Dakota Texts [Paperback]

Ella Cara Deloria (Author), Raymond J. DeMallie (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2006

Ella Deloria (1889–1971), one of the first Native students of linguistics and ethnography in the United States, grew up on the Standing Rock Reservation on the northern Great Plains and was trained by Franz Boas at Columbia University. Dakota Texts presents a rich array of Sioux mythology and folklore in its original language and in translation. Originally published in 1932 by the American Ethnological Society, this work is a landmark contribution to the study of the Sioux tribes.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Finally a volume of Dakota texts, accurately recorded, is now available. And in so far as Miss Deloria’s mother tongue is the Oglala dialect, we may be confident that stylistically and syntactically these texts are superior to those previously published.”—Language

(Language )

“Deloria’s excellent collection of tales from the Teton Dakota with text, grammatical analysis, and English translation, together with notes upon customs and idioms of speech, supplies a definitive volume by a trained and competent hand upon this important and much neglected division of the Siouan stock.”—American Anthropologist

(American Anthropologist )

Language Notes

Text: English --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 280 pages
• Publisher: Bison Books; 1 edition (June 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 080326660X
• ISBN-13: 978-0803266605
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,279,697 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Two excellent (but different) editions, July 25, 2008

By 

Norman Brenner (Bethesda MD) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Dakota Texts (Paperback)

Ella Deloria's classic 1932 collection has been reprinted fully by the University of Nebraska Press (ISBN 080326660X) and partially by the University of South Dakota Press (ISBN 0882490257). Both editions include all the tales collected by Deloria, and give her polished English translations, her cultural notes and her introduction. The Nebraska edition includes all this plus the Lakhota language originals and Deloria's literal word-by-word translations. Those interested in the ethnological and story-telling aspects of the tales will find either edition to be a masterly rendition into English by one of the first native American anthropologists of her culture's literature. Those interested in the linguistic aspects of the Lakhota/Dakota language should get the Nebraska edition. (Since Amazon's computers apply the same rating and review to both editions, I have removed one star for the Dakota Press version.)

5.0 out of 5 stars A "must have" for Lakota Language Learners and Culture Bearers, October 9, 2011

By 

Si Tanka (Callie) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Dakota Texts (Paperback)

Anyone with Lakota roots, will cherish this treasure as a way to pass along the language, traditions, and day-to-day life of their ancestors. Ella Deloria, mother of Vine Deloria considered by many to be one of the most authoritative voices of Native American thought, shares common day-to-day stories, creation and origin stories, and some historical stories of the Lakota people. The stories are presented in Lakota, Modern English translations and, for some of the stories, English transcriptions that preserve the Lakota syntax. The book is extremely well-researched and annotated with many helpful facts on the history, language, and culture of the Lakota. The Lakota portions of the book are written using Buechel's Orthography which may challenge modern learners but also offers greater insight into the pronunciation and etiology of the language. Any student of the language will find themselves dog-earing pages with growing excitement when they begin to see the language come alive as told by master story-tellers on dark plains nights. After reading the Lakota Primers available from TuswecaTiospaye.org, and Albert White Hat's Reading and Writing the Lakota Language, this is a must-have for anyone trying to pass on the rich language and culture of the Lakota, Dakota, and Nakota peoples.

[...]

4.0 out of 5 stars New edition with old orthography, February 12, 2010

By 

David Little Beaver - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dakota Texts (Paperback)

This is a great collection of our traditional stories and legends. My only wish is that someone would re-write the Lakota text using the standard orthography that is now used for Lakota. The orthography is used in the New Lakota Dictionary. That writing system makes Lakota so much easier to read and pronounce.