Extinct Native American language formerly spoken in Oregon
Cayuse is an extinctlanguage isolate [ 3] Cayuse people (autonym:Liksiyu [ 4] Oregon .
The first written vocabulary of the Cayuse language was published byHoratio Hale in 1846. As a member of theUnited States Exploring Expedition , he had visited thePacific Northwest in 1841. MissionaryMarcus Whitman was credited for providing "much valuable information" about theCayuse people and other natives nearbyWaiilatpu .[ 5] Waiilatpuan language family , Hale put Cayuse and theMolala language as the sole members.[ 6]
In 1910 or 1911, Stephens Savage, aMolala speaker, had toldLeo Frachtenberg that the following five words were identical in both Cayuse and Molala:[ 7]
sorrel horse qasqasi tasiwitkwi spotted horse yuꞏk tasiwitkwi black horse múkimuki tasiwitkwi comb taꞏsps spoon ƚúꞏpinc
In 1929Edward Sapir grouped Cayuse with Molala as part of theWaiilatpuan branch of thePlateau Penutian languages .[ 8]
Bruce Rigsby reexamined the Cayuse-Molala lexical pairs provided by Hale in 1969 and found only a tenth to be potentially related terms. The words presented by Savage were concluded by Rigsby to likely be loanwords. Upon his review of extant Molala and Cayuse linguistic data, Rigsby concluded "I do not see how the two languages could have possibly been mutually intelligible."[ 9]
Cayuse pronouns listed by Hale:[ 7]
I iniŋ you (sg.) nikí you (du.) nkímiš he nip we námək you (pl.) mkímiš they nípik
Cayuse pronouns listed by McBean:[ 7]
I in ning you (sg., pl.) in kai he neepe we nung naw naw they cap pick
Cayuse verb paradigms documented byHenry W. Henshaw :[ 7]
'hungry' I am hungry. wi-tu-tŭnt I was hungry. kler-ka-wĭ-tu-tŭnt I will be hungry. wí-tu-näk-sŭnt You and I are hungry. swi-tu-ter-yìk You and I were hungry. swi-tu-te-lì-kai-ĭk You and I will be hungry. nĭng-i-li-pʔl-swi-tu-nak-stunk-a-wak You are hungry. tu-swi-tu-tuñg-a You were hungry. swi-tu-til-kutla You will be hungry. swi-tu-nak-stung-at-la
'thirsty' I am thirsty. nĭs-ka-mu-tiñg I was thirsty. nĭs-ka-mu-til I will be thirsty. nĭs-ka-mu-näk-skĭn You are thirsty. tu-mĭs-ka-mu-tĭñg You were thirsty. mĭs-ka-mu-til-hă You will be thirsty. mĭs-ka-mu-na-stĭnk-la
Limited lexical items in Cayuse have been collected by Rigsby,Melville Jacobs ,Verne Ray , andTheodore Stern . Their Cayuse informants had highly limited knowledge of the language and were more fluent in eitherSahaptin orNez Perce .
