Arapaho Place Names in Colorado: Form and Function, Language and Culture | CU Experts

The first part of the article presents a list of 123 Arapaho place names recorded in 1914, providing transcription, translation, & linguistic analysis produced with a native speaker, as well as cultural annotations. The place names are discussed in terms of the internal evidence (congruencies of linguistic structure, semantic content, & the known or apparent inspiration for the names) supporting specific indigenous categories of place-naming. External evidence, in the form of ethnographic data on Arapaho symbolism, particularly as revealed in studies of decorative art motifs, permits a better understanding of the place names. An examination of this external evidence reveals the deeper connections between the specific place names & place-name categories & Arapaho symbolic, sacred, & mythological thought of the 19th century. Comparative evidence from contemporary Arapaho place names demonstrates the virtually complete loss of certain of the 19th-century patterns of naming, particularly those most highly connected to traditional religious & mythological thought. 34 References. Adapted from the source document

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