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A Grammar of Hokkaido Ainu

Knowledge base · Part XXI — Language Contact and the Lexicon

167. Synopsis of Lexical-Semantic Fields

How is the Ainu lexicon organized into semantic fields, and how do these fields interact with grammar and culture?

アイヌ語の語彙は意味分野によってどのように組織され、その分野は文法や文化とどのように関わるのか？

A field-by-field synopsis of the Ainu lexicon — its semantic organization, the classified-dictionary tradition, and culturally salient vocabulary domains.

candidate topic from the first edition topic:contact/lexical-semantic-fields-synopsis read this topic as text

40claims
66statements
24sources
5examples
11sections
86first-edition sentences

Local network

The chapter, its sections, the sources it cites, the chapters it cross-references, the forms it mentions most, and the claims grouped under it with the sources that assert, propose, doubt or reject each.

Related chapters

Forms mentioned

pet 5nay 5san 5yan 5sir 3kina 3-p 3ne 3hapo 2kewtum 2ramu 2to 2sir-pirka 2cep 2kamuy 2upas 2-pa 2ahun 2penke 2panke 2kunne 2retar 2siwnin 2tan 2taan 2or 2totto 1popo 1yupo 1ona 1unu 1-e 1-i 1-ihi 1sik 1tek 1kema 1nanu 1sapa 1honi 1

Claims

A claim is one proposition; under it stand the statements of each source, with the stance that source takes. Claims are grouped by a model from the extracted statements and carry that status until reviewed.

  1. The word ʔarke means one of a pair of items.
    ʔarke は「二つで一組をなすもののうちの片方」を意味する。
    form-function ainu ʔarkearke
    asserts kirikae1997
  2. The more general word for 'to work' is 'nepki', whereas 'monrayke' is mainly used in oral literature and frequently functions nominally.
    「働く」を意味するより一般的な語は nepki であり，monrayke は主に口承文芸で使われ，名詞的に用いられることが多い。
    distribution generic nepkimonrayke
    asserts sato2008
  3. túri is a pole used to navigate a boat, and boats are mainly operated with túri in places of normal depth, whereas assap 'oar' is used in deep places where the pole cannot reach the riverbed.
    túri は舟を操るための「竿」のことであり、普通の深さの場所では主に túri で舟を操り、深くて竿が川底に届かないような場所では assap「かい」を使う。
    form-function ainu generic túriassap
    asserts sato2008
  4. The phrase aynu osarkes is used as an insult meaning 'poor fellow / pauper'.
    aynu osarkes は「貧乏野郎」という悪口として用いられる。
    form-function hokkaido/southwest/saru generic aynu osarkes
    reports sato2008
  5. The verb nise means 'to scoop (with a tool)'.
    動詞 nise は「(道具で)すくう」という意味である。
    form-function hokkaido/southwest/saru generic nise
    asserts sato2008
  6. According to the speaker, itakkasi means 'to not listen to what someone says, to disobey'.
    話者によれば、itakkasi は「言うことをきかない」ことである。
    form-function hokkaido/southwest/saru generic itakkasi
    reports sato2008
  7. The stem ruy alone means 'to be intense, to become intense'.
    ruy だけでも「激しい，激しくなる」という意味である。
    form-function hokkaido/southwest/saru generic ruy
    asserts sato2008
  8. The verbs pan 'weak in taste / thin' and nupur 'strong in taste / thick' are also used in the sense of a god's spiritual power being weak or strong.
    pan は「(味が) 薄い」、nupur は「(味が) 濃い」という意味の語であるが、神としての力が強い、弱い、という意味でも用いられる。
    form-function ainu generic pannupur
    asserts sato2008
  9. The phrase nupur kur literally means 'thick person', but is used with the meaning of 'a person with spiritual power, a person with divinatory ability'.
    nupur kur は文字通りには「濃い人」であるが、「霊力のある人、占いの能力のある人」という意味で用いられる。
    form-function ainu generic nupur kur
    asserts sato2008
  10. According to speakers, isoytak means to narrate what one has heard or seen.
    話者によれば isoytak は「聞いたり見たりしたことを語る」という意味である。
    form-function hokkaido/southwest/saru generic isoytak
    reports sato2008
  11. The verb satsatu means 'to dry', but it is used for food items such as meat, fish, and wild plants, and is not used when referring to hanging up laundry.
    satsatu は「干す」という意味だが、肉、魚、山菜などの食料について用い、洗濯物を干すと言う場合には使わない。
    distribution hokkaido generic satsatu
    asserts sato2008
  12. The verb satke 'to dry' can be used both when drying food and when hanging out laundry.
    satke は食料を干す場合にも洗濯物を干す場合にもどちらにも使える。
    distribution hokkaido generic satke
    asserts sato2008
  13. ramuriten means 'rejoice / be glad'.
    ramuriten は「喜ぶ」という意味である。
    form-function generic ramuriten
    asserts sato2008
  14. eyaykopuntek (and ukoeyaykopuntek) also means 'rejoice', but it has fewer examples than ramuriten and is often used for rejoicing over receiving things or the arrival of game.
    eyaykopuntek（uko- が付いた ukoeyaykopuntek という形式もある）は「喜ぶ」という意味を表し、ramuriten に比べて例は少ないが、物をもらったり獲物がやって来たことを喜ぶ場合が多い。
    form-function usually eyaykopuntekukoeyaykopuntek
    asserts sato2008
  15. The verb etunne (or etune) means 'to hate it', 'not want to', 'be annoying', or 'to dislike it'.
    動詞 etunne（または etune）は「それを嫌う」「嫌がる」「うるさがる」などを意味する。
    form-function ainu etunneetune
    asserts vovin2022

