• The Origin
huts or cabanes; which, as Mons. Bullon te]Js us, is not always the same;
of Language
sa that it would appear they have different opinions of things as well as
'and Society
observation, the old teachin~ the young, learn the architectme of his dike
ames Burnet
(Lord Monboddo)
In the preceding book, we have placed mall in a state of society and of
polit ieal union, can'ying on of common consent, and with joint laoour,
.~omc work uecessary for defence, or tIl(' support of life. In this situation,
and this only, could language have been invenU'~d. But mOre was necC's­
sary for the uwention of so difficult all art. And, in the first place, UJC
propel' organs of pronunciation were indispensably required. These are
given t(l some few animals besides man; but I believe tLev are in Done so
perfect. . sagacity, to invent so artilieial a thing as speech; om do 1 think that there
2d1U, They must have been a very long time in this political state; so
long at least as to have improv~d illtO an art the busirHO'SS they WNE'
carrying On; by whieh I do not rneau to require. that they should have
been regular artists, knOWing the causes aile! principles of tbeir art. ami
operating by certain rules which they coold delJlon~tratc,~ from those
prinCiples; but my meaning is. tlwt tbey nlLlst have improved their rude
[Jractice at first into a Letter practice h~,' observation and experiellce; and,
'n that way, have fixed a certain method oJ c10ing the thing, which, when
t is done by degrees, cUld fmm observation and experiellce, ma~' not
mproperly be called an art. For, as T have' alJ"E'adv observed, one of the
?e<1t differences hetwixt i.nstinct and art is. tklt what is clone by instlJlct,
s performed as well at Erst· H~ al last; \-vhereas ,11"t is ne.cessarily formed
)' gradual improvements. III short, bdore man could have invented a
angllage, he must have been pf:'rhaps for mall: ages in the sawe ~tate tIle
leavcl' is in, as r have described it above. 'For the heaver. of all the
nimals we know, that ar~-~ 1101', li~e the OW'an Otltan~s,. of f~ur sp~i:~,
omes the nearest to us tn sa~a~lty. <1~,d. :-lS T ha.ve ~dle~d: obse~\~ h rna !llg ideas in this wav lIudibie, aplJcars to me to have been full as
ppears to have some other pnncrplc oJ actIOn oeslde lTlstmd; of \" hIe.
lere is a proof that T )ulve not ll1t'Dtjoncd, arising from the form of their
From James Hnntet (Lord ~Ionhodd() J. On the Origin ,mcZ Progrcs9 uf [.an­
1{l.!!(3.,k'u<.:silllile printed by ScolaI' Press Limited, 19m; Er. :WO-:HZ.
we: whereas instinct performs every thing in the san-Ie invariable manner.
I am therefore persuaded, tbat the beaver clid. from experience and
and his hut. as we have learned om architecture and other arts.
3dl'), Another thing absolutely reqUired, as preparatory to the in­
vention of a language, is, that men should preViously have formed ideas to
be expressed by ]aJJguage: for it is impossible to conceive a language of
proper IJames only \vilhout genera] terms. Now, ideas must have been
formed by an animal, such as man, carrying OD any common business,
and operating, not by inst i net. but karning by observation and experi­
ence. For such an animal must have an idea of the end for \,:vhich he acts,
and of the means for attaining that encl. For, as I have shown, everv
animal that do~s no! act from il~sfinct, like the bee or the spider, must a~t
with knowledge of the end. Besides, man, in the state in which I have
dcsel'ibed him', lllust uecessarily have had ideas, !lO'wever imperfect, of
trees aml animals, and other ohjects. with which he was conversant: and
he must. have had more pf:'rfect ideas of the instrwnents of art whieh he
IIsed; espf~t:iaU~' if they were of his own inventioJJ.
Lastly, It appears 1'0 Inc to have required an extraordinary degree of
is any animal other than man yet discovered, unless pel'haps it be the
heaver. that has sagacity enough to have inventpel it: for hO\vever easy
the invention may seem, now that it is discovered. and so commonl>'
practised; yet it was truly far from being obdous, hut. on the contrary,
vprv far removed from common apprehenSion. For. in the fi-rst place,
~Iall, as we have Se(')jL does nol naturally form articulate sounds; hut, on
~he contrary. it is a great work of art, difficult to he learned even after it is
lllVt.'Hted, hut infinitely more difficult to he inn·nted. 2dly, Suppose this
first diffieulty ~ot over, and articulate sounds invented, it was by no
~ea!ls an obviolls thought. to apply them to the expressiou of ideas, with
\.e ).J;rpater part of which they have 00 connection, at least that is easily
(ISC~)V~r('d; for though thcre be words expressing certain sounds, whieh
are lIlutations of those sOtwds, it is cel't~lin that bv far thE' greater part of
;ords are not natural signs uf ideas. AJ1CI how is· it possible they should?
Or what natural connection is there bet\.,ixt the idea of H tree, (3X. gr. the
ear~~, the sun, the mOOD, and a 11\' articulation of sound? Aud indeed the
great C ! . ' . .
a renne-ment of art. as the so-much-boastecl dlscoverv of makmg
SOUn d . 'h ... . . ~
rn J S l)l~l Ie, 1 mcall the IIwc;n11On of alphabetical characters; anfl so
n:~~ the mOre wonderful. that it was invented in a mnch earlier age of
tha~ it n.d. And it must appear stU] more. \'I>'o.nderful when we consider,
Is not the only method of comrnml1cation, ,mel ther·dore not ab~o-
 lutel)' ncc;:essary for lh~ purposes of politica1liIe; bUI that there are other
methods, as we have seen, which in great part answer those purpose5,
and with which. ac<X~rdil1gl)": other animals that live In the politicnl state,
as wdl as man, r~lllillnrd ~al1sfied. Of these other methods we arc 1I0W to
speak more partlculllrly: III or.d('r to tr), whelh!'r from these we <:nnnot
trace the progress 10 the IIW('lllton of Illuguagc.
TIle only wa)'s that I can think of b)' which men could communicate
togethcr, berore tht· in\'cntion of ,~pc't.'('h, are fout: first, lnartlct,late cri4.,
expressive of sentiments nnd passions; 2/IIy, GestllreJ, and the expression
of the countenance; 3rlly, Imitative Jounds, by which audible things may
be c'(pr<":Ssed; and, lustly, Pailltill/!., by which visible objects may be repre­
scnte<t. The two first Me common to us with thr brutes; the two last are
pccul1ur to man; and llllthe four rna)' be said 10 be tliitural signs of what
t.ll~)' ('xprC'Ss; for en'o the connection betwixt Inarticulate cries and the
tlungs, e\prc:ssed b)' llwlll. ~h?ugh it appear to be the most remote, is so
est"l~hshccl l1\ natute, that It IS undcrstuod by every animal. without any
pre,"'lOUs compact or agreemcnt.
Of those illartk'IJlnt(' crie!; then.' Is a very great variet).: nnd it is
rc~Uy surprising how man}' diffefl'nt passions, such as love. jO)'. anger.
gnd, f('ar. the bmlcs r~prcss by them; and 1 am pcrsuaded the nearer
thl' e<.'OIIOm), of .an~' of them OOIllt'<i to ours, til(' greater variety will be
found ill tht'1r ~e~, Ix'cause they hltw the morc to (''(press by thcm, TIle
Russi<llI llcMle011clnns <;")-. that tl1e~ctl,cat above mentioned, which has
so mueh of human uature in it, can low like a cow, growl like a hear, and
ch~rp like a cricket. whieh last is a song of triumph after he hns van.
qUlshed hh enemyl; and iF thl' beaver liVing in u social state was accu.
ratel~· ob<;l'rvoo, thcre would be round a greal variety of thl! kind of
languagt· among thl'lll! \Vhl'n the brutes (Ire t:uTIt'd, and l>C()()me fnmiUnr
with us. they accjulrc voices and tOI1.'S that the~' had not bdotl•. Thus
Porphyr) the philosoplwr tells us, that his partridg(' leamed to converse
with him In n volet> very diffcrCllt from what sll(' llsed in communication
with ~lt'r f('lIows 2 ; and some of them, M it is well known. may be taught
to artl('ulllt(" But it Is C'vidcllt. that allthb variet), of crit"s, though it were
much ~n, ..ter than it rl'<lU) is, would not answer the purposes of human
life, wht'n it came to 1)(' enlar~ro and e\t('nded to mall)' dlffcr('nt arts
lind occupations. which tht' ~rrowillg wonts of men render Ilec<'SSIll)'.
111(' next kind of (''(pression I lllcntioncc! \ViiS that of looks and
I?,estllres. which i.<; al!\O \cry stron~, nnd variOlL" ;lmon~ the bmtl'S, and it
is a langl~a~(' which the)' ~rfcetl~ _w('11 unclcrst.ulld. The only Il~e they
makc of It IS to e'<prc~~ their pa~slons and fet'lm~s; but we know cer.
tainly. from the cxallll>!t' or dumb persons among us, that it may be used
to c'(pr{'~s Id"R.'i; and we Ie-:'Irn rrom hi\to1'Y, that the}' may be c,<prt-ued in
this langlla~e \...;t~ th~' utmost accurac.,)' and prt'Cision. for in Rome there
was an art uf thLS kllld formed. cal!c.'<! the 1Xllllomlme art, which was
brought to I,he ulmost pcrft"Ction about the time of Augustus C~e.sar.1 An
artist of thi!; kind could e."press by sibrns, not only overy sentiment and
passion of the human mind, but ever)' idea. with as great a~racy; nnd as
grrol variet)' too, as all)" orator could do by word~i and It IS a I.lottod ,s~ory
~ of RoschlS the player III nome. that he used to conh'nd wtth Cicero,
I which of liwin could c:<prMs the same thln~ be b)- luoks and gesturrs, or
Cicero by words, with thc greatest varkt)' and copiollsncss,
There can be no doubt but that. bMore the invcntion of language.
this kind of cxpression, as w('11 as the other by inarticulate cries, would be
much used. That savage notion which Diadoms Siculus, In the passage I
(looted before, calls the Insensll,leJ. conversed in no other way; and th,e
savages in North America do at this dll)' SUPp~)' the d~~t~ of t~elr
language by a great d!'a! of action and gesticulallon, Bul 11 IS l1npos~lhle
to sllppo~e, that this art of speaking to UI(' t'ycs could be brought to such
perfection among savages as it was by Roscius ~t R~me, or by ~he
pantomimes In after times, who danced whole tl~eatncnl PH~Ces. according
to the expression in ancient langung!'; that IS, represented tbem by
gestures and movements perfonned to music, without onc word being
uttcrcd,~ Even In Greece, where all the other a~ of plen.sure and enter·
tainment were cultivated. nnd brought to the hIghest de~cc of perfce­
lion, the art of the pantomime was not carried so fnr as III R~me, For
although thcir players did no doubt,cxpress a grenl d('lll by tlle~r ,action,
particularly in the moVt'lIlcnls of tJ1Clr choruses, and their monodIes, there
was no such thing, SO rar 11$ I caD leam. practised amon~ them as dandng
a whole pll'C(', or evcn acting a single mo~y, without, spea,ki~g; at
lenst not in the better days of Greece. For III the later hmes It IS not
improbable that they may have adopt~ the pantomim,cs or the Ro~ans:
and Lucian appears to mc to speak of It R.<; an cntertamment alllong the
Creeks in his time,D
So rar from being brought to this state of perfection among savages
in the first stage or humani')', I am persuaded it would not go the length
or servin~ tJ1C purposa of common Intercourse, where thc~e was any
I
number of wants to !)(' supplied b)' muh.ml assistance: or if we could
makc so wild a supposition, as that it would be carried to the same
degree of perfection as in the polite age of Augustus. still it is in sundr),
respects far infcrior to thc method or communication b)' speech; for, first,
it speaks only to the eyes, so that it can be or no use but in the light; and
th('n we cannot collverse in that \\-'B)' at such a distance as b)' words,
which alone mak(-'~ it n vcl)' Improper vehi~le of our th?ughts i.n currying
• on an)' business WIthout doors, such as f1shlllg and hunting, which are the
­ chief occupations of savnges.
n1C Odrd method of communication I mentioned was b)' Im/tutlue
J or mimic sounds. which. 1 ~ol1bt not, was practised l>?,ore the in\'cntion
of ll!ngullgc. as it has been Since; but the expression of It could not KO any
156 Voyagers and Philosophers
fLaws
great length; no farther than to denote sounds, or objects which were
distinguished hy pnrticular sounds, such as beasts and binls of c1iffl'rent
kinds. in Helation
As to thu last method T meutioncd, /JOillting, or (1cliueating an)'
object by draWing the figure of it, it lllay have been used before the to the Nature
inveution of language; but it could go no farther Lban to C'OJlulll.lllicate the
notion of visible objccts; and, besides, it is of slow and difficult practice.
and not at all of so ready usc as language.
of the Climate
Of these four ways of cotlllllunication, it is plain. that only two have
any connection with language. viz. inarticulate cries and imitat ive sounds,
Baron de Montesqulieu
which arC' both modifications of the human voice, as well as language,
and could alone lead the way to the invention of language. And we are
now to inqllire, whethel', fronl one or othcr, or 1>oth of thesc, that inven­
tion ealt be traced.
1 Generalldea
Notes
If it be true that the telllper of tlae mimI aud lhC' passions of the heart
1 History of KamsctJatkll, p. 128.

