,
more accurately, "friend," — denotes a brother by adoption or
affinity, one who is regarded as a brother ; literally, ' man of
my family,' or ' my kinsman.' The prefix (Mass. nit-} may
be translated ' of the family,' 'domestic'; as in Chip, wj^^a
"ray brother-in-law" (Baraga), Mass. and Narrag. nitasm
(netassu, El.) a domestic animal.
Mass. Kel'omp (kehtomp, El.) chief man ; from ketti (kehte,
El.) chief, greatest.
12
J. H. Trumhull,
'
3Ivgwnmp great man, captain ; from vio«:ki great, powerful.
Kinomp (Abn. Kinahe " homme courageux, brave, g(;M<;-
reux," Rasles), a "brave"; Eliot uses it for " captain " iu
John xviii. 12, where Mayhew (170!)) substitutes nmlnfump
= miKjtvomp; Micmac keei \p " warrior, hero," Rand.
Nmkomp young-man ; literally, light or slender man, from
nonk'i, levis. t
Pinomp (penomp, El.; Del. piMpc "a big boy," Zeisb.) a
new (i.e. a chaste) man : from plnu (Del. pili-. Chip, bini-,')
new, strange, unused, chaste. Perhaps the most curious mis-
take in Eliot's version of the Bible is the use of penomp for
"virgin," e.g. in Gen. xxiv. 16, Isaiah vii. 14, 1 Kings, i. 2,
and Matt. xxv. 1, where the parable is of the ten penompaog,
i.e. chaste young men. Witli the Indians chastity was a mas-
culine virtue, and it is easy to see how Eliot's interpreter,
misunderstanding his question, gave him nescim vir for nesoia
viri.
Delaware Kigdjje (Zeisb.), Abn. kigaht^, a young unmar-
ried man, is iu those dialects the equivalent of Mass. pinomp.
Tiie corresponding feminine appellation in the Delaware
(Unami) is kikochgue, Zeisb., Ottawa gigang " virgin, maid,"
Baraga. Blackfoot asit'-apl = Del. k'j'ipe.
Abnaki (Kennebec) seenabe, modern Penobscot senombi,
Mass. sannvp (Wood, 1634), was the common designation of
an Indian man, in the vigor of manhood, married, or master of
his lodge. Rasles translates it by " vir." The signification
of the prefix is not quite clear. The word is not found in
Eliot or Mayhew, but was much used by the English colon-
ists, who imderstood " sannup and squaw " to mean " Indian
man and woman." Possibly, the former name is a contrac-
tion of anisinabe— which, in other Algonkin dialects, has
nearly the same meaning, but is not found in the Massachu-
setts of Eliot or the Abnaki of Rasles.
Old Algonkin (Nipissing) alisinape, Lahontan ; mod. Alg.
and Chip" anislnn-abe ("Indian") Baraga; Ottawa nishan-
dba; VotAwat. ninhinapt' ; Penobscot «>ZJs«rtf)m/>t "good man."
The same prefix, with irini (= ininl) as the generic, is found
in Montagnai's arichi-irini-ouak (pi.), men (Lc Jeune, 1634),
On Algonkin Names for Man.
13
H great, powerful.
5UX, brave, f^<i\\6,-
for " captain " in
titntes niuli(juomp
ro," Rand,
slender man, from
ig boy," Zeisb.) a
pili; Chip, bini-,')
! most curious mis-
use of pe.nomp for
14, 1 Kings, i. 2,
the ten penompaog,
jhastity was a mas-
Eliot's interpreter,
eseius vir for neseia
i, a young unmar-
it of Mass. pinomp.
in the Delaware
ng " virgin, maid,"
Penobscot senombi,
inion designation of
arried, or master of
The signification
ird is uot found in
the English colon-
" to mean " Indian
name is a contrac-
onkin dialects, has
1 in the Massachu-
ihontan ; mod. Alg.
ga ; Ottawa nishan-
ennmbi "good man."
the generic, is found
n (_Lc Jeune, 1634),
modern (trrhhlrini (V'ctromile). Compare Blkf. ni'itHatdin
"Indian" (Ilayden). The prefix signifies 'good,' 'well-
doing'; Mass. tviinnpxu, Del. ivu/iifso, Alg. and Chip, onijishi
" lie is lair, beautiful, fine, good." (Bar.)
Narrag. enUketomp contr. \kUump [skeetomp, R. W.]