A word list of Cayuse with nearby 200 lexical items was documented by Hale.[ 10]
gloss Cayuse man yúant woman pintχlkaíu; watχlóa boy láutlaŋ girl staítχləŋ; staítlaŋ infant; child skútχla father pintét; títʃa mother penín; nínʃa husband ináiu wife inχlkaío son wái daughter wái brother pnákən; pənátaŋ sister pənátiaŋ; pənwaíəq Indian; people - head talʃ; táəlʃ hair tχlókomot face léequkʃ forehead penátχliʃ ear takʃ eye hăkaməʃ nose pitχlóken mouth səmqakʃ tongue puʃ teeth tenif beard ʃimkéməʃ neck yet arm tiélaq hand épip fingers épip nails ʃíŋiʃ body ʃilăməʃ leg maúwət foot tiʃ toes tiyəyáu bone pápət heart - blood tiwéə̈ʃ town; village - chief iatóiaŋ warrior lotéwa friend enlápoit house niʃt kettle tχlípaniʃ bow hífoit arrow lalχ axe; hatchet yeŋgókinʃ knife ʃekt canoe; boat tχláap shoes täítχlo pipe iptnχlónʃ tobacco hanʃ sky; heaven ndjălawaía, tíŋpap sun huéwiʃ moon hátχltóp star tχlítχliʃ day ewéiə̈ night ftalp light notawásim darkness ʃilímtiŋk morning tétχlpəna evening wəχaía spring ʃuatoluŋátntiŋ; kiátim summer ʃqáätim autumn təŋ winter wit wind húntilχp thunder tiŋtululutéʃin lightning ʃniktawíŋtiŋ rain tiʃtkitχlmítiŋ snow pói hail puŋiós fire tetʃ water iʃkáiniʃ ice tók earth; land liŋʃ sea yamué-iʃkaíniʃ river luʃmi lake fuŋʃ valley paniákp hill; mountain téit island liŋtkaíli stone ápit salt kamtiʃímpen iron qauqauítχliínik tree laúik wood hútiʃ leaf qaisós bark pétimi grass tχleft; qə́ïʃt pine laúikʃ flesh; meat pítχli dog náapaŋ buffalo - bear liméakʃ; nokoláo wolf tχlaíu; tsóilaχs deer aitχléwa elk yútiŋʃ beaver pīeká tortoise atsík fly tqaínʃiʃ; katχlísaŋ mosquito píŋkii snake waíimaʃ bird tianíyiwa egg lópitχl feathers tiaqaímutχl wings haŋ duck əʃimtχl pigeon súuku fish wiaíiʃ salmon milóqli sturgeon - name peʃp affection atíŋp; tiʃktaʃewetáuŋko
gloss Cayuse white tχlaktχláko black ʃkupʃkúpu red lakaítlakaítu blue yotsyóts yellow qəʃqə́ʃu green yotsyóts great yaúmua; yiyímu (pl.) small etsáŋua strong ntáloa; naantáloa old kuiátsu young itsáŋu good suaíu; sasuáiu (pl.) bad luastu; laluástu (pl.) handsome hapútsu; suaíu ugly huástu alive wióko dead úwaa cold ʃúŋa warm lokóia
gloss Cayuse I íniŋ thou nikí he nip we námək ye mkímiʃ; nkímiʃ (dual) they nípik this qe, qă, ke that qá, ká all naŋináo many (much) yíphea who iʃ
gloss Cayuse near piáfi today páməŋ yesterday iétin tomorrow tetχlp yes i no téehu
gloss Cayuse one na two lépli three mátnin four pípiŋ five táwit six nōiná seven nóilip eight nōimát nine tanáuiaiʃímʃim ten niŋítelp eleven nántetχle twelve leplin-ntétχle twenty lépuik thirty mátuík one hundred niŋítalpuík one thousand -
gloss Cayuse to eat pitáŋa to drink pasqunstáŋa to run pqíntuql to dance iókseak to sing tuŋséaql to sleep ʃpíʃiŋql to speak úlipkin to see miskaléntənt to love ktáʃo to kill piaíitχltiŋ to sit ifníql; ifníkta to stand laútsiŋ to go wintúkstaŋa; wintúql (imp.) to come wintúkum
^ Cayuse atMultiTree the Linguist List ^ UNESCO 2010 , p. 11.^ Campbell, Lyle (2024-06-25),"North American Indian Languages North of Mexico" The Indigenous Languages of the Americas (1 ed.), Oxford University PressNew York, pp. 28– 145,doi :10.1093/oso/9780197673461.003.0002 ,ISBN 978-0-19-767346-1 , retrieved2025-06-25 ^ Aoki 1998 .^ Hale 1846 , p. 542.^ Hale 1846 , p. 561.^a b c d Rigsby 1969 .^ Sapir 1929 .^ Rigsby 1969 , pp. 82–83.^ Hale 1846 , pp. 570–629.
Italics indicate extinct languages
Indigenous
Immigrant
Language families
Proposed groupings Lists
