# Colorado River Numic language > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Colorado_River_Numic_language > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Colorado_River_Numic_language.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado_River_Numic_language > Source revision: 1355842750 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|Dialect chain of the Numic branch of the Uto-Aztecan language family}} {{Infobox language | name = Colorado River Numic | altname = Southern Paiute | states = [United States](/source/United_States) | region = [Nevada](/source/Nevada), [California](/source/California), [Utah](/source/Utah), [Arizona](/source/Arizona), [Colorado](/source/Colorado), [New Mexico](/source/New_Mexico) | ethnicity = {{sigfig|6230|2}} [Chemehuevi](/source/Chemehuevi_people), [Southern Paiute](/source/Southern_Paiute) and [Ute](/source/Ute_people) (2007) | speakers = 920 | date = 2007 | ref = e18 | speakers2 = 20 [monolingual](/source/monolingual)s (1990 census) | familycolor = Uto-Aztecan | fam1 = [Uto-Aztecan](/source/Uto-Aztecan_languages) | fam2 = [Numic](/source/Numic_languages) | fam3 = Southern Numic | iso3 = ute | glotto = utes1238 | glottorefname = Ute-Southern Paiute | dia1 = Chemehuevi | dia2 = Southern Paiute | dia3 = [Ute](/source/Ute_dialect) | notice = IPA | map = Colorado River Numic map.svg | map2 = Lang Status 20-CR.svg | mapcaption2 = {{center|Chemehuevi is classified as Critically Endangered by the [UNESCO](/source/UNESCO) ''[Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger](/source/Atlas_of_the_World's_Languages_in_Danger)''.}} }} '''Colorado River Numic''' (also called '''Ute''' {{IPAc-en|ˈ|juː|t}} {{respell|YOOT}}, '''Southern Paiute''' {{IPAc-en|ˈ|p|aɪ|.|juː|t}} {{respell|PIE|yoot}}, '''Ute–Southern Paiute''', or '''Ute-Chemehuevi''' {{IPAc-en|ˌ|tʃ|ɛ|.|m|ə|.|ˈ|w|eɪ|.|v|i}} {{respell|CHEH|mə|WAY|vee}}), of the [Numic branch](/source/Numic_languages) of the [Uto-Aztecan](/source/Uto-Aztecan_languages) language family, is a [dialect chain](/source/dialect_chain) that stretches from southeastern [California](/source/California) to [Colorado](/source/Colorado).{{sfn|Mithun|1999|p=542}} Individual dialects are Chemehuevi, which is in danger of extinction, Southern Paiute (Moapa, Cedar City, Kaibab, and San Juan subdialects), and [Ute](/source/Ute_dialect) (Central Utah, Northern, White Mesa, Southern subdialects). According to the ''[Ethnologue](/source/Ethnologue)'', there were somewhat fewer than two thousand speakers of Colorado River Numic Language in 1990, or around 40% out of an ethnic population of 5,000.{{cite web|url=http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=ute|title=Ethnologue report for language code:ute|publisher=Ethnologue|access-date=2009-06-13}} The Southern Paiute dialect has played a significant role in [linguistics](/source/linguistics), as the background for a famous article by linguist [Edward Sapir](/source/Edward_Sapir) and his collaborator [Tony Tillohash](/source/Tony_Tillohash) on the nature of the [phoneme](/source/phoneme).{{cite journal|language=fr|last=Sapir|first= Edward|year= 1933 |title=La réalité psychologique des phonèmes |trans-title=The psychological reality of phonemes |journal=Journal de Psychologie Normale et Pathologique |url=http://echo.