"man"; Quinnip eansketamhe "an Indian," wunkctambaiig
(pi.) " men," " people"; contr. sketambaiigh, Peirson ; Mass.
wosketom j >, EViot, Mayhew, and Cotton, for "man"; Etche-
miu oskitap, uskidab, " man," 7i'i)»kitapam " my husband "
(comp. uskileh-inu " Indian man," Vetromile, = ouskejin,
Barrett, and Micmac uskiginu " Indian man," Vetromile) ;
Naskapi (Scoffie) of Labrador, wo«7/^«/?om [he is] Indian (Ga-
briel), naskvpi and " nas/jvapee," which, says Mr. Hind (^£x-
ploration of Labrador, ii. 90), they translate, " people .stand-
ing uprig/it." Tlie prefix appears to be the equivalent of
Chip, onishk; in onis/ika " he rises, stands erect," particip.
wenishk-ad " one who stands erect," etc. — repeating and em-
phasizing the meaning of the generic -amp, -dp.* In May-
hew's version of John's gospel (1709), unashketomp, pi. -paog
(not found in Eliot,) is used for "officers," ch. vii. 46, xvii.
12, 22, — and in Wood's vocabulary, Mass. (1634), sasketupe
is translated " a great man.''
Blackfoot mala'pi " man " (Hayden) belongs to this class.
The prefix may be from matsi " brave." The generic affix,
for "male," is found also in asitwi "young man," sakotAPi
" boy," nii'lsatkvi " Indian," and in the names of Blackfcet
bands, e. g. A'peWpi " Blood people," Mumi'tvpio (pi.) " Fish
Indians," etc. Comp. Blkf. etAPi " to live " (Hayden).
Tlie Micmac designation of an adult male is peculiar. Gal.
latin's voenbulary gives (from Maillard) Micm. tchinem "■ man
(vir)"; teheni,u moot " husband ;" [em is possessive, and -ool
is an affix of the 2d and 3d person sing., 'thy' or ' her'.]
Rand's vocabulary (in Schoolcraft) has n'ckeenim-oom " my
husband"; woluika-cheenum "white man" (but this last is
probably white man's Micmac, of modern ll'ination). Only
in nilhelop " my friend " (Gal.) = Abn. nila"be, Mass. nitup,
♦Comp. Del. lenh/ lkn«/)p, and (in an other group of languages) the Pawnee
ti'ibe-name Clui'-hiksi cha'hiks " men of men.
".vyy^
^a^
14
J. H. Trumbull,
do I find the generic sums for ' male' which is common to
all Algonkin languages. The tril)e name— the true vir—
corresponding to the Alg. and Cliii). anishinahe, Del. Imno-
tenape, Naskapi nnsquapi etc., does not appear in the Micniac
vocabularies. The etymology of tc/iinem is obscure. It mai/
be a dialectic corruption of Abn. seenabe (Mass. ''sannup "),
with the loss of the p by the nasalization of the preceding
vo"\vel. ■
III. Man inferior in degree or kind ; not ' of us ' or ' sn^h
as we are ':
Mass. missininnuog, Narr. missinmmock, "folk, people"
(R. W.),— if of the speaker's natioji, ninni-missinnu-ivock, —
has been previously noticed. Literally, " the many," <n ttoUoI :
Abnaki tneHairmak " ils sont plusieurs" (Rasles). From the
same root, Mass. mussi (and redupl. vidmmsi) wholly, of the
whole; Narr. missUu "the whole of him"; Y)c\. messisu;
Abn. mcumn "tout entier"; Chip, vmi, misiwe, "every
where," " all," etc.
Mass. penmi (/>t;rtii?f(;El.) strange, novel, different,— whence
penmwot stranger, foreigner; pi. 7>crtrt)u;o/t<erfo^ strangers, is
used by Eliot for " the heathen," Ezek, xxxvi. 3, 4, and else-
where, and for " gentiles." Abn. pirmi-arenarU " homme
Stranger" (Rasles), i>m "do nouveau," = Del. pt7i. Chip.
hini, etc. The Chip, maiag- has nearly the same meaning,
—"foreign, strange, changed" (Bar.); maia<r.anishinaU
" a strange Indian from another tribe ; in Scriptural lan-
guage, pagan, gentile," maiag-isi " he is a foreigner " (Bar.).
M^ass. hoiodn, auwon ; pi. howanig, somebodies, any-bodies,
or interrogatively, who is this? who are these ? (Narr. awdun
" there is somebody," awdiin ewd ? " who is he ? " R. W.)
As an adjective, hcmaS any, some kind of. Abn. aooenni,
Micm. coen, Del. aiiween; Cree, owem who? pX.oioilwki;
owe.uk some one, any one ; Chip. aw4nen who ? Hence one
of tlie designations of Englishmen by the Indians of New
England,— usually written awanmx or owanux ; Narrag.
