Mohegan-Pequot language facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Mohegan-Pequot
Mohiks-Piqut Uyôtowáwôk
Native to	United States
Region	southern New England
Ethnicity	Mohegan, Montauk, Niantic, Pequot, and Shinnecock
Extinct	1908, with the death of Fidelia Fielding
Language family	Algic Algonquian Eastern Mohegan-Pequot
The location of the Mohegan, Pequot, Montaukett, Niantic, and Shinnecock, and their neighbors, c. 1600

Mohegan-Pequot is an Algonquian language once spoken by Native American groups. These groups lived in southern New England and eastern Long Island. Other names for this language include Mohegan-Pequot-Montauk, Secatogue, and Shinnecock-Poosepatuck.

Different groups spoke slightly different versions, or dialects. These included the Mohegan, Pequot, and Niantic in New England. On Long Island, the Montaukett and Shinnecock also spoke it.

Bringing the Language Back to Life

The Mohegan-Pequot language has been "sleeping" for about 100 years. This means no one spoke it as their first language. The last person to speak it fluently was Fidelia Fielding, who passed away in 1908.

Fidelia Fielding was a very important person for the Mohegan language. She was a descendant of Chief Uncas. She kept four diaries written in the language. Today, these diaries are helping people bring the language back. She also helped keep traditional Mohegan culture alive.

Another key tribal member was Gladys Tantaquidgeon. She was the tribe's medicine woman from 1916 until 2005. Gladys collected many tribal documents and artifacts. These items were very important. They helped the tribe get official recognition from the U.S. government in 1994.

In 2010, the Shinnecock and Unkechaug nations on Long Island started working to revive their dialects. They partnered with the State University of New York at Stony Brook.

By 2012, the Mohegan Language Project had created many learning tools. These included lessons, a dictionary, and other online materials. The project's main goal is for future Mohegan generations to speak the language fluently. Stephanie Fielding is working on a complete grammar book for the language.

Many of the language dictionaries we have today are based on Fidelia Fielding's words. She was also known as Dji's Butnaca, or "Flying Bird."

The Mashantucket Pequot Museum and Research Center has a special menu from 1992. This menu tried to translate words like "hamburger" and "hot dog" into Mohegan-Pequot.

People started writing down parts of the language as early as the 1600s. For example:

• In 1690, Rev. James Noyes wrote a list of Pequot words in Groton.
• In 1717, Experience Mayhew, a minister, translated the Lord's Prayer into Mohegan-Pequot.
• In 1762, Ezra Stiles, who was president of Yale University, collected Pequot language information.

Even prayers from the Baháʼí Faith have been translated into Mohegan-Pequot.

Big Eagle, the Chief of the Golden Hill Paugussett Indian Nation, said something important. He said, "Indian people must keep their languages alive. If the language is not spoken, it must be made to live again."

How Mohegan-Pequot Is Written

Historically, the Mohegan-Pequot language did not have a writing system. People passed down knowledge by speaking, not by writing. The only old writings were made by European settlers who met the speakers.

Today, people are working to bring the language back. They have created a standard way to write Mohegan-Pequot. It uses the Latin alphabet, like English. This system has 12 consonants and 6 vowels.

How Words Are Built

Nouns in Mohegan-Pequot

Nouns in Mohegan-Pequot are either animate or inanimate. Animate nouns are for living things like people, animals, and spirits. They also include things like the sun, moon, and stars. Some cultural items and plants are also considered animate, and you just have to learn which ones.

One way to tell if a noun is animate or inanimate is by its plural form. Animate nouns usually end with -k when plural. Inanimate nouns usually end with -sh when plural.

Animate nouns have four forms: singular (one), plural (more than one), obviative, and locative. The obviative form is used when there are two or more animate nouns in a sentence. It helps show which noun is less important in that part of the story. The more important noun is called the proximate.

The obviative is also used for a noun that is owned by someone. The owner is the proximate, even if the owned item is more important. The locative form shows where something is located. Inanimate nouns do not have an obviative form. Neither the obviative nor the locative forms have plural endings; you know if it's plural from the rest of the sentence.

Verbs in Mohegan-Pequot

Mohegan-Pequot verbs come in different forms. Some are "independent verbs," which can stand alone in a sentence. These have four types:

• Inanimate intransitive (for inanimate subjects, no direct object)
• Animate intransitive (for animate subjects, no direct object)
• Transitive inanimate (takes an inanimate direct object)
• Transitive animate (takes an animate direct object)

There is also a "conjunct form" of verbs. These are used in parts of sentences that depend on another part. They don't have the same prefixes as independent verbs.

