Santee language
- noun
- The Santee language has been passed down through generations among the Dakota Sioux people.
Examples
-
Scholars are working to document the Santee language before it becomes endangered.
-
Many children are learning the Santee language today.
-
He is fluent in both English and the Santee language.
-
The Santee language is rich in history.
-
Many children are learning the Santee language today.
-
He is fluent in both English and the Santee language.
-
Scholars are working to document the Santee language before it becomes endangered.
Synonyms
A Dakota language spoken by a group of Sioux people
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'the Siouan language spoken by the Santee people' is directly and compositionally derived from 'Santee' (the name of the people/language) + 'language' (a named spoken system). The simple pattern 'X language' is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Santee language takes its name from the Santee people, a group of the Dakota Sioux who have passed their speech down through families for many years. The name joins the people's name Santee with the word language, so it simply means 'the language spoken by the Santee people'.