LINGUIST List 11.1316

Tue Jun 13 2000

Qs: Lang/Children's Rhyme, Numbers/Crosslinguistic

Editor for this issue: Karen Milligan <karenlinguistlist.org>



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Directory

  • Dawn M Ash, Family children's rhyme of unknown language
  • Vincent DeCaen, numbers crosslinguistically?

    Message 1: Family children's rhyme of unknown language

     Date: Mon, 12 Jun 2000 18:51:58 -0400
    From: Dawn M Ash <dmashMIT.EDU>
    Subject: Family children's rhyme of unknown language


    Dear linguists,

    I am a linguistics student at MIT. There is a ditty in my family that has been told from mother to child at least as far back as my grandmother's grandmother, back in Milejczyce (pronounced Mileychich), Russia, a small twon near Bialystok. Our family spoke Yiddish, but this ditty is certainly not Yiddish, although it may have originally been, having been misheard/misrepeated by the children when they grew up (perhaps?). The ditty is said almost in a singing fashion, and is accompanied by a certain way of tickling the child's hand. If anyone can help me identify the language, I would appreciate it greatly.

    Saku navu ranu Kachkih navu drilla Dimetele (x5 or so).

    Thanks, Dawn Ash dmashmit.edu

    Message 2: numbers crosslinguistically?

     Date: Tue, 13 Jun 2000 20:54:40 -0400 (EDT)
    From: Vincent DeCaen <decaenchass.utoronto.ca>
    Subject: numbers crosslinguistically?


    is there a reference work on number systems 1-20 crosslinguistically? i'm especially interested in systems where 6-9 are represented compositionally as 5+1, 5+2, 5+3. also, i'd be interested to know if basque 6-9 have ever been analyzed this way, suffix -tzi < *ortzi, cf. bortz "five". thanks. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Dr Vincent DeCaen <decaenchass.utoronto.ca> c/o Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations, 4 Bancroft Ave., 2d floor University of Toronto, Toronto ON, CANADA, M5S 1A1

    Hebrew Syntax Encoding Initiative, www.chass.utoronto.ca/~decaen/hsei/ -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-I