Cover of Aleutian Indian and English Dictionary Common Words in the Dialects of the Aleutian Indian Language as Spoken by the Oogashik, Egashik, Anangashuk and Misremie Tribes — Edition Insights

Aleutian Indian and English Dictionary Common Words in the Dialects of the Aleutian Indian Language as Spoken by the Oogashik, Egashik, Anangashuk and Misremie Tribes — Edition Insights

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In Category - Philology

Authors: Lee, Charles A. Digital Source: Project Gutenberg Gutenberg Release Year: 2003 First Publication Year: Not confirmed

Key Word: English language -- Dictionaries -- Aleut; Aleut language -- Dictionaries -- English Target Reader: Readers of public-domain and historical texts

Book Edition: Project Gutenberg digital edition Book Language: en

Edition facts

Words 5,300

Reading time 24 min

Text sections 1

For Aleutian Indian and English Dictionary Common Words in the Dialects of the Aleutian Indian Language as Spoken by the Oogashik, Egashik, Anangashuk and Misremie Tribes — Edition Insights, the stored edition analysis reports 5,300 words, 24 min estimated reading time, and 1 detected text section.

The text analysis averages about 15.8 words per sentence, while the detected sections provide another way to judge how the source is divided.

Project Gutenberg metadata also associates the work with “English language -- Dictionaries -- Aleut,” connecting these edition facts with the source record’s subject description.

Source: Project Gutenberg record #10040

Charles A. Lee's 1896 dictionary records Aleut dialects from the Alaska Peninsula, pairing English entries with phonetic Aleut equivalents. The preface frames it as a practical tool for travelers and traders, while the wordlist reveals hybrid terms, loanwords, and local naming conventions that reflect late-19th-century contact.

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Edition quality

File: pg10040

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ALASKA INDIAN DICTIONARY

COMPILED BY CHARLES A. LEE

Aleutian Indian And English Dictionary

Common Words In The Dialects Of The Aleutian Indian Language

As Spoken By The Oogashik, Egashik, Egegik, Anangashuk And Misremie Tribes Around Sulima River And Neighboring Parts Of The Alaska Peninsula

Compiled By Charles A. Lee

The author, in placing this little book before the public, feels that in so doing he adds his mite to the useful and timely literature of the day. The ground has not been covered before, and all travelers in the Alaskan Peninsula will appreciate to its fullest extent the purpose of this work.

The aborigines of this far away country have no written language, and this work aims to put before the traveler or trader a means of communication with this people which it is hoped will be of mutual benefit to both.

Many years of residence in this country and thorough familiarity with its people, have, we believe, well equipped us for the realization of our task. THE AUTHOR

Alaska Indian Dictionary.

Anchor........................Cets-yuk. Arrow.........................Rakik-vit. Arm...........................Tat lik. Anger, exclamation of.........E-ke. Almanac, date.................Shis-lak. Above, up.....................Mia. All right, good...............A-shik-tuk. Ahead, go, to take............Cita. All gone......................Beachie-muk, or Beduk.

Bad, ugly, no good............Asi-duk. By and by, soon, after........Ataku Beer--made of flour...........Ma-cooloe, or Bi-vak. Big, large, great.............Bul-shoi. Beaver........................Ba-luk-tak. Beans.........................Bo-bik. Bread.........................Cla-oahk, or Clip-par. Breast........................Cat-gat. Box, chest....................Ca-sik. Butter........................Mus-lik. Boy, young man................Malt-jiska. Bag, pouch....................Mu-shuk. Black, sunburnt...............Rap-kie. Biscuit.......................Shuko-lenik. Brush.........................Charie-duk. Bear..........................Ta go ga. Bring, here...................Tie-de-kruk. Blankets......................U-lik. Bend, to hide.................Laffa-lutten. Building, house...............Damo. Brave, get out................U-na. Believe, to think.............Ba-talie. Break, to spoil...............Cup-li-ku. Buy, to sell..................Ca-bu-shak. Book, paper, letter...........Cali-kam. Below, down...................U-na-nie. Boat..........................Ba-lia. Bless, to cross...............Ma-lish-ie. Beluga or white whale.........Ba-tuku. Bacon.........................Shit-Dinkie. Barrel, keg...................Bou-ska.

