Mamāceqtaw
Menominee
Algonquian (Central)
Sole isolate within Central Algonquian — Menominee diverged early and shares no close sister inside its branch. Notable for its four-vowel system with phonemic length and a complex direct/inverse verb morphology typical of Algonquian.
Where it is spoken
20 core words in Menominee
Water
nepāew
/nəpaːew/
Fire
eskotēw
/eskoteːw/
Sun
kēsoq
/keːsoʔ/
Moon
tepāhkēsoq
/tepaːhkeːsoʔ/
Mother
nekīah
/nekiːah/
Father
nōhnāeh
/noːhnaːeh/
Eat
mīcew
/miːtʃew/
Drink
menew
/menew/
Love
kesāenemāew
/kesaːenemaːew/
Heart
otēh
/oteːh/
Tree
metekoh
/metekoh/
House
wīkewam
/wiːkewam/
Dog
anēm
/aneːm/
Cat
—
/—/
Hand
onehkeh
/onehkeh/
Eye
oskēsek
/oskeːsek/
Hello
posoh
/posoh/
Thank you
wāēwāēnen
/wɛːwɛːnen/
One
nekot
/nekot/
Good
menwāewen
/menwaːewen/
Sources
- Bloomfield, Leonard (1962) The Menomini Language. Yale University Press.
- Bloomfield, Leonard (1975) Menomini Lexicon (ed. Charles Hockett). Milwaukee Public Museum.
- Glottolog: Menominee
Words compared
Compared with related Algonquian (Central) languages
| Meaning | Menominee | Plains Cree | Cree (Plains) | Algonquin | Munsee | Ojibwe | Koyukon |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | nepāew /nəpaːew/ | ᓂᐱᕀ /nipiː/ | ᓂᐱᕀ /nipij/ | nibì /nɪbiː/ | mpíi /mbiː/ | nibi /nibi/ | too /toː/ |
| Fire | eskotēw /eskoteːw/ | ᐃᐢᑯᑌᐤ /iskoteːw/ | ᐃᐢᑯᑌᐤ /iskoteːw/ | ishkotè /ɪʃkɔteː/ | lúhsuw /luhsuw/ | ishkode /iʃkode/ | konh /konh/ |
| Sun | kēsoq /keːsoʔ/ | ᐲᓯᒼ /piːsim/ | ᐲᓯᒼ /piːsim/ | kìzis /kiːzɪs/ | kíishux /kiːʃux/ | giizis /ɡiːzis/ | so /so/ |
| Moon | tepāhkēsoq /tepaːhkeːsoʔ/ | ᑎᐱᐢᑳᐃᐧᐲᓯᒼ /tipiskaːwi piːsim/ | ᑎᐱᐢᑳᐍᐲᓯᒼ /tipiskaːwi piːsim/ | tibik-kìzis /tɪbɪkkiːzɪs/ | nipáhum /nipahum/ | dibik-giizis /dibik ɡiːzis/ | oolts'enh /ooltsʼenh/ |
| Mother | nekīah /nekiːah/ | ᓂᑳᐃᐧ /nikaːwiː/ | ᓂᑲᐎᕀ /nikaːwij/ | ningà /nɪŋɡaː/ | nkáhees /ŋkahees/ | nimaamaa /nimaːmaː/ | enaa /enaː/ |
| Father | nōhnāeh /noːhnaːeh/ | ᓅᐦᑖᐃᐧ /noːhtaːwiː/ | ᓄᐦᑖᐎᕀ /noːhtaːwij/ | nòs /nɔːs/ | nóoxw /noːxw/ | indede /indede/ | etaa /etaː/ |
