Loup language

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Loup is an extinct Algonquian language, or possibly group of languages, spoken in colonial New England. It was attested in a notebook titled Mots loups (literally translating to "wolf words"), compiled by Jean-Claude Mathevet, a priest who worked among Algonquian peoples, composing of 124 pages.[1] Loup ('Wolf') was a French colonial ethnographic term, and usage was inconsistent. In modern literature, it refers to two varieties, Loup A and Loup B.[2] The language of the Mots loups notebook is different from all other New England languages, and is believed to have been spoken by the Nipmuc.[1]

Loup
Nipmuck
Pronunciation[lu] loo
Native toUnited States
RegionMassachusetts, Connecticut
Ethnicitylikely Nipmuck
Extinct18th century
transcribed with Latin script
Language codes
ISO 639-3Either:
xlo – Loup A
xlb – Loup B
xlo Loup A
 xlb Loup B
Glottologloup1243  Nipmuck
loup1245  Loup B

Attestation

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Loup A, which is likely the language of the Nipmuck,[2] is principally attested from a word list recorded from refugees by the St. Francis mission to the Abenaki in Quebec. The descendants of these refugees became speakers of Western Abenaki in the eighteenth century. Loup B refers to a second word list, which shows extensive dialectal variation. This may not be a distinct language, but just notes on the speech of various New England Algonquian refugees in French missions.[3] According to Gustafson 2000, the geographical location and phonology of Loup rule out association with any other tribes except for the Nipmuck.[1]

 
Chaubunagungamaug lake sign, a place name originating from the Nipmuck people

Phonology

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The phonology of Loup A (Nipmuck), reconstructed by Gustafson 2000:

Nipmuc consonants
Bilabial Alveolar Palatal/
Postalveolar
Velar Glottal
plain pal. plain lab.
Nasal m n
Plosive p t k ()
Affricate
Fricative s h
Lateral l
Approximant w j
Vowels
Front Back
Close i, u
Mid e o,
Open a, , ã

The vowel sounds likely have the same phonetic quality as other southern New England Algonquian languages. The short vowels /i o e a/ may represent the sounds as [ɪ], [ʊ], [ɛ, ə], and [ʌ], while the long vowels /iː/, /oː/, and /ã/ correspond to /i/, /o/, and /ã/.[1][4]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Gustafson, Holly Suzanne (2000). A Grammar of the Nipmuck Language (PDF). Deparament of Linguistics, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba.
  2. ^ a b Goddard, Ives (2012). "The 'Loup' Languages of Western Massachusetts: The Dialectal Diversity of Southern New England Algonquian". Papers of the 44th Algonquian Conference. 44. SUNY Press: 104–138.
  3. ^ Victor Golla, 2007. Atlas of the World's Languages
  4. ^ Costa, David J. (2007). The Dialectology of Southern New England Algonquian (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 August 2018.
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