Codfish.......................A-te-pa. Chewing tobacco...............Agolo-kuluk. Cartridge.....................Ba-tlouk. Cover, to cover...............Ba-tua. Church........................Chur-ko. Coffee........................Caffie-amuk. Close by, short distance......Lak-shini-tuk. Church warden.................Sta-rosta. Calico........................Shit-sak. Coal..........................U-klie. Coal oil, preacher............Ca-shak. Cry, to make noise............Cia lu-ten. Carry.........................Elak-yuk. Cross, to bless...............Ma-lish-ie. Clean, to drink...............Shak-shak. Cap, hat......................Sla-bak. Cold, old, year, winter.......Snik. Chief, king...................Ty-on. Come here.....................Tia-lutten. Cup...........................Chie-shak. Change........................Uk-liku. Come, to return...............Atteirie-rie-kuk. Cooking, pot..................As-juk. Capsize, to turn over.........Baluk-liku. Cooper........................Bou-skie. Coat..........................La-mie.

Door, to shut the door........Batu-luko. Deer..........................Elinec. Dried Salmon..................Ehku-lanie. Dance, festivity..............Que-elat. Dislike, exclamation of.......Chin. Don't drop that...............Chak-enilshu. Dig, to mine, mineral.........Com-juk. Drilling, sheeting............Mit-kalie. Don't know....................Mat-loun. Drink, to Clean...............Shak-shak. Duck..........................Shako lu-gen. Disgust, exclamation of.......U-nalu keja. Down, below...................U na-nie. Day after tomorrow............U-naku-miatsku. Distance, long, far away......Iak-shik-tuk. Dog...........................Sa-baccca. Date, Almanac.................Shis-lak. Dog harness...................Ela-kat.

Empty, nothing................Bu-kau-coku. Egg...........................Ca yaunk, also Ma-nik. Eat, strychnine...............Qi-shak. Engine, machinery, reloading tools ............................Ma-shin-ak. Extinguish....................Nipo-muko. Ears..........................Tin-duk. Ebb, to go away...............Te-ire-duk. Enough........................Tawia.

Fishing boat..................Ba-lia. Father........................Baba rat. Finger........................Cuni-umen. Fire..........................Ca-nak. Fill up with water............Emer-isna. Foot..........................Et-kat. Far away, long distance.......Qak shik-tok. Festivity, dance..............Que-elat. Fur...........................Musk-roa. Flour.........................Mu-kak. Frying-pan....................Skal-tuk. Fetch here....................Toe-skin. Fish, salmon..................Ariba, also Sa-yak.

Good, all right...............A-shik-tuk. Great number, plenty..........Min-nuko, also Eme lik-tuk. Get out, brave................U-na. Go home.......................Toa-lutten. Go to.........................Akie, also Akink. Get out of the way............Aw wa. Gone..........................Be-duk. Great, big, large.............Bul-shoi. Go ahead, to take.............Cita. Grouse........................Cola baska. Give to me....................Emik-rue. Go that way...................Qachun. Goose.........................La-yik. Good (Russian)................Siabna. Gong..........................Cheaw jak. Go ahead more.................Chal-lie. Good day, greeting............Chie-moca, also Chu-mia. Go away, to ebb...............Tie-ire-duk. Girl..........................Tueb-jouski. Grass.........................U-bou-gik. Gunpowder.....................Bo-ruk. Gray wolf.....................Ca-yanie.

Hand..........................Arkat, also Aig-what. Hot cakes, slap jacks.........Alat-jes. Heavy.........................Ak-tanak-tuk. Higher degree.................Bic ber-becka-luni. Handkerchief..................Bla-tuk. Hurry up, go faster...........Chuka-lutten. Half..........................Cup-muk. How many, how much............Copt-jinik Half of.......................Cu-pa. Heavy rope....................Elaf-kuk. Hide, to bend.................Laffa-lutten. Here..........................Wai, also ma-na. Hair..........................Nu jat. Head..........................Na-shuk. How, who......................Nalima, nau-gau, e-na-ma. Hunting.......................Shuk-tie, also Layik-shuk-tie. Hat...........................Sla-bok. Hour, watch...................Cha-sat. Hatchet.......................Ta-puluk. Horns.........................Cherun-rak. Harpoon.......................Tak-shit. House.........................Domo. Hot, warm.....................Ukt-nactuk. Hammer........................Mallie-tuk. Holiday.......................Bras snik.

I thank you (Russian).........Bassie-pa. I will not....................Buft-jini-toa. I don't like to...............Beningen-rituk. Ill humor.....................Comak luk. I thank you for what I ate....Co-yana. Inside, in the house..........Ca-manie. I give to you.................Cun-nie. In............................In liku. I don't know..................Nat-loun. In that direction.............I-gai. In the village................Co-nan-nie. I, me.........................Min-gee.

Joking........................Lingen aka. Jacket........................Bal-duk.

