What language do Indians speak? Indian languages ​​of Latin America

A common misconception is that there was only one Native American language in North America. In fact, in the area North America before the arrival of Europeans, there were about a thousand languages ​​- about 250 only in the United States. In addition, these languages ​​differed greatly from each other. Three people from three different areas, hundreds of miles apart, very likely could not understand each other at all. However, sign language was used in some areas to provide communication between different tribes. This is detailed in William Clark's book, Indian Sign Language.

Complexity of languages

The spoken languages ​​of the Indians were neither primitive nor simple; the grammar of many of them was as complex as in Russian or Latin. However, with the exception of the ideographic writing system used by the Maya and their neighbors near the Yucatan Peninsula, the other indigenous languages ​​of the Americas were not written before the arrival of Europeans.

language families

As in the case of the Eastern Hemisphere, linguists have found similarities and differences between the languages ​​of the Americas and grouped them into families. A family is a set of languages ​​with a common origin that have split over time into different dialects and languages. The process of formation of new dialects (languages) can be seen to some extent in how the English language acquired some differences depending on the place of use. A clearer and more understandable demonstration in this case can be the Romance languages ​​(Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian and some others), which all originated from the Latin language. The Romance languages ​​are a branch of the Indo-European language family, the dominant language family in modern world. English belongs to the Germanic branch of the Indo-European family. Russian belongs to the Slavic branch of the Indo-European family.

The vast majority of languages ​​in Europe belong to the Romance, Germanic and Slavic branches of the languages, while other Indo-European branches are present in Iran and India. In the last 500 years, Indo-European languages, in particular English, Spanish, Portuguese and French, have become the dominant languages ​​in many countries of the world, including almost all of the Americas and Australia. However, in Europe there are also representatives of other language families, for example, the Ural-Altaic family. Hungarian, Finnish and Estonian belong to the Ural-Altaic family of languages, Turkish belongs to the Turkic family of languages. The Basque language in Spain and France has no clear relatives anywhere else in the world.
In North America, therefore, much more linguistic diversity was represented than in Europe at the time of Columbus. On the territory of the modern United States, several language families are distributed, in contrast to Europe, where only two are dominant families.

Indigenous language families of North America

The maps on this page show the nine most important language families that have existed throughout the United States. They have been largely superseded by English over the past few centuries. These include Algonquian, Iroquois, Muscogee, Sioux, Athabaskan, Uto-Aztecan, Saleish, and Eskimo-Aleutian. In addition, there are many other smaller families such as Sahaptinskaya, Miwok-Costanoan, Kiowa-Tanoan, and Caddoan.

Some languages ​​such as Zuni, have no apparent family ties to other languages, which is why they are known as isolates. The maps on this page show those language families that were present in significant numbers throughout the continental United States; although almost all of them were also distributed in Canada and Mexico. Many other language families are represented in South America, where they were probably even more diverse than in North America. The Maya language family of Mexico and neighboring countries is also indicated on the continental map. The US map shows many tribes and languages, although there is not quite enough space to show them all.

Creating such a map with any degree of accuracy involves several insurmountable difficulties. Separately taken political and linguistic unions were not "countries" in the modern sense of the word, and, as a rule, spread over long distances, as if "blocking" the territory of distribution of other unions. Such clear-cut boundaries, as we see them on maps today, rarely existed. Many populations moved seasonally, adapting to the local climate. Almost all the tribes changed their place of permanent residence, moving west, as they could not withstand the onslaught of the Europeans.

But this movement and settling took place often before colonization began as well. In addition, in many cases there is great uncertainty as to which tribe lived in a particular area of ​​the map at a particular point in time. Based on this, the boundaries on the map should not be taken too literally. They are intended to create a general idea of ​​the regions where each family of languages ​​was distributed at the time when European civilization "crept up" to these places.

It needs to be clarified that the shaded areas on the map are not political areas where the central government ruled over one race, maintaining constant control within the indicated boundaries. Examples of a large area under the control of one authority were rare in pre-Columbian America. In addition, it must be recalled that the languages ​​of the same language family can vary greatly. Although in some cases, a person could go far, far from his place and find people with whom he easily established a connection, but this was rather an exception.

In most cases, two different languages ​​within the same language family will appear very different and mutually incomprehensible to speakers of those languages. To fully appreciate this, just take a look at English, which is part of the Indo-European family of languages, and then shift your gaze to Dutch, Polish or Hindi. Well, how?

Native American languages ​​today

Appearance European culture had a negative impact on the culture of the indigenous peoples of the North and South America. The population of the native civilizations in what is now the United States has declined from 20 million to its current level of less than 2 million. In addition to the reduction in the size of ethnic groups, languages ​​have also been "suffered" due to the spread of in English among the ancestors of those Indians. Most of the Indian languages ​​have ceased to exist, or are only spoken by the aging generation. Obviously, in the coming decades, with the death of these people, these languages ​​will also disappear.
Only 8 languages ​​​​of the indigenous peoples who previously inhabited the area, equal to the area the continental United States now have populations in the US and Canada the size of an average city. Only in language Navajo today more than 25,000 people speak in the US.

Language	Family	Region	Number of media
Navajo	Athabaskan	Arizona, New Mexico, Utah	148 530
Cree	Algian	Montana, Canada	60 000
Ojibwe	Algian	Minnesota, North Dakota, Montana, Michigan, Canada	51 000
Cherokee	Iroquois	Oklahoma, North Carolina	22 500
Dakota	Sioux	Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Montana, Canada	20 000
Apaches	Athabaskan	New Mexico, Arizona, Oklahoma	15 000
Blackfoot	Algian	Montana, Canada	10 000
Choctaw	muskogean	Oklahoma, Mississippi, Louisiana	9 211

Native/local American state names

Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, (New) Mexico, (North/South) Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Wisconsin, Wyoming.

Links

Sources

Maps are based on maps American Indian Languages: The Historical Linguistics of Native America (Oxford Studies in Anthropological Linguistics, 4) and maps Collier's Encyclopedia.

Indian (Amerindian) the living and dead languages ​​\u200b\u200bof the indigenous population of America are called (with the exception of the Eskimo-Aleut). There are more than 3,000 of them. In general, more than 27 million people speak Indian languages.
Major families of Native American languages ​​in North America(USA, Canada, a significant part of Mexico): Na-Dene (75 languages), Salish (38 languages), Algonquian (74 languages), Sioux (more than 10 languages), Iroquois (about 20 languages), Gulf (65 languages), Xocaltec (79 languages).
The Na-Dene languages ​​are sometimes genetically related to the languages ​​of the Old World (primarily Sino-Tibetan).
The Algonquian-Wakash macrofamily (filia or phyla) combines (according to E. Sapir) the Algonquian, Ritwan, isolated Beotuk and Kutene languages, as well as the Salish, Chimakum and Waqash languages ​​combined into the Mosan family.
E. Sapir includes the Hocaltec languages ​​(together with the languages ​​of Caddo, Iroquois, Sioux, Gulf, etc.) in the Hoka-Sioux macrofamily.
Mainly in Central America Tano-Aztec, Otomang, Maya families are represented.
About 1.5 million people speak the Tano-Aztec Filia languages ​​in the south and west of the United States and in northern Mexico. This branch includes the Uto-Aztec family. According to S. Lam's classification, it is subdivided into 8 subfamilies: Numic, Hopi, Tubatiulabal (in 1977 there were 10 speakers). Shoshone, Aztec, Pimic, Tarakait, Korachol.
The total number of speakers of the languages ​​of the Otomang family is about 1.2 million people. Some researchers include this family (together with the Penuti, Uto-Aztecan and Mayasoke-Totonac languages) into the large Macropenuti family. R.E. Longaker divides the Otomang languages ​​into 7 groups: Otopamean, Popolok, Mixteq, Choroteg, Zapotec, Chinanteq, and Amusgo.
The languages ​​of the Maya Quiche family (subfamily Maya with 4 groups and Quiche with 3 groups) are spoken in Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras, they are spoken by about 2.3 million people. J.H. Greenberg grouped the Maya-Kiche, Totonac, and Mihe-Soque languages ​​into the Maya-Soque family, which is further included in the hypothetical large Macro-Penutian family.
The largest families of Indian languages ​​in South America: Chibcha, Arawakan, Caribbean, Quechumara, Pano-Tacana, Tupi-Guarani. Many isolated languages ​​and small language groups remain outside the classification.
Most of the Chibchan languages ​​spoken in Central and South America have died out. About 600,000 people speak living languages. According to Ch. Lowkotka, the Chibchan languages ​​are divided into 20 groups.
The Arawakan languages, which are spoken by about 400,000 people from South Florida and the Caribbean islands to Paraguay and from the Pacific coast of Peru to the Amazon Delta, are (according to J. Greenberg) included in the equatorial group of Ando-Equatorial philia.
The Caribbean family has about 100 languages ​​spoken by about 170,000 people (Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, Venezuela, northern Brazil, parts of Colombia and the interior of Brazil). J. Greenberg includes these languages ​​(together with the languages ​​of Pano, Nambiquara, Huarpe, Peba, Witoto, etc.) into the Pano-Caribbean macrofamily.
The Quechumara family (more than 16 million speakers) includes the Quechua and Aymara languages ​​(both are official languages ​​in Bolivia, along with Spanish). Genetic links to other languages ​​are unclear.
The languages ​​of the Pano-Takana family (about 40 languages, the Pano and Takano groups) are common in Peru, Bolivia, Brazil (the number of speakers is about 120,000 people). These languages ​​(together with the languages ​​of Chile and Argentina, Chon, Mannequin, Ona, Tehuelche, Tehuesh, Moseten, Yuracare) are included in the wider macro-Pana-Tacan genetic association. A distant relationship with the Kechumara and Kayuvawa languages ​​is assumed. There are common material overlaps with the Tukano languages.
The family includes about 10 languages ​​spoken in the southeast of Brazil (35,000 speakers). It is part of a large macrozhe family (together with the Mashakali and Karazh languages). A distant genetic connection with the Tupi-Guarani and Bororo families is assumed.
The Tupi-Guarani family has more than 50 languages ​​spoken in Brazil, Paraguay and Bolivia (about 4 million speakers). It is divided into 7 main groups: actually Tupi-Guarani, Yurun, Arikem, Tupari, Ramamara, Monde, Purubora. A relationship with the Arawakan and Tukano languages ​​is assumed. J. Greenberg refers them, together with the Arawakans, to the equatorial group of the Ando-Equatorial philia.