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/MPIWG:4YN1MVRM}} ==Dialects== The three major dialect groups of Colorado River are Chemehuevi, Southern Paiute, and [Ute](/source/Ute_dialect), although there are no strong isoglosses. The threefold division is primarily one of culture rather than strictly linguistic. There are, however, three major phonological distinctions among the dialects: :*In Southern Paiute and Ute, initial {{IPA|/h/}} has been lost: Chemehuevi {{IPA|/hivi/}} 'drink' is a verb, other dialects {{IPA|/ivi/}} 'drink'. :*In Ute, nasal-stop clusters have become voiceless geminate stops: Ute {{IPA|/pukku/}} 'horse, pet', other dialects {{IPA|/puŋku/}}. :*In Ute, the mid back round vowel {{IPA|/o/}} has been fronted to {{IPA|/ö/}}: Ute {{IPA|/söö-/}} 'lungs', other dialects {{IPA|/soo-/}}. There are no strong isoglosses between Southern Paiute and Ute for the changes but an increasing level of change, as one moves from Kaibab Southern Paiute (0% of nasal-stop clusters have changed) to Southern Ute (100% of nasal-stop clusters have changed). ==Phonology== Consonant and vowel charts for the westernmost and easternmost dialects are given.{{sfn|Press|1979}}{{sfn|Givón|2011}} === Consonants === {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" |+Consonant phonemes in Chemehuevi dialect ! rowspan="2" colspan="2" | ! rowspan="2" | [labial](/source/Labial_consonant) ! rowspan="2" | [dental](/source/Dental_consonant) ! rowspan="2" | [palatal](/source/Palatal_consonant) ! colspan="2" | [velar](/source/Velar_consonant) ! rowspan="2" | [glottal](/source/Glottal_consonant) |- ! {{small|plain}} ! {{small|labial}} |- ! colspan="2" | [plosive](/source/plosive) | {{IPA link|p}} | {{IPA link|t}} | {{IPA link|ts}} | {{IPA link|k}} | {{IPA link|kʷ}} | {{IPA link|ʔ}} |- ! colspan="2" | [fricative](/source/fricative) | {{IPA link|β}} | {{IPA link|s}} | | {{IPA link|ɣ}} | {{IPA link|ɣʷ}} | {{IPA link|h}} |- ! colspan="2" | [rhotic](/source/Rhotic_consonant) | | {{IPA link|ɾ}} | | | | |- ! rowspan="2" | [nasal](/source/Nasal_consonant) ! {{small|plain}} | {{IPA link|m}} | {{IPA link|n}} | | {{IPA link|ŋ}} | {{IPA link|ŋʷ}} | |- ! {{small|glottalized}} | {{IPA link|mˀ}} | {{IPA link|nˀ}} | | {{IPA link|ŋˀ}} | | |- ! rowspan="2" | [glide](/source/Semivowel) ! {{small|plain}} | {{IPA link|w}} | | {{IPA link|j}} | | | |- ! {{small|glottalized}} | {{IPA link|wˀ}} | | {{IPA link|jˀ}} | | | |} {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" |+Consonant phonemes in Southern Ute dialect ! rowspan="2" | ! rowspan="2" | [labial](/source/Labial_consonant) ! rowspan="2" | [dental](/source/Dental_consonant) ! rowspan="2" | [palatal](/source/Palatal_consonant) ! colspan="2" | [velar](/source/Velar_consonant) ! rowspan="2" | [glottal](/source/Glottal_consonant) |- ! {{small|plain}} ! {{small|labial}} |- ! [plosive](/source/plosive) | {{IPA link|p}} | {{IPA link|t}} | {{IPA link|tʃ}} | {{IPA link|k}} | {{IPA link|kʷ}} | {{IPA link|ʔ}} |- ! [fricative](/source/fricative) | {{IPA link|β}} | {{IPA link|s}} | | {{IPA link|ɣ}} | {{IPA link|ɣʷ}} | |- ! [rhotic](/source/Rhotic_consonant) | | {{IPA link|ɾ}} | | | | |- ! [nasal](/source/Nasal_consonant) | {{IPA link|m}} | {{IPA link|n}} | | | | |- ! [glide](/source/Semivowel) | {{IPA link|w}} | | {{IPA link|j}} | | | |} === Vowels === {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" |+Vowel phonemes in Chemehuevi dialect !rowspan=2| !rowspan=2|[front](/source/Front_vowel) !rowspan=2|[central](/source/Central_vowel) !colspan=2|[back](/source/Back_vowel) |- ! {{small|unrounded}} || {{small|rounded}} |- ![high](/source/Close_vowel) |{{IPA link|i}} | |{{IPA link|ɯ}} |{{IPA link|u}} |- ![mid](/source/Mid_vowel) | | | |{{IPA link|o}} |- ![low](/source/Open_vowel) | |{{IPA link|ɑ}} | | |} {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" |+Vowel phonemes in Southern Ute dialect !rowspan=2| !colspan=2|[front](/source/Front_vowel) !rowspan=2|[central](/source/Central_vowel) !colspan=2|[back](/source/Back_vowel) |- ! {{small|unrounded}} || {{small|[rounded](/source/Front_rounded_vowel)}} ! {{small|unrounded}} || {{small|rounded}} |- ![high](/source/Close_vowel) |{{IPA link|i}} | | |{{IPA link|ɯ}} |{{IPA link|u}} |- ![mid](/source/Mid_vowel) | |{{IPA link|ø}} | | | |- ![low](/source/Open_vowel) | | |{{IPA link|ɑ}} | | |} Vowels can be long or short. Short unstressed