The Muscogee language ( Muskogee , Mvskoke IPA: [maskókî] in Muscogee), previously referred to by its exonym , Creek , is a Muskogean language spoken by Muscogee (Creek) and Seminole people, primarily in the US states of Oklahoma and Florida . Along with Mikasuki , when it is spoken by the Seminole, it is known as Seminole .
85-704: Osceola (1804 – January 30, 1838, Vsse Yvholv in Creek , also spelled Asi-yahola ), named Billy Powell at birth in Alabama, became an influential leader of the Seminole people in Florida. His mother was Muscogee , and his great-grandfather was a Scotsman, James McQueen . He was reared by his mother in the Creek (Muscogee) tradition. When he was a child, they migrated to Florida with other Red Stick refugees, led by
170-659: A class put on by the Seminole nation at Seminole State College to try and reintroduce the Muscogee language to students in elementary and high school in several schools around the state. The phoneme inventory of Muscogee consists of thirteen consonants and three vowel qualities , which distinguish length , tone and nasalization . It also makes use of the gemination of stops , fricatives and sonorants . There are four voiceless stops in Muscogee: /p t t͡ʃ k/ . /t͡ʃ/
255-486: A few months later of causes reported as an internal infection or malaria . Because of his renown, Osceola attracted visitors in prison, including renowned artist George Catlin , who painted perhaps the most well-known portrait of the Seminole leader. Osceola was named Billy Powell at his birth in 1804 in the Upper Creek village of Talisi, which means "Old Town". The village site, now the city of Tallassee, Alabama ,
340-419: A grammatical ablaut , which indicates intensification through lengthening and nasalization of a vowel ( likoth- 'warm' with the nasalizing grade intensifies the word to likŏ: th-os-i: 'nice and warm'). Nasal vowels may also appear as part of a suffix that indicates a question ( o:sk-ihá: 'I wonder if it's raining'). There are three phonemic tones in Muscogee; they are generally unmarked except in
425-407: A long vowel ( fóː 'bee') or a two-syllable word ending with a short vowel ( ací 'corn'). There are three long vowels in Muscogee ( /iː ɑː oː/ ), which are slightly longer than short vowels and are never centralized. Long vowels are rarely followed by a sonorant in the same syllable. Therefore, when syllables are created (often from suffixation or contractions) in which a long vowel is followed by
510-600: A national uproar. General Jesup's treacherous act and the administration were condemned by many congressional leaders and vilified by international press. Jesup suffered a loss of reputation that lasted for the rest of his life; his betrayal of the truce flag has been described as "one of the most disgraceful acts in American military history." That December, Osceola and other Seminole prisoners were moved to Fort Moultrie. They were visited by various townspeople. The portraitists George Catlin , W. M. Laning, and Robert John Curtis,
595-622: A native of Charleston, made a plaster cast of Osceola's face and upper torso. The process of "pulling" the first mold, which was soon displayed in the window of a Charleston drugstore, destroyed the original cast. Weedon apparently preserved Osceola's head in a large jar of alcohol and took it to St. Augustine, where he exhibited it in the family drugstore. Captain Pitcairn Morrison sent the death mask and some other objects collected by Weedon to an army officer in Washington . By 1885,
680-414: A neighboring consonant is coronal or in closed syllables. However, /ɑ/ will generally not centralize when it is followed by /h/ or /k/ in the same syllable, and /o/ will generally remain noncentral if it is word-final. Initial vowels can be deleted in Muscogee, mostly applying to the vowel /i/ . The deletion will affect the pitch of the following syllable by creating a higher-than-expected pitch on
765-740: A relative, Peter McQueen , after their group's defeat in 1814 in the Creek Wars . There they became part of what was known as the Seminole people. In 1836, Osceola led a small group of warriors in the Seminole resistance during the Second Seminole War , when the United States tried to remove the tribe from their lands in Florida to Indian Territory west of the Mississippi River. He became an adviser to Micanopy ,
850-532: A result of a contraction, as the result of a neighboring nasal consonant, or as the result of nasalizing grade, a grammatical ablaut , which indicates intensification through lengthening and nasalization of a vowel ( likoth- 'warm' with the nasalizing grade intensifies the word to likŏ: th-os-i: 'nice and warm'). Nasal vowels may also appear as part of a suffix that indicates a question ( o:sk-ihá: 'I wonder if it's raining'). There are three phonemic tones in Muscogee; they are generally unmarked except in