Group on the den Chipevyan Koyukon Hupa Navajo Kiowa Apache Eyak Tlingit Haida Hoka Sioux group Subtiabatlapanecian Hoka Coaviltec Cherokee (aka Tsalagi) Other Iroquoian languages Caddo

Sioux Lakota Muskogee (scream) Algonquian-Ritwan Arapaho Blackfoot Cheyenne Cree Eastern Algonquian Ojibwa (Ojibwe) Shawnee Wiyot Yurok Penutian Maidu miwok

Oregon Chinchuk klamath modoc Sahaptin Tsimshian Mikshe juice wave Tano-Aztec Hopi Numic (Platoshoshonian) Taki (Taky) Aztec Pymic Kiowa Tiva

Indian languages ​​of South America Araucanian Chibcha macro same Paesian Quechua Tucano Caribbean Vitoto Arawak Jivaro Nambikwara pano Yanomansky Takan Guarani Saparo

The content of the article

INDIAN LANGUAGES, the common name for the languages ​​​​of the Indians - the indigenous peoples of North and South America, who lived on these continents before and after the arrival of European colonialists. The number of Indians usually does not include one of the groups of indigenous inhabitants of America - the Eskimo-Aleut peoples, who live not only in America, but also in Chukotka and the Commander Islands ( the Russian Federation). The Eskimos are very different from their Indian neighbors in physical appearance. However, the racial diversity of the Indians of North and South America is also extremely high, so the non-inclusion of the Eskimos and Aleuts among the Indians is motivated mainly by tradition.

The diversity of Indian languages ​​is so great that it is comparable to the diversity of human languages ​​in general, so the term "Indian languages" is very arbitrary. The American linguist J. Greenberg, who came up with the so-called "Amerindian" hypothesis, proposed to unite all Indian languages, except for the languages ​​of the Na-Dene family, into a single macrofamily - Amerindian. However, most specialists in Native American languages ​​were skeptical about this hypothesis and the "mass comparison of languages" methodology behind it.

It is rather difficult to specify the exact number of Indian languages ​​and to compile an exhaustive list of them. This is due to a number of circumstances. First, it is necessary to distinguish between modern and pre-colonization language pictures. It is believed that before colonization in North America (north of the Aztec empire, located in central Mexico) there were up to four hundred languages, and now there are just over 200 of them left in this territory. At the same time, many languages ​​\u200b\u200bdisappeared before they were ever recorded . On the other hand, such languages ​​as, for example, Quechua in South America, over the past centuries have greatly expanded the territorial and ethnic base of their distribution.

The second obstacle in the way of counting Indian languages ​​is connected with the problem of distinguishing between language and dialect. Many languages ​​exist in several territorial varieties called dialects. Often the question of whether two closely related forms of speech should be considered different languages or dialects of the same language, it is very difficult to decide. When solving the language/dialect dilemma, several heterogeneous criteria are taken into account.

1) Mutual intelligibility: is mutual understanding possible between speakers of two idioms without prior training? If yes, then these are dialects of the same language; if not, then these are different languages.

2) Ethnic identity: very similar (or even identical) idioms can be used by groups that perceive themselves as different ethnic groups; such idioms can be considered different languages.

3) Social Attributes: An idiom that is very close to a certain language may have certain social attributes (for example, statehood), which makes it considered a special language.

4) Tradition: Situations of the same type can be treated differently simply because of tradition.

From a physical and geographical point of view, America is usually divided into North and South. From the political - to the North (including Canada, the USA and Mexico), Central and South. From an anthropological and linguistic point of view, America is traditionally divided into three parts: North America, Mesoamerica and South America. The northern and southern borders of Mesoamerica are understood differently - sometimes on the basis of modern political divisions (then, for example, the northern border of Mesoamerica is the border of Mexico and the United States), and sometimes in terms of pre-colonial cultures (then Mesoamerica is the sphere of influence of the Aztec and Mayan civilizations ).

Classifications of Indian languages.

The history of the classification of the languages ​​of North America has more than a century and a half. The forerunner of the genetic classification of North American languages ​​was P. Duponceau, who drew attention to the typological similarity of many of these languages ​​(1838), namely, their polysyntheticism. The authors of the first proper genetic classifications were A. Gallatin (1848) and J. Trumbull (1876). But the classification that bears the name of John Wesley Powell turned out to be really comprehensive and very influential. Major Powell (1834–1902) was a traveler and naturalist who worked for the Bureau of American Ethnology. The classification prepared by Powell and his collaborators identified 58 language families in North America (1891). Many of the families he singled out have retained their status in the modern classification. In the same 1891, another important classification of American languages ​​appeared, belonging to Daniel Brinton (1891), who introduced a number of important terms (for example, "Uto-Aztecan family"). In addition, Brinton's classification included the languages ​​of not only North but also South America. More recent classifications of North American languages ​​have been based on Powell's, and South American languages ​​on Brinton's.

Shortly after the Powell classification was published, attempts were made to reduce the number of North American language families. Californian anthropologists A. Kroeber and R. Dixon radically reduced the number of language families in California, in particular, they postulated the associations of “hoka” and “penuti”. The reductionist tendency of the early 20th century. found its culmination in the well-known classification of E. Sapir (1921, 1929). This classification included only six macrofamilies (stocks) of North American languages: Eskimo-Aleut, Algonquian-Wakash, Na-Dene, Penutian, Hokan-Siouan and Aztec-Tanoan. Sapir considered this classification as a preliminary hypothesis, but later it was reproduced without the necessary reservations. As a result, the impression was that the Algonquian-Wakashian or Hokan-Siouan associations are the same recognized associations of the New World as, say, the Indo-European or Uralic languages ​​in Eurasia. The reality of the Eskimo-Aleut family was later confirmed, and the remaining five Sepir macrofamilies were revised or rejected by most experts.

The opposition between linguists prone to uniting (lumping) and prone to dividing dubious groups (splitting) persists in American studies to this day. Beginning in the 1960s, the second of these trends began to gain momentum, its manifesto was the book Indigenous languages ​​of the Americas(ed. L. Campbell and M. Mitun, 1979). In this book, the most conservative approach is taken, the authors list 62 language families (including some families of Mesoamerica) between which there is no established relationship. More than half of these families are genetically isolated single languages. This concept is based on a qualitatively new level of knowledge about most North American languages ​​compared to the time of Sapir: during the 1960s–1970s, detailed comparative historical work was carried out on all nuclear families in North America. This work has been actively continued during the last two decades. "Classification of Consensus" was published in the 17th volume ( Languages) fundamental Handbook of North American Indians(ed. A. Goddard, 1996). This classification, with minor changes, repeats the classification of 1979, it also includes 62 genetic families.

