Southern Sierra Miwok

Words for characteristic animals (note most NOT descriptive)

bear 'yhyymaTi'
grizzly bear hus'o' (Yosemite dialect)
coyote hi'cu' or kajaaki'
deer hikaHh- or 'ywyyja'
jackrabbit TollokoHna’ (means 'big ears') or eplaali'
mountain lion hiiliica'
rabbit, brush maTTyja'
rabbit, cottontail py'ca' or tiiwe'
squirrel meewe'
ground squirrel hacciccYmeH- (means 'habitual stander')

Words for characteristic birds (most not descritive; names for new birds and animals encountered in California borrowed from neighboring groups)

condor mollok-
hawk (rt?) joTToņiH- or sujju'
owl (gh?) hohhoho'
Steller's jay kajka'jaH-
woodpecker cyttatakwila' or pakpak-
yb magpie 'accacca'
baby bird hyssasiH- (means 'habitual hatcher')

Words for characteristic plants (not descriptive)

black oak teleeliH-
Cal. poppy pukke'
digger pine sakky'
giant sequoia wohwohna'
manzanita 'eeje'
mariposa lily cikiwci'
pond. pine wassa'
white oak leeka'

edible fungus noccu'ti' (means 'crybabies')

Kuksu Cult (note rich vocabulary for ceremonial dancehouse)

The semi-subterranean dancehouse was known as the haņņi'. It consisted of (K1925:447):

[Broadbent]
tole - support posts forked on top cyne’ uprights of a
dance house
chawik - main rafters, oriented e/w
lolapa - cross beams, oriented n/s
shuchapa - brush roof radiating from the center, covered by grass and earth
wole - the back, west area of the house
oni - the two areas on the south and north
hawana - the area just inside the entrance
a door - always facing east
smoke hole - in the center kaapu' smoke hole
fireplace - in the center

Miwok Places and their Names (descriptive)

The following includes a list of places which are familiar to many Californians already, especially areas within Yosemite National Park. The original Miwok name for the place is given. As you can see, the names are often descriptive of the place named. The village names, on the other hand, have no known meaning other than the place of the village in question. Such names suggest that the location has been there for many centuries. Other Miwok place names are like this as well.

Current Name Original Miwok Name
Bridal Veil Falls puuhuunu' ('porcupine')
El Capitan ToTookon'ula' (related to ToTookon'- 'shooting star flower'?)
or related to TultakHna' = 'measuring worm'?
Half Dome tessejak- (from tesse- 'bangs,' 'eaves of house')
Illilouette Falls TyTylwijak- (means 'something shining')
Merced River wakaHlm(to)- (from wakaHl- 'creek')
Mt. Bullion kawwac- (means 'elderberry')
Royal Arches cokkinne' (means 'sunshade of baby's cradle')
Sentinel Dome meeTuula' (meaning unknown)
Tenaya Lake wyykat 'awaaja' (from wyyk- 'to light a fire'?; 'awaaja' = 'lake')
Wawona pala'can- (meaning unknown)
Yosemite Falls coolak- (means 'waterfall')
Yosemite People joSSe'Hmetih- (means 'killers')
Yosemite Valley 'awooni' (from 'mouth')
2 rocks east of pussi'na' ('mouse') and cakka' ('acorn cache'); the names were based on
Cathedral Rock the resemblance to a mouse nibbling at an acorn cache
Ribbon Falls <lung-u-tu-ku-ya> possibly related to lyņņyyti' 'band-tailed pigeon'
Vernal Falls pajwajak- (meaning unknown)
Mirror Lake 'awaaja' (means 'lake')
Glacier Rock 'yhyymaTi' lawwut- (means '(grizzly) bear skin')

Villages (note NOT descriptive)
current name of the location Miwok name location
Acorn Inn pytwy'hi' area unknown
Clark’s Mill palpalja' Mariposa area
Indian Peak cihci' Fresno R area
Grub Gulch nowwoc Fresno R area
Fresno Flat hicweeta' Fresno R area
Ahwahnee area wasaama' Fresno R area?