vowels can be devoiced. ==Morphology== The Colorado River Numic language is an [agglutinative](/source/agglutinative) language, in which words use suffix complexes for a variety of purposes with several [morpheme](/source/morpheme)s strung together. ==References== {{reflist}} ==Bibliography== * {{cite thesis |last=Bunte |first=Pamela A. |year=1979 |title=Problems in Southern Paiute Syntax and Semantics |publisher=Indiana University |type=PhD dissertation}} * {{cite book |last=Charney |first=Jean O. |year=1996 |title=A Dictionary of the Southern Ute Language |location=Ignacio, CO |publisher=Ute Press}} * {{cite book |last=Givón |first=Talmy |year=2011 |title=Ute Reference Grammar |series=Culture and Language Use |volume=3 |location=Amsterdam |publisher=John Benjamins Publishing}} * {{cite book |last=Laird |first=Carobeth |year=1976 |title=The Chemehuevis |location=Banning, CA |publisher=Malki Museum Press}} * {{cite book |last=Mithun |first=Marianne |year=1999 |title=Languages of Native North America |location=Cambridge |publisher=Cambridge University Press}} * {{cite book |last=Press |first=Margaret L. |year=1979 |title=Chemehuevi, A Grammar and Lexicon |series=University of California Publications in Linguistics |volume=92 |location=Berkeley, CA |publisher=University of California Press}} * {{cite book |last=Sapir |first=Edward |orig-date=1930 |chapter=Southern Paiute, a Shoshonean Language |date=1992 |title=The Collected Works of Edward Sapir |volume=X: Southern Paiute and Ute Linguistics and Ethnography |editor-first=William |editor-last=Bright |location=Berlin |publisher=Mouton de Gruyter |doi=10.1515/9783110886603 |isbn=978-3-11-013543-5 |url=https://archive.org/details/collectedworksof10sapi}} * {{cite book |last=Sapir |first=Edward |orig-date=1931 |chapter=Southern Paiute Dictionary |year=1992 |title=The Collected Works of Edward Sapir |volume=X: Southern Paiute and Ute Linguistics and Ethnography |editor-first=William |editor-last=Bright |location=Berlin |publisher=Mouton de Gruyter |doi=10.1515/9783110886603 |isbn=978-3-11-013543-5 |url=https://archive.org/details/collectedworksof10sapi}} ==External links== * [https://web.archive.org/web/20070723140802/http://coyotepapers.sbs.arizona.edu/CPXIII/oberly.pdf A Preliminary Analysis of Southern Ute with a Special Focus on Noun Phrases] – also contains phonology information * [https://cla.berkeley.edu/languages/chemehuevi.html Chemehuevi language] overview at the [Survey of California and Other Indian Languages](/source/Survey_of_California_and_Other_Indian_Languages) * [http://www.chemehuevilanguage.org/ A Chemehuevi Language Archive] – 1970s Fieldwork and Analysis by Margaret L. Press * [http://www.language-archives.org/language/ute OLAC resources in and about the Ute-Southern Paiute language] * [https://archive.org/details/collectedworksof10sapi Collected Works of Edward Sapir, Vol. X: Southern Paiute and Ute Linguistics and Ethnography] * [https://books.google.com/books?id=cKm8CwAAQBAJ&dq=ute+language+pronunciation&pg=PR11 Ute Dictionary] {{Uto-Aztecan languages}} {{Languages of California}} {{Languages of Nevada}} {{Languages of Arizona}} {{Authority control}} Category:Numic languages Category:Agglutinative languages Category:Indigenous languages of Nevada Category:Indigenous languages of Arizona Category:Indigenous languages of California Category:Indigenous languages of the Southwestern United States Category:Paiute Category:Ute (ethnic group) Category:Chemehuevi Category:Endangered Indigenous languages of the Americas --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Colorado River Numic language](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado_River_Numic_language) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado_River_Numic_language?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.