The first detailed classification of South American languages ​​was proposed in 1935 by the Czech linguist C. Lowkotka. This classification includes 113 language families. In the future, a lot of work on the classification of the languages ​​of the Amazon was carried out by the Brazilian linguist A. Rodriguez. One of the most modern and conservative classifications belongs to T. Kaufman (1990).

Linguistic diversity and linguo-geographic features of America.

The American linguist R. Austerlitz formulated an extremely important observation: America is characterized by a much higher genetic density than Eurasia. The genetic density of a territory is the number of genetic associations represented in this territory, divided by the area of ​​this territory. The area of ​​North America is several times smaller than the area of ​​Eurasia, and the number of language families, on the contrary, in America is much larger. This idea was developed in more detail by J. Nichols (1990, 1992); according to her, the genetic density of Eurasia is about 1.3, while in North America it is 6.6, in Mesoamerica - 28.0, and in South America - 13.6. Moreover, in America there are areas with a particularly high genetic density. These are, in particular, California and the northwest coast of the United States. This area is an example of a "closed language zone" with high linguistic diversity. Confined zones usually occur in specific geographic conditions; factors contributing to their occurrence are ocean coasts, mountains, other insurmountable obstacles, as well as favorable climatic conditions. California and the northwest coast, sandwiched between mountains and ocean, fit these criteria perfectly; it is not surprising that the genetic density here reaches record levels (in California - 34.1). On the contrary, the center of North America (the area of ​​the Great Plains) is an “extended zone”, only a few families are distributed there, occupying a fairly large area, the genetic density is 2.5.

The settlement of America and the prehistory of Indian languages.

The settlement of America took place through Beringia - the zone of the modern Bering Strait. However, the question of the time of settlement remains debatable. One point of view, based on archaeological data and dominant for a long time, is that the main prehistoric population migrated to America 12,000 to 20,000 years ago. Recently, more and more evidence has been accumulating about a completely different scenario. Among these evidences there are also linguistic ones. Thus, J. Nichols believes that there are two ways to explain the extraordinary linguistic diversity of America. If we adhere to the hypothesis of a single wave of migration, then in order to achieve the current level of genetic diversity, at least 50 thousand years should have passed since this wave. If we insist on a later start of migration, then the existing diversity can be explained only by a series of migrations; in the latter case, one has to assume that genetic diversity was transferred from the Old World to the New. It is most probable that both are true, i.e. that the settlement of America began very early and proceeded in waves. In addition, archaeological, genetic and linguistic evidence suggests that the bulk of the proto-American population migrated not from the depths of Eurasia, but from the Pacific region.

Major families of Indian languages.

The largest language families in America are listed below. We will consider them, gradually moving from north to south. In doing so, we will not make a distinction between living and dead languages.

Na-dene family

(Na-Dene) includes the Tlingit language and the Eyak-Athabaskan languages. The latter are divided into the Eyak language and the rather compact Athabaskan (Athabaskan ~ Athapaskan) family, which includes about 30 languages. The Athabaskan languages ​​are spoken in three areas. First, they occupy inland Alaska and almost the entire western part of Canada in one massif. In this area is the ancestral home of the Athabaskans. The second Athabaskan range is Pacific: these are several enclaves in the states of Washington, Oregon and northern California. The languages ​​of the third area are common in the southwestern United States. The South Athabaskan languages, otherwise known as Apache, are closely related. These include the most numerous North American language in terms of the number of speakers - Navajo ( cm. Navajo). Sapir attributed the Haida language to Na-Dene, but after repeated testing, this hypothesis was rejected by most experts, and today Haida is considered an isolate.

Salishskaya

(Salishan) family is distributed compactly in southwestern Canada and the northwestern United States. This family includes about 23 languages ​​and is divided into five groups - continental and four coastal: Central Salish, Tsamos, Bella-Kula and Tillamook. To date, there are no proven external ties of the Salish family.

Wakash family

(Wakashan) common along the coast British Columbia and on Vancouver Island. It includes two branches - northern (Kwakiutl) and southern (Nutkan). Each of the branches includes three languages.

Alga

The (Algic) family consists of three branches. One of them is the traditionally distinguished Algonquian family, distributed in the center and east of the continent. The other two branches are the Wiyot and Yurok languages, which are located in a completely different area - in northern California. The relationship of the Wiyot and Yurok languages ​​(sometimes referred to as Ritwan) with the Algonquian languages ​​has long been in question, but is now recognized by many experts. The question of the ancestral home of the Algian family - in the west, in the center or in the east of the continent - remains open. The Algonquian family includes about 30 languages ​​and occupies almost the entire east and center of Canada, as well as the entire area around the Great Lakes (except for the Iroquoian territory, see below) and the northern part of the Atlantic coast of the United States (to North Carolina in the south). Among the Algonquian languages, a compact group of closely related Eastern Algonquian languages ​​stands out. Other languages ​​almost do not form groups within the Algonquian family, but come directly from the common Algonquian "root". Some Algonquian languages ​​- Blackfoot, Sheyenne, Arapaho - spread especially far west into the prairie area.

Siouan

(Siouan) family includes about two dozen languages ​​and occupies the main part of the prairie area in a compact spot, as well as several enclaves on the Atlantic coast and in the southeastern United States. The Catawba and Wokkon languages ​​(Southeastern United States) are now regarded as a distant group of the Siouan family. The remaining Siouan languages ​​are divided into four groups—Southeastern, Mississippi Valley, Upper Missouri, and Mandan. The largest is the Mississippi group, which in turn is divided into four subgroups - Dhegiha, Chiwere, Winnebago and Dakota ( cm. DAKOTA). Probably the relationship of the Siouan languages ​​with the Iroquoian and Caddoan languages. Other previously proposed associations of the Siouan family are considered unproven or erroneous; the Yuchi language is considered an isolate.

Iroquois

The (Iroquoian) family contains about 12 languages. The Iroquoian family has a binary structure: the southern group consists of one Cherokee language, all other languages ​​are included in the northern group. Northern languages ​​are spoken in the region of Lakes Erie, Huron and Ontario and along the St. Lawrence River, as well as further south on the Atlantic coast of the United States. The Cherokee is even further southwest.

Caddoan

(Caddoan) family includes five languages ​​that occupy a chain of enclaves elongated from north to south in the prairie area. The Caddo language is further apart from the other Caddoan languages ​​than they are from each other. At present, the relationship between the Caddoan and Iroquois families is considered practically proven.

Muscogeyskaya

(Muskogean) family includes about 7 languages ​​and occupies a compact region in the extreme southeast of the United States - east of the lower Mississippi, including Florida. The hypothesis about the unification of the Muscogean languages ​​with four other languages ​​of the same area under the name of the Gulf macrofamily, proposed by M. Haas, has now been rejected; these four languages ​​(Natchez, Atakapa, Chitimasha, and Tunic) are considered isolates.

Kiowa-tanoan

(Kiowa-Tanoan) family includes the Kiowa language of the southern prairie range and three Pueblo languages ​​of the Southwestern United States (along with the languages ​​of the Keresian family, the Uto-Aztecan Hopi, and the Zuni isolate).

The so-called "Penutian" (Penutian) macrofamily, proposed at the beginning of the 20th century. Kroeber and Dixon, is extremely problematic and as a whole is not recognized by specialists. Within the "Penutian" association, the most encouraging are the links between the Klamath language, the Molala language (both in Oregon), and the Sahaptin languages ​​(Oregon, Washington); this association is called the "Penutian languages ​​​​of the Plateau" (4 languages). Another relationship, which is considered as a reliable genetic link within the framework of the "Penutian" association, is the unity of the Miwok family (7 languages) and the Kostanoan family (8 languages); this association is called the "Yutian" (Utian) family and is located in northern California. In total, the hypothetical “Penutian” association, in addition to the two already named, includes 9 more families: the Tsimshian family (2 languages), the Chinook family (3 languages), the Alsey family (2 languages), the Siuslau language, the Kus family (2 languages), Takelma -Kalapuyan family (3 languages), Vintuan family (2 languages), Maiduan family (3 languages) and Yokuts family (minimum 6 languages). Sapir also attributed to the Penutian macrofamily the language of Cayuce (Oregon) and the "Mexican Penutian" - the Mihe-Soke family and the Uave language.

Kochimi Yuman

(Cochimn-Yuman) family distributed in the border region between the US and Mexico. The Kochimi languages ​​are found in the middle part of Baja California, and the Yuman family, numbering ten languages, is common in western Arizona, southern California and northern Baja California. The Yuman family was classified as a "Hokan" (Hokan) macrofamily. Now the Kochimi-Yuman family is considered as the core of this hypothetical association. Most Likely genetic connections Kochimi-Yuman languages ​​with Pomoan languages ​​spoken in northern California (the Pomoan family includes seven languages). According to modern ideas, the “Khokan” association is as unreliable as the Penutian one; in addition to those already mentioned, it includes 8 independent families: the Seri language, the Washo language, the Salin family (2 languages), the Yana languages, the Palainihan family (2 languages), the Shastan family (4 languages), the Chimariko language and the Karok language. Sapir also included Yahyk Esselen and the now extinct Chumash family, which included several languages, among the Khokan languages.

