Nottoway
Native toUnited States
RegionVirginia
EthnicityNottoway people
Iroquoian
  • Northern
    • Tuscarora–Nottoway
      • Nottoway
Language codes
ISO 639-3Either:
ntw  Nottoway
nwy  Nottoway-Meherrin
nwy Nottoway-Meherrin
Glottolognott1246  Nottoway
mehe1242  Meherrin

Nottoway /ˈnɒtəˌw/, also called Cheroenhaka, was a language spoken by the Nottoway people. Nottoway is closely related to Tuscarora within the Iroquoian language family. Two tribes of Nottoway are recognized by the state of Virginia: the Nottoway Indian Tribe of Virginia and the Cheroenhaka (Nottoway) Indian Tribe. Other Nottoway descendants live in Wisconsin and Canada, where some of their ancestors fled in the 18th century. The last known speaker, Edith Turner, died in 1838. The Nottoway people are undertaking work for language revival.[1]

Knowledge of Nottoway comes primarily from a word list collected on March 4, 1820. Former President Thomas Jefferson’s handwritten letter to Peter S. Du Ponceau, on July 7, 1820, states that a Nottoway Indian vocabulary was obtained on March 4th, 1820 from Edith Turner, styled as their “Queen,” by John Wood, a former Professor of Mathematics at the College of William and Mary.[2] Du Ponceau recognized the language immediately as Iroquoian, writing that he was "struck as well as astonished at its decided Iroquois Physiognomy."[3] Blair A. Rudes (1981) concluded that Nottoway is a distinct language from Tuscarora, but closest to Tuscarora within Iroquoian.[4]

In addition to the vocabulary collected by John Wood, a few additional words were gathered by James Trezvant.[5]

Pre-contact distribution of the Nottoway language

Phonology

Vowels

By comparing words in Wood’s vocabulary with cognates in other Iroquoian languages, Blair Rudes (1981) was able to reconstruct the phonemes of Nottoway. According to Rudes, Nottoway has five vowel phonemes as seen in the following table.[4]:46 These symbols, which Rudes uses in his transcriptions, are consistent with the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA). Note that the mid central vowel is nasalized.

Front Central Back
High i
Mid e ə̃ o
Low a

Examples of these vowels are shown in the following table (from the Wood vocabulary).[4]:31 Wood's spelling of Nottoway was based on English and was therefore not systematic. A comparison to Tuscarora cognates in the rightmost column, however, provides evidence of Wood's intended vowel sound.

/i/ tariha ‘hot’ cf. Tuscarora yuʔnarihə̃
whisk ‘five’ cf. Tuscarora wísk
aheeta ‘sun’ cf. Tuscarora híhtæʔ
keenu ‘swamp’ cf. Tuscarora kí:nə̃ʔ
/e/ owena ‘iron’ cf. Tuscarora uwǽ:nə̃h
oter ‘sand’ cf. Tuscarora uʔtǽhæh
dekanee ‘two’ cf. Tuscarora nǽ:kti:
/a/ oyag ‘six’ cf. Tuscarora úhyaʔk
gatkum ‘blood’ cf. Tuscarora kátkə̃ʔ
/o/ owena ‘iron’ cf. Tuscarora uwǽ:nə̃h
owees ‘ice’ cf. Tuscarora uwí:sæh
akuhor ‘old man’ cf. Tuscarora rúhuhr, akúhuhr ‘one’s old man’
/ə̃/ hahenū ‘thunder’ cf. Tuscarora haʔ híʔnə̃ʔ
deeshū ‘stars’ cf. Wyandot tíšɔ̃h
dekra ‘eight’ cf. Tuscarora nǽ:krə̃ʔ
auwa 'water’ cf. Tuscarora á:wə̃ʔ

Consonants

Nottoway has ten consonant phonemes, listed in the table below. Like the vowels, these consonant phonemes were reconstructed by Rudes using John Wood's vocabulary and knowledge of related languages.[4] Most of the symbols that Rudes uses are the same as the IPA symbols. Where they differ, the IPA symbol is included in square brackets. The three labial consonants are in parentheses because these phonemes are only present in five words of the language, none of which are of Iroquoian descent. The letter ‘m’ also sometimes occurs at the end of a word after a vowel, but this is to indicate nasalization of the previous vowel, not the presence of the phoneme /m/.[4]:29

Labial Dental Palatal Velar Glottal
Plosive (p) t k ʔ
Nasal (m) n
Affricate t͡ʃ č
Fricative (f) s h
Approximant r j y w

The following table shows example words with each of these consonants (also from the Wood vocabulary).[4]:31 Comparison to related languages (primarily Tuscarora) allowed Rudes to reconstruct some of the consonant phonemes (in bold).