extremely differeut in dillerenl climates, I he laws onght to be in rdat

:! See hefore, hook I. p. 1."lG.

a See Lucian, ".Ipl opxw~.wr.

both to the vari~ty of t bos(' passions and to l h(~ variety of those tcmp
I Ildorc tbe [lomans bad pantomime:;, tI,eir adors, such as Rosciu~, played cer­

tain parts in dumb show. Those part' were tile monodies, or wnt/ca, as the Lalins call
them. which were ~olil(>quJe;; sJloken in reeitatioo to music. III such part~ (If the pIa;'
the actor among the nOlllanS only W'slicubtecl, and exprt'ssed lhe SenSe hy his fIction,
that is, dfH\Ccd, as thev eall~d it. while another sung. or 1'1'01l0\111Ced the words t"
mnsic: so that it was only in the dlwrbirlm or dialogue that the Homan actor u,cd his
\·oice. How thiS strange cuslom of diViding the acting llnd spl'aking, ~Il('h os ne"!?r was
practised in an)' othl'r nation, su far I as know. ('"me In he introduced a1l10n~ thl'
nomans, Livy has info1'lllf'd us, !tb. 7. p. 2.
r. T h,lVl' oftclJ wondered, that llonlce, in his epistle to Augll.'illlS, wlt~]'(' It
flatters lhat prince ~o ml1('b as to eOtl1pare t.hf' nrt, of ROrlw in his time to the ~lrts of
Grecl'e, in lhesp lines,
Vellimlls adsllmmunl jor/wllI'; pillginlwI, Iltoue
Psallimus, et luc/omur ,.\chit;i8 clo(:til'S U/lclis
does 1I0t mention thiS pantomime art. which I hdiev(' wa, the only Dllt: jlJ whicb tIl<'
Romans of tltose dH)~ ":x~elled th" C,rccks. And this perhaps WllS 011(' of the reasons
whit:h made tlte people of Home so pas,ionatcly fond of it: for as to painting ,md
musi('. mentioned by Homcc, I cannot beheve that there wo.s tbe least elegIt'/! of com­
parison hdwixf tbo~p arts, as prl\ctis.'d in Home. and n.' praclisN] in Cr(·l~l·e. und par­
ticulorly painting: for, so far as [ know. the Homons n{'vcr produced one goO(! pnint""
nr statnarv. AIl,1 with respect to wrl',tlin.g. ~'" t]le first paloslTtl in [\ome wos, as I re­
memhcr, no earlier than ilL(' <1,1\'5 of Augustus Caesar, 1 think- it is hardly pOSSible that
the Homaus should all of a sudden have lwcorne ,uL,h e"1)C~rt wrE'stlers. ,\S therefore be
natters Augustus so much ,It the ':~pense of (ruth, 1 ('an ,Issig" nn reasoll why Iw
omitted this p:,ntomime art. in which he (night ha'·e truly said thl: Romans I'xcclled
th" Crpeks. e,ccpt that hI' did not ",tN'm it, either as " useful art, which ,t "crtallLl,"
IS not aInOll!: p';1'5011s who can uuderstand one onutllel' b\' laugll,\ge, or of :tllY nntmal
g."ace and benul~" And indeed it appl'al's fmOl what LuC'i,1I1 ,,(I,', in his di~lop:ue upon
,1ancini-\' t hat the men of l-tra "Ity 11ml correct tnst<: COmllJln"led this IIlimkal reprcsen­
tatit.m, as fit only for the low('r sort of people.
2 Of the Difference of Men in different Climates
Cold alr CO(1strillges the C'xtremil ies of the external fibres of the hoc
this increases thei~" elasticity, and favors the return of tbe hloon from
extreme parts tn the 110<11'1. 'It contracts:! those vcry fibres; consequcntJ
increases also tht'ir force. On the COlli rary, warm air relaxes and lellgtl~
the extremes of tlle fibres; of course it dimillishes their Foree and e
ticity.
Pcopl!' are, t bereforf>, more vigorous in cold dimates. Here
action of tbe heart and the reaction of the cxtrcmilics of the fibres
better performl.:d, the tell1peratmE' of the humors is ~reatcr. the hI
moves more freely towanls tbe heart, and reciproeall)i the heart has r
~)o'\v('r. This supCl'iorit)· of strength must produce various effects:
Instance, a greatl"r boldlless, that is, more courage; a gre",'1tcr sellS
superiority, that is. less desire of wvenge; a greater opinion of seell
that is, more frankness, less suspiciol1, policy, and cunning. In short,
must he proc1m;tive of vcr:' different telllprrs. Put a mall iulo n cI
warm place, .md for the rcaSOllS above given he will feel a great {<Jilltl
If lmder this circumstance you propose a bolu enterprise to him, 1 hel
" Prom Baron de M(')ntC~(jllil'"' '1'11(; Spitit of Ill!! [,1l1l;R, trRns!atc<1 by Th
'\ugl'nl. Heprinted by permission of H:lfru~r Press, Macmilllln Pub1i5hin~ Co ..
HH9: pp. 221-2:14.