935-399: A single sentence at once, such as the direct object, indirect object, and adverbial nouns. Despite the distinction in verbal affixes between the agent and patient of the verb, the clitic -t marks subject of both transitive and intransitive verbs. In some situations, case marking is omitted. This is especially true of sentences with only one noun where the role of the noun is obvious from
SECTION 10
#17327722247881020-399: A single sentence at once, such as the direct object, indirect object, and adverbial nouns. Despite the distinction in verbal affixes between the agent and patient of the verb, the clitic -t marks subject of both transitive and intransitive verbs. In some situations, case marking is omitted. This is especially true of sentences with only one noun where the role of the noun is obvious from
1105-442: A sonorant in the same syllable. Therefore, when syllables are created (often from suffixation or contractions) in which a long vowel is followed by a sonorant, the vowel is shortened: In Muscogee, there are three diphthongs, generally realized as [əɪ ʊj əʊ] . Both long and short vowels can be nasalized (the distinction between acces and ącces below ), but long nasal vowels are more common. Nasal vowels usually appear as
1190-406: A sonorant, the vowel is shortened: In Muscogee, there are three diphthongs, generally realized as [əɪ ʊj əʊ] . Both long and short vowels can be nasalized (the distinction between acces and ącces below ), but long nasal vowels are more common. Nasal vowels usually appear as a result of a contraction, as the result of a neighboring nasal consonant, or as the result of nasalizing grade,
1275-451: A syllable, the velar /k/ is realized as the uvular [ q ] or [ ɢ ] . For example: There are four voiceless fricatives in Muscogee: /f s ɬ h/ . /f/ can be realized as either labiodental [ f ] or bilabial [ ɸ ] in place of articulation . Predominantly among speakers in Florida, the articulation of /s/ is more laminal , resulting in /s/ being realized as [ ʃ ] , but for most speakers, /s/
1360-453: A verb in a clause marks that the verb's subject is the same as that of the next clause. The clitic -n marks that verb's subject is different from the next clause. In some languages, a special form of the noun, the genitive case , is used to show possession . In Muscogee this relationship is expressed in two quite different ways, depending on the nature of the noun. A body part or family member cannot be named in Muscogee without mentioning
1445-453: A verb in a clause marks that the verb's subject is the same as that of the next clause. The clitic -n marks that verb's subject is different from the next clause. In some languages, a special form of the noun, the genitive case , is used to show possession . In Muscogee this relationship is expressed in two quite different ways, depending on the nature of the noun. A body part or family member cannot be named in Muscogee without mentioning
1530-459: Is a Muskogean language spoken by Muscogee (Creek) and Seminole people, primarily in the US states of Oklahoma and Florida . Along with Mikasuki , when it is spoken by the Seminole, it is known as Seminole . Historically, the language was spoken by various constituent groups of the Muscogee or Maskoki in what are now Alabama and Georgia . It is related to but not mutually intelligible with
1615-400: Is a voiceless palatal affricate and patterns as a single consonant and so with the other voiceless stops. /t͡ʃ/ has an alveolar allophone [ t͡s ] before /k/ . The obstruent consonants /p t t͡ʃ k/ are voiced to [b d d͡ʒ ɡ] between sonorants and vowels but remain voiceless at the end of a syllable . Between instances of [ o ] , or after [o] at the end of
1700-458: Is a voiceless apico-alveolar fricative [ s ] . Like /k/ , the glottal /h/ is sometimes realized as the uvular [ χ ] when it is preceded by [o] or when syllable-final: The sonorants in Muscogee are two nasals ( /m/ and /n/ ), two semivowels ( /w/ and /j/ ), and the lateral /l/ , all voiced . Nasal assimilation occurs in Muscogee: /n/ becomes [ ŋ ] before /k/ . Sonorants are devoiced when followed by /h/ in
1785-687: Is less common than the Mikasuki language. The most distinct dialect of the language is said to be that of the Florida Seminole, which is described as "rapid", "staccato" and "dental", with more loan words from Spanish and Mikasuki as opposed to English. Florida Seminole Creek is the most endangered register of the Muscogee language. Creek language The Muscogee language ( Muskogee , Mvskoke IPA: [maskókî] in Muscogee), previously referred to by its exonym , Creek ,
SECTION 20
