Yokuts language facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Yokuts |
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|---|---|
| Mariposa | |
| Region | San Joaquin Valley, California |
| Ethnicity | Yokuts |
| Native speakers | 50 (2007)e25 Including semispeakers |
| Language family |
Yok-Utian
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| Dialects |
Gashowu †
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Pre-contact distribution of the Yokuts language
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Yokuts, also called Mariposa, is a language that is almost gone. It was spoken by the Yokuts people in central California, especially in the San Joaquin Valley. Many things made it hard for the Yokuts language to survive. Diseases, the arrival of missionaries, and the California Gold Rush greatly affected the people who spoke it.
Today, thousands of people are descendants of Yokuts speakers. However, most of the different ways of speaking Yokuts (called dialects) have disappeared. The Yawelmani dialect of Valley Yokuts has been studied a lot by language experts.
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Understanding Yokuts Dialects
The Yokuts language had many different dialects, which are like different versions of the same language. Before Europeans came to America, there were about 40 distinct groups speaking their own forms of Yokuts. Here are some of the main dialects:
Main Yokuts Dialect Groups
- Poso Creek
- Palewyami Yokuts (also known as Poso Creek, Altinin)
- General Yokuts (all others)
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- Nim
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- Northern Yokuts
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* Chukaymina (also spelled Chukaimina) * Michahay * Ayitcha (also known as Aiticha, Kocheyali) * Choynimni (also spelled Choinimni)
Efforts to Save the Language
Most Yokuts dialects are no longer spoken, meaning they are extinct. The few that are still around are in danger of disappearing completely.
Until recently, dialects like Choinimni, Wikchamni, Chukchansi, Kechayi, Tachi, and Yawelmani had a few people who could speak them well. Some also had people who knew parts of the language. Sadly, Choynimni became extinct in 2017.
However, there is hope! During the early 2000s, Wikchamni, Chukchansi, Tachi, and Yawelmani were being taught to some children. This helps keep the languages alive.
Chukchansi Language Revival
The Chukchansi dialect is now a written language. An alphabet was created for it with help from a special grant. There is also a phrase book and a dictionary being made for Chukchansi.
In May 2012, the Linguistics Department at Fresno State University received a big grant of $1 million. This money is being used to create a Chukchansi dictionary and grammar books. It also helps provide scholarships and programs to teach the language. The goal is to bring the language back into everyday use and important ceremonies.
How Yokuts is Related to Other Languages
Language experts study how different languages are connected. Yokuts is an important part of a bigger group of languages called the Penutian language stock. Some experts are still debating how strong these connections are.
However, many linguists agree that Yokuts is definitely related to the Utian languages. Together, they form a language family called Yok-Utian.
The Delta Yokuts Mystery
The term "Delta Yokuts" refers to a dialect spoken by people who lived near Stockton and Modesto, California. This was before they were moved to Mission San Jose between 1810 and 1827.
Interestingly, Delta Yokuts has many words that are not found in any other Yokuts dialects or even in the nearby Utian languages. However, its sentence structure is typical of Northern Valley Yokuts. This mystery has led some experts to think that these unique words might come from an even older language that was spoken before Proto-Yokuts, or from another extinct Yok-Utian language.
Some experts also suggest that the original home of the "pre-proto-Yokuts" language might have been in the Great Basin. This idea comes from the fact that Yokuts has many words for plants and animals found in dry places. Also, Yokuts basket-making styles are similar to ancient styles from central Nevada.
See also
