The purpose of this project is to continue the documentation of Yuma, the language of the Quechan Indians, spoken on the Fort Yuma Indian Reservation in Winterhaven, California. Its immediate goals are (i) to compile a dictionary of Yuma, and (ii) to translate and analyze a large body of Yuma texts collected by A.M. Halpern in the 1970s.
A dictionary of Yuma will fill a longstanding gap in the Yuman linguistic literature and provide data for ongoing comparative Yuman and Hokan research as well as for research into specific problems in Yuma phonology and morphology. As it will include data collected in the 1930s, the 1970s, and at the turn of the 21st century, it will be a rich source of data on language change. A volume of analyzed texts will not only serve as a database for the study of Yuma syntax and discourse but also preserve a body of ethnographic and linguistic data that would otherwise be lost within a generation. Both volumes will be useful in typological and areal linguistic studies and in anthropological and ethnographic research.
Beyond academia, a dictionary and volume of texts will be invaluable resources for teachers in Quechan schools and for tribe members interested in maintaining and strengthening language skills and cultural knowledge. When the language is no longer spoken, these volumes will remain as a record of Quechan linguistic, literary, and cultural heritage.