Uto-Aztec

(Uto-Aztecan) family - the largest in the western United States and in Mexico. There are about 22 Uto-Aztecan languages ​​in the United States. These languages ​​fall into five main groups: Nam, Tak, Tubatulabal, Hopi, and Tepiman. A number of other groups are present in Mexico, including the Aztec languages ​​( cm. AZTEC LANGUAGES). The Uto-Aztecan languages ​​occupy the entire Great Basin of the United States and large areas in the northwest and center of Mexico. The Comanche language is spoken in the south of the prairie area. Numerous external links of the Uto-Aztecan languages ​​proposed in the literature are unreliable.

The last two families considered are partly located in Mexico. Next, we move on to families that are represented exclusively in Mesoamerica.

Otomangean

The (Otomanguean) family includes many dozens of languages ​​and is distributed mainly in central Mexico. The seven groups within the Otomanguean family are Amusgo, Chiapyanek-Mange, Chinanteco, Mixteco, Otomy-Pame, Popolok and Zapotec.

Totonac

(Totonacan) family distributed in east-central Mexico and includes two branches - totonac and tepehua. The Totonac family includes about a dozen languages.

mihe-soke family

(Mixe-Zoque) is common in southern Mexico and includes about two dozen languages. The two main branches of this family are mihe and soke.

Mayan family

(Mayan) - the largest family of the south of Mexico, Guatemala and Belize. There are currently between 50 and 80 Mayan languages. Cm. MAYAN LANGUAGES.

Misumalpanskaya

(Misumalpan) family has four languages ​​located in the territory of El Salvador, Nicaragua and Honduras. Perhaps this family is genetically related to the Chibchan ( see below).

Chibchanskaya

The (Chibchan) language family is transitional between the languages ​​of Mesoamerica and South America. Related languages ​​are spoken in Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Venezuela and Colombia. The Chibchan family includes 24 languages.

Further families under consideration are already South American proper, although some of them have peripheral representatives in Central America.

Arawak

(Arawakan), or Maipurean, the family is distributed almost throughout South America, in a number of Central American countries up to Guatemala and all the islands of the Caribbean, including Cuba. The center of gravity of this family, however, falls on the western Amazon. The Arawakan family consists of five main branches: central, eastern, northern (including the Caribbean, Inland, and Wapishana groups), southern (including the Bolivia-Paran, Campa, and Purus groups), and western.

Caribbean

(Káriban) - the main family of the north of South America. (We emphasize that the Caribbean group (Caribbean) mentioned in the previous paragraph does not belong to this family, but to the Arawak. Such homonymy arose due to the fact that the Caribbean peoples from the mainland conquered the Arawak peoples of the islands and in some cases transferred their self-name to them. Caribbean the family includes 43 languages.

In the western Amazon (about the same place as the Arawak family) are languages tucanoan(Tukánoan) family. This family includes 14 languages.

The Andean region contains languages Quechuan(Quechuan) and Aymaran(Aymaran) families. The great languages ​​of South America, Quechua and Aymara, belong to these families. The Quechuan family includes several Quechua languages, referred to in other terminology as dialects ( cm. QUECHUA). The Aymaran family, or Khaki (Jaquí), consists of two languages, one of which is Aymara ( cm. AYMARA). Many experts suggest that these two families are related and form the Kechumara macrofamily, other linguists explain the similarity with borrowings.

Located in the southern foothills of the Andes Panoan(Panoan) family. It is divided into eight branches, named on a geographical basis (eastern, north-central, etc.), and includes 28 languages.

There is a family in eastern Brazil same(Je), which includes 13 languages. There is a hypothesis that languages same together with 12 more small families (from 1 to 4 languages ​​each) form a macrofamily macro same. TO macro same include, in particular, the Chiquitano language, the Bororoan family, the Mashakali family, the Karazhá languages, etc.

Along the periphery of the range, macro-same, i.e. virtually throughout Brazil and surrounding areas distributed tupi(Tupian) macrofamily. It includes about 37 languages. The Tupi macrofamily includes a core - the Tupi-Guarani family, which consists of eight branches: Guarani, Guarayu, Tupi proper, Tapirapé, Kayabi, Parintintin, Camayura and Tucuñape. The Guarani branch includes, in particular, one of the great South American languages ​​​​- the Paraguayan language Guarani ( cm. GUARANI). In addition to the Tupi-Guarani languages, eight more separate languages ​​​​are included in the Tupi association (their genetic status has not been finally established).

sociolinguistic information.

American Indian languages ​​are extremely diverse in their sociolinguistic characteristics. The current state of the Indian languages ​​developed under the conditions European colonization and subsequent existence as ethnic minority languages. However, in state of the art clearly visible are the reflexes of the social and demographic situation that took place in the pre-colonial period. There are many individual differences in the modern sociolinguistic status of Indian languages, but there are features common to entire areas. In this sense, it is convenient to consider North America, Mesoamerica and South America each separately.

Despite the high linguistic genetic density of North America, population density in the pre-contact period was low. Most estimates of the Indian population prior to colonization are in the region of 1 million. Indian tribes, as a rule, did not number more than a few thousand people. This situation has been preserved to the present day: the Indians are a very small minority in the USA and Canada. However, there are several tribes, the number of which is measured in tens of thousands - Navajo, Dakota, Cree, Ojibwa, Cherokee. Many other tribes during the 18th–20th centuries completely disappeared (as a result of genocide, epidemics, assimilation) or survived as ethnic groups, but lost their language. According to the data of A. Goddard (based, in turn, on the information of M. Krauss, B. Grimes and others), 46 Indian and Eskimo-Aleut languages ​​have survived in North America, which continue to be assimilated by a fairly large number of children as native ones. In addition, there are 91 languages ​​that are spoken enough big number adults, and 72 languages ​​spoken only by a few older people. About 120 more languages ​​that were somehow registered have disappeared. Almost all North American Indians speak English (or French or Spanish). In the last one or two decades, in a number of places in the United States and Canada, Indians and linguists have made vigorous efforts to revive indigenous languages.

The densely populated empires of the Maya and Aztecs were destroyed by the conquistadors, but the descendants of these empires number in the hundreds of thousands. These are the Masawa languages ​​​​(250-400 thousand, Otomanguean family, Mexico), East Huastec Nahuatl (more than 400 thousand, Uto-Aztecan family, Mexico), Mayan Kekchi languages ​​\u200b\u200b(280 thousand, Guatemala), West Central Quiche ( more than 350 thousand, Guatemala), Yucatec (500 thousand, Mexico). The average number of Mesoamerican speakers is an order of magnitude higher than in North America.

In South America, the linguistic situation is extremely polarized. On the one hand, the vast majority of languages ​​have a very small number of speakers - several thousand, hundreds or even tens of people. Many languages ​​have disappeared, and this process is not slowing down. So, in most of the largest language families, from a quarter to a half of the languages ​​\u200b\u200bis already extinct. However, the population speaking indigenous languages ​​is estimated at between 11 and 15 million people. This is due to the fact that several South American languages ​​became inter-ethnic for entire groups of Indian tribes, and subsequently - a means of self-identification of Indians (regardless of their specific ethnic origin) or even entire countries. As a result, in a number of states, Indian languages ​​acquired official status ( cm. QUECHUA; AYMARA; GUARANI).

Typological features.

With all the genetic diversity of the American languages, it is obvious that very few generalizations can be made about the structural features of these languages. Most often, as a constitutive feature of the "American" language type, polysynthetism, i.e. a large number of morphemes per word on average (compared to the interlingual "standard"). Polysynthetism is not a characteristic of any words, but only of verbs. The essence of this grammatical phenomenon is that many of the meanings often expressed in the languages ​​of the world as part of names and service units speech, in polysynthetic languages ​​are expressed as part of the verb. The result is long verb forms containing many morphemes, and other sentence components are not as obligatory as in European-type languages ​​(Boas spoke of the "sentence-word" in North American languages). Sapir gave the following example of a verb form from Californian Yana (Sapir 1929/Sapir 1993: 414): yabanaumawildjigummaha"nigi "may we, each [of us], really move west across the stream. The structure of this form is: ya-(several .people. are moving); banauma- (all); wil- (through); dji- (to the west); gumma- (really); ha "- (let); nigi (we). In the Iroquoian Mohawk language, the word ionsahahneküntsienhte" means "he scooped up water again" (an example from the work of M. Mitun). The morpheme analysis of this word is as follows: i- (through); ons- (again); a- (past); ha- (male singular agent); hnek- (liquid); óntsien- (get water); ht- (causative); e "(point).