• Instructions
-
for Philology
eorge Gibbs
Tn vie\v of the importance of a uniform system in collecting words of the
various Indian languages of North America, adapted to the use of officers
of the government, travcllcrs. and others, the follO\ving is recommended
as a STA_I\TIM.RD VOCAIHJLARY. It is mainly the Ollt:: pl"eparecl by tIle lat..
HOll. Albert Galbtiu, with a few cllitng<'s made by Mr. Hale, the Ethnol­
ogist of the U aited States Exploring E;-;pedition. and is adopted as Iliat
Upon which neady all the collections hiL11crto made for Ule pLUpOSU of
comparison have lwen based. For thl' pUl"pOSC of ascerlainillg the more
obvious relations between the \'Hrious members o.f ('~isting families, this
number is deemed sufficient. ThC' remote a1Rnilics must be sought- ill a
wider research, demanding it degree of acquaintance \vith their lan­
guages beyond the reach of tnlnsjenl. visitors.
TIle languages spoken within the limits of the United States, in
whicli tht' greatest deBciencies exist, me those of the tribes comprised in
LLe States of California and T(:'xas. and tlJC Territories of Utah, Nevada,
and ~e\V Mexico. and to these attention is particularly directed. It is nol
i.ntenned, bowevf'r, to wnfine [he collection to Ihe languages of the
United States. Those of British and Hussian America and of Mexico,
?articularly the wcsfcru coast, fall within the purpose of this circular; and
the alphabet may. in fact, with certain local adaptations, be used in any
region.
Some of tl1<"' words contai ned ill it will of Course be found in­
applicable iu particular sections of the country~ as, for example, ic~,
salmon, and sturgeon among the soutbern tribes, bu£Ialo among the coast
tJ"ihcs of the Pacific, and such shoilid at OIlC~ be omitted.
VVhere several languages ,uc obtained by tIle same person in one
district, the inquirer may substitute for these the names of familial'
things, taking care that the same arc carried through them all, and that
they a1'C those of nalivc and 1101' importC'rl objects. SlIch words as coat,
hat, etc., are of course useless for purposes of comparison. U1lless it is
"Tom George Gihhs. l".~t,.urtl(lll.l for Res('orcll llelative to the Etlm()lugy (i1Id
Philology 01 America.• SUlith..;onian .\1 iscd1:J nl '0 u.s Collectiom l(J(J (18fi."!). Reprinted
by pemlission of Smithsonian Instilulion Pres.... : pp. 1:~17.
180
George Gibbs 181
explained that they refer to the (hess of deer-skin, the hat of basket-work
used by the natives, and of thetr o\vn I)Timihve manufacture.
As the languages of savage uation5, being unwritten and without
fixed standard, are subject to COllstant change, the number of dialects is
everywhere considerable. The collector is therefore recommended to
obtain vocahularies in each dialect; and for the greater certai]1ty, to
employ one of those already collected. on the correch"H3ss of which reli­
ance can be placed, as the medLum of obtaining otllcr5.
\Vhenever leisnre and opportunity ofTer for the collect ion of larger
vocabuhuies than that here given, it will of course be rlesirable to procurc
them; as abo information concerning the grarnOlatieal struchlre of tll
language, such as the modes of forming the plurnls in nouns and adjec­
tives, their declcmioll. the conjugation of verbs, the character and use of
prollouns, thc number HJJd employment of adverbs, p!"("'positions, &c.
rammars and dictionaries, never yet published, werc made of IT\[,IllY of
tIle languages of Upper and Lower California and the Me~can Stales by
the Spanish missionaries, and the Smithsonian Institution has been
favorerl with the loan of several manuscripts which arc in the course of
publication. It is desired to procure others, or copies of them, whenever it
is pOSSible, from all petrI's of both the AnH'rican continents, or of printed
works on tho same subject. The present form is issued for the use of
travdkrs or merely transient n'siclents amollg tribes where no such
rcc.:ords are procmable.
In making collections, the utmost care is requisite to represent accu­
rately the sowlds of unfamiliar languages. particularly those which to us
appear uncouLh; amI the inquirer should satisf:' himself. by repetition of
the words to other individuals, that he has correctly acquired their
pronundat'ioll. vVhile the assistance of interpreters COllver.sant with the
language is desirable to insme a correct understanding, the words them­
selves should Le taken clown from the lips of an Indian of the tribe. A
great tlifIC'rence indeed exists amoug Indians in the purity with which
they spC'ak their own laugll:lge, chiefs and men of note and women of
good standing, as a general thing. spf'akiJlg more correctly than comwon
pt:rsons. Crcat pal-icnce is neccssar;' to secure accuracy, as their attention
soon becomes fatigued bv being kept on the stTctch. \Vhcnever this is
observed to be the case, it is best to postpone the suhject for a time, i.f
possihle.
11H~ character of the Indian mind is so E'ssentiaJly different from
thaI of the white nIall, they think ilJ so <1ifh~rent a rnCilter, tllat mall}"
precautions are necessary to avoid giving them wrong impressions of our
meaning, and of course obtaining incorrect T(:'pJies.
Indians not only distinguish by di(ferenl names the degmcs and
modifications of relationship. 'such as'tbe dclC'r from the younger brother
182 Prolessionalization 01 Anthropology George Gibbs 183

and sister, hut women usc different words from men iu addreSsing their
relations; as, for instance, a man emplo:,s one word in saying "my father,"
and a womnn another. Again, different words are, at least in some lan­
guages, used in speaking of ClUe's parents from those used in speakwg to
then·l. It is, therefore, necessary eith('r to give eadl form, or to specify by
what sex and in what SeJlse the words axe used. Further to prevent
In naming parts of the hody, as \,,'el1 as relationsllip, it will be fonnel
a \'ery common practice wit h Indians to prefiX the prououll "my" ('0 each
Ollf', as "my head." &e. TIle recurrence of the same syllabic at the begin­
nintrt> of each word will indicate this.
Tenon, uil/age. Cf'ncr:ll1:-' speaking, the same word is given as for house.

or it is rcunered "mallY houses." In New Mexico, pueblo would have a

uncerlainty, it is prefemble to cnploy the possessive pronoun iJl connce­

han with the word, as given in the vocabulary, e.g., "my father," &c:.; and diHel'Cnt lI1ea ning from the habitations of t he wild tribes.

this is, in fact, in cousonance with Indian practice, \VarriOl'. Among the tTihes of the Paci.£c coast, where there is no distinc­

Their languages are dencient in generic terms, or those representing tive e!ass of wClrriors, this is frecluently rendered "strong man," "quarrel­

classes of objects. Thus very few possess words equ iva1ellt to "tree," some," &c:.