" awaunagus-suck English-men, ... as much as to say, These
strangers" (R. W.), Pequot waunnuksuk (Stiles). Abn.
awemcots " Frenchman " (Rasles) has the same etymology.
On Algonkin Names for Man.
15
li is common to
— tho true vir —
huihe, Del. lenno-
w in llic Micniac
obscure. It may
[ass. ^'■sannup "),
of the preceding
• of us ' or ' 8u6h
, "folk, people"
-missinnu-ivock, —
many," o'nroWoi :
isles). From tho
si) wholly, of the
"; Del. messisu;
misiwe, " every
iffercnt, — whence
edog strangers, is
Lvi. 3, 4, and else-
irena"M " homme
= Del. pili, Chip,
le same meaning,
maioff'-anishinab^
in Scriptural lan-
oreigner " (Bar.).
Dodies, any-bodies,
se ? (Narr. awdiin
is he ? " R. W.)
jf. Abn. aooenni,
rho? pi. oioencki;
who ? Hence one
! Indians of New
owanux ; Narrag.
5h as to say. These
fc (Stiles). Abn.
same etymology.
IV. Nations of dilferent language, enemies, and Enropeons,
were usually desigiiated by a verb or participle in the ani-
mate-plural, without affixing a noun-generic. The principal
tribe of the Iroquois, for example, was called by the Algon-
kins of New England " Mohmvavg-snck or Mauqudu-og , canni-
bals or men-eaters" — as Roger Williams explains {Key, p.
16) — " from moho to eat.* Eliot writes this verb, manvhau'' he
eats what lives (or an animate object) ; noh moohhukque " he
that eateth me," John vi, 57 ; mmwhanqua-og they who eat
what lives, etc. Hence, the name " Mohawks " adopted by
the English, and the Dutch Mahakuuns, contracted to Ma-
fjuas* (Comp. Abn. ne-mcoha"mk megmak " I eat the Iro-
quois," Rasles.) The French and nortliern Algonkins may
have derived the same name, " Maquas," from Alg. makwa a
bear, — Ganniagwari, the national name of tlie Mohawks, sig-
nifying '' a she bear"; but it is nearly certain that to the In-
dians and English of New England, the " Mohawks " or
" Mauquauogs " were, by name, " cannibals."
A Mohican tribe in eastern Connecticut received from their
enemies (Narragansetts and Niantics) the name of Paqua-
tauog, or Fequtldog (R. W.), destroyers, ravagers, and passed
into history as " Pequots," only a small band, which had de-
serted the main tribe, retaining the national name of Miilv-
hekanneuk (Wolves) corrupted by the English to " Mohe-
gans."
Tiie "Eskimos" bear an Algonkin nickname which describes
them as " eaters of raw flesh "; Cree eskwa-mmaym, Abnaki
eski-mwha", he raw-eats (animal food).
The name Algonkin — Algoumequin and Algonquin of the
French — has been extended over a great family of nations
and languages. "The Algonquin was the mother tongue of
those who greeted the colonists of Raleigh at Roanoke, of
those who welcomed the Pilgrims to Plymouth. It was heard
from the Bay of Gaspe to the valley of the Des Moin -s; from
Cape Fear, and, it may be, from the Savannah, to tho land of
the Esquimaux ; from the Cumberland River of Kentucky to
* " The Maiifjiutwogs or Mohowawogs, which signifies men-eaters." R. W. in
Letter to Wiuthrop, 4 Mass. Hist. Collections, vi. 239.
.»iam*^
16
J. IL Tnmhull,
the southern branch of tl,o Missinipi."* Yet the onjx.n of the
nanie has, 1 hclieve, never l.eon pointed out, and scarcely two
authors aunee h. fixing the locality of the tribe to winch .t
ori.inallyl.elon«ed.t Mr. Gallatin iSynopsi. of the Indmn
Tribe, p. 24) found it "difficult to ascertain .vhothor this
name did belong to any particular tribe, or was "^«^| ""'^ ^^
a sc.eric appellation." Etymology removes the aitficuly.
An Algonkin was, eo nomine, removed from all " local hal,!-
lation." No tribe ever called itself or was known to neigh-
boring tribes by the name. It was not even a " generic
appellation," until the French and English adopted it as such.
We first meet with the " Algoumequins " in Champlain s
narrative of his voyage to Canada in 1603 (i.« Sanvoges, etc.
repr. Quebec, 1870, pp. 6, 8, 9). He was in company with
M dn Pont-gravC. and had as interpreters two Indians of
some Algonkiu-speaking tribe-probably Montagi.ez from
Tadonssae,-whom Pout-gravd had carried to France on
his return from a former voyage to the St. Lawrence. A
Pointe de Saint Matthieu (now Pointe aux Allouettes) a
the mouth of the Saguenay, opposite Tadoussac, they found
a war-party of Indians "of three nations, the Estechemins
?Etchemins], Algonmequhn, and Montagnez," returning from
^e" alread V aJ home, on the north bank of the St. Lawrence ,
the Etchemins and their country were well known to the
French, but the " Algoumequius " were new acquaintances.
