Dakota zipA cognates.

Koontz John E John.Koontz at colorado.edu
Mon Oct 14 04:03:35 UTC 2002


On Sun, 13 Oct 2002, R. Rankin wrote:

> I've changed my mind on the possible loanword status of
> Omaha -zibe.  It turns out that there are quite a few
> related forms that tend to confirm it as a native
> (probably pan-) Siouan root.  It's useful to look under
> z^ as well as z, as there are clearly related forms.
>
> Quapaw:
> di-zi'we  'pinch' (di- 'by hand, pulling')
>
> Dakotan:
> yu-z^ipa  'pinch'
> pa-z^ipa  'make penetrate, sting, stick w/ pin'
>
> Biloxi:
> sipsipi'  'pitted'
>
> Those forms are probably all cognate via fricative
> symbolism.
>
> There are one or two other roots with the same form(s)
> that are probably just homophones.  They are
> exemplified in various dictionaries.
>
> One is to make a certain kind of noise.
>
> Quapaw:
> z^iz^i'we  'mutter'
> ziwe'        'cry out, scream'
> na-z^i'we 'flush out w/ the feet'
> Dakota had a somewhat similar term, but I forgot to
> write it down.
>
> Another is 'smooth, soft, mushy'
>
> Dakota:
> kaz^i'pa  'shave, plane smooth or flat'
> Cf. 'pancake' also.
>
> Winnebago:
> boozi'p  'mash by shooting' plus numerous other 'soft
> and squishy, smooth' terms.
>
> In any event, there seems to be quite a bit of evidence
> for John's analysis of the -zipa in 'bow' as the
> 'penetrate, stick a hole in' root.
>
> Bob
>
>
>



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