bison

noun animal_mammal

Proto-Siouan-Catawba *wité•

Proto-Siouan *wi-hté•

Proto-Crow-Hidatsa *wité•

Crow bišée ‘buffalo’ RG, GG:33, RGG:2

Hidatsa wité• ‘cow’ J , mité• ‘buffalo’ J , wité•ká•ti

Pre-Mandan

Mandan ptį́•re ~ ptį́• ‘cow’ RTC , ptį́• tkúš ‘buffalo’ RTC

Proto-Mississipi-Valley *pté•

Proto-Dakota *pté

Lakota pté ‘bison’ RTC

Dakota pte- ‘buffalo’ WM:25a

Sioux Valley pté ‘bison’ PAS

Proto-Hoocąk-Chiwere *čé•

Chiwere čé ‘bison’ RTC , čhe•mį́ ‘buffalo cow’ RR

Hoocąk čée ‘bovine, cow’ KM:183 , cee

Proto-Dhegiha *hté

Omaha-Ponca tté ‘bison’ RTC

Kanza/Kaw ččé ‘bison’ RR

Osage hcé ‘bison’ RR

Quapaw tté ‘bison’ RR

Proto-Catawba

Catawba widé• FS

General comment

Cf. also the well known resemblance with Yuchi wedi ‘bovine’; wadįga ‘bison’; wedza ‘hog’ (LB). Ballard speculates we- refers to ‘non-Yuchi animate’. Nasal vowel in Mandan is not regular here (but cf. the nasal/non-nasal doublets in Yuchi). Mandan tkúš ‘true, real’. Hidatsa ká•ti ‘true, real’. Cf. ‘five (2)’ for the development of *pt in Proto-Mississipi-Valley.

Other languages

  • Yuchi wedi ‘bovine’; wadĩga ‘bison’; wedza ‘hog’ (LB). Ballard speculates we- ‘non-Yuchi animate’.
Language Cognate Phonetic Siouan Meaning Comment Sources