Documentation:RelLex/Grammar and Dictionary of the Language of the Hidatsa
Grammar and Dictionary of the Language of the Hidatsa
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Language Name
Hidatsa.
Alternate Language Names
hiraaciré’.
Region
North Dakota, South Dakota, and Montana, United States.
Who
Washington Matthews.
Others Involved
Charles Paqueneau (Consultant); Unnamed Contributors.
There is no other information included in this resource about others involved.
Publishing Information
Published in two parts in 1873 (pp. 1–148) and 1874 (pp. 149–169) by Cramoisy Press, New York, Shea's American Linguistics, series II, nos. 1 and 2. This dictionary was reprinted in 1984 as one complete resource by AMS Press, New York.
How People are Cited
This dictionary does not cite any authors or contributors by name aside from Charles Paqueneau, who is cited in the Introduction.
How Information is Cited
This dictionary does not cite the source of any of its information aside from Charles Paqueneau and unnamed community contributors, who are mentioned in the Introduction.
Where is Information Coming from
Information in this dictionary was initially primarily gathered from Charles Paqueneau, "the only fluent, English-speaking interpreter of the [Hidatsa] language living" (p. xxv). However, any written information was lost in a fire, and the author was never able to gather information from Paqueneau again. After this, the author gathered most of his information from speakers. Regarding where information came from for this resource, the author writes, "I might have rewritten much [of what was gathered from Paqueneau] from memory but errors would probably have crept into it. Some of the remembered accounts, which I had subsequently corroborated by direct conversation with Indians, are embodied in this essay" (p. xxv). Therefore, information in this dictionary comes from unnamed speakers.
Tools and Framework used
This dictionary is available as a physical and digital book.
Access
The physical book is accessible through libraries. The digital version of this dictionary is open access through several sites, including the Internet Archive (requires a free account to access the whole resource) and the Library of Congress website.
Included Languages and Directionality
Hidatsa to English (1873 publication); English to Hidatsa (1874 publication).
Dialects Included
No dialect is specified for this dictionary.
Type of Dictionary
This is a bilingual, bidirectional dictionary introduced by a thorough description of the community and language.
How are Entries Organised
Entries are organised alphabetically by Hidatsa in the first dictionary section, Hidatsa Dictionary (1873 publication). Entries include the Hidatsa headword, the part of speech, the English translation (or description where no one-to-one translation is possible), information regarding its usage in word and sentence formation, and related forms, words, or pronunciations. Following this section, there is an alphabatised list of local names which include the Hidatsa headword, the English translation, and information about the location. Entries are organised alphabetically by English in the English-Hidatsa Vocabulary (1874 publication) and include the English headword, the part of speech, and the Hidatsa translation. There is a brief description of the sound system on the final page of the dictionary.
Prior to the two dictionary sections, there is an Introduction, which includes a thorough description of Hidatsa culture and way of life at the time of the dictionary's original publication in the 1870s. Following this, there is a thorough grammar detailing the language's structure. This includes information about orthography, phonology, word structure, and parts of speech, including nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, conjunctions, and interjections.
Other Features
| Feature | Included | More Information |
|---|---|---|
| Guide to use and understand | ❌ | |
| Audio | ❌ | |
| Images | ❌ | |
| Example phrases | ❌ | |
| Speakers marked | ❌ | |
| Dialects marked | ❌ | No dialect is specified |
External Links
Reference on WorldCat: https://search.worldcat.org/title/1045623579?oclcNum=1045623579
Find a digitized, open access version of the 1873 edition (part one only [pp. 1–148]) on the Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/grammardictionar00matt/page/60/mode/2up
Direct access to the digitized, open access 1984 reprint of both parts (1873 and 1874 publications) on the Library of Congress website: https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/public/gdcmassbookdig/grammardictionar00matt_0/grammardictionar00matt_0.pdf