Their lame-or what Champlain understood to be such-
iust have been learned from themselves or their allies, a.id
m t belong to one of the dialects which we call Algonk.n.t
tL Z is clearly an interpolation>rUdoesm,^bd^
• n ..wrnft's History of tlic United States, iii. 257.
• BiUHTOlts lusioiy ui I , •• „ a r..nK> 1\ a coUat on of the pnnci-
a later work (Jwjement hnone de. M. ^^ ' f ""« ' "^^^^ ,,^^ derives the
■ -''^''^i;::;r-^rt:£; ^:.-^^^^ --— -
rilgtS'-ere allies, he re.uarWs : the for.ner. i.upatiently awa.t.ng the
On Algonkin Nameafor Man.
fr
Lhc oriirin of the
and scarcely two
tril)e to which it
/« of the Induin
aiii nhethor this
vas ui<cd only as
es the difficulty.
1 all " local habi-
kuown to neigh-
jveii a " generic
lopted it as such.
" in Clianiplain's
vt'8 Sauvages, etc.
in comi)any with
J two Indians of
Montague/, from
cd to France on
it. Lawrence. At
iix AUouettcs) at
ussac, they found
, the Estechcmins
z," returning from
. Tl'.e Montagnez
the St. Lawrence ;
■ell known to the
ew acquaintances,
tood to he such —
)r their allies, and
e call Algonkin.J
does not belong to
a collation of the princi-
lost rcmiirkiible differen-
qucs [jin(jites sauvages, in
2mc6d. Monti-ciil, 1869)
fas presented, derives the
o(iuois. The Ilurons and
impatiently awaiting the
the INfontagnais, Etchemin, or any other Algonkin language
at that time known to the French. The termination -in, or as it
was afterwards occasionally written -aiu, is that of the French
adjective (as in Me.riqimin, or -cam), but it perhaps represents,
as in some other tribe-names of French adoption (e. g. Champ-
Iain's Quenongebin, Ochataguins, Otaguottouemin, etc.), an
original -inin 'man,' or its plural. Li Champlain's later pub-
lications (^Vogages, editions of. 1619 and 16H2, and the Map,)
he writes " Algommekins " for " Afgoumcquins." We have
then as the base of the name, A^goumek or A^gommek — and
reoognize an equivalent of the Virginian Accomac, the Nar-
ragansett ^raw»im-ooA;e "land on the other side" or acdw-
muck (R. W. Kep, pp. 8, 4), Mass. o"gkomuk and ogkomuk
(Eliot), Abn. a"g(oa'mek " en delvi," " au-delrf," and Aga"-
meum'ki "France" (Rasles), Cree akdmik (Howse), Chip.
agdming (Baraga). Among the Montagnais at Tadoussac, or
by the Etchemins of I'Acadie, — anywhere, indeed, east of the
Ottawa River, — the original Algonkins would have naturally
been designated by their eastern confederates as men from
"the other side," from "the beyond-river country." The
editor of the Quebec reprint of Champlain's voyages, in a
note to the account of the first meeting with the "Algoume-
quins " in 1603 (ies Sauvages, p. 9), suggests, unconsciously,
the derivation of the name, by the remark that they lived on
the Ottawa River " et au-del^."*
coming of their friends, used to ask one another, iako-ken f which is Huron for
' Est-on arrive 1 " And Tako-kcn, at first " une sortc d'apjiel niilitaire," came to
be the recognized designation of a tribe and nation, and finally was corrupted to
Altjonquin! That the " Algoumecpiins " whom Champiain met on the lower St.
Lawrence in lec^, years before ho visited the country of the Hurons or promoted
the Algonkin-Huron alliance, made themselves known to him by a name bor-
rowed from an "appel militaire" in a foreign language — and which required an
interrogation mark to give it meaning — is, to say the least, improbable. With-
out raising the question whether even French ingenuity could extract " Ah/on-
ijiiins " from " lakn km f" — is not such a derivation of a tribe-name as absurd
as the worst of the etymological blunders of Schoolcraft and Duponceau which
the author of Etiuh's Philolot/ii/ncs has so gleefully exposed ■?
