Synopses & Reviews
Published through the Recovering Languages and Literacies of the Americas initiative, supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
This volume is the first descriptive grammar of Kotiria (Wanano), a member of the eastern Tukanoan language family spoken in the Vaupes River basin of Colombia and Brazil in the northwest Amazon rain forest. The Kotirias, who have lived in this remote region for more than seven hundred years, participate in the complex Vaupand#233;s social system, characterized by long-standing linguistic and cultural interaction. The Kotirias remained relatively isolated from the dominant societies until the early part of the twentieth century, when increasing outside influence in the region triggered rapid social and linguistic change. Today the Kotirias number only about sixteen hundred people, and their language, though still used in traditional communities, is in risk of becoming endangered.
Kristine Stenzel draws on eight years of intensive work with the Kotirias to promote, record, and revitalize their language. Working with dozens of native speakers and drawing on numerous oral narratives and written texts, this book is the first comprehensive study of this endangered language and one of the few reference grammars of this language family.
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Review
"Graczyk's grammar comes at an ideal time for those of us working with promoting or teaching the Crow language on the reservation. We are just now seeing the beginnings of an effort to revitalize the language and promote its early use at the family, daycare, and Head Start levels."and#8212;Rose Chesarek, Great Plains Research
Review
"An extraordinarily thorough description, amply illustrated with examples of all sorts. In the grammar, the reader can see the language opened up for scrutiny and then carefully reassembled."and#8212;David S. Rood, Journal of Anthropological Research
Synopsis
Crow, a Siouan language spoken on the Crow Reservation in southeastern Montana, remains one of the most vital Native American languages, with several thousand speakers. A Grammar of Crow is the first detailed description of the Crow language in a contemporary linguistic framework. Randolph Graczyk draws on more than thirty-five years of daily contact with speakers of the language and his training as a linguist to offer an in-depth description and analysis of the crucial elements of the language, illustrated with numerous examples.and#160;The grammar is primarily descriptive, couched in terms of universal linguistic theory. It examines phonological, morphological, and syntactic features and treats the major phonological and morphological structures of Crow, paying considerable attention to the syntax of relative and subordinate clauses, noun incorporation, and various serial verb constructions. The switch reference system is also discussed in detail.
About the Author
Kristine Stenzel is a professor of linguistics at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Her articles have appeared in
International Journal of American Linguistics,
Studies in Language, and edited volumes.