366 A STUDY OF SIOUAN CULTS. 



TERMS FOR <' MYSTERIOUS," "LIGHTNING," ETC. 



§ 7. The attentiou of tlie author having beeu called to the article on 

 "Serpent Symbolism" of the Iroquoian languages, by Mr. Hewitt' of 

 the Bureau of Ethnology, a similar investigation of the Siouau ternts 

 was made, the results of which are now presented. In connection with 

 the terms for "serpent," Mr. Hewitt showed how they are related in 

 the languages with which he was familiar with other terms, such as 

 "demon," "devil," "wizard," "witch," "subtile," "occult," "myste- 

 rious," and " supernatural." 



In Dakota we find the following: Waka", mysterious, wonderful, in- 

 comprehensible, often rendered "holy" by the missionaries; waka°-hdi 

 (in Santee), waka°-kdi (in Yankton), lightning, perhaps containing a 

 reference to a zigzag line or forked lightning; waka" etco", to practice 

 sleight of hand ; and wa"mducka, serpent. There are many derivatives 

 of waka", among which are, Taku Waka°, literally " something mysteri- 

 ous," rendered "some one mysterious," or "holy being," and Waka"- 

 tanka, literally, "Great mysterious (one)," both of which terms are now 

 applied to God by the missionaries and their converts, though Waka"- 

 tafika is a name for the Thunder-being. 



In Eiggs's alphabet (Gontr. N. A. Ethn., Vol. vii), these words are 

 thus written: Wakaij, wakaqhdi, wakaijkdi, wakaij ecog, waijmduska, 

 Taku Wakai), and Wakaijtaijka. One of the Dakota words for " aged" 

 is ka" (kaij in Riggs's alphabet) ; but though this refers to persons we 

 can not tell whether it is related to waka" (or wakaij). 



In the <|'egiha, the language spoken by the Ponka and Omaha, Wa- 

 kanda means " the mysterious " or "i^owerfnl one," and it is applied in 

 several senses. It is now used to denote the God of monotheism. 

 Some of the old people say that their ancestors always believed in a 

 supreme Wakanda or Mysterious Power. It sometimes refers to the 

 Thunder-being. On one occasion, a Ponka shaman. Cramped Hand, 

 said to the anthor: "I am a Wakanda." Wakandagi, as a noun, 

 means a subterranean or water monster, a large horned reptile men- 

 tioned in the myths, and still supposed to dwell beneath the blurts 

 along the Missouri Eiver. With this term compare the Dakota Uiakteqi 

 (Uijktelli, of Riggs) and the Winnebago Waktceqi, the latter having 

 given a name to the Water Monster gens (Waktceqi ikikaratcada). 

 Wakandagi is sometimes used adverbially, as, si wakandagi, he is won- 

 derfully stingy! le wakandagi, he (a small child) speaks surprisingly 

 well (for one so young) ! x^"ti° wakandagi, he runs very well (for one 

 .so young)! Ma"(f'i" wakandagi, he (a small child) walks very well! 

 Wakandife, to be in great haste, perhaps contains the idea of putting 

 forth a great effort in order to accomplish something speedOy. Wes'a, 

 a serpent, is not related to the others just given. Nor can the word for 

 "wizard" or "conjurer" be found related to them. In Kansa, Wa- 



' Am. Authropologist, April. 1889, pp. 179,180. 



