Coyote and the Creation, Mescalero Apache Text excerpted from Chiricahua Apache Texts, with Ethnological Notes |
![]() |
![]() | Coyote and the Creation, Mescalero Apache Text | ![]() |
From here [Coyote] went on.
'Iͅiͅshíͅ ndásé dahiiyáná'a.
- tł'ohkéstasí
- tł'ałdeií,
- tł'ołchídí,
- tł'ohishchíílí,
- tł'ołchíshí,
- tł'ołtł'ijí,
- ndébitł'ohí,
- dziłátł'ohkéstasí,
- tł'ohbindáantsaaí,
- tł'ohbindáantł'idzí,
- tł'ohbindáa'áłts'oͅoͅsí,
- tł'ohbindáa'ászóólí,
- tł'ohbindáa'iłaadaasijaaí,
- tł'ohbindáa'iłké'dasijaaí,
- tł'ohbindáa'iłké'ńt'ií,
- tł'ohdábilátadébindáadasijaaí,
- 'áshíͅ tł'ohbits'íládéídeesdzáí.
- grama grass,
- falseflax,
- big blue-stem grass,
- buffalo grass,
- corn grass,
- wild violet,
- salt grass,
- black grama grass,
- red columbine,
- wild barley,
- side oats grama [var.],
- red top grass,
- rye grass,
- candy grass,
- side oats grama [var.],
- big blue-stem grass,
- and blue grass.
All of them were created.
1. ndiibikátł'oh'igáał'aashé 'all the varieties of grass on the earth's surface'. ndii - 'earth'; biká 'its surface'; tł'oh 'grass'.
2. Following are the plant names in this passage that can be analyzed:
tłohkéstasí 'grama grass'. tł'oh 'grass'. késtas- ?; -í relative.
tł'ałdeií 'false flax'. tł'a-, compounded form of tł'oh 'grass'; -łdei ?.
tł'ołchídí 'big blue-stem grass'. -łchíd-, compounded form of the 3rd person of łi-ni-...chí 'to be red' [imp. neut. intr.]. [ch is ambiguously drawn in the print copy, and could be interpretted as ts'; but it is clear from context that the form intended is ch --MEC]
tł'ołtł'idzí [this appears as tł'ołtł'ijí in the text--MEC] 'wild violet'. -łtł'idz may be related to ni-...-tł'idz 'to be hard' or it may have been misheard for -łtł'ij which is possibly related to da-ni-...-tł'ij 'to be blue'.
ndébitł'ohí 'salt grass'. ndé 'people, indians'; bitł'oh 'their grass'.
dziłátł'ohkéstasí 'black grama grass'. dził 'mountain'; -á from -yá 'on';
tł'ohkéstasí 'grama grass' [see above].
tł'ohbindáantsaaí 'red columbine'. bindáa 'its eyes'; ntsaa 'they are big' [imp. neut. intr.]. bindáa, literally 'its eyes', is understood to refer to the seeds of the plant.
tł'ohbindáantł'idzí 'wild barley'. ntł'idz 'they are hard'.
tł'ohbindáa'áłts'oͅoͅ sí [the text in the original contains an apparent misprint in which this word appears as tł'ohbindáa'áłch'oͅoͅsí--MEC] 'side oats grama [var.]'. 'áłts'oͅoͅ s 'they are slender'.
tł'ohbindáa'iłaadaasijaaí 'rye grass'. 'ił- reciprocal; aa- 'to' plus daasijaa 'several masses lie' [si- perf. neut. intr. with the distrib.].
tł'ohbindáa'iłké'dasijaaí 'candy grass'. Literally 'the grass on which masses of seeds lie on top of one another'. 'iłké'- 'after one another'; dah- 'on, upon'.
tł'ohbindáa'iłké'ńt'ií 'sideoats grama [var.]' Literally 'the grass on which the seeds are strung out after one another'. ńt'i 'they have been strung out' [3rd person ni- perf.].
tł'ohdábilátabinndáadasijaaí 'big blue-stem grass'. Literally 'the grass the seeds of which lie massed just on its tip'. dábiláta 'just its tip'.
tł'ohbits'íládéídeesdzáí 'blue grass'. bits'íládéí 'its tassels'; deesdzá 'it extends upward, it sticks out' [?].
![]() | Coyote and the Creation, Mescalero Apache Text | ![]() |