Kiss, to kiss.................Betchie-luko. Knife.........................Nu-shuk. King salmon...................Taria-kuk. Kettle........................Chij-nie. King Salmon River.............Cocto bik. Kulicadak River...............Culicu daknie. Key, lock, to lock............Cluts-juk. Know, to think................Ba-nem mia. Keep quiet....................Slades.

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Charles A. Lee's Aleutian Indian and English Dictionary (1896) is a compact wordlist compiled from dialects spoken around the Sulima River and neighboring parts of the Alaska Peninsula. The preface presents the work as a practical aid for travelers and traders, noting that the aborigines 'have no written language' and that the book aims to provide 'a means of communication.' Lee claims 'many years of residence' and 'thorough familiarity' with the people, grounding the dictionary in firsthand experience rather than academic linguistics.

The entries pair English headwords with phonetic Aleut equivalents, often offering multiple variants—for example, 'All gone' appears as both 'Beachie-muk' and 'Beduk.' The wordlist also includes terms for introduced goods (e.g., 'Beer—made of flour' as 'Ma-cooloe, or Bi-vak') and local place names, reflecting the contact zone between indigenous communities and Euro-American settlers in the late 19th century.

Structure and Scope of the Wordlist

The dictionary is organized alphabetically by English headword, with each entry followed by a single Aleut equivalent or, in some cases, two variants separated by 'or.' The selection of headwords reveals a focus on practical, everyday vocabulary: nouns for animals, food, tools, and kinship terms appear alongside verbs for actions like 'carry,' 'buy,' and 'break.' Notably, the list includes terms for introduced items such as 'Bacon' ('Shit-Dinkie'), 'Coffee' ('Caffie-amuk'), and 'Biscuit' ('Shuko-lenik'), indicating the influence of trade and mission stations. The dictionary also records exclamations like 'Anger, exclamation of' ('E-ke') and abstract concepts such as 'Believe, to think' ('Ba-talie'), though the latter is a single entry without elaboration. The word count is modest—around 5,300 words—suggesting a selective rather than exhaustive compilation.

Hybrid Terms and Loanwords

Several entries show evidence of linguistic borrowing and hybrid formation. For instance, 'Beer—made of flour' is given as 'Ma-cooloe, or Bi-vak,' where 'Bi-vak' likely derives from Russian pivo (beer), reflecting Russian colonial influence in Alaska. Similarly, 'Church' is 'Chur-ko,' and 'Church warden' is 'Sta-rosta,' both from Russian. The entry for 'Alaska Commercial Co' is rendered as 'Companishak,' a nativized form of 'company.' These loanwords sit alongside indigenous terms like 'Cets-yuk' for 'Anchor' and 'Ta go ga' for 'Bear.' The dictionary also includes proper names for local traders and captains, such as 'Mr. Chas. A. Lee' as 'Tyeechuka-lutten' and 'Capt. Johnson' as 'Bulshoie, Capitanik,' blending Aleut and Russian elements. This mix suggests a multilingual environment where speakers adapted foreign words into their own phonological patterns.

Narrative Voice and the Compiler's Presence

Although the dictionary is primarily a list, the preface and a few entries reveal the compiler's voice. Lee writes in the third person, referring to himself as 'the author,' and adopts a modest tone: 'he adds his mite to the useful and timely literature of the day.' The preface emphasizes the work's novelty—'The ground has not been covered before'—and its intended audience of travelers and traders. In the wordlist itself, the compiler's presence emerges through entries like 'Mr. Chas. A. Lee' with the Aleut equivalent 'Tyeechuka-lutten,' which appears to be a nickname or descriptive phrase. Similarly, entries for local captains and the Alaska Commercial Company suggest that Lee embedded personal and commercial relationships into the dictionary. This blending of lexical record with local social hierarchy gives the work an ethnographic dimension beyond a simple wordlist.

Readers approaching this dictionary should treat it as a historical document of language contact rather than a systematic linguistic description. The entries are best understood alongside knowledge of late-19th-century Alaska trade networks and Russian colonial legacy. Comparing the Aleut forms with modern dictionaries may reveal shifts in pronunciation or meaning, but the original spellings reflect Lee's ear and the dialects of specific communities around the Sulima River. The work offers a snapshot of a multilingual frontier, where everyday words carried the weight of cultural exchange.

Flipping through Lee’s wordlist, I recalled my grandfather’s dog-eared old English dictionary, its paper soft as cloth. He’d murmur a word like rood, and I felt a forgotten language breathe against my ear. Holding this Aleut volume now, I felt that same quiet ache — as when I first opened A Dictionary of the First or Oldest Words in the English Language From the Semi-Saxon Period of A.D. 1250 to 1300 — Reading Companion, sensing worlds slipping between definitions.