#17327722247881870-600: Is the stative verbs , which express no action, imply no duration, and provide only description of a static condition. In some languages, such as English, they are expressed as adjectives. In Muscogee, the verbs behave like adjectives but are classed and treated as verbs. However, they are not altered for the person of the subject by an affix , as above; instead, the prefix changes: Prefixes are also used in Muscogee for shades of meaning of verbs that are expressed, in English, by adverbs in phrasal verbs . For example, in English,
1955-545: Is the stative verbs , which express no action, imply no duration, and provide only description of a static condition. In some languages, such as English, they are expressed as adjectives. In Muscogee, the verbs behave like adjectives but are classed and treated as verbs. However, they are not altered for the person of the subject by an affix , as above; instead, the prefix changes: Prefixes are also used in Muscogee for shades of meaning of verbs that are expressed, in English, by adverbs in phrasal verbs . For example, in English,
2040-429: Is the second person singular ending for verbs. Wiketv means "to stop:" the verb for "you are stopping" may be written in Muscogee as wikeckes or wiketskes . Both are pronounced the same. The -eck- transliteration is preferred by Innes (2004), and the -etsk- transliteration has been used by Martin (2000) and Loughridge (1964). While vowel length in Muscogee is distinctive, it is somewhat inconsistently indicated in
2125-429: Is the second person singular ending for verbs. Wiketv means "to stop:" the verb for "you are stopping" may be written in Muscogee as wikeckes or wiketskes . Both are pronounced the same. The -eck- transliteration is preferred by Innes (2004), and the -etsk- transliteration has been used by Martin (2000) and Loughridge (1964). While vowel length in Muscogee is distinctive, it is somewhat inconsistently indicated in
2210-736: Is widely spoken among the Muscogee people. The Muscogee Nation offers free language classes and immersion camps to Muscogee children. The College of the Muscogee Nation offers a language certificate program. Tulsa public schools, the University of Oklahoma and Glenpool Library in Tulsa and the Holdenville, Okmulgee, and Tulsa Muscogee Communities of the Muscogee Nation offer Muscogee Creek language classes. In 2013,
2295-428: Is word-final. Initial vowels can be deleted in Muscogee, mostly applying to the vowel /i/ . The deletion will affect the pitch of the following syllable by creating a higher-than-expected pitch on the new initial syllable. Furthermore, initial vowel deletion in the case of single-morpheme, short words such as ifa 'dog' or icó 'deer' is impossible, as the shortest a Muscogee word can be is a one-syllable word ending in
2380-500: The Dade Massacre . These nearly simultaneous attacks catalyzed the Second Seminole War with the United States. In April 1836, Osceola led a band of warriors in an attempt to expel U.S. forces from Fort Cooper . The fortification was built on the west bank of Lake Holathikaha as an outpost for actions against the local Seminole population. Despite running low on food, the U.S. garrison had enough gunpowder and ammunition to keep
2465-587: The Mississippi River , with most forced into Indian Territory . The language is today spoken by fewer than 400 people, most of whom live in Oklahoma and are members of the Muscogee Nation and the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma . Muscogee is widely spoken among the Muscogee people. The Muscogee Nation offers free language classes and immersion camps to Muscogee children. The College of
2550-579: The Sapulpa Creek Community Center graduated a class of 14 from its Muscogee language class. In 2018, 8 teachers graduated from a class put on by the Seminole nation at Seminole State College to try and reintroduce the Muscogee language to students in elementary and high school in several schools around the state. The phoneme inventory of Muscogee consists of thirteen consonants and three vowel qualities , which distinguish length , tone and nasalization . It also makes use of
2635-434: The gemination of stops , fricatives and sonorants . There are four voiceless stops in Muscogee: /p t t͡ʃ k/ . /t͡ʃ/ is a voiceless palatal affricate and patterns as a single consonant and so with the other voiceless stops. /t͡ʃ/ has an alveolar allophone [ t͡s ] before /k/ . The obstruent consonants /p t t͡ʃ k/ are voiced to [b d d͡ʒ ɡ] between sonorants and vowels but remain voiceless at
Osceola - Misplaced Pages Continue
2720-585: The (approximately) equivalent sounds using familiar English words and the IPA : There are also three vowel sequences whose spellings match their phonetic makeup: As mentioned above, certain consonants in Muscogee, when they appear between two sonorants (a vowel or m , n , l , w , or y ), become voiced . They are the consonants represented by p , t , k , c , and s : In addition, certain combinations of consonants sound differently from English, giving multiple possible transcriptions . The most prominent case