/t/ aheeta 'sun' cf. Tuscarora híhtæʔ
otkum 'devil' cf. Tuscarora úʔtkə̃h
oter 'sand' cf. Tuscarora uʔtǽhæh
oteusag 'nose' cf. Tuscarora uʔtyə̃́hsæh
dekra 'eight' cf. Tuscarora nǽ:krə̃ʔ
deeshū 'stars' cf. Wyandot tíšɔ̃h
dekanee 'two' cf. Mohawk tékeni
/k/ keenu 'swamp' cf. Tuscarora ki:nə̃ʔ
kaintu 'fish' cf. Tuscarora kə̃́:čə̃h
ekunsquare 'cheeks' cf. Tuscarora ukə̃́skaræh
unkoharae 'eyes' cf. Tuscarora ukáhræh
waquast 'good' cf. Tuscarora wákwahst
aquia 'deer' cf. Tuscarora á:kwæh
gatkum 'blood' cf. Tuscarora kátkə̃ʔ
oyag 'six' cf. Tuscarora úhyaʔk
/ʔ/ onushag 'house' cf. Mohawk kanṹ
/č/ cheer 'dog' cf. Tuscarora číhr
geekquam 'gold' cf. Tuscarora učitkwáhnæh
untchore 'to eat' cf. Tuscarora ə̃čú:riʔ ‘it ate’
yautatch 'air' cf. Tuscarora úʔna:č ‘wind’
unte 'one' cf. Tuscarora ə̃́:či
kaintu 'fish' cf. Tuscarora kə̃́:čə̃h
/s/ whisk 'five' cf. Tuscarora wísk
/h/ ohonag 'skin' cf. Mohawk óhnaʔ
/n/ hahenū 'thunder' cf. Tuscarora haʔ híʔnə̃ʔ
/r/ cheer 'dog' cf. Tuscarora číhr
querū 'rabbit' cf. Tuscarora kwǽ:ruh
orwisag ‘tail’ cf. Tuscarora uʔrhwə̃́:θæh
dekra 'eight' cf. Tuscarora nǽ:krə̃ʔ
quaharrag 'apple' cf. Tuscarora kwáhrak
waskarrow 'hog' cf. Tuscarora waθkwá:ræh
/w/ owees 'ice' cf. Tuscarora uwí:sæh
auwa 'water' cf. Tuscarora á:wə̃ʔ
owena 'iron' cf. Tuscarora uwǽ:nə̃h
orwisag 'tail' cf Tuscarora uʔrhwə̃́:θæh
waquast 'good' cf. Tuscarora wákwahst
aquia 'deer' cf. Tuscarora á:kwæh
kosquenna 'mouse' cf. Tuscarora ruskwǽ:nə̃h
querū 'rabbit' cf. Tuscarora kwǽ:ruh
/y/ oyentu 'rat' cf. Tuscarora ruyə̃́ʔtuh
gotyakum 'husband' cf. Tuscarora katyá:kə̃h
oteusag 'nose' cf. Tuscarora uʔtyə̃́hsæh

Syllable structure

The English-based spelling Wood used makes it difficult to determine syllable structure. Most words, however, are consistent with the syllable structure (C)V(C)(C):

Syllable shape Wood's Nottoway spelling
V otosag 'tooth'
CV gakuhar 'to wash'
CVC orwisag 'tail'
CVCC wakwast 'good'
VC orwisag 'tail'

An exception is words that begin with /kw/ (which may have been a complex segment):

A Rabbit Querū cf. Tuscarora kwǽ:ruh

There is also limited evidence that words could end in three consonants:

A Squirrel osarst

Consonant clusters must include /w/ or /s/, and possibly /n/. /w/ is the most common, but /s/ is still regularly seen in words like Whisk 'five'. The status of /n/ is uncertain since Wood used n to represent nasal vowels.

