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Lenape Talking Dictionary

By English WORD or PHRASE

By Lenape WORD or PHRASE

Detailed Entry Information

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English:his eyes (AP)
Lenape:nataèpunëma [ni]

Comments

This is the form used by Annie Parks. /iw/ becomes /u/ as expected, and the inanimate suffix drops its vowel as is common. However, the other suffixes are not in the standard order. See "his eye" /notaèpi/ from underlying /w-nataèpi/. This suggests a more likely form for "his eyes" /notaèpia/ from underlying /w-nataèpi-a/. The possessive suffix is normally reserved for transferable objects, unlike body parts, which are inherently associated with an individual and need not be marked as "possessed."

Analysis

Form:
nataèpunëma
Structure:
nataèpi-w-ne-ëm-a
Meaning:
eye-3-inan-poss-pl.inan