* The " Algouiiiequins " encountered at Tadoussac in 1603, appear to have te-
longed to the trilic whi( li afterwards became known to the French as Kiche-
.ilpirinuDck (i. c. Great-river men) and " Sauvages dc I'lslc." These occupied the
He dcs Allouettes (as it is now called) in Ottawa Kivcr — the "Great River of
8
^ ; ' "gj *'!B S'?i ' y ■'- JJ-
19
J. H. Trumbull,
In the Jesuit Relations, the name changes from " Alyoume-
kins" to '' Ahjonquaiiix" and, finally, " ^///o/"yM»«s." 'i'l»<s
change was perhaps etlected by the inllucnce of the Huron
name for the same tribes. Tl>e Ilurons, who spoko a dialect
of the lro(iuois, designated their " Algominckin" allies as
" Aqmnnaque,;' i.e. " of a dilferent language," " foreigners"
(Sagard). " Our Hurons "—writes bVhcr Lalleniant in the
IMathn for 1041 CQuol>cc edition, p. 72),—" call the Neutral
Nation AttioHmdanmk* that is to say, ' people of a dlghtly
different language '; as for tlie tribes which speak languages
which they (the ilurons) cannot at all understand, they call
them Akomnake [ = Aquamuike of Sagard], of whatever na-
tion they may be, that is to say ' strangers.' " The Huron
name ))ecamc more familiar to the French than that by which
the triljcs on Ottawa River had first been called,— these tribes,
when at hmne, could not properly be designated as " from the
other side,"— and there was sufficient resemblance between
a'gwa"mek and a'kmanake to make the transition from Algomme-
kin to Algonquin easy.
The Chippeways call the modern Algonkins, Odishkiva-
gamig ' Lake-enders,' from ishkiva at the end of, and garni
lake (literally, water). Mr. Schoolcraft gives a translation
and analysis of this name— of which he seems to have re-
garded "■Algonquin'''' as a corruption or the equivalent.
The eastern tribes gave, as we have seen, the same name
to countries of Europe as to the region between the Ottawa
River and the great lakes : Narr. acaiomen-dake, Abu. aga!'-
menmki, Chip, agdming, ' land on the other side ' or ' over
the water.' To the Nipissings and the Moutagnez, the French
and English were " Algonkins."
The French in Canada were called sometimes Amennoots-
ak' somebodies' ( = Narr. awatmagtmuck'-'- these strangers,"
see p. 150, ante) ; but were usually distinguished as ' Wood
en-boats'— Alg. Mittigowhiouek (Lahontan, who translates,
thcAlgoajniokins " of Cham plain's later voyages and Map of 1 632. Perhaps the
appellation Kichesinmnimek was originally given to all the tribes and l)and8 liv-
ing on or near the "great river" {kltchl-sipi), to distinguish them from the
" small-lake men " {Nipissirininoek) dwelling near Lake Nipissing.
* Whence proljably the modern Adirondack.
On Algonkin Names for Man.
19
; from " Alyomme-
/</oiu]uins.'' This
lice of the Huron
ho spoko a dialect
Huckin" allies as
;e," " foreigners "
i- Lalleinant in tlio
-" call the Neutral
•eoi)le of a »U(jMy
;h speak languages
derstand, they call
1], of whatever na-
!rs.' " The Huron
than that by which
illed, — these tribes,
nated as '' from the
semblance between
ition from Algomme-
vonkins, Odishkiva-
e end of, and garni
aives a translation
seems to have re-
le equivalent.
3en, the same name
between the Ottawa
nen-dake, Abu. aga!'-
ther side' or 'over
nitagnez, the French
Mnetimes Aooenncots-
■k " these strangers,"
iuguished as ' Wood
tan, who translates.
Map of 1632. Perhaps the
r// the tril)es and l)and8 liv-
distiiigiiish them from the
kc Nipissing.
inaccurately, " constructeum dc vaisseaux "), Chip, wemitigoji-
wag (Baraga) ; Cree Weni'degoso-ak.
The English in New England were specifically described as
" Coat wearing " (Narr. Wautaoonanog, R. \V.), but soon re-
ceived the appellation by which Anglo-Americans, and since
the separation of thu colonies from Groat Britain, the in-
habitants of the United States, have been designated by all
northern tribes, — "Big Knives." *' They call Englishmen
(Jhduquaquock, that is, Knile-nien," Irom chauquog knife (R.
W.). In other dialects, ditlerent names for ' knife' are em-
ployed : e. g. Alg. and Chip, mokoman, whence Chip. Kitehi-
vwkotnan "an American " (Baraga), and KUchi-mokuman aki
[great-knife-land,] the United States ; Cree, Ketsimohkoman.
l)ti\. Mechan-ackican, ^Vlianschican (Heckw.), Miami Mitchi-
malsd (Volney), Blackfoot Omakiitoa,{xml Ankara iVeAsi/mss
all have the same meaning, though formed from different
ruots.
