A Language of Our Own: The Genesis of Michif, the Mixed Cree-French Language of the Canadian Mï¿1/2tis (Oxford Studies in Anthropological Linguistics) [Paperback]

Peter Bakker (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0195097122 | ISBN-13: 978-0195097122 | Publication Date: June 5, 1997 | Edition: Revised

The Michif language -- spoken by descendants of French Canadian fur traders and Cree Indians in western Canada -- is considered an "impossible language" since it uses French for nouns and Cree for verbs, and comprises two different sets of grammatical rules. Bakker uses historical research and fieldwork data to present the first detailed analysis of this language and how it came into being.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Bakker's work is of great originality and erudition--and even greater ambition: there has been no comparable attempt to deal with an issue that is so intractable and at the same time of such surpassing interest for the theory of language contact and linguistic theory itself."--H.C. Wolfart, University of Manitoba

"A major contribution, this book presents a sensible, intensively researched solution to a problem that has long challenged scholars....Linguists, historians, and all students of M�tis culture and history will be much in debt to Peter Bakker for his analytical breakthroughs in this field."--Jennifer S.H. Brown, University of Winnipeg

About the Author

Peter Bakker is at University of Aarhus.

Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; Revised edition (June 5, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195097122
• ISBN-13: 978-0195097122
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,423,213 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best linguistics books I own, January 15, 2003

By 

"rmgburke" (Black Creek, NC United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Language of Our Own: The Genesis of Michif, the Mixed Cree-French Language of the Canadian Mï¿1/2tis (Oxford Studies in Anthropological Linguistics) (Paperback)

I'm a bit biased, since my mother is Canadian and we have Cree blood, but overall this book is one of the best linguistics books I've read in a long time. The book gives the history of the "impossible language" (as quoted from the book) that formed from French and aboriginal Canadian languages. The book isn't written only for expert linguists, so anyone can understand the book. Some parts may be difficult for beginners, but those problems are easily solved.

For anyone interested in learning about a language that most of the world doesn't understand, this book is a gem. It won't teach you the language, but it will definitely help you respect and love what might be an ancestral language for you.