Most of the largest language families in North America have a pronounced tendency towards polysyntheticism - Na-Dene, Algonquian, Iroquois, Siouan, Caddoan, Mayan. Some other families, especially in Western and southern parts continent, closer to the typological average and are characterized by moderate synthetism. Polysyntheticism is also characteristic of many South American languages.

One of the main aspects of polysynthetism is the presence of indicators of arguments in the verb; such is the morpheme -nigi "we" in yana and ha- "he" in mohawk. These indicators encode not only the internal features of the arguments themselves (person, number, gender), but also their role in predication (agent, patient, etc.). Thus, role meanings, which in languages ​​like Russian are expressed as cases in the composition of names, in polysynthetic languages ​​are expressed in the composition of the verb. J. Nichols formulated an important typological opposition of vertex/dependency marking: if in a language like Russian, role relations are marked on dependent elements (names), then in a language like Mohawk - on the vertex element (verb). Argument indicators in a verb are traditionally interpreted in American studies as pronouns incorporated into the verb. To describe this phenomenon, Jelinek proposed the concept of “pronominal arguments”: in languages ​​of this type, the true arguments of a verb are not independent nominal word forms, but related pronominal morphemes in the composition of the verb. Nominal word forms in this case are considered as "applications" (adjuncts) to pronominal arguments. Many Indian languages ​​are characterized by the incorporation into the verb not only of pronominal morphemes, but also of nominal roots, especially those corresponding to the semantic roles of patient and place.

On the material of the Indian languages, the active construction of the sentence was discovered for the first time. Activity is a phenomenon alternative to ergativity and accusativity ( cm. TYPOLOGY LINGUISTIC). In the active construction, both the agent and the patient are encoded regardless of the transitivity of the verb. The active model is typical, in particular, for such language families as Pomoan, Siouan, Caddoan, Iroquoian, Muscogean, Keres, etc. in North America, and for the Tupian languages ​​in South America. The concept of languages ​​of the active system, which belongs to G.A. Klimov, is largely built on the data of Indian languages.

Indian languages ​​have significantly influenced the development of word order typology. In studies of basic word order, data from South American languages ​​are constantly cited to illustrate rare orders. So, in the Caribbean language of Khishkaryana, according to the description of D. Derbyshire, the basic order is “object - predicate - subject” (a rarity in the languages ​​of the world). The material of the Indian languages ​​also played an important role in the development of the typology of the pragmatic word order. For example, R. Tomlin and R. Rhodes found that in the Algonquian language Ojibwa, the most neutral order is the opposite of that which is usual for European languages: thematic information follows the non-thematic one. M. Mitun, relying on the material of polysynthetic languages ​​with pronominal arguments, suggested not to consider the basic order as a universally applicable characteristic; indeed, if noun phrases are only applications to pronominal arguments, then their order should hardly be considered an important characteristic of the language.

Another feature of a number of Indian languages ​​is the opposition between the proximal (near) and obviative (distant) third person. The best-known system of this type is found in the Algonquian languages. Nominal phrases are explicitly marked as referring to a proximal or obviative person; this choice is made on discursive grounds - a person who is known or close to the speaker is usually chosen as proximative. Further, on the basis of the difference between two third persons in a number of Indian languages, the grammatical category of the inverse is built. So, in the Algonquian languages, there is a personal hierarchy: 1st, 2nd person > 3rd proximal person > 3rd obviative person. In transitive predications, the agent may be higher than the patient in this hierarchy, and then the verb is marked as a direct form, and if the agent is lower than the patient, then the verb is marked as inverse.

Andrey Kibrik

Literature:

Berezkin Yu.E., Borodatova A.A., Istomin A.A., Kibrik A.A. Indian languages. - In the book: American ethnology. Study guide (in press)
Klimov G.A. Typology of active languages. M., 1977



Mikheev Vladislav

The research work is devoted to the study of the ways of communication of the Indians.

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Mikheev Vladik 3 b class MOU secondary school No. 1 "Polyforum"

MINISTRY OF GENERAL AND VOCATIONAL EDUCATION

SVERDLOVSK REGION

Municipal educational institution

average comprehensive school № 1

With in-depth study individual items"Polyforum"

I've done the work

Mikheev Vladislav,

3rd grade student

Supervisor

Mikheev

Svetlana Vasilievna

Serov, 2010

I used to dislike Indians, but now I really like them. So I decided to find out how the Indians speak.

Topic my work: "Let's talk the language of the Indians."

Target : a study of the speech of the Indians.

Hypotheses:

Tasks:

1. Find out how many years there is a written and oral speech Indians.
2. Learn what language the Indians speak.
3. Determine the difference between the speech of the Indians.
4. Write a story in the language of the Indians.

My action plan:

1. Remember what I know about the Indians.
2. Talk to mom, dad and brother about what they know about the Indian language.
3. Find information on the Internet. Conduct experiments.
4. Analyze the received data.
5. Write a story in the language of the Indians.
6. Present the results in the form of a book "The Language of the Indians."
7. Tell the class kids.

After reading the encyclopedia of Cyril and Methodius, I learned the following. Language is a system of signs, which is the main means of communication. The system of signs that fixes the language is writing. Speech - one of the types of human communicative activity is the use of language tools to communicate with other members of the language community. Speech is understood as both the process of speaking (speech activity) and its result (speech products fixed by memory or writing).

Indians A common name for the indigenous population of the Americas. The name arose from the erroneous idea of ​​the first European navigators (Christopher Columbus) of the late 15th century, who considered the transatlantic lands they discovered to be India.

Man first appeared on the American continent 25-29 thousand years ago.

The first Indian tribes appeared about 20 thousand years ago.

The Indians used wooden boxes to send messages.drums-tam-toms.Hitting them, sometimes faster, sometimes slower, with different strengths, the Indians quickly transmitted messages over long distances.The Indians also had water drums.

The Indians spoke the whistling language , which is still common among the inhabitants of one of the Canary Islands. They spoke with lips, transmitting important information at a distance of up to a thousand meters. The Indians “whisted out” the danger in advance, and in peacetime they announced the beginning of the festivities and other events.
The sound alarm was gradually pushed aside by a more perfect - light. The first means of light signaling were bonfires. Navigators even named one of the islands "Tierra del Fuego", because. from the sea it looked like land of fire.

Each tribe had its own secret"smoke" language , which was not easy to master. To make the fire "speak", it was necessary to give the puffs of smoke the necessary color and saturation. Dry firewood and grass gave off white and light smoke. Raw boughs, animal bones, and some minerals contributed a certain hue. In addition, the place where the smoke appeared (the edge of the forest, the top of the mountain ...), the time of its appearance, the density, the number of fires laid out was taken into account. With the help of smoke, the Indians could not only warn their fellow tribesmen of impending danger, but also tell which paths the enemy was moving along, about his numbers, and even agree on joint military operations.

The Indians used fires for signaling as follows: smoke - during the day and light - at night.

Smoke signals.Three large puffs of smoke released in slow succession signify "keep on". A number of small clubs signify "Gathering, here". A continuous column of smoke signifies "Stop." Large and small puffs of smoke alternately mean "Danger". Three bonfires - a distress signal, two - "I'm lost."

Indian advice.To give a smoke signal, build an ordinary fire and, when it flares up, cover it with fresh leaves, grass or damp hay, and it will smoke. Cover the fire with a damp cloth, then take it off to raise a puff of smoke, then close it again, etc. The size of the club will depend on the length of time during which the fire remained uncovered. For small clubs, keep the fire open while you count: one! two! then cover it and count to eight, then repeat the same.

Long and short flashes at night indicate the same as small puffs of smoke during the day. To do this, a fire is made from large sticks and brushwood and allowed to flare up as brightly as possible, it is covered with green grass, green branches with foliage, wet leaves or turf. This results in a thick column of smoke. Two people hold a stretched canvas in front of the fire so that it is a screen between the fire and those who are signaled; thus, these latter will only see the flame when you need it. Then you lower the canvas and count: one! two! for a short flash and up to six for a long one, and close the fire again and count to four.

One of the leaders, with smoke from a peace pipe, gathered warriors from many Indian tribes on the banks of the river. And, angry with their endless wars, he said to them: "I'm tired of your strife ..."