The Intricate World of the Acorn

Acorns were the major food staple of the Miwok, and many different words existing for the processing of acorns, as well as for the various dishes which were made. Notice that whereas the English words are all variants on the sing le word 'acorn,' the Miwok words are formed from several completely different roots. This points to the long development and richness of the Miwok vocabularly surrounding acorns, and is a feature of rich lexical domains more generally in all cultures.

acorn myjjy'
acord bread hut-ajja' or hytylla'
acorn cracker pasakkila'
acorn flour was-ajja'
acorn meal kawwan-
acorn mush 'ecaama' (medium texture)
acorn mush hyh-akkaly' or 'ylle' (thick texture)
acorn mush nyppa' (thin texture)
acorn soup hojuumaH'
acorns, pounded maS-akkaly'
acorns, shelled watukka'

The Complex World of Baskets

We have seen one example, with acorns, of the complexity and variety of Miwok vocabulary in areas that were vital to their survival. Another such example is in the domain of basketry. The acorns, after all, were gathered, processed, stored, and cooked in different kinds of baskets, each one suited to its different purpose, and having a different name. Notice as in the previous example, the baskets have completely different names - they are not just variants on the original word basket, as in English. Notice also that few of the names can be broken down into smaller, descriptive units, which suggests that the names are quite old (analogous to the situation with place names).

basket, general 'alymma'
basket, burden 'ciikele'
basket, coarse kaalaj-
basket, coarse oval for seed- caamaj-
gathering
basket, cradle hikkiH'
basket, dipper* polissa'
basket, flat oval for kamta'ji'
winnowing
basket, flat round for sifting hettal-
basket, large, for cooking* tojjun-
basket, large, for making pulakka'
mush or heating water*
basket, seed-beater camy''a' related to camta- = 'seed'?
basket, sifter ciņku'
basket, small, for soup* 'uhu''a' from 'uhuH- = 'to drink'
basket, trinket 'oosa'

Dividing Up the World: Miwok Words and Ways of Seeing

Every language divides up the conceptual world around it in slightly different ways, and in so doing, also creates concepts and ranges of ideas which are unique to that language and culture. Examples of such words from Southern Sierra Miwok are:

ex 1)

pollo- verb, 'to [make] contact with the supernatural'
pollopaksY- verb, 'to have a nightmare'
polloņHe- verb, 'to be in contact with the supernatural'
pollo'iH- noun, 'haunted, habitually in contact with the supernatural'
poolooTi' noun, 'ghost'

Notice that nightmares are connected specifically with a supernatural contact. There is also a completely separate word 'ukuHcņHe- which means simply 'to dream,' and which does not apparently connote supernatural contact.

ex 4)

camh- verb, 'to die'
verb, 'to be invisible – the moon'

This is an example of an idiomatic expression for describing the time of the month when the moon disappears – it is said to 'die.'

ex 5)

naņaaj- verb, 'to marry a man' 'to mate'
'ohaaj- verb, 'to marry a woman' 'to mate'
'ociijmhi- verb, 'to get married'

Whereas English has only a single verb, 'to marry', Miwok has two different verbs, depending on whether a man or woman is talking, plus a general verb. Both individual verbs are derived from the respective words for 'man' (naņņaH-) and 'woman' ('ohha'). Such a division perhaps suggests strong divisions of gender roles in the society, and the fact that marriage ‘means’ two very different things for the two people involved. The general word is derived from 'oci' meaning 'partner, comrade.' One could imagine that the choice of the general or the gender-specific word might be governed by how in particular the speaker was evaluating what marriage meant for him or her – getting a comrade, or getting someone who would fulfill specific gender duties for him or her.

ex 6)

jenpaanY- verb, 'to poison'
jenpa’ noun, 'poison'

tujkku- verb, 'to poison by magic'
tujjuk- noun, 'shaman'

The first word indicates poisonous plants, which can be physically given to someone. The second word indicates a completely different situation, in which supernatural power is used. The fundamental distinction between the two situations is underlined by the two completely different verbs.

