“On Cayuse-Molala Relatability” by Bruce J. Rigsby | American Linguistics Essay

The main aim of the assignment is to summarize the main points of the article “On Cayuse-Molala Relatability” written by Bruce J. Rigsby.

First of all, it is necessary to mention that the main article’s purpose is to examine and appraise the existing linguistic evidence bearing on the base of the Waiilatpuan problem. It means that the author of the article explores genetic relatability between the Cayuse and the Molala languages, as well as proves that there is no genetic relationship between the two languages of observation. The author uses the material presented by Horatio Hale to analyze it and to present the own attitude to the problem. Moreover, Rigsby also mentions his suspicion as to Hale’s presentation of the material because it seems to Rigsby that Hale had grouped the Cayuse and the Molala languages only on the basis of some extra-linguistic evidence of their putative mutual intelligibility.

Observing the structure of the article, it is possible to note that the article is divided into several parts on the base of the issue that is observed in each part. For instance, the first part is titled “the Waiilatpuan problem”. In this part the author gives a definition to the Cayuse and the Molala indigenous peoples, and puts the problem which will be discussed in the article. The author mentions that there exists an opinion that languages of the above mentioned peoples are considered to be genetically related, while their strong connection was never presented in the literature. So, there is a necessity to explore the problem for the purpose of finding the truth. In the first part, the author also presents an analysis of recent studies on the issue, and demonstrates with some examples that there exists a little amount of knowledge about grammar structures of the Cayuse and the Molala languages.

The second part of the article has the title “comparison of Cayuse and Molala verb inflection”, while the third part is “comparison of Cayuse and Molala independent personal nouns”. These both part present the material regarding the parts’ titles. For instance, both parts present a thorough analysis of the grammar material that is available to the author, and they are illustrated with many examples of different grammar constructions, verbs and prefixes, as well as independent personal nouns in their singular and plural forms. The third part is entitled “inspectional lexical resemblances,” and it also contains many examples to help the readers to explore the differences and to plunge into the study of the issue with all the necessary details.

In conclusion, this assignment presents a summary of the article “On Cayuse-Molala Relatability” written by Bruce J. Rigsby, and presents the main points that the author wanted to emphasize in his discussion of the language problem of the two peoples. It can be said that the article can be useful for all those who like languages and want to know the truth because all the presented facts and examples of the words and changes in their parts seem to be a very good proof of the article’s author position about the absence of genetic relationships between those two languages.

 

Work Cited

Rigsby, Bruce J. On Cayuse-Molala Relatability. International Journal of American Linguistics, vol. 32, no 4, 1966. pp. 369-378.

The terms offer and acceptance. (2016, May 17). Retrieved from

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"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016.

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freeessays.club (2016) The terms offer and acceptance [Online].
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[Accessed: March 19, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 19, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 19, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 19, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 19, 2024]
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