If you are a frequent reader of the blog, particularly Language of the Month, it is probably apparent that I am a frequent traveler, especially to the National Parks or other NPS units. Even during COVID, they provide a great opportunity to still leave the house, but in a safe, socially distant way that also gives me a great chance to explore our great American tapestry.
Earlier this month, I went just outside of Cleveland, Ohio to the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Although probably most notorious for a river that literally caught fire, leading to our modern EPA, the park rangers have lately also been highlighting the Indigenous people of the area.
Although we do not have much information about the specific languages spoken in the valley before the arrival of the Europeans, we do have some information about their culture, which can lead to educated hypotheses about the language.
The tribe that lived in the Cuyahoga Valley was part of the Whittlesey culture. This tribe most likely did not have any contact with the Europeans, as they were a scattered, loose network of tribes who mostly lived off the land, and did not engage in much complex trade.
However, we can reasonably assume they spoke a variation of an Iroquoian language, based on their neighbors such as the Wenro of Erie, PA. Iroquoian does not refer to one specific language, but to a language family, of which 11 currently exist and are used today. Many languages, both endangered and extinct, utilize the standard 5 vowels, and a varying but small amount of consonants. Iroquois languages are also tonal, meaning the inflection of a word, also called pitch accent, can alter the meaning of a word, similar to Mandarin.
One unique feature of Iroquois languages is with the addition of affixes, single words can function as full sentences. Verbs always contain the subject attached as a prefix, meaning that grammatically they can function independently, and nouns utilize prefixes to indicate number or animate/inanimate. Another distinct feature is a set of pronouns that refer to possessions that can be given away, like food, as opposed to those that cannot, such as body parts. Although this can result in some complex, even daunting, sentences and phrases, it gives the Iroquois languages a unique richness and depth that expresses quite a bit of information using only a few words.
All written forms of Iroquois languages derive from the romanized Cherokee language. Although Cherokee developed its own syllabary in the 1800s, missionaries romanized this syllabary, which was then used as a sample to help scribe other scripts for what were once only spoken languages. Being that many of these languages are extremely endangered, the worst situation being Tuscarosa, only having a dozen living speakers, a syllabary can go a long way towards preservation efforts.
Although the information at Cuyahoga did not feature any specific linguistic information, the efforts of the park rangers and anthropologists can provide us motivation that allows us to think about what the language may have been like. Even a small amount of information can help us piece together more about the Whittlesey people, and may provide insights that others can use in the future to have a better understanding of the people who inhabited one of the most gorgeous parts of our country.
Further Reading
https://www.nps.gov/cuva/learn/kidsyouth/american-indians.htm
Iroquoian Language Family