gray (1)

verb perceptual_visual_color

Proto-Siouan-Catawba

Proto-Siouan *xó•tE < **axó•tE

Proto-Crow-Hidatsa *xó•ta

Crow -xóosa in: awaxóosa ‘salt’ RG, GG:14, RGG:13

Hidatsa xó•ta ‘moldy gray’ J , awaxó•ta ‘salt’ J

Pre-Mandan

Mandan xótoʔš ‘it’s gray’ RTC

Proto-Mississipi-Valley *xó•te

Proto-Dakota *xóta

Lakota xóta ‘gray’ RTC

Stoney xoktá ‘gray’ PAS

Sioux Valley xóta ‘gray’ PAS

Proto-Hoocąk-Chiwere *xó•te

Chiwere xó•ǰe ‘gray’ RR

Hoocąk xóoč ‘be gray’ KM:3933 , xooc

Proto-Dhegiha *xó•te

Omaha-Ponca xú•de ‘gray’ RTC , xô•de ‘gray’ RR

Kanza/Kaw xó•ǰe ‘gray’ RR

Osage xóde, xódse , †xóce ‘gray’ LF:218b

Quapaw xótte ‘gray’ RR

General comment

Part of a full consonant ablaut set; cf. ‘hazy, bluish, cloudy’, ‘gray (2)’. Accent suggests a missing Proto-Siouan initial syllable. Judging from ‘hazy, bluish, cloudy’, q.v., only OVS preserves the expected initial syllable in this ablaut set. We have reconstructed all three related fricative symbolism grades together, taking into account the features of all.

Language Cognate Phonetic Siouan Meaning Comment Sources