The Miwok Family (note distinctions based on age at sibling level; also distinctions between blood aunts and uncles vs. marriage ones)

Notice that the Miwoks had a much more detailed terminology for different family members than exists in American English, with many distinctions being made which English does not make. This points to a rich and complex organization on the familial and supra-familial level, with various social roles, expectations and restrictions linked to various members of the family.
Notice in particular the importance of age, and of the mother's side of the family versus the father's side (i.e. the two different moieties). Miwok tribelets were organized according to patrilineal lineages, which occupied traditional settlement sites, so the difference between father's and mother's sides of the family was key, with the father’s side being more important, so making distinctions between the two sides in the language made lots of sense.
These settlements typically included extended families of several dozen people, so Miwoks were in much closer contact with a variety of different relatives on a daily basis than is the case for virtually all modern Americans.

aunt no Miwok equivalent
aunt, maternal 'ami(imi)-
aunt, paternal 'ami- or 'ene-
aunt, mother's brother's wife kuma'sa-
aunt, father's brother's wife 'annis- or 'ami-
brother no Miwok equivalent
brother, younger 'ate- or 'iti-
brother, older taaciH-
brother-in-law no Miwok equivalent
bro-in-law, wife's bro. wokkoli-
bro-in-law, sister's husb. kaawy- (also includes niece’s husband, aunt’s husband)
daughter tune-
father Tolla- or 'ypyH-
mother musse- or 'ami-
sister no Miwok equivalent
sister, younger 'yta-
sister, older teete-
sister-in-law 'olo- or henuulu-
son koco- or 'aņsi-
uncle no Miwok equivalent
uncle, paternal 'ypyypyH-
uncle, maternal kaakaH-
uncle, father's sister's husb. hewwa-
uncle, mother's sister's husb. ???

Respect Relationships

A Miwok man would traditionally not communicate with his mother-in-law and her sisters. Likewise a woman would not communicate with her father-in-law and his brothers. When such communication was unavoidable, speakers would address the person as ‘you’ plural.

Moieties

Culture Note: Miwok society was arranged into two "moieties" or "sides" (Miwok hejwejja' 'opposite side from oneself,' perhaps related to hejji- 'away (from)' or hejjemma- 'half'). Everyone belonged to one or the other. People were not supposed to marry someone from their own side. The two sides were:

Land Moiety/Bear Moiety tunakka' meaning unknown
'yhyymaTi' 'bear'
kosituna 'blue jay people' (joking) (K1925:453)
Water Moiety/Coyote Moiety kiky-''a' 'water ones' (from kikky' = 'water')
'ahle-jja' 'coyote ones' (from 'aheeliH' = 'coyote')
lotasuna 'frog people' (joking) (K1925)

Personal Names

All plants, animals and other natural objects in the world were believed to belong to one of the two moieties. When a child was born, a grandfather or other relative would give the child a personal name which referred to one of the objects characteristic of the child's moiety (determined through the father's side) (K1925:453). However, the names were often quite subtle, and did not refer directly to the totemic object. For example:

Hausu yawning of an awakening bear
Hauchu gaping of a salmon drawn out of water
Akulu looking up (at the sun)
Hopoto round (frog eggs hatching in water)
Sewati curved (bear claws)
Etumu basking of a bear

The bestower would have to explain to the family the reference of the name; the person so-named and their relatives would then know and be able to retell the story of the name.
The most common names refer to the bear and the deer on the land and water sides.
[See Kroeber 1925:455 for a list of land and water items]

Death Taboos

The Miwok believed that once a person died, their name should no longer be mentioned, and to do so was a great transgression. Instead, if one needed to refer to a deceased person, one said simply 'itte' ('that one') according to Powers (p. 349). If another person possessed the same name, they had to change it after the first person was deceased. [Q - 'death taboo' forms in Broadbent, such as 'ground squirrel' - ??]

Both in the case of death taboos and more generally, personal names were often not said, with nicknames being substituted in many cases [Source?]. Miwok reflected this by the existence of a special verb:

cokaHjņHe- 'to not say a name in order to avoid hurting someone's feelings' 'to observe a death taboo on a name'

An example of a new, death taboo form is:

'upuksi' ground squirrel (< 'upuksY- to be misplaced, out of place')
hacciccYmeH- ground squirrel, normal form

py'caaliH- jackrabbit (< py'ca' cottontail)
TollokoHna' jackrabbit, normal form