People, Numbers, and Gender

Showing Who Is Doing What (Person)

Mohegan verbs show who the subject is by adding small parts to the word. These are called affixes. Singular forms often have prefixes (at the beginning). Third person (he/she/they) forms usually have suffixes (at the end).

For plural forms, there are "inclusive" and "exclusive" ways to say "we."

• Inclusive we means "you and I."
• Exclusive we means "I and someone else, but not you."

*The bold parts are the affixes.

If an animate intransitive verb ends in a long vowel (like á, i, o, or ô), the 3rd person singular doesn't add -w. In the 3rd person plural, these verbs add -k instead of -wak.

*The bold parts are the affixes.

Counting in Mohegan-Pequot

Here are the numbers in Mohegan-Pequot:

Showing Location and Absence

Where Things Are (Locative Case)

The "locative case" shows where something is. In Mohegan-Pequot, you add the suffix -uk to a word. This is like saying "on," "at," or "in" in English. The -uk ending is used for both singular and plural nouns. You understand if it's one or many from the sentence's meaning.

Example:

Talking About Those Who Have Passed (Absentative Case)

The "absentative case" is used when you talk about someone who has died. It can also refer to things they left behind. You add a suffix to their name, title, or property.

*The bold part is the suffix.

Here's an example: Niswi nusihsuk wikôtamak áposuhutut. This means: Both of my late uncles enjoyed cooking.

How Sentences Are Put Together

Showing Ownership (Possession)

In Mohegan-Pequot, there are two ways to show ownership: "alienable possession" and "inalienable possession." This depends on how closely the owner and the owned item are connected.

• Inalienable possession: This is for things that are a natural part of someone or something. For example, a person's hand is inalienably possessed because it's part of them. Family members, like a mother, are also inalienably possessed because of a strong cultural connection. These nouns always need special markings.
• Alienable possession: This is for things that an owner has, but are not physically attached to them. For example, a person's house is alienably possessed.

Nouns for family members and body parts are always inalienable. Some other words, like "home," are also inalienable. Different endings and beginnings are added to words to show inalienable possession. These also show if the noun is animate or inanimate, and singular or plural. If the owner is unknown, a special prefix is used.

The locative (-uk) and obviative (-ah) endings are added to the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd person singular forms. The sentence's context tells you if the word is singular or plural. Obviative endings are only used for animate nouns.

When a noun that is owned is plural, it must be shown. For animate nouns, the suffix -ak is added along with the possessive ending. The only exceptions are the 3rd person singular and 3rd person plural, where the plural form is the same as the singular.

*The bold parts in all charts are the affixes.

Connecting Clauses (Conjunct Verbs)

In Mohegan grammar, verbs in a "dependent clause" are in the "conjunct order." A dependent clause is a part of a sentence that cannot stand alone. Conjunct verbs have suffixes (endings) that show who the person is, but they don't have prefixes (beginnings). All the information about the person is at the end of the word.

*The bold parts on the chart are the suffixes.

Example: Mô yáyuw maci ákacuyôn. Translation: It was so bad that I am ashamed.

When a word is in the conjunct form, if its first vowel is a short a or u, it changes to a long á.

Transitive verbs (verbs that take a direct object) with inanimate objects also only use suffixes. The suffix changes depending on how the verb stem ends.

• For stems ending in -m- or -n-, the suffixes are:

* 1st person singular: -ôn * 2nd person singular: -an * 3rd person singular: -k * 1st person plural: -ak * 2nd person plural: -áq * 3rd person plural: -hutut * 3rd person plural participle: -kik * Unknown subject (passive): -uk

• For stems ending in -o-, the suffixes are:

* 1st person singular: -yôn * 2nd person singular: -yan * 3rd person singular: -ôk * 1st person plural: -yak * 2nd person plural: -yáq * 3rd person plural: -w'hutut * 3rd person plural participle: -ôkik * Unknown subject (passive): -muk

• For stems ending in -u-, the suffixes are:

* 1st person singular: -wôn * 2nd person singular: -wan * 3rd person singular: -k * 1st person plural: -wak * 2nd person plural: -wáq * 3rd person plural: -'hutut * 3rd person plural participle: -kik * Unknown subject (passive): -muk