2805-537: The (approximately) equivalent sounds using familiar English words and the IPA : There are also three vowel sequences whose spellings match their phonetic makeup: As mentioned above, certain consonants in Muscogee, when they appear between two sonorants (a vowel or m , n , l , w , or y ), become voiced . They are the consonants represented by p , t , k , c , and s : In addition, certain combinations of consonants sound differently from English, giving multiple possible transcriptions . The most prominent case
2890-591: The 1820s and the turn of the decade, American settlers continued pressuring the US government to remove the Seminole from Florida to make way for their desired agricultural development. In 1832, a few Seminole chiefs signed the Treaty of Payne's Landing , by which they agreed to give up their Florida lands in exchange for lands west of the Mississippi River in Indian Territory . According to legend, Osceola stabbed
2975-531: The Florida peninsula. In 1821, the United States acquired Florida from Spain (see the Adams-Onis Treaty ), and more European-American settlers started moving in, encroaching on the Seminoles' territory. After early military skirmishes and the signing of the 1823 Treaty of Moultrie Creek , by which the U.S. seized the northern Seminole lands, Osceola and his family moved with the Seminole deeper into
3060-741: The Muscogee Creek Confederacy in Alabama. He stayed in the area as a fur trader and married into a Muscogee family, becoming closely involved with these people. He was buried in 1811 at the Indian cemetery in Franklin, Alabama , near a Methodist missionary church for the Muscogee. In 1814, after the Red Stick Muscogee Creeks were defeated by United States forces, Polly took Osceola and moved with other Muscogee refugees from Alabama to Florida, where they joined
3145-415: The Muscogee Nation offers a language certificate program. Tulsa public schools, the University of Oklahoma and Glenpool Library in Tulsa and the Holdenville, Okmulgee, and Tulsa Muscogee Communities of the Muscogee Nation offer Muscogee Creek language classes. In 2013, the Sapulpa Creek Community Center graduated a class of 14 from its Muscogee language class. In 2018, 8 teachers graduated from
3230-461: The Seminole prisoners who had been transported with Osceola, made a last-minute decision to take other items belonging to Osceola. The historical evidence suggests that it was Morrison who decided that a death mask should be made, a European-American custom at the time for prominent persons, but it was done without the permission of Osceola's people. An acquaintance of Morrison, Dr. Benjamin Strobel,
3315-424: The Seminole with slaves , who were forbidden by law to carry arms. Thompson considered Osceola to be a friend and gave him a rifle. Osceola had a habit of barging into Thompson's office and shouting complaints at him. On one occasion Osceola quarreled with Thompson, who had the warrior locked up at Fort King for two nights until he agreed to be more respectful. In order to secure his release, Osceola agreed to sign
3400-484: The Seminole. In adulthood, as part of the Seminole, Powell was given his name Osceola ( / ˌ ɒ s iː ˈ oʊ l ə / or / ˌ oʊ s eɪ ˈ oʊ l ə / ). This is an anglicized form of the Creek Vsse Yvholv (pronounced [asːi jahoːla] ), a combination of vsse , the ceremonial black drink made from the yaupon holly , and yvholv , often translated "shouter" but referring specifically to
3485-558: The Seminoles from taking the fort before reinforcements arrived. On October 21, 1837, Osceola and 81 of his followers were captured by General Joseph Hernández on the orders of General Thomas Jesup , under a white flag of truce , when they went for peace talks to Fort Peyton near St. Augustine . He was initially imprisoned at Fort Marion in St. Augustine, before being transferred to Fort Moultrie on Sullivans Island , outside Charleston, South Carolina . Osceola's capture by deceit caused
Osceola - Misplaced Pages Continue
3570-546: The Treaty of Payne's Landing and to bring his followers into the fort. After his humiliating imprisonment, Osceola secretly prepared vengeance against Thompson. On December 28, 1835, Osceola, with the same rifle Thompson gave him, killed the Indian agent. Osceola and his followers shot six others outside Fort King, while another group of Seminole ambushed and killed a column of US Army, more than 100 troops, who were marching from Fort Brooke to Fort King. Americans called this event
3655-417: The articulation of /s/ is more laminal , resulting in /s/ being realized as [ ʃ ] , but for most speakers, /s/ is a voiceless apico-alveolar fricative [ s ] . Like /k/ , the glottal /h/ is sometimes realized as the uvular [ χ ] when it is preceded by [o] or when syllable-final: The sonorants in Muscogee are two nasals ( /m/ and /n/ ), two semivowels ( /w/ and /j/ ), and
