Comparative vocabulary of Darien and Costarican languages
Alternate Title:
Darien and Costarican vocabularies
Name:
Berendt, C. Hermann (Carl Hermann), 1817-1878
Date:
1873
Description:
Comparative vocabulary chart compiled by C. Hermann Berendt from various sources, on languages of Darien (Panama and northwestern Colombia) and Costa Rica. The approximately 153 main entries comprise 123 words in English and 30 numbers ranging from 1 to 1000; equivalents, when available, are given under the following nine headings: Cholo; Cueva/Darien/Uraba; Cuna/Cunacuna; Tule; Sabanero/San Blas; Bayano; San Blas and Caledonia Bay; Boruca; and Vizeita/Cachi. The last two columns pertain to Costa Rican and the others to Darien languages. The manuscript includes a map of the Darien region hand-drawn by Berendt, with the linguistic groups labeled (tipped in, preceding f. 1; labeled beneath: Ethnographical sketch of Darien). In the vocabulary chart, the first column, although labeled Cholo, actually contains more prominently the main entries in English, and the Cholo, or Choco words are written to the right in red ink. (Choco languages include Catio, Chamí, and others.) Three different sources for Cholo are noted: Edward Cullen, Berthold Seemann, and Gaspard Théodore Mollien. (For other transcriptions of those vocabularies by Berendt, see Ms. Coll. 700, Item 171, Item 219, and Item 170, respectively.) Cueva is attributed to Gonzales Fernández de Oviedo; the same column also contains Darien from Lionel Wafer, written in red ink, and Uraba from Peter Martyr, in blue ink. The latter two vocabularies are probably dialects of Cuna. (For Berendt's transcription of the vocabulary from Wafer, see Ms. Coll. 700, Item 169; concerning the few words from Oviedo and the three from Martyr, see Item 173.) Tule is attributed to Cullen (see Ms. Coll. 700, Item 174). Vocabulary in the column labeled Cuna is attributed to Lucien de Puydt (see Ms. Coll. 700, Item 168); written in the same column in red ink is Cunacuna vocabulary drawn from the work El viajero universal by Pedro Estala (Berendt's source was Adriano Balbi's Atlas ethnographique du Globe; see Ms. Coll. 700, Item 167). Sabanero (Guaymi) is attributed to Seemann (see Ms. Coll. 700, Item 170); the same column also contains San Blas (Cuna), from Haly, in red ink; Haly's vocabulary was conveyed to Berendt by Alexander Henderson (see Ms. Coll. 700, Item 133). Bayano is attributed to Seemann and to Moritz Wagner (see Ms. Coll. 700, Item 218). The vocabulary of San Blas and Caledonia Bay is from Edward P. Lull, and that of Boruca from Philipp J. J. Valentini (see Ms. Coll. 700, Item 163 and Item 153, respectively). Finally, the vocabularies of Viceita (Vizeita) and Cachi are both from Lucas Alvarado (see Ms. Coll. 700, Item 150 for the manuscript of Alvarado, and Item 151 for Berendt's transcription). Those vocabularies probably correspond largely to Bribri and Cabecar, respectively. The columns that are most complete are those for Tule, San Blas and Caledonia Bay, Boruca, and Viceita/Cachi; the others are less than half filled. Berendt probably prepared this chart in connection with the paper that he delivered before the American Ethnological Society in New York in November 1873, entitled: The Darien language; the map in the present manuscript was evidently the basis for the one reproduced in the published version of the paper (American Historical Record, vol. 3, no. 26, February 1874, p. 54-59).
Language:
English; South American Indian languages; Central American Indian languages
Provenance:
From the collection of C. Hermann Berendt, later acquired by Daniel Garrison Brinton (ex libris stamp on front cover).; Brinton, Daniel G. (Daniel Garrison), 1837-1899, former owner.
Colombia; Panama -- Languages; Panama; Colombia -- Languages; Costa Rica -- Languages; Costa Rica
Rights:
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-US/1.0/
Notes:
Ms. codex.; Title from title page (f. 1r).; Foliation: Paper, 8; i (paper endleaf) + 6 + i (paper endleaf); modern foliation in pencil, lower right recto.; Layout: Vocabulary written in ruled columns equally-spaced across facing pages, on lined paper, with 5 columns to each page; the resulting chart occupies the full area of the pages. In each column approximately 38 lines are provided for entries, with a heading written above. The first seven columns (from left to right) are headed: Cholo; Cueva/Darien/Uraba; Cuna/Cunacuna; Tule; Sabanero/San Blas; Bayano; and San Blas and Caledonia Bay. Continuing from left to right, the eighth column is left blank; the ninth is headed Boruca; and the tenth, or far right-hand column is headed Vizeita/Cachi.; Script: Written in the hand of C. Hermann Berendt.; Decoration: Carefully drawn map (120 x 70 mm.; tipped in, preceding f. 1) showing nearly all of present-day Panama (all of the eastern and central portion and westward to Punta Valiente) and the northwestern portion of Colombia around the Atrato River and the Golfo de Urabá, with linguistic groups labeled; latitude and longitude are indicated (the map extends from approximately 7 to 10 degrees north latitude and 76 to 82 degrees west longitude).; Binding: Gathering of 6 leaves hand-sewn together with one leaf preceding and one following; the resulting 8-leaf gathering has been set inside a paper folder, with the first and last leaf glued to the folder along the inner margin.; Origin: Written in New York in 1873 (f. 1r).; English, Choco language(s) (Cholo), Cueva, Cuna (Darien, Uraba, Cunacuna, Tule, San Blas, Bayano), Guaymi (Sabanero), Boruca, and Cabecar and Bribri (Viceita, Cachi).
Physical Location:
Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, Manuscripts, Ms. Coll. 700 Item 177
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