Wait… who is doing what? Timucua texts do not often include an explicit reference to who is doing the action described. Timucua sentences can, but do not often include pronouns, like “he,” “she,” “they” or “it.” If it is a simple sentence in which only one person is doing an action or a series of actions, it is easy to follow– as previously mentioned, Timucua verbs (unless modified in some way) are conjugated in the 3rd person.
But what happens when you have more than one actor? Timucua stories often have multiple characters, each doing their own thing. So how do we know who is doing what? Timucua nouns can be labeled as “the topic” with the suffix -mano. Timucua verbs (in addition to the suffixes -ta and -la) can end with the suffix -qe. The -mano and -qe suffixes let’s the reader know what is a topic and when a new one is going introduced. They are very useful when reading Timucua!
Story Time
In this lesson we are going to look at a new story. There are many characters in this brief story: an evil magician, a bishop, a Demon, the gathered crowd, and the reader. And we are going to see how Timucua texts narrate a story, introduce new characters, and help the reader understand who is doing what.
We are going to discuss a story that comes from Catequismo y Examen (1627). These stories, or ejemplos, narrate a brief tale with a clear moral lesson. These stories communicate Catholic teachings, and make clear the dangers of not following them. This particular story tells of a man (he is called a magician in the Spanish version and an evil doer, heretic in the Timucua) who is sentenced to death. When he arrives at the fire, he casts a spell that summons a demon. This demon easily extinguishes the flames. The ever attentively bishop jumps into actions and asks that the fire be lit once again… but this time with the Holy Host. And when the condemned man asks the demon to put out this new flame, the demon explains that he can no longer help since a power greater than him has arrived.
In this brief story, there are many different characters doing many different things. Let’s take a look at the Timucua:
Cesario caquenela, motanimano, Christiano, istico [f287] heregeleqe, anoiqùenisibama, etacohabeleta, ibita, tacamichu equetemosonoleqe, yqibota tana minota, yabahebuano, nahebuasta beleqe, hitimano tacamichu iqùisiqe, nacocomanoqere, tana iqiba acoleqe, Obispomano, ocotota Hostia cõsagradoma, vquata minota, isamolota, alamacamoqe alanoloqe, hereje michunu acu hitimabeleqe: hitima isinimano chi aratanchu nanecala mine yayileqe, yayistãtima, puenota iribota nanecalamoqe, hiqùotimonala motela.
Catequismo y Examen, 1627, folio 287.
The first subject introduced is the magician, or the Christiano istico heregeleqe (“Bad Christian heretic”). He has several verbs tied to him: he laughs (yqibota), he arrives (minota), and calls outs (beleqe). Note that the verbs are connected with suffix -ta. But then comes the verb bele (calls, or calls out) and it ends with the suffix -qe, which indicates that a new subject is coming.
And sure enough, after beleqe we meet “hitimano” (a demon). Hiti means demon, devil, or evil thing, and -mano is a topic marker. In other words, now the devil is the one going to do things. This devil extinguishes the fire (iquisiqe) and laughs (iqiba)… a lot (acoleqe)!
Then we meet the Bishop. Obispomano is a “Timucañol” word. Obispo means bishop in Spanish, and the suffix -mano in Timucua makes the bishop into the topic. The bishop does many things. He hears/ocota, renews [the fire]/isamolota, and says “y’all must light the fire!”/alamacamoqe. Note how all the verbs are tied with the suffix -ta, the the last one ends with -qe, showing that a new subject will coming. In his last action, the bishop commands a group of people to light the fire. The verb breaks down like this:
ALA-MACA-MO-QE
- ALA: light:the:fire
- MACA: must (imperative) & plural… meaning that the Bishop is addressing more than one person.
- MO: say
- QE: new subject
Next we meet the “y’all,” the people the Bishop orders to make a fire. The verb that follows (alanoloqe) implies that “they” (whoever they are), followed the bishop’s command and lit the fire.
In the last exchange of the story, the magician and the demon speak. Two things happens, the man calls to demon for help and the demon replies he cannot help him.
hereje michunu acu hitimabeleqe: hitima isinimano chi aratanchu nanecala
Separating the man’s request from the demon’s refused is the suffix -qe. This suffix let’s you know when the man is done speaking and the devil is about to reply.
No pronouns, No problems
16th and 17th century materials are hard to read for many reasons… but a common problem with the Timucua texts is that at first glance it is not immediately “who is doing what?” Pronouns rarely make an appearance. But just because Timucua often omits explicit markers such as “she/he,” “they,” “it,” “one,” it does not meant they are missing. The suffixes -mano and -qe help you recognize a topic or a new topic in the text.