3740-781: The death mask and some of Osceola's belongings were being held in the anthropology collection of the Smithsonian Institution . The death mask is currently housed in the Luce collection of the New-York Historical Society . In 1966, Miami businessman Otis W. Shriver claimed he had dug up Osceola's grave and put his bones into a bank vault to rebury them at a tourist site at the Rainbow Springs in Marion County . Shriver traveled around
3825-442: The early 18th century. Combining with other ethnicities there, they emerged as the Seminole . During the 1830s, however, the US government forced most Muscogee and Seminole to relocate west of the Mississippi River , with most forced into Indian Territory . The language is today spoken by fewer than 400 people, most of whom live in Oklahoma and are members of the Muscogee Nation and the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma . Muscogee
3910-419: The end of a syllable . Between instances of [ o ] , or after [o] at the end of a syllable, the velar /k/ is realized as the uvular [ q ] or [ ɢ ] . For example: There are four voiceless fricatives in Muscogee: /f s ɬ h/ . /f/ can be realized as either labiodental [ f ] or bilabial [ ɸ ] in place of articulation . Predominantly among speakers in Florida,
3995-566: The first (1860) grammar of the Muscogee language, persisted in the Hichiti , Muscogee proper, and Koasati languages at least into the first half of the 20th century. The forms of Muscogee used by the Seminoles of Oklahoma and Florida are separate dialects from the ones spoken by Muscogee people. Oklahoma Seminole speak a dialect known as Oklahoma Seminole Creek. Florida Seminole Creek is one of two languages spoken among Florida Seminoles; it
4080-456: The first (1860) grammar of the Muscogee language, persisted in the Hichiti , Muscogee proper, and Koasati languages at least into the first half of the 20th century. The forms of Muscogee used by the Seminoles of Oklahoma and Florida are separate dialects from the ones spoken by Muscogee people. Oklahoma Seminole speak a dialect known as Oklahoma Seminole Creek. Florida Seminole Creek is one of two languages spoken among Florida Seminoles; it
4165-421: The language was spoken by various constituent groups of the Muscogee or Maskoki in what are now Alabama and Georgia . It is related to but not mutually intelligible with the other primary language of the Muscogee confederacy, Hitchiti - Mikasuki , which is spoken by the kindred Mikasuki, as well as with other Muskogean languages. The Muscogee first brought the Muscogee and Miccosukee languages to Florida in
4250-439: The lateral /l/ , all voiced . Nasal assimilation occurs in Muscogee: /n/ becomes [ ŋ ] before /k/ . Sonorants are devoiced when followed by /h/ in the same syllable and results in a single voiceless consonant: All plosives and fricatives in Muscogee can be geminated (lengthened). Some sonorants may also be geminated, but [hh] and [mm] are less common than other sonorant geminates, especially in roots. For
4335-565: The linguistic orthography: high (marked in the linguistic orthography with an acute accent : á , etc.), low (unmarked: a , etc.), and falling (marked with a circumflex : â , etc.). The traditional Muscogee alphabet was adopted by the tribe in the late 1800s and has 20 letters . Although it is based on the Latin alphabet , some sounds are vastly different from those in English like those represented by c , e , i , r , and v . Here are
SECTION 50
#17327722247884420-460: The linguistic orthography: high (marked in the linguistic orthography with an acute accent : á , etc.), low (unmarked: a , etc.), and falling (marked with a circumflex : â , etc.). The traditional Muscogee alphabet was adopted by the tribe in the late 1800s and has 20 letters . Although it is based on the Latin alphabet , some sounds are vastly different from those in English like those represented by c , e , i , r , and v . Here are
4505-425: The locations are actually nouns. These are possessed just like parts of the body and family members were above. Claudio Saunt , writing about the language of the later 18th century, said that there were different feminine and masculine versions, which he also calls dialects, of the Muscogee language. Males "attach[ed] distinct endings to verbs", while Females "accent[ed] different syllables". These forms, mentioned in
4590-425: The locations are actually nouns. These are possessed just like parts of the body and family members were above. Claudio Saunt , writing about the language of the later 18th century, said that there were different feminine and masculine versions, which he also calls dialects, of the Muscogee language. Males "attach[ed] distinct endings to verbs", while Females "accent[ed] different syllables". These forms, mentioned in
