This grant provides funds for research on Yuma, the language of the Quechan Indians. The project has two parts: (i) the translation and analysis of Yuma texts collected by A.M. Halpern in the 1970s, and (ii) the compilation of a dictionary of Yuma, which will involve supplementing an existing 3476-item database with data from Halpern's texts and with field work by the Principal Investigator. One result of this project will be a volume of texts with translations and analysis. This will be a useful database for the study of Yuma syntax and discourse, as well as an invaluable addition to the library of recorded Quechan literature. Another result of the project will be a dictionary of Yuma. This dictionary will fill a longstanding gap in the Yuman linguistic literature; it will also provide data for comparative purposes and, since it will represent the speech of three generations of speakers during a century of upheaval, it will provide a database for the study of language change.
