Kitanemuk language

Kitanemuk was a Northern Uto-Aztecan language of the Serran branch. It was very closely related to Serrano, and may have been a dialect. It was spoken in the San Gabriel Mountains and foothill environs of Southern California. The last speakers lived some time in the 1940s, though the last fieldwork was carried out in 1937. J. P. Harrington took copious notes in the 1916 and 1917, however, which has allowed for a fairly detailed knowledge of the language.

Morphology

Kitanemuk is an agglutinative language, where words use suffix complexes for a variety of purposes with several morphemes strung together.

Phonology

Consonants

The consonant phonemes of Kitanemuk, as reconstructed by Anderton (1988) based on Harrington's field notes, were (with some standard Americanist phonetic notation in ⟨angle brackets⟩:

Word-finally, /h/ becomes [r], and all voiced consonants become voiceless before other voiceless consonants or word-finally.

Vowels

See also

• Population of Native California
• Native American history of California
• Classification of Native Americans in California

References

• Anderton, Alice J. (1988). The Language of the Kitanemuks of California. PhD. diss., University of California, Los Angeles.
• Mithun, Marianne (1999). The Languages of Native North America. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

External links

• Four Directions Institute: Kitanemuk
• Native Languages: Kitanemuk
• Kitanemuk language overview at the Survey of California and Other Indian Languages
• Papers of John P. Harrington, Part 3, Southern California/Basin, OLAC Open Language Archive

Languages of California
Indigenous	Algic Wiyot Yurok Athabascan Tolowa Hupa Mattole Kato Wailaki Chumashan Obispeño Island Chumash Purisimeño Ineseño Barbareño Ventureño Ohlone Karkin Chochenyo Ramaytush Tamyen Awaswas Mutsun Rumsen Chalon Hokan Chimariko Karuk Achomawi Atsugewi Northeastern Pomo Eastern Pomo Southeastern Pomo Northern Pomo Central Pomo Southern Pomo Kashaya Washo Mojave Kumeyaay Yana Yahi Penutian Klamath-Mudoc Yokuts Wintu Bay Miwok Coast Miwok Lake Miwok Plains Miwok Central Sierra Miwok Northern Sierra Miwok Southern Sierra Miwok Valley Maidu Northeast Maidu Northwest Maidu Nisenan Shastan Konomihu New River Shasta Okwanuchu Shasta Uto Aztecan Cahuilla Cupeño Kawaiisu Kitanemuk Luiseño-Juaneño Mono Northern Paiute Panamint Serrano Tataviam Tongva Ute Wintuan Nomlaki Patwin Southern Patwin Wintu Yokutsan Buena Vista Yokuts, Chukchansi, Gashowu Yokuts, Kings River Yokuts, Palewyami, Tule-Kaweah Yokuts, Valley Yokuts Yukian Yuki, Wappo Language isolates and Unclassified Esselen, Chimariko, Karuk, Salinan, Takelma Plains Sign Talk
Non-Indigenous	Indo-European American English California English Chicano English Spanish Armenian Punjabi Russian Asian Chinese Korean Tagalog Vietnamese Francosign American Sign Language
Italics indicate extinct languages

Indigenous peoples of California
Achomawi Atsugewi Bay Miwok (Saklan) Cahuilla Chemehuevi Chimariko Chumash Coast Miwok Cupeño Eel River Athapaskans (Lassik, Nongatl, Sinkyone, Wailaki) Esselen Halchidhoma Hupa (Chilula, Whilkut) Juaneño (Acjachemen) Karuk Kato Kawaiisu Kitanemuk Kucadikadi Kumeyaay (Diegueño, Ipai, Tipai) Lake Miwok Luiseño Maidu Mattole (Bear River) Modoc (Klamath) Mohave Mono (Monache, Owens Valley Paiute) Nomlaki Northern Paiute Ohlone (Costanoan) Patwin Pomo Quechan (Yuma) Salinan Serrano Shasta (Konomihu, Okwanuchu) Tataviam Timbisha Tolowa Tongva (Gabrieliño, Fernandeño) Tübatulabal Valley and Sierra Miwok Wappo Washoe Wintu Wiyot Yana Yokuts Yuki Yurok