As a result of inroads from French and English speakers, Sitimaxa,
the language of the Chitimacha people of southern Louisiana over the
past 7,000 years, lost its last fluent speaker in 1940. Since that
time the tribal Cultural Department has gathered all the extant
language material, both audio-recordings and documentary, and has
begun to revive language use through its school system and language
training programs. A new generation of Sitimaxa speakers is now
emerging, and the present grammar reflects the usage both of these
speakers and of the last generation of fluent users of the language.
The present text covers the following topics: Sounds and Spelling;
Words, Sound Changes & Parts of Speech; Sitimaxa Verbs; Sitimaxa
Nouns; Sitimaxa Particles; Making New Words in Sitimaxa; Sentences in
Sitimaxa; and a general summary of the grammar patterns of the
language. Sample sentences are included.
Linguistic Field(s): Language Description
Subject Language(s): Chitimacha (Language Code: CHM)
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