Catawban languages
Language family of eastern US
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Catawban branch consists of a subset of various historical languages in the Siouan–Catawban language family, within the Appalachian Plateau and Piedmont regions of present-day Virginia and the Carolinas. These languages are sometimes collectively referred to as Eastern Siouan.
distributionThe Carolinas
| Catawban | |
|---|---|
| Eastern Siouan | |
| Geographic distribution | The Carolinas |
| Linguistic classification | Siouan-Catawban
|
| Subdivisions | |
| Language codes | |
| Glottolog | cata1285 |
| Linguasphere | 64-AB |
Pre-contact distribution of the Catawban languages | |
The two attested Catawban languages were historically spoken by the Catawba and Woccon peoples. While early scholars such as John R. Swanton suggested that the Woccon may have represented a late subdivision of the Waccamaw, contemporary linguists have not reached a consensus on whether Woccon was the specific language of the historic Waccamaw people or a related Catawban variety.[1][2] The Catawban languages have been hypothesized by some to represent a dialect continuum with Ohio Valley Siouan languages (Ofo language/Mosopelea, Biloxi language).[3] The Catawban family is a branch of the larger Siouan–Catawban language family.
Family division
Recognized members of the Catawban language family include:
- Catawba (†) – spoken by the Catawba people
- Woccon (†) – spoken by the Woccon people, possibly Waccamaw[2]
