Siouan tongue twisters?

[Saul Schwartz]

Hello,

Just wanted to share an amusing anecdote I encountered when I was in the
American Philosophical Society Library recently going through Gordon
Marsh's correspondence with Franz Boas. The following is in a letter from
Marsh, dated August 6, 1936, updating Boas on the progress of his fieldwork
with Chiwere speakers near Perkins, Oklahoma:

"I can say a few words and simple sentences and can ask for food at the
table. The Indians get a great kick out of hearing me talk. Sometimes I
read them parts of my text, a lot of which they have never heard, and they
say it sounds very natural to them and they all understand it. They are
pleased when I say 8888 for them. It is supposed to be the hardest thing to
say and some of them say they can’t say it themselves. It is simply:

kóge glelábliⁿ gléblaⁿ húyaⁿ glelábliⁿnaⁿ gléblaⁿ glelábliⁿ aglíⁿ
glelábliⁿ."

While I know that tongue twisters are a recognized form verbal play and
source of amusement in many languages, this is the first time I've come
across a Siouan one. If there are other examples of Siouan tongue twisters,
I'd be interested to hear about them.

Be well,
Saul
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