"bird," "fish," &c., though names will be found for every particular
Friend i.s a word of veq indefinite meaning. Instead of it, "collsin," or

species, as each kind of oak and pine, of cluck or salmon; and of certain
"one liked:' will often be ~iven.

animals. such as deer, ! here will ue fonnd, besides the specific name,
black or white-tailed deer, as the case may be, separate words signHying Sun and moon, Curionsl), enough. these, among several tribes, bear the

blick, doe, and fawn, as with us. 1t lS, therefore, essent ial in outaining samn name and aTe actually supposcrl to be ttl(' s;.lme. Others use for

such names. to ascertain definitively the ohject intended, and to note this InOOli "nigbt sun."

in the vocabulary. The Seasons. Th(',5e words have been retained, though it is qnestionahle if

11Us tendency to particularize extends to almost every class of they ll<lve a very definite signification with Iudians. The names of particu­

objects. In regard to parts of the body, it bas been found that in many lar mOllths, or "moons:' \:vann or cold weather, or the periods in which

languages there is no onc woro for arm or leg, but separate ones for the particnlar occupations are followed probably, in mosl cases. replace

upper ann, rr.nd that below the elbow; for the thigh. and that part below thcm.

the knee. Even of the hands and feet there aJ'e often no names embracing
tLe whole. So, too, the words "leaf," "bark," arc represent'l,d hy cli.stinct
names, according to their character, as broad and neecUe-shaped leaves,
the woody and fibrous barks. Sheath and pocket knives and the various
forms of canoes have in like manner each their speci.fic names,
In respect to particular "vords, the following points may be noted:
Man. This must be carefully distiJlguisbed from the word "person," th
collective of which is "people." i. e., Indians.
River, lake. For t he~)(' simply dle worrl "wall'r" will often he given, as,
among tribes of lwtited range, their OWll river or lake is "the water" which
they hest know.
Mountain. "Hock" is freguelltly t he translation. Some tribes, agaul, apply
a special name to snow peaks.
The c070rs. The irlea of color seems to he indistinct, dark blue and dark
green l)avillg, in many languages. t he same name as black, and yellow the

same as light green,

Boy, Girl, Infant. The answer often given for these is ~jmply '1ittJe mall,"

Old aUll !JOlmg. Ca.rc should be taken that the worrls for "old man."
"little woman," "little one."

"young mOoll," are not supplied; or, Oll the other hand, "worn 01lt,~ and
[-hl.~'/;alld and wife. Distinct words exist IT] mOst languages for these
"new," as is often the case.
relationships; in olhers, it would seem as if thf'1'(' was only "my man," "m~'

woman."
Alit;e L~ frcquelltly relldered "\lot dead."
Indians, l!eople. Care must he taken that the name of the tril.>e is not Colel, warm. ITere-, again, caution is requisite, as colc! or warm lceather
given unless reall)' so deSignated.
may be given instead.
Head. A vcry common mistake to be guarded agaiJ1st is the substitution
Yesterday aml to-mOrrow. In some languages, ,1 single word is used for
of hair or sculp.
both, the distillCtiOII being made only by the connection.
Face. 11le name for the forebead or e.ve~ is, ill some cases, employed for
NumeraLs'. ~vlany tJ'ibes go no farther itl cOllntillg than ten, mid among
the whole face.
those of California, it is sajd, some have no names for numbers beyond
Neck. TIlroat is apt to be given instead of neck.
five. Others, on the contrary,, have different sets of numerals ' or rather
184 Professionalization of Anthropology
their numerals have different terminations, one class being used in ordi­
nary counting, the other applying to men, money, &c.
Pronou/ls. The personal pronouns m'e of two classes, one simple or
absolute, the other variousl), called fragmentary and copulative. 111ese
last arc used only in composit ion, as in the form of prefixes and suffixes to
the verbs.
Verbs. It is a matter of dispute whether the Indian verb has any true
infinitive mood, as "to go:' "to eat," &c.. and its simplest form appears to
be. in all cases, the third person singnlar present. "he goes," "he eats." It
will be better, thereforE'. to ohtain either this form or that of the first
person, "I go," &c. The last will be found often to he combiued with the
copulative pronoulJ.
The Origin
of the Mound Builders
Samuel Haven
In the preceding pages we have endeavored to select and condense
a mass of miscellaneous notes, such materials as would illustm
viewS entertained at different periods, and by various writers, upa
jeets relating to the archaeology of the United States.
This has been done lmeIer whatever c.lisadvantages arc ineic
the circumstance of having portions of thE: text printed lJeforc
portions were written. Had opportunity and leisure been a:ffor~
revision of the entire paper, dmnges and additions might ha·...
made that would have been likely to improve the consistency as
the completeness of the narrative.
After a consideration of statements and speculations tll~
failed to present a harmonious result, the milld naturallv craves t~
faction of heiug able to distinguish acknowledged verities frorn d~
are problematical, jf it is ouly for the sake of somc solid hasis on \~
build new theories. or some fixed point from which future invest
may take their departure. The reader will doubtless expect to be
in an effort to separate matters of fact frorn inferences and hypot11
u recapitulation of the principal points that have been with re
certainty established.
. .We shall endeavor. while glancing rapidly along the c~
ll1qU1ry, to ascertain in what direction, and to what extent, the
tolerabl>' clear anc! the path tolerably finn.
The comparative geological antiquity of the tWlJ hemis
a~<:ollllted by some an clem<mt of weight in estjmating the pro~
of ::tn indigenous population on this contwonl. It is <l point. howj
cannot be determined in the prescnt stage of geological ohservl
We admit that portions of the western coni inent exhibit appcaran:
earlier emergence than is known to he indicated elsewhere, it I
he true that the mass of the eastern hcmisphere was sooner d
and sooner preparecl for the habitation of man. Bnt until it is
From Samuel F. Hllven, Ardwcolo/!,y of tile United States, or Sk
torieal and Biblioafll7Jhical of [nformatio;l lJIoil Opillioll RC~'Pectitlg Ve.\·t'
t"IqUlty
. b '
in the Unit.ed States, Smithsonian Conlribuliou to Knowledg<' V
l\eprinled by pennission of Smithsonian Institution Press: pp. 140-159.