“Dive into this river, collect reeds for them,

Wash away the paints of war, Brightly decorate with feathers,

Wash the blood stains from your fingers, Light the pipe of Peace

Bury bows in the ground

And continue to live like brothers ... "

Make pipes out of stone

I did an experiment "Transmitting Messages by Fire and Smoke in the Open Area". For this:

1. Kindled a fire like a hut.
2. He put wet grass covered with snow in a blazing fire. The snow quickly melted under the influence of the fire, and the grass burned down, giving off a small amount of smoke.
3. Again he waited until the fire flared up, and put cabbage leaves and tangerine peels into it. A thick smoke appeared, it was walking in a pillar of 1m. 50 cm within 10 minutes. Then its density decreased, and it began to lean towards the ground. It was windy that day. I think that the smoke did not go up because of the wind.
4. I measured the distance at which the flames of the fire and smoke can be seen. Created a comparison table.

	The fire is well lit, high	The bonfire is fading
the fire	1) The fire is directed upwards. Height measurement failed (dangerous).	1) The fire is not high (up to 20 cm), spreads in breadth over the bonfire. It was not possible to measure the width - it is dangerous. 2) Visible at a distance of up to 85 steps (33 m. 78 cm.).
smoke	1) It rises up 1m. 50 cm, and then spreads along the ground due to the wind. 2) Visible at a distance of more than 100 steps (46 m. ​​80 cm.).	1) Spreads along the ground due to the wind. 2) Visible at a distance of 65 steps (26 m. 42 cm.).

I was unable to change the color of the smoke and flames. For help, I turned to the chemistry teacher of our school, Lyudmila Aleksandrovna Zmeeva. She showed me the "Chemical Traffic Light" experience. For the experiment, a spirit lamp, alcohol, matches, chemical substances: lithium ions, sodium ions (table salt), barium ions. It is not recommended for children to reproduce such an experience. Dangerously!

Progress:

1. Carefully pour alcohol into the spirit lamp.
2. Close the lid to soak the wick.
3. Light the fuse. Wait for the fire to flare up.
4. We dip the stick in lithium ions, bring it to the flame, we get a red fire.
5. Sprinkle sodium ions (table salt) on the flame, we get a yellow fire.
6. We sprinkle the flame with barium ions, we get a green fire.

After analyzing the received data, I realized that such a means of transmitting information as fire and smoke requires a lot of preparation and special conditions. This makes it difficult to use the language of smoke and fire in everyday situations, so I think the Indians began to use other ways of communicating and transmitting information.

Sign language. The news that the Indian wanted to convey to a member of another tribe was transmitted using gestures of one or both hands. Agreements between individual tribes, whose representatives did not understand each other, were concluded through sign language. Here are some examples:

1) Tent (Indian's house) - crossing the index fingers.

2) World - clap your palm on the opponent's palm.

3) Raise your hand up: "attention!".

4) Lower the raised hand in some direction: "go step in this direction."

5) Lower the raised hand twice: "run in this direction."

6) Lower the outstretched hand down: “stop!”.

7) Waving a raised hand to the right and left: “turn around!”,

scatter to the side!"

8) Circle your hand above your head:

"gathering", "gather to me."

9) Wave your hand down to the ground: “lie down”, “build up”.

I did an experiment "Messaging with Gestures". To do this, he went out with his mother to an open area (the road near the house). Mom gave me signals with gestures, I repeated them if I saw them. We then measured the distance at which the gestures were clearly distinguishable. The data was entered into a table.

	Gesture	Number of steps	Convert to meters/cm
	marquee		19 m. 19 cm.
	Peace		33 m. 78 cm.
	Attention		163 m. 80 cm.
	Go that way		140 m. 40 cm.
	Run that way		135 m. 72 cm.
	stop		140 m. 40 cm.
	turn around		149 m. 76 cm.
	Collection		140 m. 40 cm.
	lie down		163 m. 80 cm.

Conclusion. If you transmit information only with the help of gestures, this will be impossible if the interlocutor is in another city or in the forest. How to store such information? Therefore, in these cases, another way of transmitting and receiving information is needed.

The Indians began to use objects. Each item had its own clear meaning - appearedsubject letter.A letter of objects had to be passed from hand to hand, or at least thrown to another person.To this day, the Indians have objects with a certain meaning: a pike, an arrow, a tomahawk - war; pipe, tobacco, green branch - peace.

The message was transmitted by the Indians wampums.

These are ropes with shells strung on them,bone or stone beads.Wide belts were made from them, which were the decoration of clothes, theyserved as a currency, with the help of them they were issuedagreements between whites and Indians, and most importantly, various important messages were transmitted with their help. Wampums were usually delivered by special messengers, wampum carriers.The most important events from the history of the tribe were also indicated on them with the simplest conditional symbols.

Around the 7th century AD. Indians began to use"knot letter" - quipu, which is several interconnected woolen or cotton threads. The signs on these threads were knots, sometimes with stones or colored shells woven into them.Thinner cords were suspended from the main woolen or cotton rope, which could be replaced by a thick stick. They differed in color and length and were tied into simple and complex knots. The color of the laces, their thickness and length, the number of knots - all this had its own meaning. With the help of the quipu, the Incas kept important information and transmitted information about the amount of military booty and the number of prisoners, about taxes collected and about the harvest of corn and potatoes.

The knot letter made it possible to convey various information about taxes, the number of soldiers in a particular province, designate people who went to war, the number of dead, births or deaths, and much more. There were quipus that represented poems, songs, stories.The Indians used three types of knots, each representing a number. With the help of these knots, reminiscent of the bones of the bills, any number was expressed, and the color of the cord denoted one or another object. In total, the Indians used 13 colors. This knowledge has always been secret. The information was deciphered by special interpreters - kipu-kamayokuns.

A kippah weighing six (!!!) kilograms was found in one of the temples. If this is conditionally translated into a conventional paper system for storing information, then this will be a huge multi-volume encyclopedia. There are such quipu:

1. Educational quipu - the alphabet for younger children, it is made in the form of an ornament worn by young children on their hands, and used as counting songs.

2. School and royal syllabic kipu - for students of children of the nobility in schools. A bias towards philosophy, theology, specific non-linear mathematics (it has no analogues in the Old World, it did not obey standard logic). Calculations of sacred numbers with the help of myths, legends, abstract constructions.

3. Funeral ritual kippah - for burials. in the form of prayers. The main difference is that wooden painted boards hung from the cord.

4. Astronomical-calendar quipu. Calendar timekeeping. Accounting for lunar solar eclipses, phases of the moon, the appearance of stars and dark areas of the sky (Andean "constellations"), the zeniths of the sun, solstices.

5. Mathematical numerical positional counting bales. For the most complex calculations by wise mathematicians. An auxiliary necessary tool is Yupan's calculator.

6. Kipu for everyday counting. A simplified version of the previous one. Used by shepherds, etc. to keep records accessible to spatial inspection of accounting units (llamas, cattle).

7. Kipu geographic - based on direction-lines like a system of geographical coordinates. Closely associated with astronomical observations and measurements of time.

Nodular writing is very complex, similar to modern language computers.

Invite the children to “write” a letter to a friend from colored threads.

Write on the board the meaning of the colors:

1. red - war, warriors, blood;
2. white - peace, health, silver;
3. black - death, illness;
4. green - harvest, grain, bread;
5. yellow - sun, gold;
6. blue - sea, water;
7. brown - potatoes;
8. lilac - threat, danger;
9. pink - pleasure, friendliness;
10. orange - energy, health;
11. blue - thoughtfulness, sadness, reflections; wind;
12. grey -

The Indians could read footprints on the trail.The Indian "reads" according to signs, i.e. notices characteristic details, for example: footprints, broken branches, crumpled grass, food remains, drops of blood, hairs, etc., in other words, everything that can serve, one way or another, as a key to obtaining the information that the Indian seeks. Small "signs" will help to track down bears (a fresh scratch on the bark of a tree, obviously made by a bear's claw, or only one black hair adhering to the bark, apparently, here the bear was rubbing against the tree).

An Indian can immediately, at one glance, determine how fast the person who left the tracks walked or ran.

The walker leaves a footprint almost uniformly imprinted, the entire plane of the foot immediately touches the ground, and the stride is almost always about two feet (60 cm) long. When running, the sand is pressed deeper, some dirt is thrown up, and the stride is longer. Sometimes people who want to deceive their pursuers walk backwards, but the step is much shorter, the toe is more turned inward, and the heels are more depressed.

In animals, if they move fast, the toes are pressed into the ground more, they throw up dirt, their stride is longer when they move more slowly. At the walk, the horse leaves two pairs of hoof prints - the left hind foot is slightly in front of the left front, likewise, the right front is just behind the right hind. At the trot, the track is the same, but the distance between the legs (front and back) is greater. The hind legs leave a trail that is longer and narrower than the forelegs.

