MANDAN redux (was Re: Dakota Band Names and Pomme de Terre)

[Alan H. Hartley]

Erik Gooding wrote:
>
> See Doug Parks' and Ray DeMallie's work on this list in the Handbook of
> North American Indians, p. 723-24.

Item no. 9. on the list of eastern Sioux village names of Le Sueur
(1699-1702) is Mantanton. The -ton is Sioux -thuN 'village', and the
balance appears identical to MANDAN. Le Sueur apparently glosses the
name (or describes the group) twice, as 'N[ation] de la Grosse Roche'
and as 'village d'un grand lac qui se decharge dans un petit'. DeMallie,
the author of the HNAI article, doesn't give a retranscription of the
name.

This group (east of the Mississippi?) is a long way from the Mandan, but
the similarity in the form of the name is really striking, perhaps
showing a Sioux toponym/ethnonym type common to Santee and Assiniboine
(which was the source of the early 18c. French Mantanne).

If anyone can make a connection between Mantan and Le Sueur's glosses,
I'd much appreciate a note.

Alan