The Alg. Aganeslia, Chip. Jaganash and Saganash, Cree
Agdthdsu, Hakaiahsu, Miami Axdldchima (Volney), and ])ro-
bably Yengees — by double corruption, " Yankee," — represent
Algonkin imitations, more or less successful, of " English,"
" Anglais " or " ces Anglaises."
There are Algonkin names for " whites " and " blacks,"
l)ut these are without any generic affix to resirict their ap-
plication to ' men ': c. g. Chip. Waidbishkiwed " a white man
or a white woman " (Baraga), a participle (subjunctive) from
wabishkiwi to be whitish, pale, — and Miami Oudbkiloketa
" white skin " (Volney) : Cliip. Maketewiias and Cree Kia-
kUotviiais, " black flesh"; etc.
V. For Woman there are names corresponding nearly to
femina, mulier, and uxor. The first — whicli has been angli-
cized from east-Algonkin dialects, as " squaw," — as a gen-
eric suffix denotes one ' of woman-kind,' as a prefix signifies
' female,' without restriction to the human species. Eliot did
not employ it independently for " woman." In Gen. vi, 19,
he wrote pish nompai-geu-(v kah sguai-geu-oo " they (animals)
shall be male and female," but in Gen. v. 7, wosketomp kah
viittamwossis-soh ukkezheUh " male and female (man and wo-
so
J. II. Tnimhull,
ma.O created l.o them." With a suffix denoting ' living crea-
ture,' ' animal; - -/«''-«« (contracted by R. Williams to
.,,u,Uox) is 'a female,' without distinction of age or condition.
^o,s(j,<uskm i_sqm-o.hm) a female quadruped, Abu. skms-
sevi Del. ov.hqnrchim. It has the place of a noun-generic in
the Mass. nunk-squd young woman ; Narr. keeijxqmtw viv&n
(R. W.) ; sonlmqurt, contr. somq' (and Narr. munkH, U. W.)
mistress, sacliem-sciuaw ; etc.
Though this general name is found either as an indepen-
dent word or as an element of synthesis in every Algonkin
language, it is not easily traced through the published vocab-
ularies, in which it is often confounded with or represented
bv names for mulier and uxor. It does not appear under
''Woman," in the Micmac, Etchcmin, Abnaki, Massachu-
setts, Mohican, or Miami vocabularies given by Mr. Gallatin,
but it occurs in some of these under " Girl" or " Wite.
Old Algonkin, .-c/lw.Lahontan. Chip. <Xw. Baraga m/.-oyl^onp.
Ottawa, «/.-m,'. Bar, ekma, Tannor. rotawatomi. 6kw,:, nkqmh, Gal, o.,ai, que
Delaware, ocn,H-^-.< woman, Zei«b.; iiWh«'<- woman, 7""' '"*"-- ('l""'"-) «"•'■
Whipple. New SwG(l. oijito ; as a suffix, -o'lme. Ciimpanms.
Nanticoke, ach,,m,l,lke ; suffixe.l, in pecmiVMi girl. Gallatin.
Shawnee, «/«m«, -limin. s,r,ltl,.tlu. girl. Johnston; x's,uawo,vuh, dnnm.
s'siiiiaw the c thah girl, Whii)ple. , „ . , ..
Vowhatan, -usnaa, in w!ronam<r,a " woman (luccn"; dim.n. HS.,„amm g.rl.
Strachcy. [For "woman" Strachey has cmhtneppo, aUsseneppo ; J.
Smith creneiio ; of which 1 can make nothing.
Mohican, -«?««•• m peesqmso,. '^\r\, K.lwanls ; peesquMmh, Jcnks.
Mass. an.l Narr. .qua-, squ,\ female ; sqmas, Kl., sq.dws li. W, a female.
Ahnaki (Kennebec) skau- (prefixed) and u.sep. ■ska,e, female ; as m na ^
;LJ."fine," W,A».*k«„. "viergc." Penobscot, kosiushve. vn-g.n,
Etchlninr''t^- W«Q"A.s;.s girl, Kellogg; noi•8QUE-a^• "girls" [young
Micmac. -../«/«"> [-chh^ei, Maill-l insep. generic; contrnctde, -M. [Nn xkw.
^ar».c Vetromile, the e.p.ivalent of Aim. „a"^.to.^ Mass. mmisH,
young ;oman ha. l.eu improperly used by .some of the Cat 'ol c m.B-
sionaries (I find it also in Mr.,Kand's vocabulary-as nohow) for v.r-
"r In Vetromilc's "Indian Good Book," Na.r.l..t Mali stands m
?he' Creed, Kosary, etc. for "the Virgin Mary." The prefix Aim.
