Awicakeya, le oie tokiyatanhan hiyu ca slolye wacanmi yelo!

[Clive Bloomfield]

Hello folks, This is my first posting here, so I am feeling a little  
diffident. For the past three years now, I have been, amongst other  
pursuits, an Australian self-taught (hélas!) student of Lakotaiyapi,  
(mostly using S.R. Riggs's Dakota Grammar (1893); E.C. Deloria's  
Dakota Texts (1932); Boas & Deloria (1939); Fr. E. Buchel's Grammar  
of Teton Lakota (1939); Prof. B. Ingham's (Lincom Europa) "Lakota"  
monograph of 2003, and whatever other authoritative sources from  
IJAL, etc, I can lay my hands on.)  At times one does feel like the  
proverbial client who had engaged himself for a lawyer! :) I've been  
a fascinated member of this list since February, and have been  
content to be still, and read & learn from the experts. But on this  
occasion I fear, curiosity has momentarily emboldened me! :( I am  
greatly perplexed about the precise etymology, (if known) of the  
Lakota word for "camera", given by Professor Ingham in his E.-L.  
Dict. (2001) as : "itooicacu", and by Buechel-Manhart (2002) as both  
"itooicacu" & "itocicacu" [DAR applies]. I am not concerned about  
variants here, but I am unspeakably curious about this words  
derivation : how to account for both "o's" in the first version of  
the word? (one being a locative affix, one presumes); where does the  
first "c" in that second version hail from?   I understand that the  
"e" of "ite" [face] has been elided before the first "-o-", as  
in ,for instance, "itowapi<iteowapi" [picture; photograph; portrait].  
Is the verbal root "icu" to take", I wonder? I suspect not. But if it  
is so, how to account for "-ica-"? Might there perhaps be some degree  
of "ikceya-woglakapi" contraction happening here? Could that "-ica-"  
conceivably be "-wica-"? I will spare you any more of my own  
speculations, but I would dearly appreciate any etymologically  
deconstructive illumination of this puzzling word, from any scholar  
or knowledgable person who can spare the time! :-). Thank you for  
allowing me to participate!  Toksa ake mitakuyepi, Clive Bloomfield  
of Melbourne,  
Australia.                                                               
                                                                         
                                                            P.S. Some  
years ago I completed formal tertiary studies of Ancient Greek &  
Latin languages & literatures. I also have a reasonable (working  
reading/writing) knowledge of Finnish, Hungarian & Modern Turkish,  
and being part of the Irish diaspora, have acquired sufficient  
Gaeilge over the years to speak the language to some degree, read  
fluently, and teach it passably. Hope that does not seem too much  
like "bravado" or "puffery" - I just felt that it was germane to a  
self-intro. to professional linguists & scholars. I am very aware of  
that proverb on self-praise! You should see the list of languages of  
which I am a total ignoremus! :-))  P.P.S. Might "itocicacu" be one  
of those legendary long-perpetuated typos [ first "c" for poorly  
written "o"??]