boas] handbook op AMERICAN INDIAN LANGUAGES 603 



In other cases where the noun occurs always with plural prefix the 

 reason is not apparent, as in: 



td'ta-is codfish txt smoke 



trrie'n^a flounder t-'sko tattooing 



ttsle'laq grasshopper tEm^d'ema prairie 



§ 36. SECONDARY SIGNIFICANCE OF GENDER 



Masculine and feminine have assumed the secondary significance of 

 largeness and smallness. This feature appears most clearly in those 

 cases in which a stem used as a masculine expresses a large object, 

 while as a feminine it expresses a similar smaller object. Examples 

 of this use are: 



I'pEnpsn badger d'yEnpEn skunk 



e'pqunx large round spruce- o' pqunx small round spruce- 

 root basket root basket 



efcgan cedar o'ccjan basket, cup 



e'nfi^ECx log, tree, wood o'm^ECx kettle 



One example at least of the reverse relation has come to my 

 notice : 



iqo/nakc stone oqo'naTcc large bowlder 



In one case the feminine pronoun expresses plurality: 

 ikam'm canoe okunl'm canoes 



There are also a few cases in which smallness is expressed by what 

 appears to be the dual form: 



ikanl'm canoe s^ame'ksos toy canoe 



sTcErn'm toy canoe 



§ 37. GENDER OF PLURAL 



The use of the pronouns for expressing plurality has come to be 

 exceedingly irregular. The verbal forms suggest that originally t- 

 was the true third person plural, which was perhaps originally used 

 for human beings only. 



(1) Many plurals of words designating human beings retain the 

 pronoun t-. 



Singular Plural 



man %'li:ala tka'lauks 



women td'nEmckc 



children tqd'cocinikc 



virgin oho'Hau that.'aund'na 



old man iqleyo'qxut tq.'eyo'qtiJcc 



In some cases a more indefinite number may be expressed by l-. 

 Thus we find for women both Ld'nEmckc and tdfnEmckc; for common 

 PERSON Lxald'yuema and txald'yuema. 



§§36,37 