I appear before you lllis cveniug to enter a plea for one of the most
neglected branches of learning, fm a study Ilsually considered hopelessly
dry and ll11productive-thflt of ATnt::rican aboriginal languages, 1
It migLt be thought that Sllch a topic. in America and among
Americ<Uls, would attract it reasonably large number of students, The
intf're,~t which attaches to our nat-ivc soil and to I-he homes of our
auceslors might be supposed to extend to the languages of those nations
who for UJlcou1lted generations possessed tIle land w,hi.ch we have
occupied relativcl)! so short a time.
This suppositioll would seem the more reasouable Ul view o[ the
fact that in One sense tliese langllages have not dicd out among us. True,
they are no longer media of intercourse, but t'bey surv-ive in thousands of
geographical names all over our laud, in the state of Connecticut alone
there arc ove1' six hundred, and even more in Pennsylvania,
Certainlv it would be a most legitimate auxictv which SllOtlld direct
itself to the preSerV<11 ion of the cOI';'ect forms an<l precise m<'anings of
these I1UlnerOtl$ and peculiaI'll' national designations. One would think
that this alolle would not fail to excite something more than a languid
curiosity in Americ<tn lin~l1istics, at least in our instil ut ions of learning
and societies for historical'"research.
That this Sllbjcct has receivf'o so ,~ligbt attcnt.iou I atl:ribute to the
comparatively recent understanding of the value of the stuJy of lan­
guages iII generaL and more particularly to tllf' hlet that no ont', so far ,1S
I know. has set forth the purposes for \-vhich we should iuvestigate these
tongues, and the results which Wt" expect to reach by means of them. This
it is my present pW'posc to attempt. so far as it can be accomplished in
the scope of an evening 'lddress.
'The time has nol long passed when the only good reasons for study­
ing a language were held to be either that we might t !Jereby acquaint
From Daniel Brillton, Ls,wJ!/s of an .'\1n(;;'ricanisl. New York: Idhll5011 Rqll'int
Corporation, Publishers. In Pre5~. pp. 308--:327
206
Daniel G. Brinton 207
ourselves with its literature; or that certain business, trading, or political
interests rnight b0 subserved; or that the JJ<.ltioll speakiug it might he
made aCluainted with the lJlessings of civilization ;:U1d Christianity.
These were all good and sufficient reasons, but 1 canllot adduce anyone
of them in support of my plea to-night: for the languages J shall speuk of
have no literature; all h',lllsactions with their p(~ople can be carried on as
well or better in European tOJlgues; and, in fact, many of these peoples
,D'(' 110 10ngeJ" in existel1ce-Lhey havc died ont or amalgamated witb
others. Wbat 1 havc to argue for is the study of the dcad languages of
xtinct and barbarous b'ibes.
YOll wiJl rearlily see that my arguments must be cha\vn from other
considerations t,han those oJ immediate utility. T must seek thcm ill the
broader fields of ethnology and philosophy; 1 must appeal to your interest
ill man a~ a race, as a member of a COlnm0 11 species, as possm;:;ing in all
his families and tribes the same mind, the same soul. Lan~uage is almost
our only clue to discover the kiJ'ship of tbose countless sc,\l1:ered hordes
wbo roamed tlle forests of this broad continent. Their traditioJls arc
va~lle or lost, writtell records they hud none, their customs ,wd .trts arc
nriskalling, their roligions misuoderstood; their languages alOlle rcmalJl
to test if v to a oneness of blood often seemingly r~pl1diated 11)' an inter­
llcciue hostility.
1 am w~U aw,u-e of the limits which a wL~e caution assigns lo the
employment of linguistiCS in ethnology, aDd I am only too famili,lf with
the many foolish, nnscicnt:i£c attempts to employ it with refcren<.;e to the
AmClican race. But in spite of all this, T repeat that it is the surest and
almost our only meallS to t.race the ancient connection and migrations of
nations ill Amedca,
Through its Hid alone we h,\ve reacbed a positive kllowlerlp;e that
mosl of (,he area of South America, including the whole of the \Vest
Illllies, was oc::cnpied by tlll'ce grcat families of nations, not om.: of which
had fonned au) imporlant settlement on the nortbem cOl,ltinent. 13y
:;imilar evidenc:e we kno\v that the tribe which greetccl POUlI, wheD he
'" laJl(led on the site of this city where 1 uow speak, was a lI1ember of the
ne vast family-the great Algunl-.:in stock-whose various dalls extended
frorn the pallTlellO sv,'Ull'lpS of C<u"olina to the s1low-dad hills of Llbrador,
and [rOIn the easternmost cape of Ne\vfoundlaml to the peaks of the
I\ueky MOlllltains, over:Wo of latitude and ,50'> of longitude. vVe also
know that the general trend of migration in tIle northern continent has
bC'C1l frorn ltorl'11 to south, and that this is tnJ<:' not only of the more
savage trilles_ ~lS the Algonkins, Iroquois. and Atlwpasc:as. but also of
t~l()sC' who, in Ihe favored southern lands, approached a form of civiliza­
tum, the Aztecs. the !\,'Iayas, and the Quiches, These anu many minor
ethnologic facts have already been obtained by the study oJ American
lauguages.

208 Proiessiona/izatlon 01 Anthropology
But such external information is ouly a small part- of what they are
capable of clisdosiXJg. \Ve CHlJ turn them, like the reflector of a micro­
sl:ope, on the secrcl and JdeklCll m)'stt:ri_es of the aboriginal man, and
cliscovcr his inmost motives, his impulses, his concealed bopes anel fears,
those that gave rise to his customs and laws, his schemes of social life, his
snperstitions and his religions,
Personal names, family names, titles; forms of salutat ion, methods
of addJess, terms of endearment, respect. and reproach, words expressing
the emotions, these an,' what infallibly reveal the daily socia] family life of
a community, and the way in which its members regard one unot}wl'.
They are precisely as correct when applied to the investigation of the
American race as elsewhere, and tbC'y are the more valuable just there,
beGaw;t' his deep-seatcd distrllst of the white invaders-for which, let us
acknowledge, he had abuudant cause-led the Indian to practice COll­
cealment and cqllh'ocatioll on these personal topics.
III 110 other wa:-' can the history of the developme11t of his arts be
reached. You are doubtless a\vare that diligent students of the Ary,ul
languages have succeeded in faithfu]]), depicting the <Uts and halJits of
that ancient community iu wwcL tbe GODUlIOU aJicestors of Greek aud
Romau, Persian and Dane. Brahmin and Irishman, dwelt togetllt,r as of
one hlood and One speech. This has been done by ascertaining what
household words are common to all these longl1es, and thc>refore lTIust
have been in use among the primeval horc1e from which they are all
descended. 1'1)(' method is conclusive, ;:Iud yields positive results. There is
no reason why il should not he addressed to Anu:'rican languages. and we
may be slll"e that it v.:ould be most frujtful. How \'alnahle it would be to
take even a few woros, as maize, tobacco. pipe. bow. arrr)w, and the like.
each representing a widespread art or cllstom, and b.·ace their derivations
and affinities through the Innguages of the whole continent! 'We may he
sure thal stTiking anclllllexpected results would be obtained,
These languages also oiler an entertaining iield to the ps)-chologist.
Ou account of their transp<u-ency. as 1 may ca]] it, the clearness with
whieh they retain the primilive form.. of their radicals, thf'.)· allow us to
trace oul the growth of words, and thus r<?veal the 0lwratioDs of the
native mind by a series of witnesses whose testimony cannot be ques­
tioned. Often curiom associations of ideas rHe Lhus disdosed, vel'Y
instructive to the student of Ulaukind. MaIl\' ilh1.~trations of this could he
given. but I do not wish to assail your ears -oy a host or unknown sounds.
so 1 shaH content myself with one, and that taken from the language of
the Lenfipe. ()I' Delaware Indhms.
J shall endeavor to trace' out OIl\:' sillgle raelical in that language. and
show you !low many_ and hm\! strangely di\'(:'rse ideas were huilt up upon
it.
The radical Wllich I select is the personal pronoun of the first
Daniel G, Brinton 209
person. I, Latin Ego, in Delaware this 1.> <I single sylt,bIe, a slight nasaL
Ni- me premise by informing you that tbis is both a personal and il
{lif, orLet
possessive pronoun; it means both 1 and mine, It is both singuhlr am1
plural, boLL T <\1xl we, rnine und our
The chang(~s of t.he applic:atiOJ] of this root are made by adding
snffixes to it, with ni'hilll1Tl. literally, "mine, it is so," or ·'she. it, is truly
T begin
mine," the accent being on th(:; nrst syllabIc. ,,-i', mine. But the cornrnOT
l1leauillg of this verb in Delaware is more significant of ownership than
this tame expression, 1l is an active. animate verh, and means, "1 beat, or
strike. somehody." To the rude minds of tbe framers of that tongue,
ownership meant the Ti!!,llt to beat what one owned.
Vve might hope tllis sense was confilled to the lower animals; but
e
not so. Change tl1l' accent from the first to the second syllahl , ni'fliLlan.
~orne b)~
to nddl'lan, aud vou havp the animate active verb with an intensiv,," fOlce
which s;,glliD.es "to beat to death," "to kill person;" and from this.
another suffix, you have nihil'loweli. lo rnl1[(~er, and nifJi./'IDwet, mnr­
derer. The bad sense of the root is here pnsbec1lo its uttermost.
But the root also rleve\oped in :1 nobler direction, 1\d(l to 'ni'llillan
the termiuut!on (.1)8, whieh means a male. aflll you have /1,ih illape, liter­
ally, ''L it is tnH~, a lf1aJl," which, as nIl adjective, means free, indepen­
dent. one's own master. "1 ,un nw own 1nan." From this are derived the
noun, niflillapewif. a hecman: tl~c vel'h nihiDa/Jew in . to be free; and th(~
abstract, niMlIasowagan. freeelom, liberty, independence. These are glori­
OHS words: but 1 can go even farther. From tJlis same theme is derived
the verb ni1ril/ape-u;hen, to set free, to liberate. to redcetu; and from this
the missionaries franlf'd the word nihillape-w}zoalid, the l1edeemcL the
Savioul'.
Here L" an unexpected antitlJesis, the' words for a murderer and the
Saviottl' bot11 from onc root! it illustTates how stJ<ingc is the conc.'ltenation
of human t11oughts.
T]lc;se an' by no means all the derivatives hOLT! the root Jli,~.
\:V1ICrJ reclupIiC~\tl'(l as nene, it has a plural and strengtbened form.
like "our own:-' "Vitb a p<lnloml.ble alld well-nigh universal wea\.."I1ess,
which we share with them. the nation wim spoke the language believed
thcmseh'('s thE' first created of mortal~ a TIel the most favored l,y the
Creator, Hence whatever theY designalncl as "ollrs'" was hath older and
better than others of its ki~)(l. H~nce nerlni c,une to meCln ancient,
primordial. indi?;enous, and as such it is a frefjllf'nt prefiX in the Delaware
language, Agaill, as the)' considered themselves the first and only trne
men. others lwillg barbarians, euemies- or st-rangl,;rs, Ilel1110 was under­
stood to be one of us, a rnan like ourselves. of our nation.
In their different dialects the sounds of n. t, and,. were alternated,