1"a- Ma;8. «»«/, "...A-, Chip, .ung.) means ' light ' (levis) ; m th.s
connection, ' not full grown '; con.p. Mass. nmkomp young man. Nax-
whet ( Vetr.) is the participle of »a".r/-»'«. . „ • i
Monuvgnais, schquow wouum ; din.in. s^uasUk girl: comp. U.hqmh [h.s]
oting ' living crca-
,• R. Williams to
ra«re or condition,
ipud. Al)n. skuh's-
a noun-generic in
. kecgxqiMW virgin
irr. saiinh, li. W.)
her as an indepen-
in every Algonkin
10 published vocab-
vitli or represented
not appear under
A.bnaki, Massaclm-
3n by Mr. Gallatin,
•1" or" Wife."
ngn, ccijuoi/, Ixjnp;.
vi, tihtnah, Gal., otiu^,que
, ijioii 'tfhit: (diinin.) girl.
(c. Cmupanius.
. Gallatin.
ton ; s'sijuawoivdh, diniin.
'; iliniin. iisi/iinseiiis " ji;\r\."
mhenejtpo, ailHseneppo ; J.
'jiqndthuh, Jcnks.
iqiidws, n. W., a female.
■sl-me, female ; as in na'tc-
nohscot, kosiuskimi virgin,
i•8QUE-a^• "girls" [young
lontriictdc, -ishk. [Na"xlwe,
mi"k-shoo(i, Mass. mnksqmi,
some of the Catholic rais-
ulary— a.s noksow) for " vir-
" Naxiohfi Mali stands, in
Mary." The prefix (Aim.
sans ' light ' (Icvis) ; in this
wnkoiiip young man. Nax-
girl : comp. tish(juah [his]
On Algonkin Names for Man.
21
wife. (:>iliriel. [ 7Vssnrrtwi- and the participle lensarawit mcA for"vir-
gill" in ihe Montiitrn. I'ravers, Creed, Confiteor, etc., in Vetronille's
liidiiiii (liiod /ill"/.', (c. K. Mini ein/iilnh trssiimwit Maria semper virgo,)
to an Indian denotes — like Kliot's iwmnnit — a chaste mah-. It U'coiues
feminine only hy snffixing the generic -shiiiin. Cimip.Alg. and Chip.
" iiiii/t.isiiiiiiir I uni in ii virginal state (a mn/i spOiiking),"))artieiple ^i/cv-
siiiKiirid, and '•iiiii linsaiiAwwEic I am a virgin [a female speaking),"
])t<]>. lalessiiiixKwiil. Baraga.
Nasknpi (Skoffle), schoir woman, si/'idnh girl, te.ilnimmet wife. Gahriel.
Cree, iskinii/i w [she is] woman, of woman kind. IIowsc.
niackfoot, di; a fern. ])refix to names of aninuds : but uki'ma woman, pi.
nk'ik.i; akiikiieii a'tr]. Hayden.
In the far-ott' Ariipoho isi' woman (and as feni. prefix), and the correspcmd-
ing Atsina ( Falls Indian) ilh'a and illic'i, we nearly lose trace of the harsh
guttural oCHi/iif of the Delawares and the Alg. ikwe.
For mnlier we fmd in diH'ercnt Algonkin languages at least
tJjree names :
(1.) Abn. phainem [^pliaivem'], Rasles ; mod. Penobscot,
j)''hancm (" sanoha ala phanem man or woman," Ozunkh.) ;
Mohican p^ghainoom, Jenks.
(2.) Micm. epit, pi. epitgik, Maill. ; aibit woman, aibitis
girl, n^'aihit-evi [my] wife, Rand.
(3.) Mass. niittamwoitsis, contr. mittnmwus El. (muftumwus
Mass. Psalter), used both for mvlier (Gen. ii, 22 ; iii. 2,) and
uxor (Gen. ii. 24, 25 ; iii. 8 ; Epijes. v. 22) ; Narr. mittdmus
woman, wife, R. W. ; Miami metaimsah, Schooler. Vocab. ;
Chip, mindimoie old woman ; mindimoiemisli , always pre-
ceded by a possessive pronoun, " wife, [my] bad old woman."
IJaraga. The affix -ish is derogatory, but is not always to be
translated by ' bad.' ' My poor old wife' is better — if, as is
not certain, Baraga's analysis of the word be correct. Tlie
Abnaki mana'-dagmeaso), which Rasles gives (with p'hainem)
for " fenime," is probably an equivalent of Chip, miudimoit;-
mish. Comp. Powhatan utumpneis, tumpsis, old woman
(Strachey) ; Menom. metamo woman (Schoolcraft) ; Shyenne
viatum'ha (Hayden).
