Water monsters

[Randolph Graczyk]

Back to buluksa'a 'water monster':

I am assuming that there is some additional material at the beginning of the
Crow form, perhaps bilV or balV.  Vowel assimilation does occur sporadically
in Crow.  The first person forms of the 'by hand' verbs look like an example:
1 bulu-, 2 dilu-, 3 du(u).  Assimilation also occurs in verbs with the
derivation prefix chi- (<ki-), again before 'by hand' instrumentals:
du'ushii 'set down', kulushi'i 'store, put back, put away' , as compared to
axshe'e win, chi-axshe'e 'win again'.  I also find assimilation occurring
sporadically in words like bilaxpa'ake 'people', which I often hear as
balaxpa'ake, and xalu'sshi 'run', which some people pronounce xulu'sshi.

I don't have any examples of ks (<kt in Hidatsa) reducing to preaspiration in
Crow, although that may happen in some cases.

If the beginning of the Crow form was bil-, it could be bili' 'water' .
Otherwise I don't have any good guesses right now.

Randy