210 Professionalization of Anthropology
:;0 that vvhile Thomas Campallius, wllO translatl'd the Catechism into
Delaware auout 164.5, 'wrote thaL worel rhcnnus, later writers have given
it li:mno, and translate it "Ulan," TJlis is the \vold whieh we Hllll in the
narne Lenui Lenape, whicb, by its derivation, means '\'1'E' , we men." Tll(~
antecedent lellni is superfluous. The proper name of the Vela\vare nation
was and st-i11 is Len clpe, "we mon," or "our meD," and those critics who
have maintaineJ that this was a misnomer, introJuced by tvh. Heeke­
\',lelder, have bt."e1J mistaken in their facts."
1 have not done witb tbe root nC. J might go 011 and show yOll how
it is at the base of the demonstrative pronouns, this, that, those, in Deb­
ware,; how it is the radical of the words for thinking, reflecting, alld
meditating; how it also gives rise to words expressillg sirnilaIity and
irlc'ltity; how it means to be forenlO,t, tu slalJd ahead of others; aud
uliallv, hO\',' it signiIips to cOllie to me, to unify or congregate together.
But cioubl'lcss I have trespassed on yom eo'!rs 100~g ~llOUg~; with lllif~rniliar
words.
Such suggestions as these \",,'ill give you some idea of the v;:Llllf' of
American languages to Amer.icall ethnology. Bllt T sbollJd be doing inju<;­
tice to my sulJjeet W('1"e I to confine 111\' argumeuts in bvor (}f their stuck
to this 1IOri ZOIl , If they an' essential La a COITJpIf'hemion of tht' red race,
not less so arc t hey to t he science of linguist ies in gE'ueral. This science
deals not w,iU,! hm g;1l ages , but wilh lnngllnge, ft looks at the idiom of [\
nation, !lot as a dr)" catalogne oJ wmds and granltnat-ical nlle:;_ but as the
living expression of the thinking powel' of man, as the higJwst m,lnifesta­
tion of Hlat spiritual eJJergy which has lifted him from tlle levt'l of l-ll('
bruto, the complete defitution of which, in its origin anJ evo!u!iou, is
tht' [ofl-jest aim of universal history. As the i11tentioll of all speech is the
expression of thought, and as the final purpose of all thinking is the
discovery of truth, so the ideal of language. the point toward which it
sl rives, is the absolute form for the rC<1lizatioll 01 intellectual fllnd ion.
In lw.~ high qUl~::;( 110 tOHgue can be overlooked, nOlle can he leit ont
of account. Oue is jn:;t as iUlporlaut as another. Grethe once said that be
who knows hut one langunge knows nOllC; we may extenrl I he apothegm,
and say that so long as therE' is a swglc languagc on the glohe not
understood and ar'nlyzed, the sciencf' of language will he incomplete and
illusory. It has oftcn provcd the casE' that tbe ill\'esligation of a single,
nanow, obscure dialect has eha uged t ht' most i rnporta nl tbeories of his­
tory. \Vhat has doue more tban anvlhiug else to overthrow. or. at least,
seriously to slwke, Lhe time-hOllored nohOll that tIle "Vhite Hnce first
carne from Central Asia? lL was the sllJd)' of thp Lithuanian dialect on the
Baltic Sea, a language of peasants, without literature or culture, but
which tlisplays forms rnore archaic tllau the Sal1scrit. \Vhat has led to a
complete change of views as to tht' pr"historic: population of Southern
Daniel G. Brinton 211
Europe? The study of the Basque. a language uuknowli out of a few
seduuecl valleys in the Pyrenees.
There urc many reasons why lunvritlen languages, like those of
America, ar(' more iutPresting, morc promising in results, 10 the student:
of hnguishcs, than those which for gelleraholls have been cast in tbe
conventional moulds of written speech.
Their structure is morc direct, sjll1ple, tHUlsparent; tbey Ieveal more
dearl; the laws of the linguistic powers ill their daily exercise; they are
less tied down to hereditary formuL;() and meaningless repetitions.
\VouJd we explain the complicated struchue of highly-organized
tongues like our o,,"n. would we learn the laws which have aSSigned to it
its materia] ulld fonnal dements, Wl' must hU'n to the naIve speech of
S,I vagcs, there to see in thei I' nakedness those processes whi(;h are too
Ob~ClLre in Ollf owtl.
1£ the ll1\lch-del.lal('(l question of the origill of language engages us.'
we must seek its solulion ill the simple radicals of llavage idioms; and if
we wisb to inslitllte a comparison betweell the relative powers of lan­
guages, we can by no meuus omit them from UUl' list. They offer to \IS t.be
raw material. the essential Hnd illdispensable refluisilcS of articnlat
COlli nil lIli cation,
As the structuIe of a language reflects in a measure, and as, ou the
ot her hand, it in a TI"lC'asure controls and directs I he. rncntnl workings of
those who speak it, the Sllideot of psychology must occupy himself with
the speech of the most illiterate 1'<\(;85 in order to understanrl their theory
of things, their notions of what is about them, They teach him the ul1I.lis­
tmbed evolution of the untrained mind.
As the biologist ill pnrsuit of that marvellous something wbich we
call "the vital principle" turns from the complex organislDs of the higher
animals and plants to life in its Simplest €xpr(;'~sion in microbes and single
cells. so in tbe fuhue will the linguist find that he is ncarest the solutioD
of the most weighty problems of ids :;ciellce wherl he directs his attention
to the least cult ivatec11an guages.
Convinced as I am of the correctness of this analogy, ] velltl.lre to
predict that ill II'll: [l.lture the analysis of tuo American language;; will be
rcgarded as one of the most important fields, in linguistic study, and ,viI)
rnodif~' most materially the findillgs of that scicncE'. And 1 make this
prediction the mOre confidently, as I am supported in it by the great
authority of "'\'ilhelm von Hl11nbolch, who for t w('.nty years devotecl
hirnsc1f to their investigahon.
As 1 am advocating so warml~l that ilion? atte.ntion should he de­
voteclto tlJCSC languages. it is hut fail" tJ-lat you should require me to say
somelhing descriptive abllUt. them, to e:\plain some of their pecn1i,lrities
of structure. To do this propt'rly 1 should require not the fag end of one

