noun animal_mammal
Proto-Siouan-Catawba
Proto-Siouan *wi-hų́te, *wa-hų́te
Proto-Crow-Hidatsa
Crow buushí ‘black bear’ RG, GG:35, RGG:2
Proto-Mississipi-Valley
Proto-Dakota
Dakota húte ‘bear’ RR
Proto-Hoocąk-Chiwere *(wa-)hų́te
Chiwere mų́ǰe ‘bear, black bear’ JDH
Hoocąk hų́ųč ‘bear’ KM:1612 , hųųc
Proto-Southeastern *mų́•ti
Proto-Biloxi-Ofo
Biloxi oⁿṭí, óⁿṭi , †ǫti ‘bear’ D&S:242b, JOD
Proto-Tutelo-Saponi
Tutelo mūnti; mōnti, moñdi , †mų•ti N, H
Given that ‘bear > black bear (1)’, meaning ‘(little) black one’ is found in those languages that lack reflexes of *wi-hų́te, *wa-hų́te, this is most likely the original ‘black bear’ term. The Dakota term is not found in any of the published sources and was provided to RR by Gerald Red Elk, Ft. Peck, Poplar, MT. The somewhat irregular initial consonants (e.g. Dakota, Hoocąk), the various UA look-alikes cited by Miller along with the phonological similarity to the ‘bear > grizzly’ word suggest a good deal of borrowing and contamination in the ‘bear’ sets. Cf. Miller PUA #30 ‘bear’ NT vóxi; My hoóso; Cr huúceʔe; Hch húuce. Length and accent would be accounted for if the original were *wV-hų́te with an initial syllable, wi- ‘animate absolutive’ or simply wa- ‘absolutive’. Additional argument for this analysis derives from the fact that the sequence *wu is highly unstable in Siouan and commonly dissimilates. Here it is found intact, and is, thus, almost certainly secondary.
| Language | Cognate | Phonetic Siouan | Meaning | Comment | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|