THE CHINOOK LA LANG
There is danger of falling into error concerning the Chinook jargon, by
confusing it with the intricate language of a tribe of that name. On the
other hand, people are apt to make the mistake of imputing its invention
to a few of the Hudsons Bay company’s factors at Astoria.
The Chinook jargon was and is yet employed by the white people in their
dealings with the natives, as well as by the natives among themselves. It
is spoken all over Washington, Oregon, a portion of Idaho and the whole
length of Vancouver island. Like other languages formed for convenience
it is in all probability a gradual growth. There seems but little doubt
that the rudiments of it first existed among the natives themselves
and that the trappers and hunters adopted it and improved upon it to
facilitate intercourse with the natives. Slowly it was brought to its
present state.
When Lewis and Clark reached the coast in 1806, the jargon seems to
have already assumed a fixed shape. It was extensively quoted by those
explorers. But no English or French words of which it now contains so
many, seem to have been added after the expedition sent out by John
Jacob Astor reached the coast. The words of the original jargon have
been modified to a large extent however. They have been so changed as to
eliminate much of the harsh guttural unpronounceable native crackling,
thus forming a speech far more suitable to all. In the same manner, some
of the English sounds such as “f” and “r,” which are so troublesome
to the native were either dropped or changed to “p” and “l,” and all
unnecessary grammatical forms have been eradicated. Even the Chinook
jargon is not without its dialects. There are many words used at Victoria
that are not used at Seattle or at the mouth of the Columbia. This fact
may be accounted for in various ways, but chiefly by the introduction
of foreign words. Thus an Indian sees some object that is unfamiliar to
him and asks to know the name of it. The trader tells him a name and
with him it continues to be the name of the article ever afterward. For
example: bread, is always biscuit; whisky is paih-water, or in some
localities, paih-chuck; a cat is expressed as a puss-puss, an American is
a Boston-man, and a Britisher a King-George-man. However, in different
localities the things may be named quite differently.
Mr. Gibbs, formerly of the British boundary commission, has stated that
the number of Chinook words were about five hundred. After analyzing the
language carefully he classified the words into the various languages
from which they originated and came to the following conclusion as to
the number of words derived from each: Chinook and Clatsop, 200 words;
Chinook having analogies with other languages, 21 words; interjections
common to several, 8 words; Nootka, including dialects, 24 words;
Chehalis, 32, and Nisqually 7 words; Klikitat and Yakima, 2 words; Cree,
2 words; Chippeway, 1 word; Wasco, 4 words; Calapooya, 4 words; by direct
onomatopoeia, 6 words; derivation unknown, 18 words; French, 90 words;
Canadian, 4 words; English, 67 words.
There are many people who think the Chinook jargon to be the invention
of McLaughlin, the Hudsons Bay company’s factor at Astoria, but the
foregoing facts cited by Mr. Gibbs would seem to indicate that nothing
could be further from the truth. There is no doubt however, that the
great fur company assisted it in its development and aided in its spread
but even then, American settlers and traders contributed more than the
Hudsons Bay company ever did. It is a remarkable fact that such old
Indians as came in contact with the Hudsons Bay company only, could
not speak Chinook while the younger class who came in contact with the
settlers and traders could all speak it.
It is already on record that Chiefs Sealth and Hettie Kanim belonged to
the former class who never learned to speak Chinook.
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