| Eat | mīcew /miːtʃew/ | ᒨᐍᐤ /moːweːw/ | ᒨᐍᐤ /moːweːw/ | wìsini /wiːsɪni/ | mit /mit/ | wiisini /wiːsini/ | ghen /ɣen/ |
| Drink | menew /menew/ | ᒥᓂᐦᑴᐤ /minihkweːw/ | ᒥᓂᐦᐠᐌᐤ /minihkweːw/ | minikwe /mɪnɪkwe/ | mneew /mneew/ | minikwe /minikwe/ | don /don/ |
| Love | kesāenemāew /kesaːenemaːew/ | ᓵᑭᐦᐃᐍᐃᐧᐣ /saːkihiweːwin/ | ᓵᑭᐦᐃᐍᐏᐣ /saːkihiweːwin/ | sàgi'à /saːɡiʔaː/ | ahóoluw /ahoːluw/ | zaagiʼiwewin /zaːɡiʔiweːwin/ | k'oonejee /kʼooneʒeː/ |
| Heart | otēh /oteːh/ | ᒥᑌᐦ /miteːh/ | ᒥᑌᐦ /miteːh/ | odè /ɔdeː/ | ulehyii /ulehjiː/ | odeʼ /odeʔ/ | heł /heɬ/ |
| Tree | metekoh /metekoh/ | ᒥᐢᑎᐠ /mistik/ | ᒥᐢᑎᐠ /mistik/ | mitig /mɪtɪɡ/ | hìttuk /hitːuk/ | mitig /mitiɡ/ | k'eyh /kʼejh/ |
| House | wīkewam /wiːkewam/ | ᐚᐢᑲᐦᐃᑲᐣ /waːskahikan/ | ᐚᐢᑲᐦᐃᑲᐣ /waːskahikan/ | wàkàigan /waːkaːiɡan/ | wíikwam /wiːkwam/ | wiigiwaam /wiːɡiwaːm/ | kkun /kːun/ |
| Dog | anēm /aneːm/ | ᐊᑎᒼ /atim/ | ᐊᑎᒼ /atim/ | animosh /anɪmɔʃ/ | mwáakaneew /mwaːkaneːw/ | animosh /animoʃ/ | łeek /ɬeːk/ |
| Cat | — /—/ | ᒥᓅᐢ /minoːs/ | ᒥᓅᐢ /minoːs/ | — /—/ | póshiis /poʃiːs/ | gaazhagens /ɡaːʒaɡens/ | dotonh /dotonh/ |
| Hand | onehkeh /onehkeh/ | ᒥᒋᒋᕀ /micicij/ | ᒥᒋᒋᕀ /miciciːj/ | ninj /nɪntʃ/ | mléelii /mleːliː/ | ninij /ninidʒ/ | ela /ela/ |
| Eye | oskēsek /oskeːsek/ | ᒥᐢᑮᓯᐠ /miskiːsik/ | ᒥᐢᑮᓯᐠ /miskiːsik/ | oshkìnzhig /ɔʃkiːnʒɪɡ/ | wíikšiit /wiːkʃiːt/ | oshkiinzhig /oʃkiːnʒiɡ/ | nełtonh /neɬtonh/ |
| Hello | posoh /posoh/ | ᑖᓂᓯ /taːnisi/ | ᑖᓂᓯ /taːnisi/ | Kwe /kwe/ | hé /heː/ | boozhoo /boːʒoː/ | enaa basee' /enaː baseːʔ/ |
| Thank you | wāēwāēnen /wɛːwɛːnen/ | ᐦᐊᕀ ᐦᐊᕀ /haj haj/ | ᑭᓇᓈᐢᑯᒥᑎᐣ /kinanaːskomitin/ | Migwech /mɪɡwetʃ/ | wanìshi /waniʃi/ | miigwech /miːɡʷetʃ/ | baasee' /baːseːʔ/ |
| One | nekot /nekot/ | ᐯᔭᐠ /peːjak/ | ᐯᔭᐠ /peːjak/ | pejig /peʒɪɡ/ | ngwútii /ŋɡwutiː/ | bezhig /beʒiɡ/ | łeek'eyh /ɬeːkʼejh/ |
| Good | menwāewen /menwaːewen/ | ᒥᔼᓯᐣ /mijwaːsin/ | ᒥᔫ /mijo/ | mino /mɪnɔ/ | weltóok /weltoːk/ | mino /mino/ | nezoonh /nezoːnh/ |
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