Sections

·

Overview 5 claims ·10 sentences

What semantic fields structure the native Ainu lexicon, and which noun classes are obligatorily possessed?

  1. The noun kamuy means 'god' or 'spirit'.
    名詞 kamuy は「神」または「精霊」を意味する。
    form-function ainu kamuy
    asserts bugaeva2012, shibatani1990
  2. The term 'áynu, literally 'person, man in general, human being', served across all regional Ainu groups as an endonym referring to members of the Ainu ethnic group.
    語 'áynu は文字通りには「人間、一般的な男、人」を意味し、アイヌ民族の成員を指す自称詞としてアイヌの全地域集団に知られていた。
    form-function ainu generic 'áynu
    asserts janhunen2022
  3. The phrase 'áynu 'iták refers to the Ainu language.
    ’áynu ’iták という表現はアイヌ語を指す。
    form-function ainu 'áynu 'iták
    asserts janhunen2022
  4. In the Ainu language, the word aynu means 'person'.
    アイヌ語において、aynu という単語は「人」を意味する。
    form-function ainu all aynu
    asserts shibatani1990
  5. In Ainu, uni denotes a house as a place of habitat, whereas cise denotes a house as an actual physical building.
    アイヌ語において uni は居住地としての「家」を表し、cise は実際の物理的建造物としての「家」を表す。
    form-function ainu all unicise
    reports vovin2022

Kinship terms 10 sentences· 1 examples

How do Ainu kinship terms encode sex, relative age, and obligatory possession?

ku=yup-ihi
1SG.POSS=elder.brother-POSS
‘my elder brother’
constructed

Body-part terms 2 claims ·11 sentences· 2 examples

What possessive morphology do Ainu body-part nouns exhibit, and how do suffix forms alternate?

  1. The noun kema 'leg, foot' is primarily used in reference to humans, whereas cikir is primarily used for non-humans such as crabs, spiders, horses, and utensils.
    名詞 kema「足」は主に人間に関して言い、cikir はカニ、クモ、ウマ、器物など人間以外の足について主として用いる。
    distribution ainu usually kemacikir
    asserts sato2008
  2. The verb nuwap refers to groaning in childbirth or from abdominal pain.
    お産や腹痛でうなることを nuwap と言う。
    form-function hokkaido/southwest/saru generic nuwap
    asserts sato2008
sik-ihi
eye-POSS
‘his/her eye (possessed form)’
constructed
ku=tek-e
1SG.POSS=hand-POSS
‘my hand’
constructed

The natural world: geography, flora, fauna, and weather 0 sentences

How does Ainu categorize the natural world, including geography, flora, fauna, and weather?

Geographic vocabulary 3 claims ·9 sentences

Which geographic terms are most frequent and culturally salient in the Ainu lexicon?

  1. The phrase 'áynu mo-sír means 'Ainu land' and refers to the Ainu ethnic territory.
    ’áynu mo-sír という表現は「アイヌの土地」を意味し、アイヌの民族領域を指す。
    form-function ainu 'áynu mo-sír
    asserts janhunen2022
  2. The Ainu word sar means 'field of reeds'.
    アイヌ語の単語 sar は「ヨシ原」を意味する。
    form-function ainu generic sar
    asserts ono2022
  3. In modern Ainu dialects, the noun kotan means 'village, settlement'.
    現代アイヌ語諸方言において名詞 kotan は「村、集落」を意味する。
    form-function ainu generic kotan
    asserts vovin2022

Flora and the kina/mun distinction 4 claims ·3 sentences

How does the kina/mun distinction organize Ainu plant vocabulary into useful versus noxious categories?