The names for uxor need not be considered, in this con-
nection. For " my wife " the Indian usually said " my wo-
man," and in the second and third person the feminine gen-
eric (^-sque, -ktvt'') suffixed to a man's name or title designated
his wife : e. g. Chip, ogima chief, ogimdkwe the chief's wife.
2-2
J. H. TimiUM,
Tlio principal roHiilts of tlio analysis which has hecn at-
tempted in this |)apor may bo brietiy recapitulated, as tbUows:
1. There is no AlK'onkin name for Man ( = homo) com-
mon to liotli sexes and to all varieties of the human sfiecics.
2. The name of largest denotation is one wliich designates
Man as a being of the speaker's race and language, his like, of
his kind or kin.
:5. This name (Alg. inin-l, Mass. enhi-u) is related to tho
pronoun of the lirst person (Alg. nin, Mass. ni«, prefixed,
«' ), to the demonstratives animate and inanimate, to various
words expressing likeness, relation or identity ; when used as
an adjective, it distinguishes tho common, usual, and native,
from the strange, unusual, or foreign ; and it is tho theme of
a verb meaning 'to live ' i. e. ' to 1)0 a man,' to bo mch j.8
other men. Tho root of this name, if not identical with,
is not distinguishable from the root of verbs meaning ' to
think,' ' to be minded.'
4. Only the second n of tho name belongs to the root (In
or in). This is constant in all pure Algonkin languages.
The prefixed demonstrative (or reduplication) varies in dif-
ferent dialects as m-, >n-, ar-, el-, eth; et-, etc.
6. Names for Man = oir are formed by prefixing attribu-
tives to the inseparable noun-generic (-a"b, -Xi", -omp) de-
noting an adult male. With a prefixed demonstrative, this
generic forms the adjectWe na"be,nube,mmpe,'mfile': with
the a.ljectival inin- ( = am(-, len-, etc.) it designates, as in
Del. Ien-(ii»e, ' a common male,' i. e. an Indian man : with other
attriltutives, it forms class, tribe, and specific names, e. g. Alg.
anishin-abe, Abn. 8een-a"be, Mass. wosket-omp.
6. Inferiors, enemies, and Indians speaking a different
language, were designated as " slaves," " captives," " stran-
gers," or merely " somebodies "; collectively, as " the many,"
TiTroWoJ. Names given to Europeans and to foreign tribes
were sometimes formed from inanimate nouns, e. g. " Wooden
Boats," for Frenchmen ; " Big Knives," for Anglo-Ameri-
cans ; sometimes from verbs or participles animate, as " Eat-
ers of raw liesh," for the Eskimos ; "They who eat what
lives, or is alive," for the Iroquois ; " The Clothed " or " Coat-
Qit Algonkitt Names fur Man.
28
ill has l)ccu at-
atcd,as follt)W8:
= iiomo) com-
liumaii s[)ecics.
vliich designates
uage, liis lik*^-, of
H related to the
s. MiH, prefixecl,
imato, to various
y ; when used as
sual, and native,
t is the theme of
,' to be Mich J.S
t identical with,
'bs meaning ' to
;s to the root (In
^nkin languages.
Ml) varies in dif-
prefixing attribu-
1, -Xi", -()MP) de-
imonstrative, this
npe,
'male': with
designates, as in
1 man : with other
1 names, e. g. Alg.
ip.
iking a different
captives," " stran-
yr, as " the many,"
to foreign tribes
IS, e. g. " Wooden
for Anglo-Ameri-
animate, as " Eat-
ley who eat what
lothed " or " Ooat-
-0
wwirvrs," for Europeans. Kindred and friendly trilios were
oflcii (|«'si^na(( (I liy Hu«irgcograpliical position : [\w Xi/iisitlrlni-
vuk, (^Nii^issiiiiTs) uinl otlu'r trilx'S lictvvcen the Ottawa iind Iho
laki's weru, to IIm' Moiilugnoz, A";/i>umek " on tht; oilier sides,"
the Indians of Maine were " of the cast land " (^Abn<(ki), to
western Aljionkins.
7. For Woman, some modification of the root of Chip, /kwi';,
Mass. t'sgUA, ' fomina,' is foumi in every Atgonkin language,
as an inseparable generic if not as an independent name. It
is the common appellation of l)oth inulter and wxw, and its
diminutive, of puellti : but there are distinct names for mulier
and ujor in every language, as there are also iov Juvenciila and
virgo, though Eliot does not appear to have discovered in the
Massachusetts dialect either of the last two, and one has often
be(!u mistaken for the other in the compilation of vocabu-
laries and by translators.