Aside from Whisk 'five', most content words are multisyllabic.

Grammar

Possessive prefixes

Rudes (1981) notes that Nottoway has two series of pronominal prefixes used for inalienable and alienable possession. Inalienable nouns, such as body parts, are possessed with the prefix ge- 'my': ge-snunke 'my hand', ge-tunke 'my belly'. Alienable nouns are possessed with the prefix ak- 'my': ak-uhor '(my) old man', aqu-eianha '(my) boy'. These two series of pronominal prefixes are also used on verbs, where they indicate the agent and patient, respectively. The full set of prefixes is listed in the table below.[4]:38–39

Possessive prefixes
First singular inalienable possessive (my; I)
ge- ge-snunke ‘my hand’ (recorded as ‘your hand’)
ge-tunke 'my belly' (recorded as 'your belly')
Second singular inalienable possessive (your; you)
se-/s- se-tunke ‘your belly’ (recorded as ‘my belly’)
se-tarakē ‘the head (your head)’
Feminine/zoic inalienable possessive (her/one's; she)
ye-/e- ye-tunke '(one's) nails'
e-skaharant '(one's) mouth'
First-person singular alienable possessive (my; I/me)
ak-/aqu- ak-uhor ‘(my) old man’
aqu-eianha ‘(my) boy’
Second-person singular alienable possessive (your; you)
sa- sa-ttaak '(your) bed'
sa-tuntatag '(you) listen'
Feminine/zoic kinship possessive (her/one's; she/it/one)’
go- go-tyāg ‘(one’s) marriage’
go-tyakum ‘(her) husband’

Other affixes

In addition to the possessive prefixes, Rudes identifies a number of other affixes appearing in the Wood vocabulary.[4]:37–42 They are as follows:

Partitive (indicates part of a whole; also used to form multiples of ten)
ne(e)- newisha ‘short’
arsaneewarsa 'thirty'
Dualic
de-, to-, te- towatgeheterise ‘lightning’
dewartha ‘twenty’
Aorist
wa-, un- untchore 'to eat'
wasweke 'to speak'
Semireflexive
at-, t-, ate- satuntatag '(you) listen'
untoreesweg '(it) drown(ed)'
Reflexive (action done to oneself)
tat- untatren ‘(it) cut’
untatreeyou ‘(it) kill(ed)’
Simple Noun
-ag ototorag 'door'
onushag 'house'
Internal locative (“in,” “under”)
-coon oraracoon ‘the woods’
External locative (usually means “on,” or “at,” but loses its locative meaning when attached to a body part)
-ke setunke ‘your belly’
skeshunke ‘your flesh’
Characterizer (person who is part of a group)
-hoka, -hakaʔ tcherohakaʔ ‘Cheroenhaka people’
“Teen” (as in “thirteen,” “fourteen,” etc.)
-ahr arsaskahr ‘thirteen’
dekraskahr ‘eighteen’

Word order

Most of the written Nottoway materials are vocabularies rather than texts, so scholars can only make limited assumptions about the syntactic structure of the language. However, Rudes (1981) explains three syntactic characteristics that are supported by recorded Nottoway evidence:

1. The definite article precedes a noun, as in Tuscarora.

Hahenũ

Hahenũ

'the thunder' (cf. Tuscarora haʔ híʔnə̃ʔ)

2. Of two adjacent nouns, the first noun modifies the second.

Acquia

deer

ohonag

skin

Acquia ohonag

deer skin

'deer skin'

3. An adjective follows the noun it modifies, and most likely could also precede it.

Unksawa

 

wokenhu

year

Unksawa wokenhu

{} year

'the new year'

Rudes tentatively reconstructs noun incorporation based on these examples:

Nottoway yuhtaquaahkum 'shoemaker' (lit. 'one makes shoes')
yu- 'neuter patient prefix'
-htaqua- 'shoe' (cf. Tuscarora uhnáhkwaʔ, Seneca ahtáhkwaʔ)
-ahkum 'to assemble' (cf. Tuscarora -ahk 'to pick up')
Nottoway satuntatag 'to listen' (lit. 'you stand up your ears')
s- 'second singular agent prefix'
-at- 'reciprocal'
-unta- 'ear' (cf. Tuscarora uhə̃́hnæh, Onondaga ohə̃́htaʔ)
-tag 'to stand + '(?) descriptive aspect' (cf. Onondaga iktaʔ 'I'm standing,' Seneca iːkeːt)

Vocabulary

The following vocabulary is from Wood as cited in Rudes from the version Jefferson sent to Du Ponceau.[4]:30–31,46–48

Nouns of the Universe

Wood's English Wood's Nottoway spelling Cognates
The Sun Aheeta cf. Tuscarora híhtæʔ
The Moon Tethrāke
The Stars Deeshū cf. Wyandot tíšɔ̃h
The Clouds Uraseque
Thunder Hahenū cf. Tuscarora haʔ híʔnə̃ʔ
Lightning Towatgeheterise cf. Tuscarora næwatkarǽʔnari:ks
Air Yautatch
God Quakerhuntè
Devil Otkum cf. Tuscarora útkə̃h
Rain Yountoutch cf. Tuscarora wə̃́:tu:č
Snow Kankaus
Ice Owees cf. Tuscarora uwí:sæh
Fire Auteur
Water Auwa cf. Tuscarora á:wə̃ʔ
a river Joke
a great river Onoschioke
The Ocean Owan Fetchota cf. Tuscarora á:wə̃ʔ ‘water’
a mountain Yenuntenunte cf. Tuscarora unə̃́ʔnæh
The Woods Oraracoon
Rocks Oruntag
Light Youhanhū
Darkness Asuntā cf. Tuscarora uhθə̃́:ʔnæh
a Swamp Keenu cf. Tuscarora kí:nə̃ʔ
Sand Oter cf. Tuscarora uʔtǽhæh
Gold or Copper Geekquan
Silver Wanee
Iron Owena cf. Tuscarora uwǽ:nə̃h
Heaven Quakeruntika

Of the Human Species

Wood's English Wood's Nottoway Spelling Cognates
Man Enihā cf. Tuscarora raʔníhə̃h ‘he’s male’
An old man Akuhor cf. Tuscarora rúhuhr, akúhuhr ‘one’s old man’
A young man Aquatio
A boy Aqueianha
A woman Ekening
An old woman Aquasuari
A young woman Chewasrisha
Death Anseehe
A dead body Wahehun
The head Setarakē
Marriage Gotyāg
A husband Gotyakum cf. Tuscarora katyá:kə̃h
A wife Dekes
A son Wakatonta
A daughter Eruhā
A King Tirer
The belly Unkē
My belly Setunke cf. Tuscarora sætkwə̃́ʔkyæ ‘your stomach’
Your belly Getunke
The hand or fingers Nunke
My hand Sesnunke cf. Mohawk sesnṹhsaʔke ‘your hand’
Your hand Gesnunke cf. Mohawk kesnṹhsaʔke ‘my hand’
The right hand Panunkee
The left hand Matapanunkee
The thigh Otitchag
The knee Sunsheke
The leg Franseke
The foot Saseeke
The hair Howerac
The eyes Unkoharae cf. Tuscarora ukáhræh
The mouth Eskaharant
The ears Suntunke cf. Tuscarora shə̃hnə̃́ʔkyæ ‘your ears’
The tongue Darsunke
The teeth Otosag cf. Tuscarora utú:ʔθæh
The neck Steereke
The nose Oteusag cf. Tuscarora uʔtyə̃́hsæh
The lips Oarāg
The chin Ochag
The toes Seeke
Blood Gatkum cf. Tuscarora kátkə̃ʔ
Skin Ohonag cf. Mohawk óhnaʔ
Flesh Skeshunke
Nails Yetunke
Heart Sunke
The cheeks Ekunsquare cf. Tuscarora ukə̃́skaræh
The breath Untures
The Eye brows Eskarunke
A shoemaker Yuntaquaankum (Yuhtaquaahkum)