212 Professiona/ization of Anthropology
lecture, but a v"bo!e course of lectures. Yet perhaps I can say enough now
to show yOll how much there' is in them \volih stud) iJlg.
Before J turn to this. however, I should like to combat a prejudice
wl.ticu I fear you ma)' entertain. Jl is that same anclc'nt pr~iudice which
led the old Gn'eks to call all those who did not speak their souon)us
idioms l.w.rbarians; for that word IneaJlt nothing more nor less tban
babblers (!3(,A!3t1'AOL), people \vho spoke an unintelligible tongue. \!Iodcrn
civilized nations hold that prC'judice yet. in the sense that ead! i.l1sists that
his own hlllguage is the best olle extant, the highest i.n the sC:(11e, and that
wherein others differ frOl\) it in structure they arc inferior.
So unfortunately placed is this prejudice with rd('rcnc(~ to 111)' sub­
ject. th..'ll in the very volume issued by our govemment at \Vashington to
encow-age the shld)" of the Indian langllage.,';, thC're is a long essay to
pro\'e that English is tIl(> noblest. most perfect language i.n the world,
while ail t]le native hlllgl.lage~ are, ill comparisoll, of a very 10\"11 grade
indeedl a
The eSS<lvist draws hie; arguments chidlv fl"()m the ahsence of illflec­
tions in Engli~h. Yet many olth(;· profounlest Iingnists of this century
have maintained that a f1l1l.\· inflected language. likr the Greek or Latin, is
for that vel")' reason ,lllead of an others. '0/e may suspect that when a
writer lauds his nativc tongue at the expense of others. he is inl1uenc:ed
by a prejudic:e in its favor and an ,lbsencc of facility in tIte others.
Those best acquaiuted with American tongues praise them most
highl)" for fleXibility. accuracy, and rl'SOUl"ces of e},:pression. The~' placC'
some of tbcrn above a.nv Arrall langllage. But what is this to those who
do not know them? To him who cannot bend the bow of Ulysses it
nallJrall)' seems a llsdess and (1 .."kwarc.\ "veapoll. ' plnce where sorcery is practiced". their notion of hook-Iearnillg being
1 do not ask )'0\1 to aee('pt this opinion either; but 1 do ask that you
riel yom mind.. of bias, and that you do not eondeDlll a tongue because it
differs Widely from that which you speak
American tongues do, indeed. c1iffer very widel)' from those familiar
to Aryan ears. Not that they art> all alike ill structure. Tbal lVas a hast:·
generalization. dating from a time wi 1<.'1 1 they were less known. 'Yet the
great majority of I hem have certain characteristics in common, suffieil'n1
to place them in a linguistic class b~' themselves. 1 shall Ilallle and e:>:plain
some of these.
As of HIe 6.rst i rnpOrl<l lice [ wOllld mention tJ Ie prominence they
assign to pronouns and proulirnil "tl forms. Indred, an eminent Iingllist
has been $0 irnprE'ssed \Vil'li I his h'atlll"C' that IIC has pl'Oposed to dassif):
them distinclivf'ly as "prollorninal languages." TlJCy have many classes of
pronouns. sometimes as 111,1llV as C'ighl<"'cn. which is mOre thall twke as
l1Iall)' as ,·he Gn.'ek. Th('J'c is' oftC'n ~o dislinction botween a I)oun ,11K] a
verb olher tklll the pronoun wldch governs it. That is, if a word is
Daniel G. Brln/on 213
cmployed with one fonn of the pronoun it becomes a noun, if \'litb
another pronoun, it hecomes a verb.
We have something of the same kind in English. In the phrase, "1
love," love is a ve.rb; but in "my love," it is a noun. It i~ noteworthy iliat
thiS treatment of words as either nouns or verbs. as we please to employ
them, was carried further by Shakespeart> than by an)' other English
writer. HC' seemed to divine in such a trait of language vast resources for
varied and pointed expression. If 1 ma)' vcnture a suggestion as to how it
oes confer peculiar strength to expressions, it is that it brings into
especial prominence the idea of Personality; it direct..'> nll subjects of
iscolUse hy the notion of an individual. a living, personal unit. This
imparts vividness to narratives, and directness and life to propositions.
Of these pronouns. tbat of I he first person is usually the most devel­
oprd. From it, in maJlY dialects, arC' derived the dl'monstratives and
relatives. which in Aryan languages were taken from the third person,
This prominence of the Ego, tltis confidellcc: in self, is l\ trait of the race
as well as of their speech. It forms part of that savage independence of
chnl'actcr which prevented them coaleSCing inlo great nati()Jl~. and kd
thom to prefer d~ath to servitude'
Anothcr characteristic. which at one time was supposed to be uni­
vcrsal on this contill(·nt. is what Mr. Peter Du Pnncetlu named polysyn­
thesis. ITe nwant :lV this a power of running several words into on(:.
dropping parts of them and retaining onl) the significanl syllables. Long
uescnptivl' names of all ohjects of civil i7.ed life lIew to the I nmnns were
thus coined with the wcatest ease, Some' of the~1' are curious enough. The
Pavant IndHlJl:> call n school house hv one word, which means "'a stopping­
tltat it he-longs to the IUlcanll)' arts. Tlw Delaware' word for horse means
"'llw fonr-footell animal which carries 011 his back."
This meUlod of ('oining words IS, however. b~ 110 means universal in
American languages. H prevails in most of tbos(' in Bril ish America and
the United States, ill Aztec :l.l1d various South Amprican idioms; hut in
others. as the dialects found ill Yucatan and Guatemala. and in the Tupi
of Brazil. the OtDOli of vlexico. and the Klamath of Ihe Pacific coast. it is
scarcely Ilr not ,It all present.
A1101 her tnut, however, 'vvhicL was con[ouuded with this !>" Mr. f)u
PoncC'uu, unt really belongs in a diITerent call'~or~ of grammatical sh'uc­
ure, is tml) distinctiVC' of the language:> of the continent, and 1 am uot
sure that anyone' of them has been shown to he ",hollv devoid of it. This
is what is c~l1ed inrorporatiun. It includes in the "e(fl. or ill the verha1
exprnssioll. thl? objt'ct and manner of the action.
This is effected b~. making the snbject of tbe verh an inseparahle
prefiX, and by illsprting: between it ~Llld the vl:'rh itseU, or sometimes
 214 Professionallzalion of Anthropology
directly in the) lalter, betwccn its syllables, the object dirce:( Or remote
and the partides indicating mode, Tbe time or tense particles, on tIle
other halld, wiIJ be placed at one; eud of this compound. cilher as prefixes
or suffix,es, ihuli placing lhe wlJOle exprcssioll strictly Wit/lill the lirnits of a
verbal form of speech,
Hoth the above charackristics. I l1Iean Pol.vsynthcsis and Incorpora.
tion, are llllconscious efforts to carry out ,I certain theory of spe('c!t whidJ
klS aptly C'llough bt'(;l1 termed ho{ophmsis, or the putting the whole of a
phrasc into a single word. This is {'he aim of ('ach of them, tllOugh each
endcavoTli to accompli.~h it oy difFen:lJt mcans, lJlcorporation confinr's
itself exclusively to verbal [orll)~. while pol,vsynthesis embraces hoth
nouns amI verbs.
Suppose WI:" carry (he analysis fnrthcr. and see if Wl' can ol)taio all
answer to the qll c-r,",-vVh) did fhi.~ effort at blending fonlls of 5pl~ech
obtain so widrly? Such all UJCjuiJ} wil! indica.te how I'a(uablc to lingUistic
search would provl' the stud.,' of I his group of languages,
f thillk t-hen,' is no doubt but Ulaf it points unmistakably' to that vcry
ancic'llt, to that- primordial period of humau utteram;e WIH':1l mC11 had !lot
et learned to connect words info sentellces, when their utmost cHarts at
articulate speech did riot go beyOlJd single' words. whif'h, nickd hy
gestures and sign~, served tli COllVC\' their limiteel intellectual converse,
Such single vocaoles did not uelong to an~' particnlar part of specch
Then" was no gramfnar to that antiqlle tongue. Its di~collnect('d cxclama­
tiom; mean whol<: sentf'llCP.S in th('mselvrs.
\ larg(' part of the humall racC'. notalll:-'. Lut not exclusively, the
abl>rigines of this cOlllin('nl. continued th(' tradil iOll of this mock of
('\'Prcssion in tlw strucflll'f' of their tongues, long after the ullioll of
thought and sound in audible speech had been brought to a high degree
of perfection,
Although T thus rt>gard ()lie of tbe most prominent pecllJj,u·itie.~ of
