by Asher Wright
Mission Press, 1842
EXPLANATION FOR ENGLISH READERS.
It is absolutely necessary for English readers to divest themselves of all the irregular and erroneous notions of spelling contracted by using the imperfect alphabet of the English language, and to remember that, in spelling Seneca, the same sound is uniformly associated with each character. Hence, in writing the language, our first object has been to hear correctly the several sounds of which each word is composed, in their order, and then to represent them by their appropriate characters, placed in the same order. The anomalous sounds of the English are so oddly expressed by combinations of characters, and so many letters are introduced which have no honest relation to the sounds, that most persons find it very difficult to lay aside their bad habits and inconsistencies sufficiently to follow our simple truth-telling system of orthography. But be it always remembered, if the reader will take pains to understand, and is able to enunciate, the sounds represented by the several characters, and will distinctly enunciate them, in the order in which they are located, and with their appropriate relative degrees of force and time, and with the natural cadence and inflexion, he will read the language intelligibly, and — abating the errors of the writer and of the printer — with the same accuracy with which it is spoken by the Indian himself. He may call our mode of representing certain sounds very odd ; and, if he will not forget the barbarisms of English spelling, he certainly will do so. But no matter for that : if he will only be content to pronounce his words correctly, as they are made ready to his hands, and. no otherwise, he will be a correct, and, if he improve his cadent rightly, a profitable reader of Seneca; and we have no fears of his condemning our system, after he shall have thoroughly attained the right use of his ears, by listening attentively to the Indian mode of speaking.
The number of sounds in the Indian, with our present knowledge of the language is supposed to be 29, as follows :
Vowel Sounds.
e as in the English word ‘they’
e ” ” ” ” ” ’bet’
a ” ” ” ” ” ’fall’
a ” ” ” ” ” ’hat’
i ” ” ” ” ” ’machine’
i ” ” ” ” ” ’hit’
o ” ” ” ” ” ’note’
o unlike any English letter, half way between ‘o’ in note and ‘o’ in move
u as in the English word ‘push,’or, as ‘o’ in move.
u like the English letter u in but.
Nasalized vowels are such as have the peculiar nasal twang approximating to the sound produced by joining the letter ‘n’ to a vowel, remembering not to finish the sound of the ‘n,’ but only proceed so far as to to communicate to the vowel enough of its sound to nasalize it. They are uniformly denoted by a mark like a hyphen (-), placed underneath the vowel, as ‘a,’ ‘a,’ ‘e,’ ‘u,’ ‘v,’ &c. A vowel sound of this sort coming before ‘g’ or ‘k,’ coalesces with it, as in the English word ‘long.’ This word, spelt after the Indian fashion, would be ‘l-a-g.’ ‘Strong,’ would be ‘s-t-r-a-g.’ Young would be written ‘y-v g-” ‘Monk,’ would be ‘m-v-k,’ &c.— drc. It is very important for the reader or writer of Seneca to regard very scrupulously this distinction between nasalized and other vowels for the meaning is often entirely dependent upon u, and there are many nice modifications of the sense which can be given in no other way.
It is not to be supposed that with our imperfect knowledge of Seneca, we have discovered and marked accurately all the peculiarities of the language. It is sometimes, also, very difficult to decide on the correct usage, where there are differences of pronunciation among the Indians. In such cases we have sought for the pure Seneca in contradistinction from the idioms of Mohawk, Cayuga, Onondaga, &c, and for Seneca as spoken by the old men whose habits were formed previous to the introduction of English ideas and modifications of ideas the people. It is not pretended that no room is left for further improvement. It would be very strange if much should not ultimately be necessary. Suggestions of needed additions or alterations will, therefore, be thankfully received and dully considered ; and wherever the correct analysis of the language shall decide in their favour, they will be most gladly adopted.
It has been objected to the system of orthography which we have adopted, that it has a tendency to embarrass the learner by using English letters with French or German sounds attached to the vowels. It should be recollected, however, that each English vowel has so many sounds that they could not be retained without introducing strange jargon into the Seneca. We have given no new sound to any letter. We have followed some one sound of the English vowel in every case and rejected from necessity all the others. In deciding which to follow and which to reject, we have been influenced mainly by the fact that the Hon. T. Pickering’s mode of representing the vowel sounds, which, in the main, we have adopted, has been generally introduced among the Indians of the continent, wherever their languages have been reduced to writing, is approved by the American Board, and corresponds more closely than any other mode of notation, with the usages of the whole civilised world, and no objection can be brought against it which will not bear with equal force against every other system which employs the English letters. Besides, many of the Indians are already in some degree familiar with this system; a much larger number than arc familiar with any other ; and no other system can become adapted to the correct representation of the Seneca language, on paper without adopting as many variations from the common English as Mr. Pickering and his followers have done. Those who have attempted to write in other ways, are continually finding new marks necessary, and the more they write the more marks they will need, till they have a character exclusively appropriated to each of the sounds contained in the spoken language. Then, and not till then, will their systems have a claim to be regarded perfect.
We have endeavoured, in adopting Mr. Pickering’s system, to make in the outset, all the additions necessary, to adapt it to all exigencies of the Seneca, so as to prevent, as far as possible, the necessity of future alterations. Till, however, a settled habit of spelling has been established, there will of course be variations in orthography corresponding with the various modes in which different individuals speak or hear the same word ; but these variations will occasion no serious inconvenience to the reader, any more to the hearer of a speech or conversation where they occur in the spoken language. The reader who pronounces the words as written, and the writer who writes them accurately as they are spoken, will both be sufficiently correct for all purposes of practical utility.
It may not be improper, here to express our earnest hope, that all who have anything to do with Indians, and who accurately and who are capable of appreciating the value of a written language, will strenuously exert themselves to hasten forward the time when every indian shall be fully able to express his own thoughts on paper, and derive his full measure of advantage from the written thoughts of others, and especially from the written Word of God, to whose blessing these incipient efforts to accomplish so desirable an object, are humbly and earnestly commended.
NOTE., To those who may be inclined to criticise the style of our printing, we would remark, that, we have no Italic type, and but one size of Roman letter. Several of the accented capitals, also, are wanting, punches not having been cut for them when the accented type was prepared in Boston, some years since for printing Seneca. This will explain the breaks in the column of capitals, (in the alphabet,) and many other things which printers would deem irregularities. To furnish, ourselves with Italic, and another size of Roman, with the capitals for each, sufficient for our little establishment, would require about $150, before the type could be cast, and the whole expense would vary little from $400 ; for the want of which we are obliged to forego the advantages of beauty and variety in the style and execution of our work, and make the best we can of the facilities with which we are provided.
LESSON II.
Words of one syllable.
a??, yes.
O! (the same in both languages.)
ah, on the part of.
a???, it seems.
da, there, then, now.
da! there ! there now !
do! here! how! how much! how many!
do! how much ? how many ?
ga??, (a syllable having the force of the verb ‘to be’)
he, because of, on account of, for that,
ho! where, look ! look yonder!
ho! stop ! don’t do that.
i?, I, me, we, us.
is, thou, you.
na??, look here! behold ! see this!
ne, yes, that is it.
ne, the, that, this,
ne, place where,
no, perhaps, probably,
sa??! look ! see there!