Of Animals

Wood's English Wood's Nottoway spelling Cognates
A Cow Tosherung
A dog Cheer cf. Tuscarora číhr
A hog Waskarrow cf. Tuscarora waθkwá:ræh
A boar Garhusung
A deer Aquia cf. Tuscarora á:kwæh
A mouse Kosquenna cf. Tuscarora ruskwǽ:nə̃h
A rat Oyentu cf. Tuscarora ruyə̃́ʔtuh
A bull frog Drakon
Fish Kaintu cf. Tuscarora kə̃́:čə̃h
A Shad or Herring Kohan
An Eel Kunte
A crab Sosune
A snake Antatum
A bird Cheeta cf. Tuscarora číʔnə̃ʔ
A turkey Kunum
A Hen Tawrettig cf. Tuscarora tahurǽ:tik
A Fox Skeyu
A Wolf Huse
A Squirrel Osarst
A Rabbit Querū cf. Tuscarora kwǽ:ruh
A house fly Deēsrere
A Bee Ronuquam
A Shell Odersag
A Deer Skin Aquia ohonag cf. Tuscarora á:kwæh; cf. Mohawk óhnaʔ
A Wing Ohuwistāg cf. Tuscarora uyə̃hwí:θnæh
A Feather Awenkrāg
Wool Ostoharag
The tail Orwisag cf. Tuscarora uʔrhwə̃́:θæh
Horns Osherag

Division of Time

Wood's English Wood's Nottoway spelling Cognates
A yearWokenhu
The new yearUnksawa-Wokenhu
The new moonDotratung
SpringShantaroswache
SummerGenheke
AutumnBasheke
WinterGoshera
MorningSuntetung
Day-timeAntyeke
Mid-dayAnteneekal
EveningGensake
Night-timeAsunta

Domestic Articles

Wood's English Wood's Nottoway Spelling Cognates
A HouseOnushagcf. Tuscarora unə̃́hsæh
The house of some individualWeynushag
A doorOtotorag
A chimneyOdeshag
A KnifeOsakenta
A StickOcherura
A GunAta
A BedSattaak
MilkCanu
SpiritsAnuqua cf. Tuscarora uhnǽ:kyæh 'liquor, spirits'
ClothesAquast
SmokeOkyer
ShoesOtagwāgcf. Tuscarora uhnáhkwaʔ
StockingsOrisrāg
LeatherTotierhiā
LinenNikanrārā
Fat meatOskaharag
Lean meatOharag
A FiddleEruskarintita
A BottleChewakcf. Tuscarora učhǽʔwæh
PaperOrirag

Adjectives

Wood's English Wood's Nottoway Spelling Cognates
WhiteOwheryakum
BlackGehunteecf. Tuscarora kahə̃́sči:
RedGanuntquare
GreenSekatequantin
WeakGenuheha
DryYourhacf. Onondaga óhɛ̃h
WetYaorā
UglyYesaxa
BeautifulYesquast
GoodWaquastcf. Tuscarora wákwahst
BadWassa
HotTarihacf. Tuscarora yuʔnaríhə̃:
ColdWatoraecf. Tuscarora á’thuʔ
AngryThatcharorecf. Tuscarora θačaʔrú:rih ‘you’re angry’
HappyThatchanunte
UnhappyDodoitchewakeraksa
OldOnahahe
YoungOsae
LongEwis
ShortNewishacf. Tuscarora tiwæ:θʔáh
GreatTatchanawihiē
LittleNewishacf. Tuscarora tiwaʔθʔáh
DeepTatchanuwiras
SharpWatchoka
RoundTatowerente
SmoothChuwatee
RoughGenuaquast
HardWokoste
StrongWakostecf. Tuscarora wakáθnæh ‘I’m strong’