antecccknts wit h the mOst lucid accuracy.
AmerLc:an languages as il SllJ'vival from nn excecdil1gl~' Jow stage of
There is auother point that I must mcntion in this connection.
human development. it Ly no IO( 'ailS follows that this is an cvic]cl1cf' ()J
becallse I find that it has almost alwal's oeen ov('r!ook('d or misunderstood
their inferiority.
The Chil~es(:', who made no effort to combine the primitive vocables
into one, but range them nakcdly side b,v Side, succceded 110 hetter tha.n
the Americ~an Indians: and there is not much hcvond asserhcm to prove
that tlw Ary,l11s, who, lhnmgL t(wi" in(JpclioIJ,S, 'marked tIll' relatioll of
(:l<1ch word in the SClltence by llumerous lags of C<ise. gcntle'r. nllmbf'r.
etc., got ;my nearcr thf' ideal per-Feetian of language,
Tf we apply what is certnilll) a ver.\· fair test. 10 "'it: t'he nsf'S to
which a Iangllagf' is and C:In be pill, r call1lot S('(' tlmt a well-dcveloped
Amcrican tougue, Sllch as the Aztec or [lie AlLum kin. ill an,\ wa.\ [alb
'short of, say French or English.
It is true that in m'ln)' of t!les(' 10nEI.I('S there is no distinefioll JI1:-tdc
Daniel G, Brinton 215
between e:-;pn;ssiolls, which with us arc cardully separated, and are so in
thought. Tlms, in tbe Tupi of Brazil and elsewhere. tLcre is !Jut oue word
for the three expreSSions, "his father," "he is a fatber," am1 "he has a
father;" in many, the simp/(' form of the verb lTl<ly cOllvey three different
ideas, as in Ute, where the \-\lord for "he seizes" means also "the seizer,"
aUlI as a descriptive nOUll. "a bear." the <1Jdmal which seizes.
Tbis bas been charged against these hHiguagcs as a lack of "differ­
entiation," Grammatically. this is so; bllt the samE' charge applies with
almost equal force to tLe English lauguagl', where thc samc word way
belong to all~' of {om, five. cvea six parts of spcech, dependellt entirely on
the connection in which it is used.
As a set-off. the American .languages avoid confusiollS of expression
which prevail in European tongues.
Thus ill nOllC of these latter, when 1 say "the lovl: of God," "I'amoul'
de Dieu," "amor Dei," can yoU understand what I mean,You (10 not
know wllCthcr I intend the Jove which we have 01' should have toward
Cod, or Cod's love toward \LS, Yd ill the Mexic,tr\ lallguagc (and mall)'
other Americal! tougue's) these two quite oppOSite ideas arc so cle:-trly
distinguished that. as Father Carochi warns tbe readers of hi~ Mexican
Grmnnwr, to confouDd them would not merd~' be' ,\ grievous solecislI1 in
speech. bllt a formidable heresy as well.
Another example. "Vhat call yOIl make Ollt of tllis sentence. whidl is
strictly correct' 1).\, English gramm:\r: "John (old RObert's son that he mllst
help him?" You Ci:iJl mah' nothing ont of it. It may have anyone of six
different meanings, depcnding on the PCTSOliS referred to by t1Jf' pronouns
"he" and ··him." No such larllcntable confusiull could oeCIH in ~lI1Y Ameri­
can tongue known to me, The Chippewa)', for instance. has three
pronouns of the third person, which deSignate the IIcar and the I'(~motc
h~' erilics of these lang-uages. These' have heen free ill condelllning
~ c the
L
s.\rnthetic forms of construction. But they seem to he ignorant (hat their
USc is largely optional. Thus, in Mexi~·al1. olle can ~rrang(' the same
sentence in an analytic or a s.\'nthetic form, and th~ is also the case, ill a
Jess degree, in the Algoukin. By this means a remarkable richness is
aclued to the 1aIlgml gt'. The higher (he grade of synthesis employed, the
~ore striking, elevated, and pOinted Lecomes the expreSSion, In common
life long compounds are rare, whiJe in the nativf' Mexic<lll poetry each
line is often hut one word.
Turning now from the struetnre of ('hese languages to their vocabu­
laries, I tnust correct a widf'spread notion that the:, are scant)' in extent
and deficient in the means to express loft), or abstract ideas.
Of coursc, there are many tracts of thought and learning familiar to
 Daniel G. Brinton 217
216 Professionalization of Anthropology
Besides tIils, each of these stocks is subdivided into dialects, each
US now whicu were uttedy unkJlown to the American aborigines, anel Ilot
clisting ishec1 by its own series of phonetic changes, and its own ne'\v
less so to our own forefathers a few centuries ago. It wuuld be very unfair u
words. V\'hat an opportunity is thus o{fered for the study of the natural
to compare the dictionary of an Indian language with the last edition of
cvoJutiOll of langua.ge, unfettcred by the petrifying art of \Vritillg!
This is the ca~e which 1 present to you, and for which I earnestly
Webster's Unabridged. But taKe the Ellglish dictionaries of the latter half
of the sixteenth century, before Spenser and Shakespeare wrote, and
solioit your consideration. And that T ll1ay add weight to my appeal, I
compare them with the Me.xican vocabulary of Molina, which C:Dntains
dose by quoting the words of DUe of America's most distinguished scien­
about 13,000 words, or wilh the Maya vocabulalY of the convent of
tists, Professor Wi1Jiam Dwight Wllitney. of Yale College, who writes to
Motul, which presents over 20,000 both prepared at that date, and your
procedure will he just, and you will find it not disadvantageous to the this effect:
"The study of Amoric.'l.ll languages is tbe most fruitful and the most
American side of the question.
The deficiency in abstract terms is generaHy true of these languages. important branch of Ameriean Arch::eology."
They did not ha ve them, because thcy had 110 use for them-allc1 the
more hlessed was their cOll(Ution, EW'opean languages have been loaded
Notes
with several thousand such by metaphysics and mysticism> and it has 1 An Address delh'cred by rcqllcSt before the Historical So~ieties of Pennsylv~\1,iH
required mallY generations to discover that they aJ'e empty windbags, full and 1'cw York, in 1885. It \Va, printer! in the P(ll'IIlSyll'(I11io Magazine of History (lnd
of s01.md and Signifying nothing.
BiogwlJh !J [or thal year.
Yet it is weU known to students that the power of fanning abstracts ~ For anot]Jer deri\'ation, see ante, fL 182.
is possessed in a remarkable degreE' by many native languages. The most II ltltrodllctintl to the Sllnll/ of [,ldiarl Lrmglwge' B~ 1· W. Powell (~t:c.on(1 edi­
recondite formulre of dogmatic religion, such as the definition of the tion, Washington. 1880).
Trinity and the difference bt>tween consubstantiation and transubstantia­
tion, have bcen h',ll1slated into many of Ulem without introducing foreign
words, and in entire confonnity "vitb their grammatical struc-turc. Indeed,
Dr. Augustin de In Rosa, of the University of Guadalajara, says the
Mexican is pecll.llarly adapted to render t.hese metaphysical subtleties.
I have been astonished that some writers should bring up the
primary meaning of a '\>vord in an American language in order to infer the
coarseness of its ~econdmy meaning. This is a str.1.ngel.y unfair proceed­
ing, amI could be directed witb equal effect against our own tongues.
Thus, 1 read lately a traveler who spoke hardly of an Indian tJibe because
their word for "to Jove" was a nerivative from t1.lat meaning "to huy," and
thencE' '<to prize." But wbat did the Latiu arnare. amI lhe English to lO'De,
first mean? Carnally Jiving together is what they £rst meant, and this is
not a nobler dcrivation than that of the Indian. Even vet, when the most
polished of European nations, that one wllich 111o;t exalts fa grande
pa.ssion, does not distinguish in langnage between lOYing their wives and
liking their dinners, but uses tbe sa.me word for both emotions, it is
scar~E'ly wise for liS to induJge in much latitulle of inference from such
etymo logies.
Such is the gelleral chumctcr of American languages, ailll such are
the rcasollS why tlle)"' should be preserved and studied. T]le Held is vast
ancl demands many laborers to reap all the fruit that it promises. It is
helieved at present l-Lmt there are (lbout- two hunched wholly iudependent
stocks of languages among the ahorigiJ1es of this continent. They vary
most widely in vocabulary, and seemingly scarcely less so in grammar.