Eskimo languages in Asia, 1791 on, and the Wrangel Island-Point Hope connection
Merck’s statement about four “Sedentary Chukchi” (Eskimo) languages or language varieties along the coast of Chukotka in 1791 is thoroughly remarkable and worthy of careful interpretation. By his statement of their geographical distribution, the first three languages are very easy to identify, as 1)...
Published in: | Études/Inuit/Studies |
---|---|
Main Author: | |
Format: | Text |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Association Inuksiutiit Katimajiit Inc.
2005
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://id.erudit.org/iderudit/013938ar https://doi.org/10.7202/013938ar |
id |
fterudit:oai:erudit.org:013938ar |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
fterudit:oai:erudit.org:013938ar 2023-05-15T15:15:46+02:00 Eskimo languages in Asia, 1791 on, and the Wrangel Island-Point Hope connection Krauss, Michael E. 2005 http://id.erudit.org/iderudit/013938ar https://doi.org/10.7202/013938ar en eng Association Inuksiutiit Katimajiit Inc. Centre interuniversitaire d'études et de recherches autochtones (CIÉRA) Érudit Études/Inuit/Studies vol. 29 no. 1-2 (2005) http://id.erudit.org/iderudit/013938ar doi:10.7202/013938ar Tous droits réservés © La revue Études/Inuit/Studies, 2005 text 2005 fterudit https://doi.org/10.7202/013938ar 2022-09-24T23:12:56Z Merck’s statement about four “Sedentary Chukchi” (Eskimo) languages or language varieties along the coast of Chukotka in 1791 is thoroughly remarkable and worthy of careful interpretation. By his statement of their geographical distribution, the first three languages are very easy to identify, as 1) Sirenikski, 2) Central Siberian Yupik, explicitly including St. Lawrence Island, and 3) Naukanski. Merck’s language number four, “Uwelenski” he claims, startlingly, to be spoken along the Arctic Coast of Chukotka from Uelen as far as Shelagski Cape, 600 miles to the northwest. Serendipitously enough, Merck has 70 or so ”Uwelenski” words of cultural interest transcribed throughout his text. Careful studies of these words by this writer and also by Mikhail Chlenov show that “Uwelenski” is in fact a dialect of Central Siberian Yupik, thus part of a language continuum spoken from St. Lawrence Island to the Chaplino corner and the East coast of Chukotka, thence to the North coast of that mainland, treating Naukan as a “third Diomede” rather than as a mainland interruption. However there is no evidence that language number four, “Uwelenski,” actually a dialect of Merck’s language number two, was spoken beyond Kolyuchin Bay. Beyond that point, however, there was indeed a fourth Eskimo language. The second half of the paper concludes, from at least seven independent sources, that that fourth language was in fact none other than North Alaskan Inupiaq, spoken intermittently in pockets between Kolyuchin and Shelagski Cape, at least since the opening of Russian posts at Kolyma and into the nineteenth century, by north Alaskans from the Point Hope area, who also used Wrangel Island as a stopping place. Ce que constate Merck à propos des quatre langues «tchouktches sédentaires» (Eskimo), ou quatre variétés de langue le long de la côte Tchouktche en 1791, est absolument remarquable et mérite d’être interprété avec soin. Par sa description de leur répartition géographique, il est très facile d’identifier les trois premières ... Text Arctic Central Siberian Yupik Chukchi Chukotka eskimo* Études/Inuit/Studies Inupiaq Kolyuchin Bay Naukan Siberian Yupik Sirenik* St Lawrence Island Tchouktche* Uelen Wrangel Island Yupik Érudit.org (Université Montréal) Arctic Kolyma ENVELOPE(161.000,161.000,69.500,69.500) Lawrence Island ENVELOPE(-103.718,-103.718,56.967,56.967) Wrangel Island ENVELOPE(-179.385,-179.385,71.244,71.244) Uelen ENVELOPE(-169.810,-169.810,66.160,66.160) Point Hope ENVELOPE(173.306,173.306,52.911,52.911) Chaplino ENVELOPE(-172.240,-172.240,64.406,64.406) Naukan ENVELOPE(-169.714,-169.714,66.015,66.015) Études/Inuit/Studies 29 1-2 163 185 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Érudit.org (Université Montréal) |
op_collection_id |
fterudit |
language |
English |
description |