  1. The transitive verb kar is used with the meaning 'to gather or pick edible wild plants' in addition to 'to make'.
    他動詞 kar は「作る」という意味のほかに、食用植物や山菜を「採る」という意味でも用いられる。
    form-function ainu kar
    asserts sato2008
  2. Ainu strictly differentiates between two types of grass: kina 'edible grass' and mun 'inedible grass'.
    アイヌ語は2種類の草を厳密に区別しており、kina は「可食の草」、mun は「不可食の草」を指す。
    form-function ainu all kinamun
    asserts bugaeva2022
  3. The noun 'epuyke' generally means 'flower', but depending on context it can also refer to a 'bud' or 'fruit'.
    epuyke は「花」のほか，場合によっては「つぼみ」や「実」のことを指すこともある。
    form-function ainu generic epuyke
    asserts sato2008
  4. The noun ipe usually refers to the edible fruit or root part of a plant, and its use for animal meat is rare.
    ipe は植物の食用となる実や根の部分を指すのが普通で、動物の肉に対して用いられた例は珍しい。
    distribution hokkaido usually ipe
    asserts sato2008

Fauna 10 claims ·6 sentences

What grammatical and cultural role does the bear term play in Ainu fauna vocabulary?

  1. The noun phrase 'kim un kamuy' literally means 'god in the mountain', but usually refers to a bear.
    kim un kamuy は文字通りには「山にいる神」という意味であるが，普通は動物のクマのことを指す。
    form-function ainu usually kim un kamuy
    asserts sato2008
  2. The word 'kamuy' means 'god', but is also frequently used alone to refer to a bear.
    kamuy は「神」という意味だが，クマのことをただ kamuy と言うこともよくある。
    form-function ainu usually kamuy
    asserts sato2008
  3. The word ocakaype refers, according to the consultant, to a salmon with a thin tail.
    話者によれば、ocakaype は「尻尾が細いサケ」を意味する。
    membership hokkaido/southwest/saru generic ocakaype
    reports sato2008
  4. The word kamuy is a generic term for animals and is also used to designate bears.
    kamuy という単語は動物の総称であり、熊を指すためにも用いられる。
    form-function ainu generic kamuy
    asserts shibatani1990
  5. In Hokkaido Ainu, any hairless animal specimen was designated as tontone 'like a tonto'.
    北海道アイヌ語では、毛のない動物標本はすべてtontone（tontoのようである）と呼ばれた。
    form-function hokkaido all tontone
    reports shiraishitangiku2022
  6. Saru Ainu riká means 'whale meat'.
    沙流アイヌ語のrikáは「鯨の肉」を意味する。
    form-function hokkaido/southwest/saru all riká
    asserts vovin2022
  7. In Kuril Ainu materials, rika is recorded with the meanings 'whale meat' and 'whale'.
    千島アイヌ語の資料において、rikaは「鯨の肉」および「鯨」の意味で記録されている。
    form-function kuril all rika
    reports vovin2022
  8. Sakhalin Ainu has a form 'irika tentatively glossed as 'dolphin'.
    樺太アイヌ語には「イルカ」を意味する可能性がある形式'irikaが存在する。
    form-function sakhalin all 'irika
    reports vovin2022
  9. In Hokkaido and Sakhalin Ainu, rika means 'white fat under the skin of a whale'.
    北海道および樺太のアイヌ語において、rikaは「鯨の皮下の白身（脂肪）」を意味する。
    form-function hokkaidosakhalin all rika
    reports vovin2022
  10. In the Sōya dialect of Hokkaido Ainu, rika means 'white fat under the skin of a whale'.
    北海道アイヌ語宗谷方言において、rikaは「鯨の皮下の白身（脂肪）」を意味する。
    form-function hokkaido all rika
    reports vovin2022

Weather and natural-phenomenon vocabulary 1 claims ·3 sentences· 1 examples

How does Ainu encode weather phenomena, and what is the example of noun incorporation with a natural-phenomenon subject?

  1. Although speakers translate maw as 'wind', in actual usage it often corresponds to Japanese 'kimochi, kehai, chōkō' (omen, indication, sign, presence).
    maw の意味を話者に尋ねると「風」と答えるが、実際の例では日本語の「気味、気配、兆候」などに当たる場合が多い。
    form-function ainu usually maw
    asserts sato2008
sir-pirka
land/appearance-be.good
‘The weather is good.’
constructed

Motion and directional verbs 10 sentences

How do Ainu motion verbs use suppletive stems to distinguish singular and plural subjects?

Colour terms 12 sentences

How does Ainu express basic colour terms as stative verbs without a separate adjective class?

Spatial deixis and locative nouns 12 sentences· 1 examples

How do demonstratives, locative nouns, and postpositions interact in Ainu spatial deixis?

pet or ta ku=an
river place LOC 1SG.S=exist
‘I am by the river.’
constructed