The Macro-Siouan languages are a proposed language family that includes the Siouan-Catawban, Iroquoian, and Caddoan families. Most linguists remain unconvinced that these languages share a genetic relationship, and the existence of a Macro-Siouan language family remains a subject of debate.
In the 19th century, Robert Latham suggested that the Siouan-Catawban languages are related to the Caddoan and Iroquoian languages. In 1931, Louis Allen presented the first list of systematic correspondences between a set of 25 lexical items in Siouan-Catawban and Iroquoian. In the 1960s and 1970s, Wallace Chafe further explored the link between Siouan-Catawban and Caddoan languages. In the 1990s, Marianne Mithun compared the morphology and syntax of all the three families. At present, the Macro-Siouan hypothesis based on relations among Siouan-Catawban, Caddoan, and Iroquoian is not universally accepted as proven.Mithun, Marianne. 1999. The languages of native North America. p.305. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Vocabulary Below is a comparison of selected basic vocabulary items in Proto-Siouan-Catawban, Proto-Iroquoian, and Pawnee (a Caddoan language).
Abbreviations N = Proto-Northern Iroquoian
{| class="wikitable sortable" ! gloss !! Proto-SiouanRankin, Robert L., Carter, Richard T., Jones, A. Wesley, Koontz, John E., Rood, David S. & Hartmann, Iren (eds.). (2015). Comparative Siouan Dictionary. Leipzig, Germany: Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology. !! Proto-Iroquoian !! PawneeParks, Douglas R. 1979. The Northern Caddoan Languages: Their Subgrouping and Time Depths. Nebraska History 60: 197-213. |- ! head | *rą-išú· || *-hskʷ- || páksuʔ |- ! hair | *rą·tų́ || *-kiɁɹh- || úːsuʔ |- ! eye | *ištá || N *-kahɹ- || kiríːkuʔ |- ! ear | *rą́·tpa; *rąxu·- || N *-(a)hõht- || |- ! nose | *hpa-sú· || *-Ɂnjõːhs- || icúːsuʔ |- ! tooth | *i-hí·; *í·h-Sa (?) || N *-noɁts-, *-noɁtsj- || áːruʔ |- ! tongue | *i-ré·ši || || háːtuʔ |- ! mouth | *ʔí·he || || háːkauʔ |- ! hand | *rąpé > *i-rąpe; *ų́·ke (?) || *-oɁnj- || íksuʔ |- ! foot | *i-sí || *-aːhs-, *-aːhsiɁt- || ásuʔ |- ! breast | *á·si || *-nõɁt- || éːtuʔ |- ! meat | *i-yó· || || kísacki |- ! blood | *(wa-)ʔí·(-re) || N *-nkõ-, *-nkʷẽhs- || páːtuʔ |- ! bone | *wa-hú·(-re) || N *-Ɂnẽj-; *-hskẽɁɹ- || kíːsuʔ |- ! person | *wą́·ke || N *-õkʷeh, *-õkʷehsɹ-, *-õkʷeɁt- (v.) || cáhriks |- ! name | *yá·še || N *-hsẽn- || |- ! dog | *wašų́ke, *wi-šų́·ke || *kiːɹ || ásaːki |- ! fish | *wi-hó· || *-tsjõɁt- || kacíːki |- ! louse | *(w-)hé· < **(wa-)hé· || || |- ! tree | || N *kaɹhit, *keɹhit, *keɹhiɁ, *kɹaheːt, *kɹahit || rahaːpe |- ! leaf | *á·pe || N *-nɹaht- || kuːtik |- ! flower | *xyá; *xyéhe || N *-ẽh- (Iroquoia) || |- ! water | *yo; *wa-rį́· || *awẽɁ || kíːcuʔ |- ! fire | *(wa-)hpé·te || *-tsiːɹ || keːkauʔ ‘flame’ |- ! stone | *(wa-)ʔį́·(-re); *rį́·sV; *į́-xʔe || *-nẽːj- || karítki |- ! earth | *awą́·- || N *-õhwẽtsj- || huráːruʔ |- ! salt | || N *-tsikheɁt- || |- ! road | *yą́·ku || N *-ah-, *-(a)hah- || hatúːruʔ |- ! eat | *rú·tE || *-k- || waːwa-a |- ! die | *tʔé·(-re) || N *-ihej- || hurahac |- ! I | *w- || *hskʷi (2:1.SG) || -t- |- ! you | *yi·- ~ *yį·- || *kõː (1:2.SG); N *iːts || -s-
Notes
Bibliography Campbell, Lyle (1997). American Indian Languages: The Historical Linguistics of Native America. Oxford: Oxford University Press.