While we know our northern friends may not feel it, in the South, Spring is
here. So we thought we'd share a few of our gardening sites appropriate
for this time of the year. Along with gardening, there's grilling, and getting
ready to diet so that you can fit back into that bathing suit this summer!
There can be no attempt in
the present limits to trace the etymology of
any large number of words in the several
Indian languages to a gestural origin, nor,
if the space allowed, would it be
satisfactory. The signs have scarcely yet
been collected, verified, and collated in
sufficient numbers for such comparison, even
with the few of the Indian languages the
radicals of which have been scientifically
studied. The signs will, in a future work,
be frequently presented in connection with
the corresponding words of the gesturers, as
is done now in a few instances in another
part of this paper. For the present the
subject is only indicated by the following
examples, introduced to suggest the
character of the study in which the students
of American linguistics are urgently
requested to assist:
The Dakota word Shante-suta—from
shante, heart, and suta,
strong—brave, not cowardly, literally
strong-hearted, is made by several tribes of
that stock, and particularly by the Brulé
Sioux, in gestures by collecting the tips of
the fingers and thumb of the right hand to a
point, and then placing the radial side of
the hand over the heart, finger tips
pointing downward—heart; then place
the left fist, palm inward, horizontally
before the lower portion of the breast, the
right fist back of the left, then raise the
right and throw it forcibly over and
downward in front of the left—brave,
strong. See Fig. 242, page 415.
The Arikaras make the sign for brave
by striking the clinched fist forcibly
toward the ground in front of and near the
breast.
Brave, or "strong-hearted," is made by the
Absaroka, Shoshoni, and Banak Indians by
merely placing the clinched fist to the
breast, the latter having allusion to the
heart, the clinching of the hand to
strength, vigor, or force.
An Ojibwa sign for death, to die, is
as follows:
Place the palm of the hand at a short
distance from the side of the head, then
withdraw it gently in an oblique downward
direction, inclining the head and upper part
of the body in the same direction.
The same authority, The Very Rev. E. Jacker,
who contributes it, notes that there is an
apparent connection between this conception
and execution and the etymology of the
corresponding terms in Ojibwa. "He dies," is
nibo; "he sleeps," is niba.
The common idea expressed by the gesture is
a sinking to rest. The original significance
of the root nib seems to be "leaning;"
anibeia, "it is leaning"; anibekweni,
"he inclines the head sidewards." The word
niba or nibe (only in
compounds) conveys the idea of "night,"
perhaps as the falling over, the going to
rest, or the death of the day.
Ogima, the Ojibwa term for chief,
is derived from a root which signifies
"above" (Ogidjaii, upon; ogidjina,
above; ogidaki, on a hill or
mountain, etc.). Ogitchida, a brave,
a hero (Otawa, ogida), is probably
from the same root.
Sagima, the Ojibwa form of sachem, is
from the root sag, which implies a
coming forth, or stretching out. These roots
are to be considered in connection with
several gestures described under the head of
Chief, in Extracts from Dictionary,
infra.
Onijishin, it is good (Ojibwa),
originally signifies "it lies level." This
may be compared with the sign for good,
in the Tendoy-Huerito Dialogue, Fig. 309,
page 487, and also that for happy,
contentment, in the Speech of Kin Chēĕss,
page 523.
In Klamath the radix lam designates a
whirling motion, and appears in the word
láma, "to be crazy, mad," readily
correlated with the common gesture for
madman and fool, in which the
hand is rotated above and near the head.
Evening, in Klamath, is litkhí,
from luta, to hang down, meaning the
time when the sun hangs down, the gesture
for which, described elsewhere in this paper
(see Nátci's Narrative, page 503), is
executive of the same conception, which is
allied to the etymology usually given for
eve, even, "the decline of the day."
These Klamath etymologies have been kindly
contributed by Mr. A.S. Gatschet.
The Very Rev. E. Jacker also communicates a
suggestive excursus exegeticus upon
the probable gestural origin of the Ojibwa
word tibishko, "opposite in space;
just so; likewise:"
"The adverb tibishko (or dibishko)
is an offshoot of the root tib (or
dib), which in most cases conveys the
idea of measuring or weighing, as appears
from the following samples: dibaige,
he measures; dibowe, he settles
matters by his speech or word, e.g.,
as a juryman; dibaamage, he pays out;
dibakonige, he judges;
dibabishkodjige, he weighs;
dibamenimo, he restricts himself,
e.g., to a certain quantity of food;
dibissitchige, he fulfills a promise;
dibijigan, a pattern for cutting
clothes.
"The original, meaning of tib,
however, must be supposed to have been more
comprehensive, if we would explain other
(apparent) derivatives, such as: tibi,
'I don't know where, where to, where from,'
&c.; tibik, night; dibendjige,
he is master or owner; titibisse, it
rolls (as a ball), it turns (as a wheel);
dibaboweigan, the cover of a kettle. The
notion of measuring does not very naturally
enter into the ideas expressed by these
terms.
"The difficulty disappears if we assume the
root tib or dib to have been
originally the phonetic equivalent of a
gesture expressive of the notion of
covering as well as of that of measuring.
This gesture would seem to be the holding of
one hand above the other, horizontally, at
some distance, palms opposite or both
downwards. This, or some similar gesture
would most naturally accompany the above
terms. As for tibik, night, compare (Dunbar):
'The two hands open and extended, crossing
one another horizontally.' The idea of
covering evidently enters into this
conception. The strange adverb tibi
('I don't know where,' &c., or 'in a place
unknown to me'), if derived from the same
root, would originally signify 'covered.' In
titibisse, or didibisse (it
rolls, it turns), the reduplication of the
radical syllable indicates the repetition of
the gesture, by holding the hands
alternately above one another, palms
downwards, and thus producing a rotary
motion.
"In German, the clasping of the hands in a
horizontal position, expressive of a promise
or the conclusion of a bargain, is
frequently accompanied by the interjection
top! the same radical consonants as
in tib. Compare also the English
tap, the French tape, the Greek,
τυπτω the Sanscrit tup and tub,
&c."
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Sign Language
Among North American Indians Compared with
that Among Other Peoples and Deaf-Mutes,
1881