4675-518: The majority of speakers, except for those influenced by the Alabama or Koasati languages, the geminate [ww] does not occur. The vowel phonemes of Muscogee are as follows: There are three short vowels /i ɑ o/ and three long vowels /iː ɑː oː/ . There are also the nasal vowels /ĩ ɑ̃ õ ĩː ɑ̃ː õː/ (in the linguistic orthography, they are often written with an ogonek under them or a following superscript "n"). Most occurrences of nasal vowels are
4760-539: The most important Seminole chiefs, including Micanopy of the Alachua Seminole, did not agree to removal. In retaliation, the US Indian agent, Wiley Thompson , declared that those chiefs were deposed from their positions. As US relations with the Seminole deteriorated, Thompson forbade the sale of guns and ammunition to them. Osceola, a young warrior rising to prominence, resented this ban. He felt it equated
4845-419: The nasal vowels /ĩ ɑ̃ õ ĩː ɑ̃ː õː/ (in the linguistic orthography, they are often written with an ogonek under them or a following superscript "n"). Most occurrences of nasal vowels are the result of nasal assimilation or the nasalizing grade, but there are some forms that show contrast between oral and nasal vowels: The three short vowels /i ɑ o/ can be realized as the lax and centralized ( [ɪ ə ʊ] ) when
4930-487: The new initial syllable. Furthermore, initial vowel deletion in the case of single-morpheme, short words such as ifa 'dog' or icó 'deer' is impossible, as the shortest a Muscogee word can be is a one-syllable word ending in a long vowel ( fóː 'bee') or a two-syllable word ending with a short vowel ( ací 'corn'). There are three long vowels in Muscogee ( /iː ɑː oː/ ), which are slightly longer than short vowels and are never centralized. Long vowels are rarely followed by
5015-834: The one who performs a special whoop at the Green Corn Ceremony or archaically to a tribal town officer responsible for offering the black drink. In April 1818 during the First Seminole War , Osceola and his mother where living in Peter McQueen's village near the Econfina River , when it was attacked and destroyed by the Lower Creek allies of U.S. General Andrew Jackson that were led by William McIntosh . Many surviving Red Stick warriors and their families, including McQueen, retreated south into
5100-440: The other primary language of the Muscogee confederacy, Hitchiti - Mikasuki , which is spoken by the kindred Mikasuki, as well as with other Muskogean languages. The Muscogee first brought the Muscogee and Miccosukee languages to Florida in the early 18th century. Combining with other ethnicities there, they emerged as the Seminole . During the 1830s, however, the US government forced most Muscogee and Seminole to relocate west of
5185-408: The pattern subject–object–verb . The subject or object may be a noun or a noun followed by one or more adjectives . Adverbs tend to occur either at the beginning of the sentence (for time adverbs) or immediately before the verb (for manner adverbs). Case is marked on noun phrases using the clitics -t for subjects, and -n for non-subjects. The clitic -n can appear on multiple noun phrases in
SECTION 60
#17327722247885270-408: The pattern subject–object–verb . The subject or object may be a noun or a noun followed by one or more adjectives . Adverbs tend to occur either at the beginning of the sentence (for time adverbs) or immediately before the verb (for manner adverbs). Case is marked on noun phrases using the clitics -t for subjects, and -n for non-subjects. The clitic -n can appear on multiple noun phrases in
5355-527: The personal marking on the verb. Case marking is also omitted on fixed phrases that use a noun, e.g. "go to town " or "build a fire ". In Muscogee, a single verb can translate into an entire English sentence. The root infinitive form of the verb is altered for: Some Muscogee verbs, especially those involving motion, have highly irregular plurals: letketv = to run, with a singular subject, but tokorketv = to run of two subjects and pefatketv = to run of three or more. Another entire class of Muscogee verbs
5440-527: The personal marking on the verb. Case marking is also omitted on fixed phrases that use a noun, e.g. "go to town " or "build a fire ". In Muscogee, a single verb can translate into an entire English sentence. The root infinitive form of the verb is altered for: Some Muscogee verbs, especially those involving motion, have highly irregular plurals: letketv = to run, with a singular subject, but tokorketv = to run of two subjects and pefatketv = to run of three or more. Another entire class of Muscogee verbs