In animals with long legs of the same length, the hind foot usually falls exactly in the footprint of the front foot. For example, in a cat, lynx, wolf and fox. Dogs, on the other hand, walk less cautiously and leave a zigzag trail. Ungulates also leave zigzag tracks.

Hares and squirrels put their hind legs in front of their front. Their footprints are very similar; the only difference is that the hare puts its front paws one after the other, and the squirrel is nearby.

Fat, clumsy animals, like beavers and badgers, walk slowly. Usually their footprints are turned inward. All four paws leave a separate footprint. Sometimes they start jumping in short jumps, leaving double tracks.

Thin, short-legged animals, like the otter or the marten, move by jumping. They place their hind legs immediately behind their front ones, throwing their front legs far forward.

Knowing these features, the Indians learned such tricks. When

want to reconnoiter the enemy camp: they cover themselves with a wolf skin and roam around the camp at night on all fours, imitating the howling of wolves.

Reading in the footsteps, I think, prompted the Indians to such a way of transmitting, receiving and storing information as pictogram.

The Indians began to usepicture letter. Women and girls painted on bison skins military history tribe. But the drawings looked more like letters. These skins then closed the entrance to the dwelling.

Cloth. The patterns on the national clothes of the Indians have their own mysterious meaning, the drawings on them look like hieroglyphs.

The Indians also painted on dishescircles, triangles, animals and birds in red and black paint.

Inscriptions have been preserved on pieces of fabric, tree bark.

Drawings on stone blocks-steles.

There are several types of inscriptions:

• spirals, grooves and rounded lines;
• mysterious inscriptions with parallel horizontal lines crossed by verticals, half spirals and crosses;

• hieroglyphs;

One of the wonders ishuge drawings on the Nazca plateau.The Nazca sandy plain has a length of 60 km.Scientists believe that the signs on the Nazca plateau were made by Indians who lived 1100 - 1700 years ago.The researchers believethat the Nazca signs are the largest calendar book in the world,to keep track of the change of years and seasons. One of the lines accurately indicates the place of sunset on the day of the summer solstice.

Mysterious drawings were discovered in the 20th century thanks to aviation.

Mysterious images on the Nazca plateau can be divided into three categories. Firstly, these are lines that, as if along a ruler, draw the surface of the plain from end to end. The second category of images includes various geometric shapes. These are rectangles, trapezoids, spirals. These are long light ribbons, the sides of which diverge at a slight angle. Such figures outwardly very much resemble runways. The third category is drawings of plants, animals, birds, people. Each drawing is made with one continuous line. After making many turns, it ends where it started.

Scientists divided all the figures into separate parts, analyzed them and found out that geometric signs and figures are a writing system with giant and small letters.

In ancient times, drawing large drawings on earth's surface practiced in many parts of the world. The form and shape of the drawings were different everywhere.

Many languages ​​existed among the Indians, but they did not have their own written language.

tribal leader Cherokee – Sequoia (George Hess)from North America to created syllabary .

Intertribal languages ​​existed, such as the trade languageChikasavov – « mobile ". Now the number of known languages ​​​​of the Indians reaches 200.

The languages ​​of the Indian tribes have enriched our vocabulary with many expressions and words:tomahawk, wigwam, rubber, chocolate, tomato, sign language, peace pipe.

The Indians have a legend about the origin chocolate drink.

Once upon a time there lived a talented gardener named Quetzatcoatl. He had a wonderful orchard, in which, among others, grew one inconspicuous tree with bitter fruits, similar in appearance to cucumbers. Quetzatcoatl did not know what to do with them and one day he came up with the idea of ​​​​making powder from beans and boiling it in water. It turned out to be a drink that amuses the soul and gives strength, which the inventor called "chocolatl" ("latl" in Indian - water). Soon the news of him reached the tribesmen of Quetzatcoatl, who fell in love with the properties of the drink. As a result, "chocolatl" began to be valued above gold.

Engineer - a low-growing bush like a bearberry, which overgrown all the banks of the riverEngineer. Strawberries, blackberries, lingonberries, etc. sound very similar.

Moscow is an Indian word meaning black bear.

Nadina river from a Native American word for a log thrown across a river to serve as a bridge.

Tomato - "tomatl" - in Indian - "big berry".

My conclusions.

Conclusion 1. Studying the speech of the Indians, I realized that although the Indians live in another country and speak a language I do not understand, there are many common words in our speech.

Many peoples use knot writing. For example, in order not to forget something, they tie a knot on a handkerchief.

Hunters and fishermen use whistle language and light signaling.

Sailors have gestural communication - semaphore alphabet.

Substantive writing now is, for example, taking out bread and salt when receiving guests. This is a symbol that the guest is welcome.

Wampums began to be used as decorations. Women wear beads and belts. Girls from beads weave baubles.

Modern puzzles are built on the basis of pictographic writing.

Stone steles are erected now as monuments on which information about memorable events of the past is written. For example, in Victory Park in Moscow, I saw a stele in honor of the victory of Russian soldiers. Modern information blocks, such as those in St. Petersburg, contain information about the place where you are, the path to the metro or a particular street.

Conclusion 2. The Indians are an ancient people, their speech appeared a very long time ago, First oral, then in drawings and pictograms (5-6 thousand years ago), and then written (3 thousand years ago).

Conclusion 3. 3. Indians are not only warriors. Depending on the natural conditions, their way of life was very different: someone was a hunter, fisherman, farmer, and someone was a collector of shells and precious stones, plants.

In the speech of the Indians, a small number of words are associated with military operations.

After doing research, I realized that the Indians are a very friendly people who love their homeland and honor their ancestors. Therefore, in addition to texts about the war, the Indians have historical and poetic ones.

When an Indian finishes his speech, he says "how"– "I said everything." So I can say "how".

Sources of information

1. For the preparation of this work, photographs of Abramenko Svetlana, a friend of her mother living in America, were used.
2. Books:

• Brockhaus and Efron, encyclopedic Dictionary, T.46. "Terra", 1992
• Children's encyclopedia. 1001 questions and answers / Ed. V. Egen and N. Champion; Per. from English. A.A. Bryandinskaya. - M .: Publishing house Onyx, 2006. - 160 p., ill. pp. 84 - 85.
• John Manchip White. Indians of North America. Moscow: Tsentrpoligraf, 2006.
• Dietrich A., Yurmin G., Koshurnikova R. Why. Moscow, "Pedagogy-press", 1997, p. 314, 353.
• The Art of the Scout. Scouting Manual, revised by I.N. Zhukov. Edition of T-va V.A. Berezovsky. 1918.
• Skromnitsky A. Brief information about quipu - writing of the Incas in Tawantinsuyu: a new approach to solving the problems of deciphering.
• Universal school encyclopedia. T.1. A-L / editorial group: M. Aksenova, E. Zhuravleva, D. Volodikhin, S. Alekseev. - M.: World of encyclopedias Avanta+, 2007. - 528 p.; ill. - S. 380.
• Franklin Folsom. A book about language. Moscow: Progress, 1974.
• Civilizations of the ancient world. Children's encyclopedia. - M .: "Makhaon", 2006. - S. 92 - 111.
• Shpakovsky V.O. Indians. - St. Petersburg: "BKK", 2007. - 96 p., ill.
• Shustova I.B. Pocahontas. Based on American folklore. Publishing house "ROSMEN", Moscow, 1996.
• Encyclopedia for children. T.10. Linguistics. Russian language. - 4th ed., Rev. / Ed. Board: M. Aksenova, L. Petranovskaya and others. - M.: Avanta, 2005. - 704 p.: ill. S. 20, 541 - 543.

7. Experiments and experiments:

• "Transmitting Messages with Fire and Smoke".
• "Messaging with Gestures".
• "Chemical traffic light".

8. Making wampum and quipu.

9. Writing pictograms.

10. Viewing video materials from the collection of N.N. Novichenkova: “Chingachkuk the Big Serpent”, “Sons Ursa Major”, “Trace of the Falcon”, “Oceola”, “Wild West”.

11. Watching documentaries "Discovering Peru".

There are two main points of view. According to the first (the so-called "short chronology"), people came to America about 14-16 thousand years ago At that time, the sea level was 130 meters lower than today, in addition, in winter it was not difficult to cross the strait on ice on foot.. According to the second, people settled the New World much earlier, from 50 to 20 thousand years ago (“long chronology”). The answer to the question "How?" much more definite: the ancient ancestors of the Indians came from Siberia through the Bering Strait, and then went south - either along the western coast of America, or along the central part of the mainland through the ice-free space between the Laurentian ice sheet and glaciers Coast Ranges in Canada. However, regardless of how the first inhabitants of America moved, the traces of their early presence either ended up deep under water due to rising sea levels (if they walked along the Pacific coast) or were destroyed by the actions of glaciers (if people walked along the central part of the mainland). Therefore, the earliest archaeological finds are not found in Beringia. Beringia- a biogeographic region connecting Northeast Asia and the northwestern part of North America., and much to the south - for example, in Texas, in the north of Mexico, in the south of Chile.

