Embedded Files
The ɛ-ə Sound Correspondence: This Milluk word shows a sound correspondence between Lolly Metcalf’s Coos Bay Miluk version of the word with Epsilon [ ɛ ] and Annie Miner Peterson’s version of the word with Schwa [ ə ]. This is not just a phonetic difference but a phonemic difference, which is why we say that there are two different versions of the word.
Another Example of the Sound Correspondence: At one time, we thought that this was a unique sound correspondence, but we have discovered that with the Milluk word meaning ‘fire’, we can identify one of Annie’s three pronunciations of the word to be a Coos Bay Milluk version of the word which Annie happened to have in her rather all inclusive knowledge of the Milluk language. Just three times in her text dicatation work with Melville Jacobs, Annie pronounced the word as | hɛ́mɛltʼ |. We believe that the pronunciation | hɛ́mɛltʼ | is a distinctively Coos Bay Milluk pronunciation of the word, as we say on the web page for the interview segment “Fire”. As we say there, with that pronunciation of the word, it seems that when Annie Miner Peterson dictated the text “He eats human children” to Jacobs she was echoing how Tar Heels, a Coos Bay Milluk person, told the story right down to pronouncing the Milluk word meaning ‘fire’ in Tar Heels’ Coos Bay Milluk way of pronouncing it. Otherwise Annie pronounced the Milluk word meaning ‘fire’ as | hɛ́məltʼ | or as | hɛ́miltʼ |.
Instant Phonetic Englishization: Like the name ‘Gwen’, but ending with s.
With this Milluk word meaning ‘dream’, both as a noun and as a verb, the sound correspondence is very straightforwardly between Lolly saying the word twice with the vowel as [ ɛ ] where Annie says the word consistently in the Milluk texts with the vowel as [ ə ].
A Distinctively Coos Bay Milluk Version of the Word: In this interview segment, with the Milluk word meaning ‘dream’, which we know from the Milluk texts as both a noun and as a verb, we only hear the word pronounced in what we believe is a distinctively Coos Bay Milluk way of saying it.
Lolly Going Beyond Her Own Coos Bay Milluk: In what we say on the web page for the interview segment “Fire”, we point out that Lolly pronounced the word meaning ‘fire’ twice as [ hɛ́miltʼ ], but only when she was being badgered by Swadesh to keep saying the word again and again. That happens late in the interview when Swadesh asks for the word meaning ‘fire’ again. Even later in the interview, when Swadesh asks for the Milluk word meaning ‘neck’ for a second time, he also badgers Lolly to say that word again and again. There too, evidently a bit exasperated, Lolly goes beyond pronouncing a Milluk word in what is evidently the normal Coos Bay Milluk way of saying it. Listen to Lolly in the interview segment "Neck 2" and see what we say about her exaggerated third time saying the word there. Late in the interview, with the Milluk words meaning ‘fire’ and then later ‘neck’ Lolly shows that she had a knowledge of the Milluk language that went beyond her own Coos Bay Milluk ways of saying Milluk words.
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