Numerals

Wood's English Wood's Nottoway Spelling Cognates
OneUntecf. Tuscarora ə̃́:či
TwoDekaneecf. Tuscarora nǽ:kti:
ThreeArsa
FourHentagcf. Tuscarora hə̃́ʔtahk
FiveWhiskcf. Tuscarora wísk
SixOyagcf. Tuscarora úhyaʔk
SevenOhatag (Chatag)cf. Tuscarora čá:ʔnak
EightDekracf. Tuscarora nǽ:krə̃ʔ
NineDeheerunkcf. Tuscarora níhrə̃ʔ
TenWasha
ElevenUrteskahr (Unteskahr)
TwelveDekaneskahr
ThirteenArsaskahr
FourteenHentagskahr
FifteenWhiskahr
SixteenOyagskahr
SeventeenOhatagskahr (Chatagskahr)
EighteenDekraskahr
NineteenDeheerunkskahr
TwentyDewarthaunteskahr (Dewartha) cf. Tuscarora næwáhθhə̃h
ThirtyArseneewarsa cf. Tuscarora áhsə̃ tiwáhθhə̃h
FortyHentagneewarsa cf. Tuscarora hə̃́ʔtahk tiwáhθhə̃h
FiftyWiskaneewarsa cf. Tuscarora wísk tiwáhθhə̃h
SixtyOyagneewarsa
SeventyGetaganeewarsa
EightyDekranee warsa
NinetyDeheerunknee warsa
A hundredKahorsthree
A thousandUnteyoasthree (yoasthree)

Verbs

Wood's English Wood's Nottoway Spelling Cognates
To walk
To rideUnksatā
To flyGetya
To swimOrerunte
To drinkArarher
To eatUntchorecf. ə̃čú:riʔ ‘it ate’
To throwEsungwisatoee
To cryTehesuhard cf. Tuscarora næká:θnə̃hr ‘I cry’
To sleepKertus (Kentus)cf. Tuscarora kə̃́:tʔuhs ‘it sleeps’
To fightWauntrehu
To woundYahterund
To killUrtatreeyou (Untatreeyou)cf. Tuscarora ə̃ʔnarí:yuʔ 'it killed itself'
To hearThrahurta (Thrahunta)
To seeWaskehee cf. Tuscarora wáhskə̃ʔ ‘you saw it’
To smellSaharantoo
To touchSwarore
To speakWasweke cf. Tuscarora wáhswæʔ ‘you spoke’
To huntKunun
To fishWatchunund
To loveTatchadanuste
To hateDotautche
To prayDurtanhara
To stabUntequara
To cutUntatren cf. Tuscarora ə̃ʔnáthræʔn ‘it cut itself’
To breakWayetcherorag
To drownUntoreesweg
To hangWaharee cf. Tuscarora waʔká:rə̃ʔ ‘I hung it up’
To strikeUntateuheerug (Untatenheerug)cf. Tuscarora ə̃ʔnatkə̃́hruk ‘it struck itself’
To shootUntatchag
To listenSatuntatag
To washGakuharcf. Tuscarora ktú:har ‘I wash’
To runSarioka
To leapDeunti

Other Words

Rudes attributes the following words to a vocabulary by J. N. B. Hewitt.[6][4]:48 It may be a later version of the one gathered by Trezvant.

English Nottoway Spelling Cognates
Noroh (H)
Yeshokeh (H)
Barkohseroch (H)
Corn, maizeohnehahk (H)
Infant, childnahkasehkeh (H)
Fatherakroh (H)
Motherena (H)
Sowwakatouta (H)
Brotherkahtahtekeh (H)
Sisterahkahchee (H)
Armohnunchahk (H)cf. Tuscarora unə̃́čhæh
Bellyohtequahk (H)
Chiefetesheh (H)
Arrowaruntquaserauk (H)
Earth, landahonroch (H)
Lakekahahtahia (H)
Mountainnewntehs (H)cf. Tuscarora unə̃́ʔnæh
Iee (H)
NottowaysCherohaka (H)

References

  1. "Nottoway-Meherrin". Ethnologue. 2023. Retrieved January 18, 2013.
  2. Thomas Jefferson to Peter S. Du Ponceau, July 7, 1820
  3. Peter S. DuPonceau to Thomas Jefferson, July 12, 1820, The Thomas Jefferson Papers, Series 1, The Library of Congress.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Rudes, Blair (1981). "A Sketch of the Nottoway Language from a Historical-Comparative Perspective". International Journal of American Linguistics. 47: 27–49. doi:10.1086/465672. S2CID 145679705.
  5. Encyclopedia Virginia
  6. Hewitt, J. N. B. n.d. Nottoway-Anonymous. BAE ms., National Anthropological Archives catalog no. 3603. Washington, D.C.
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