Colors in Dakota

[ROOD DAVID S]

The continuum from zi to ji (z^i, zhi) to gi is likewise an arbitrary one.
Here texture also plays a part in the way people assign a particular
perception to a word.  I don't know the details on this one very well, but
the English words blond, yellow, brown, tan, and pale cover essentially
the same space, though with different breaks.

A Dakota/Lakota example where that language makes finer distinctions than
does English is "white", which is either ska or saN, though those are not
interchangeable in D/Lakota.

I have never been able to get anyone to tell me the difference between sha
and luta for 'red', however, except to say that "luta" is restricted to
ceremonial contexts and/or names.

David S. Rood
Dept. of Linguistics
Univ. of Colorado
295 UCB
Boulder, CO 80309-0295
USA
rood at colorado.edu

On Tue, 25 Mar 2003, Louis Garcia wrote:

> Also why sometimes you will see the color brown (gi) translated as yellow? Ex: Nakpagi for Yellow Ear.
> Toksta ake,
> Louie Garcia