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University of Virginia Library

The Child of Water, Chiricahua Apache Text

excerpted from Chiricahua Apache Texts, with Ethnological Notes

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1. The Child of Water as told by Lawrence Mithlo

1.1.

At the beginning the Creator

1.2.

Afterwards Child of the Water was born.

1.3.

So there were four existing at the very beginning [of time].

1.4.

And Child of the Water was the child of White Painted Woman.

1.5.

He who is called Giant

1.6.

Then White Painted Woman went about weeping.

1.7.

Then White Painted Woman prayed.

1.8.

Then:

1.9.

"What shall I do that this baby of mine is [safely] reared?"

1.10.

Every day he who is called Giant customarily came to her.

1.11.

Then she dug a hole for the little one under the fire that lay there.

1.12.

She only took him out when she washed him.

1.13.

Soon Child of the Water became able to walk around.

1.14.

Then [one day] she had taken him out [of the hole].

1.15.

Just as she had put him back in [the hole], the Giant came to her again.

1.16.

Then White Painted Woman spoke thus to the Giant:

1.17.

Then the Giant spoke thus to White Painted Woman:

1.18.

Then White Painted Woman, before his eyes, made the tracks of a baby for him.

1.19.

Just then he saw also those blankets of the baby that were [smeared] with excrement.

1.20.

Then White Painted Woman spoke thus to the Giant:

1.21.

Then the Giant spoke thus to her again:

1.22.

Then White Painted Woman picked up a baby blanket.

Linguistic Notes by Harry Hoijer

Ethnological Notes Morris Opler

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Then:

(1.8)[8]
`Ákoo:

"'Ádíń bizháͅáͅyéń Tóbájiishchiné hooghédaał."

ndíná'a, Isdzánádleeshéń.
Nágo `Isdzánádleeshéń bizhaa goslíͅ yaa'iłéńziͅná'a.

Then:

"This little one will be called Child of the Water."

said White Painted Woman.
And White Painted Woman was happy over the birth of her child.

[_]

(1.8) Linguistic Notes

1. 'ádíń 'this one' . Demonstrative stem dí- plus the proclitic 'á- and the relative enclitic -ń. See Grammatical Sketch, §3.

2. bizháͅáͅyéń 'little one'. Note that here this word is to be translated as a noun without possessive prefix. See note 1.5, §7.

3. hooghédaał 'he will be called'. hooghé 'he is called' is a third person imperfective neuter verb [see note 1.5, §2]. -daał is the future tense enclitic. Since neuter verbs are not conjugated for mode and tense, these variations are expressed by means of enclitics.

4. bizhaa goslíͅ 'the birth of her child'. literally 'her child has been born'. This phrase functions as a noun and the indirect object of the following verb.

5. yaa'iłéńziͅná'a 'she was happy over it'. Third person of Oaa-'iłé-ni-...-ziͅ 'to be happy about something' [imp. neut. intr.]. aa- 'from, to, about' [pp.]; -'iłé 'happy, thankful, grateful'; cf. ni-...-ziͅ 'to feel, to think' [imp. neut. intr.]. I do not know why the ni- prefix has a high tone in the third person nor can that prefix be defined.