Merck’s statement about four “Sedentary Chukchi” (Eskimo) languages or language varieties along the coast of Chukotka in 1791 is thoroughly remarkable and worthy of careful interpretation. By his statement of their geographical distribution, the first three languages are very easy to identify, as 1) Sirenikski, 2) Central Siberian Yupik, explicitly including St. Lawrence Island, and 3) Naukanski. Merck’s language number four, “Uwelenski” he claims, startlingly, to be spoken along the Arctic Coast of Chukotka from Uelen as far as Shelagski Cape, 600 miles to the northwest. Serendipitously enough, Merck has 70 or so ”Uwelenski” words of cultural interest transcribed throughout his text. Careful studies of these words by this writer and also by Mikhail Chlenov show that “Uwelenski” is in fact a dialect of Central Siberian Yupik, thus part of a language continuum spoken from St. Lawrence Island to the Chaplino corner and the East coast of Chukotka, thence to the North coast of that mainland, treating Naukan as a “third Diomede” rather than as a mainland interruption. However there is no evidence that language number four, “Uwelenski,” actually a dialect of Merck’s language number two, was spoken beyond Kolyuchin Bay. Beyond that point, however, there was indeed a fourth Eskimo language. The second half of the paper concludes, from at least seven independent sources, that that fourth language was in fact none other than North Alaskan Inupiaq, spoken intermittently in pockets between Kolyuchin and Shelagski Cape, at least since the opening of Russian posts at Kolyma and into the nineteenth century, by north Alaskans from the Point Hope area, who also used Wrangel Island as a stopping place. Ce que constate Merck à propos des quatre langues «tchouktches sédentaires» (Eskimo), ou quatre variétés de langue le long de la côte Tchouktche en 1791, est absolument remarquable et mérite d’être interprété avec soin. Par sa description de leur répartition géographique, il est très facile d’identifier les trois premières ... |
format |
Text |
author |
Krauss, Michael E. |
spellingShingle |
Krauss, Michael E. Eskimo languages in Asia, 1791 on, and the Wrangel Island-Point Hope connection |
author_facet |
Krauss, Michael E. |
author_sort |
Krauss, Michael E. |
title |
Eskimo languages in Asia, 1791 on, and the Wrangel Island-Point Hope connection |
title_short |
Eskimo languages in Asia, 1791 on, and the Wrangel Island-Point Hope connection |
title_full |
Eskimo languages in Asia, 1791 on, and the Wrangel Island-Point Hope connection |
title_fullStr |
Eskimo languages in Asia, 1791 on, and the Wrangel Island-Point Hope connection |
title_full_unstemmed |
Eskimo languages in Asia, 1791 on, and the Wrangel Island-Point Hope connection |
title_sort |
eskimo languages in asia, 1791 on, and the wrangel island-point hope connection |
publisher |
Association Inuksiutiit Katimajiit Inc. |
publishDate |
2005 |
url |
http://id.erudit.org/iderudit/013938ar https://doi.org/10.7202/013938ar |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(161.000,161.000,69.500,69.500) ENVELOPE(-103.718,-103.718,56.967,56.967) ENVELOPE(-179.385,-179.385,71.244,71.244) ENVELOPE(-169.810,-169.810,66.160,66.160) ENVELOPE(173.306,173.306,52.911,52.911) ENVELOPE(-172.240,-172.240,64.406,64.406) ENVELOPE(-169.714,-169.714,66.015,66.015) |
geographic |
Arctic Kolyma Lawrence Island Wrangel Island Uelen Point Hope Chaplino Naukan |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Kolyma Lawrence Island Wrangel Island Uelen Point Hope Chaplino Naukan |
genre |
Arctic Central Siberian Yupik Chukchi Chukotka eskimo* Études/Inuit/Studies Inupiaq Kolyuchin Bay Naukan Siberian Yupik Sirenik* St Lawrence Island Tchouktche* Uelen Wrangel Island Yupik |
genre_facet |
Arctic Central Siberian Yupik Chukchi Chukotka eskimo* Études/Inuit/Studies Inupiaq Kolyuchin Bay Naukan Siberian Yupik Sirenik* St Lawrence Island Tchouktche* Uelen Wrangel Island Yupik |
op_relation |
Études/Inuit/Studies vol. 29 no. 1-2 (2005) http://id.erudit.org/iderudit/013938ar doi:10.7202/013938ar |
op_rights |
Tous droits réservés © La revue Études/Inuit/Studies, 2005 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.7202/013938ar |
container_title |
Études/Inuit/Studies |
container_volume |
29 |
container_issue |
1-2 |
container_start_page |
163 |
op_container_end_page |
185 |
_version_ |
1766346106613006336 |