Dakota: verbs with 'hill' involved

["Alfred W. Tüting"]

 > (Rory) OP the is actually pretty complicated in its usage.(...)<<

Very impressing how Siouan languages can differ among them.



 > What is the difference between haN and he in Dakotan?  Alfred's
example seems to be using he to refer to two remaining buffalo
herds, if I'm reading it right.  Would a herd be considered
animate in the way a single buffalo would?  Or could the he in
this case be referring to the _set_ of two herds? <<



As far I can understand, there's no difference of that kind referred to
by you. As Buechel points out (and I gather it), the _he_ form is used
as a syntactic final and - as, according B., it seems - also has a
flavour of factuality/past. Learning this, I was wondering a bit about
B's present tense translation of the Buffalo sentence. Also, Rood's
example dialogue actually refers to present tense! Here it is again,
(although from my memory):

A: He otunwahe kin el tuktel owote tipi wanzi HAN(!) hwo?
B: Ka wiglioinazin kin hel isakib wanzi HE(!).

Yet, it clearly demonstrates the use of the two forms han/he



Alfred