2. Were the Indians in the East of the USA different from the Indians in the West?

Timucua leader. Engraving by Théodore de Bry after a drawing by Jacques Le Moine. 1591

There are about ten cultural types of North American Indians Arctic (Eskimo, Aleut), Subarctic, California (Chumash, Washo), US Northeast (Woodland), Great Basin, Plateau, Northwest Coast, Great Plains, Southeast US, Southwest US.. So, the Indians who inhabited California (for example, the Miwok or the Klamath) were hunters, fishermen and gatherers. The Shoshone, Zuni, and Hopi peoples of the southwestern United States belong to the so-called Pueblo cultures: they were farmers and grew corn, beans, and pumpkins. Much less is known about the Indians of the eastern United States, and especially the southeast, since most of the Indian tribes died out with the advent of Europeans. For example, until the 18th century, the Timucua people lived in Florida, distinguished by the wealth of tattoos. The life of these people is recorded in the drawings of Jacques Le Moine, who visited Florida in 1564-1565 and became the first European artist to depict Native Americans.

3. Where and how did the Indians live

Apache wigwam. Photograph by Noah Hamilton Rose. Arizona, 1880Denver Public Library/Wikimedia Commons

Mud houses in Taos Pueblo, New Mexico. Around 1900 Library of Congress

The wigwams, dome-shaped stationary dwellings made of branches and animal skins, were inhabited by the Indians of the forest zone in the north and northeast of America, while the Pueblo Indians traditionally built adobe houses. The word "wigwam" comes from one of the Algonquian languages. Algonquian languages- a group of Algic languages, one of the largest language families. Algonquian languages ​​are spoken by about 190 thousand people in the east and in the central part of Canada, as well as on the northeast coast of the United States, in particular the Cree and Ojibwe Indians. and in translation means something like "house". Wigwams were built from branches that were tied together, forming a structure that was covered with bark or skins on top. An interesting variant of this Indian dwelling is the so-called long houses in which the Iroquois lived. Iroquois- a group of tribes with a total number of about 120 thousand people living in the USA and Canada.. They were made of wood, and their length could exceed 20 meters: several families lived in one such house at once, whose members were relatives to each other.

Many Indian tribes, such as the Ojibwe, had a special steam bath - the so-called "sweating wigwam". It was a separate building, as you might guess, for washing. However, the Indians did not bathe too often - as a rule, several times a month - and used the steam bath not so much to become cleaner, but as a remedy. It was believed that the bath helps with illnesses, but if you feel good, you can do without washing.

4. What did they eat

Man and woman eating. Engraving by Theodore de Bry after a drawing by John White. 1590

Sowing maize or beans. Engraving by Théodore de Bry after a drawing by Jacques Le Moine. 1591Brevis narratio eorum quae in Florida Americae provincia Gallis acciderunt / book-graphics.blogspot.com

Smoking meat and fish. Engraving by Théodore de Bry after a drawing by Jacques Le Moine. 1591Brevis narratio eorum quae in Florida Americae provincia Gallis acciderunt / book-graphics.blogspot.com

The diet of the Indians of North America was quite diverse and differed greatly depending on the tribe. So, the Tlingits, who lived on the coast of the northern part Pacific Ocean, mainly ate fish and seal meat. The Pueblo farmers ate both corn dishes and the meat of hunted animals. And the main food of the Indians of California was acorn porridge. To prepare it, it was necessary to collect acorns, dry, peel and grind. Then the acorns were put in a basket and boiled on hot stones. The resulting dish resembled a cross between soup and porridge. Eat it with spoons or just with your hands. The Navajo Indians made bread from corn, and its recipe has been preserved:

“To make bread, you will need twelve ears of corn with leaves. First you need to peel the cobs and grind the grains with a grain grater. Then wrap the resulting mass in corn leaves. Dig a hole in the ground large enough to fit the bundles. Light a fire in the pit. When the earth warms up properly, take out the coals and put bundles in the hole. Cover them, and start a fire from above. The bread is baked for about an hour.

5. Could a non-Indian lead a tribe

Governor Solomon Bibo (second from left). 1883 Palace of the Governors Photo Archive / New Mexico Digital Collections

From 1885 to 1889, Solomon Bibo, a Jew, served as governor of the Acoma Pueblo Indians, with whom he traded from the mid-1870s. Bibo was married to an Acoma woman. True, this is the only known case when a pueblo was led by a non-Indian.

6. Who is the Kennewick Man

In 1996, the remains of one of the ancient inhabitants of North America were found near the small town of Kennewick in the state of Washington. That's what they called him - Kennewick Man. Outwardly, he was very different from modern American Indians: he was very tall, wore a beard and rather resembled modern Ainu Ainu- the ancient inhabitants of the Japanese islands.. The researchers suggested that the skeleton belonged to a European who lived in these places in the 19th century. However, radiocarbon analysis showed that the owner of the skeleton lived 9300 years ago.

Reconstruction of the appearance of the Kennewick man Brittney Tatchell / Smithsonian Institution

Now the skeleton is kept in the Museum natural history Burke in Seattle, and the modern Washington Indians regularly demand that the remains be handed over to them for burial in accordance with Indian traditions. However, there is no reason to believe that the Kennewick man during his lifetime belonged to any of these tribes or their ancestors.

7. What the Indians thought about the moon

Indian mythology is very diverse: its heroes are often animals, such as a coyote, a beaver or a raven, or celestial bodies - the stars, the sun and the moon. For example, members of the Californian Wintu tribe believed that their appearance the moon owes a bear who tried to bite her, and the Iroquois claimed that there was an old woman weaving linen on the moon (the unfortunate woman was sent there because she could not predict when the end of the world would be).

8. When the Indians got the bow and arrow

Virginia Indians. The scene of the hunt. Engraving by Theodore de Bry after a drawing by John White. 1590 North Carolina Collection/UNC Libraries

Today, Indians of various North American tribes are often depicted holding or shooting bows. It wasn't always like that. The fact that the first inhabitants of North America hunted with a bow is unknown to historians. But there is evidence that they used a variety of spears. The first finds of arrowheads date back to about the ninth millennium BC. They were made on the territory of modern Alaska - only then the technology gradually penetrated into other parts of the continent. By the middle of the third millennium BC, the onion appears on the territory of modern Canada, and at the beginning of our era it comes to the territory of the Great Plains and California. In the southwestern United States, bows and arrows appeared even later - in the middle of the first millennium of our era.

9. What languages ​​do the Indians speak?

Portrait of Sequoia, creator of the Cherokee Indian syllabary. Painting by Henry Inman. Around 1830 National Portrait Gallery, Washington / Wikimedia Commons

Today, the Indians of North America speak approximately 270 different languages, which belong to 29 language families, and 27 isolate languages, that is, isolated languages ​​that do not belong to any large family, but form their own. When the first Europeans came to America, there were many more Indian languages, but many tribes died out or lost their language. Most of the Indian languages ​​have been preserved in California: 74 languages ​​are spoken there, belonging to 18 language families. Among the most common North American languages ​​are Navajo (about 180 thousand Indians speak it), Cree (about 117 thousand) and Ojibwe (about 100 thousand). Most Indian languages ​​now use the Latin alphabet, although the Cherokee use the original syllabary developed in the early 19th century. Most Indian languages ​​may disappear - after all, they are spoken by less than 30% of ethnic Indians.

10. How modern Indians live

Today, most of the descendants of the Indians of the United States and Canada live in much the same way as the descendants of Europeans. Only a third of them are occupied by reservations - autonomous Indian territories that make up about two percent of the US area. Modern Indians enjoy a number of benefits, and in order to receive them, you need to prove your Indian origin. It is enough that your ancestor was mentioned in the census of the early XX century or have a certain percentage of Indian blood.

Tribes determine in different ways whether a person belongs to them. For example, the Pueblo Isleta consider their own only one who has at least one parent was a member of the tribe and a full-blooded Indian. But the Oklahoma Iowa tribe is more liberal: to become a member, you need to have only 1/16 of Indian blood. At the same time, neither knowledge of the language, nor adherence to Indian traditions does not matter.

See also materials about the Indians of Central and South America in the course "".