5525-420: The possessor, which is an integrated part of the word. A set of changeable prefixes serves this function: Even if the possessor is mentioned specifically, the prefix still must be part of the word: Toskē enke = Toske's hand. It is not redundant in Muscogee ("Toske his_hand"). All other nouns are possessed through a separate set of pronouns . Again, even though the construction in English would be redundant,
5610-420: The possessor, which is an integrated part of the word. A set of changeable prefixes serves this function: Even if the possessor is mentioned specifically, the prefix still must be part of the word: Toskē enke = Toske's hand. It is not redundant in Muscogee ("Toske his_hand"). All other nouns are possessed through a separate set of pronouns . Again, even though the construction in English would be redundant,
5695-510: The principal chief of the Seminole from 1825 to 1849. Osceola led the Seminole resistance to removal until he was captured on October 21, 1837, by deception, under a flag of truce , when he went to a site near Fort Peyton for peace talks. The United States first imprisoned him at Fort Marion in St. Augustine , then transported him to Fort Moultrie in Charleston, South Carolina . He died there
5780-438: The proper way to form the possessive in Muscogee must include the correct preposition: Toskē em efv = Toske's dog. That is grammatically correct in Muscogee, unlike the literal English translation "Toske his dog". A final distinctive feature, related to the above, is the existence of locational nouns . In English, speakers have prepositions to indicate location, for example, behind , around , beside , and so on. In Muscogee,
5865-438: The proper way to form the possessive in Muscogee must include the correct preposition: Toskē em efv = Toske's dog. That is grammatically correct in Muscogee, unlike the literal English translation "Toske his dog". A final distinctive feature, related to the above, is the existence of locational nouns . In English, speakers have prepositions to indicate location, for example, behind , around , beside , and so on. In Muscogee,
5950-443: The result of nasal assimilation or the nasalizing grade, but there are some forms that show contrast between oral and nasal vowels: The three short vowels /i ɑ o/ can be realized as the lax and centralized ( [ɪ ə ʊ] ) when a neighboring consonant is coronal or in closed syllables. However, /ɑ/ will generally not centralize when it is followed by /h/ or /k/ in the same syllable, and /o/ will generally remain noncentral if it
6035-544: The same syllable and results in a single voiceless consonant: All plosives and fricatives in Muscogee can be geminated (lengthened). Some sonorants may also be geminated, but [hh] and [mm] are less common than other sonorant geminates, especially in roots. For the majority of speakers, except for those influenced by the Alabama or Koasati languages, the geminate [ww] does not occur. The vowel phonemes of Muscogee are as follows: There are three short vowels /i ɑ o/ and three long vowels /iː ɑː oː/ . There are also
6120-514: The state in 1967 to gather support for his project. Archaeologists later proved that Shriver had dug up animal remains; Osceola's body was still in its coffin. In 1979 the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma bought Osceola's bandolier and other personal items from a Sotheby's auction. Because of the chief's significance, over time some people have created forgeries of Osceola's belongings. Rumors persist that his embalmed head has been found in various locations. Muscogee language Historically,
6205-681: The three artists known to have painted Osceola from life, persuaded the Seminole leader to allow his portrait to be painted despite his being gravely ill. Osceola and Curtis developed a close friendship, conversing at length during the painting sessions; Curtis painted two oil portraits of Osceola, one of which remains in the Charleston Museum . These paintings have inspired numerous widely distributed prints and engravings, and cigar store figures were also based on them. Osceola, having suffered from chronic malaria since 1836, and having acute tonsillitis as well, developed an abscess . When he
6290-442: The time Weedon had the head in his possession, he would often place it in the bedroom of his three sons as punishment for misbehavior. Weedon would later give the head to his son-in-law, Dr. Daniel Whitehurst, who gifted the head to Valentine Mott in 1843. Mott placed it in his Surgical and Pathological Museum, where it was presumed destroyed in a fire in 1866. According to the oral tradition of his descendants, Dr. Frederick Weedon
6375-552: The traditional orthography. The following basic correspondences can be noted: However, the correspondences do not always apply, and in some words, short /a/ is spelled a , long /iː/ is spelled e , and short /o/ is spelled o . Muscogee words carry distinctive tones and nasalization of their vowels. These features are not marked in the traditional orthography, only in dictionaries and linguistic publications. The following additional markers have been used by Martin (2000) and Innes (2004): The general sentence structure fits
