Vocabulary of the San Blas Indians

Alternate Title:

Darien--San Blas

Name:

Gabb, William M.

Date:

1876

Description:

C. Hermann Berendt's transcription of a vocabulary of 343 entries, including the numbers 1 to 11, in English and the dialect of the San Blas Indians, as collected by William M. Gabb, in May 1875 (p. 3). The entries are arranged in alphabetical order of the English words (numbers are given under the heading: Numerals). The list is provided with the following preface: Prof. Gabb met in May 1875 at Colón [Panama?] with an Indian and a negro from San Blas, the latter speaking Spanish besides the San Blas language, and took from both together the following words (p. 3). The place name Colón is tipped in. The manuscript includes some annotations in pencil by Berendt, consisting mostly of cross-references between entries or question marks. If Berendt transcribed the vocabulary in 1875 he probably would have been in Coban, Guatemala, where he had settled the previous year; however, with respect to his contact with William Gabb, there is evidence that he met Gabb in New York in July 1876 when he (Berendt) was visiting in the United States (see Ms. Coll. 700, Item 152). On both the front paper cover and the title page Berendt (evidently in error) dates the item 1874.

Language:

English

Provenance:

From the collection of C. Hermann Berendt, later acquired by Daniel Garrison Brinton (ex libris stamp on verso of front free endpaper of bound volume).; Berendt, C. Hermann 1817-1878, former owner.; Brinton, Daniel G. 1837-1899, former owner.

Subject:

Cuna language -- Glossaries, vocabularies, etc; Indians of Central America -- Panama -- Languages; Indians of Central America; Language and languages; Cuna language

Resource Type:

Text

Form/Genre:

Glossaries; Manuscripts, American; Glossaries, vocabularies, etc; Controlled vocabularies; manuscripts (documents)

Physical Description:

16 leaves : paper; 204 x 132-134 (155 x 90-100) mm bound to 215 x150 mm

Geographic Subject:

Panama -- Languages; Panama; San Blas Coast (Panama)

Rights:

http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-US/1.0/

Notes:

Ms. component part.; Title from component title page (f. 1r).; Item 165, in contemporary paper covers, is the 3rd of 15 manuscripts (Items 162-165, 167-171, 172-175, 218, and 219) bound together in a volume with the spine title: Languages of Chiriqui and Darien.; Pagination: Paper, 16; fol. ii (paper endleaves) + 11 + iii (paper endleaves); [1-5], 6-21, [22 (blank)]; contemporary pagination in ink, upper outer corners.; Layout: Vocabulary written in two columns of 20 lines, with English on the left and San Blas dialect on the right.; Script: Written in the hand of C. Hermann Berendt.; Watermark: PIRIE'S Old Style.; Origin: Probably written in New York in 1876.; English and the San Blase dialect of Cuna.

Physical Location:

Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, Manuscripts, Ms. Coll. 700 Item 165

Collection:

Languages of Chiriqui and Darien; Berendt-Brinton Linguistic Collection