6460-552: The traditional orthography. The following basic correspondences can be noted: However, the correspondences do not always apply, and in some words, short /a/ is spelled a , long /iː/ is spelled e , and short /o/ is spelled o . Muscogee words carry distinctive tones and nasalization of their vowels. These features are not marked in the traditional orthography, only in dictionaries and linguistic publications. The following additional markers have been used by Martin (2000) and Innes (2004): The general sentence structure fits
6545-470: The treaty with his knife, although there are no contemporary reports of this. Donald L. Fixico, an American Indian historian, says he made a research trip to the National Archives to see the original Treaty of Fort Gibson (also known as the Treaty of Payne's Landing), and that upon close inspection, he observed that it had "a small triangular hole shaped like the point of a knife blade." Five of
6630-450: The unpopulated wilds of central and southern Florida. As an adult, Osceola took two wives, as did some other high-ranking Muscogee and Seminole leaders. With them, he had at least five children. One of his wives was black, and Osceola fiercely opposed the enslavement of free people. Lt. John T. Sprague mentions in his 1848 history The Florida War that Osceola had a wife named "Che-cho-ter" (Morning Dew), who bore him four children. Through
6715-461: The verb to go can be changed to to go up , to go in , to go around , and other variations. In Muscogee, the same principle of shading a verb's meaning is handled by locative prefixes: Example: However, for verbs of motion, Muscogee has a large selection of verbs with a specific meaning: ossetv = to go out; ropottetv = to go through. Clauses in a sentence use switch-reference clitics to co-ordinate their subjects. The clitic -t on
6800-461: The verb to go can be changed to to go up , to go in , to go around , and other variations. In Muscogee, the same principle of shading a verb's meaning is handled by locative prefixes: Example: However, for verbs of motion, Muscogee has a large selection of verbs with a specific meaning: ossetv = to go out; ropottetv = to go through. Clauses in a sentence use switch-reference clitics to co-ordinate their subjects. The clitic -t on
6885-431: Was alone with the body and cut off Osceola's head, placing it in the coffin with the scarf that Osceola had customarily worn being wrapped around the neck, and immediately before the funeral ceremony removed the head and shut the coffin's lid. Weedon kept the head for himself, as well as other objects belonging to Osceola, including a brass pipe and a silver concho . Capt. Pitcairn Morrison, the U.S. Army officer in charge of
6970-467: Was also mixed-race Muscogee Creek; her father, James McQueen, was Scottish. Ann was probably the sister or aunt of Peter McQueen , a prominent Muscogee leader and warrior. Like his mother, Billy Powell was raised in the Muscogee Creek confederacy. Billy Powell's maternal grandfather, James McQueen, was a ship-jumping Scottish sailor who in 1716 became the first recorded white person to trade with
7055-592: Was believed to have ancestors from all of these groups. His mother was Polly Coppinger, a mixed-race Creek woman, and his father was most likely William Powell, a Scottish trader. Polly was also of Muscogee and European ancestry, as the daughter of Ann McQueen and Jose Coppinger. Because the Muscogee had a matrilineal kinship system, Polly and Ann's children were all born into their mother's clan . They were reared by their mothers and their maternal male relatives following Muscogee cultural practices, and they gained their social status from their mother's people. Ann McQueen
7140-401: Was close to death, as his last wish he asked the attending doctor, Frederick Weedon, that his body be returned to Florida, his home, so that he might rest in peace. He died of quinsy on January 30, 1838, three months after his capture. Rather than honoring his last wish, Weedon cut off Osceola's head and buried his decapitated body, displaying the Seminole leader's head in his drug store. During
7225-818: Was located on the banks of the Tallapoosa River about 20 miles (32 km) upstream from Fort Toulouse where the Tallapoosa and the Coosa rivers meet to form the Alabama River . The residents of the original Talisi village and of the current city of Tallassee were a mixture of several ethnicities. The Muscogee Creek were among the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands , and some of them held enslaved black people. Powell
#787212