Chapter 2 Quiz — Otóiyohi: Numbers, Colors & Descriptors¶
Part A — Multiple Choice (10 questions, 2 points each)¶
1. What is the Dakota word for the number seven?
Answer
b) šakówiŋ
šakówiŋ is the Dakota word for seven. záptaŋ = five, šákpe = six, šaglóğaŋ = eight.
a) záptaŋ b) šakówiŋ c) šákpe d) šaglóğaŋ
2. In Dakota grammar, color words like šá (red) function as:
Answer
c) Stative verbs
Color words in Dakota are stative verbs that describe a state of being. They conjugate for person and number and act as predicates, not modifiers placed before a noun as English adjectives do.
a) Adjectives placed before the noun b) Adjectives placed after the noun c) Stative verbs d) Adverbs
3. Which color term covers BOTH blue and green in Dakota?
Answer
a) tó
tó covers the blue-green spectrum in Dakota. There is no separate word distinguishing blue from green in traditional Dakota; the single term tó covers sky, water, and foliage alike.
a) tó b) šá c) ğí d) žiží
4. What does wikčémna mean?
Answer
b) ten
wikčémna = ten. It is the base unit for building larger numbers: wikčémna núŋpa = twenty, wikčémna yámni = thirty, etc.
a) one hundred b) ten c) twenty d) five
5. How is the number eleven expressed in Dakota?
Answer
c) wikčémna waŋží aké waŋží
The compound number eleven = wikčémna (ten) + waŋží (one) + aké (again/more) + waŋží (one). The word aké signals "and one more added."
a) wikčémna tópa b) waŋží wikčémna c) wikčémna waŋží aké waŋží d) núŋpa wikčémna
6. Which Dakota sentence correctly expresses 'The horse is golden/yellow-orange'?
Answer
b) Čhaŋpá kiŋ žiží.
The correct pattern is [noun] + kiŋ (the definite article/focus particle) + [color-stative-verb]. čhaŋpá = horse, kiŋ = the, žiží = yellow-orange.
a) Žiží čhaŋpá kiŋ. b) Čhaŋpá kiŋ žiží. c) Kiŋ čhaŋpá žiží. d) Čhaŋpá žiží kiŋ.
7. What does the word napčíyuŋka (nine) literally encode?
Answer
a) A body-based counting gesture — nine fingers with one bent back
The word napčíyuŋka derives from nápe (hand) and yuŋka (to lie/bend). It encodes the gesture of holding down one finger, leaving nine extended — a tactile, embodied counting method.
a) A body-based counting gesture — nine fingers with one bent back b) The number of months in a winter count c) The count of original council fires d) The number of clan groups
8. The Dakota word sápa means:
Answer
c) black
sápa = black. It shares a root with sáŋ (white/whitish), suggesting an original contrast-based color classification. sápa is associated with the west and transformation in Dakota ceremony.
a) white b) brown c) black d) blue
9. Which Dakota word should you use to describe an elder person as 'old'?
Answer
b) waŋká
waŋká is used respectfully for elders (people). kȟáŋta means old for objects. Using the wrong term would be disrespectful — a key cultural distinction embedded in the language.
a) kȟáŋta b) waŋká c) téča d) čísčila
10. In Dakota ceremony, what direction is associated with the color red (šá)?
Answer
a) East
Red (šá) is associated with the east and new beginnings in Dakota ceremonial tradition. The four directions each carry a color: east/red, west/black, north/white, south/yellow-gold.
a) East b) West c) North d) South
Part B — Fill in the Blank (3 questions, 5 points each)¶
11. Complete the Dakota sentence for 'The sky is blue': Maȟpíya ____ tó.
Answer
kiŋ
Maȟpíya kiŋ tó. — The definite article/focus particle kiŋ links the subject noun to the stative verb predicate. The full sentence: Maȟpíya kiŋ tó. = "The sky is blue/green."
12. Write the Dakota words for the numbers three, six, and nine.
Answer
- Three: yámni
- Six: šákpe
- Nine: napčíyuŋka
These three numbers are commonly confused. Memory tip: yámni (3) rhymes with "mommy"; šákpe (6) starts with the same šak- as šakówiŋ (7); napčíyuŋka (9) is the long "finger" word.
13. The diminutive suffix in Dakota that expresses smallness and tenderness, seen in words like čhuwítkala, is: ____
Answer
-la (also appears as -na)
The suffix -la / -na expresses diminutive size and emotional tenderness. It appears in kinship terms, terms of endearment, and in words like čísčila (small). Understanding this suffix is essential preparation for Chapter 4 kinship vocabulary.
Part C — Short Answer (3 questions, 10 points each)¶
14. Explain in your own words why Dakota color words are grammatically different from English adjectives. Give one example sentence in Dakota with an English translation that demonstrates this difference.
Rubric / Sample Answer
Full credit (10 pts): Student clearly explains that Dakota color words are stative verbs (not adjectives), that they describe a state of being rather than modify a noun, and that they appear after the noun in predicate position rather than before it. Student provides a grammatically correct example sentence such as Šúŋka kiŋ šá. (The dog is red.) with correct translation.
Partial credit (5–7 pts): Student understands the concept but explanation is incomplete, or example sentence has a minor error.
Sample answer: "In English, 'red' is an adjective placed before the noun: 'the red dog.' In Dakota, šá (red) is a stative verb — it describes a state the dog is in, not a property it has. The correct Dakota sentence is Šúŋka kiŋ šá, which literally means 'the dog, it-is-red.' The color word comes after the noun and acts as the predicate of the sentence."
15. What is a waniyetu wowapi (winter count) and how did the Dakota number system support this practice? Connect your answer to at least one specific number term from this chapter.
Rubric / Sample Answer
Full credit (10 pts): Student correctly identifies waniyetu wowapi as a pictographic year-count kept on bison hide, explains that each year was recorded by a significant event, and connects this to the decimal number system. Student references at least one specific number term accurately.
Partial credit (5–7 pts): Student identifies the winter count correctly but makes only a general connection to numbers without citing a specific term, or vice versa.
Sample answer: "A waniyetu wowapi is a pictographic calendar — a record of years kept on bison hide by designated keepers in a Dakota community. Each year was marked by a single significant event: a great battle, an unusual winter, a celestial event. The Dakota decimal number system (base 10, using wikčémna for ten as the core unit) made it possible to count and communicate the passage of years precisely. For example, saying wikčémna yámni (thirty years) clearly expressed how many winters had passed since a certain event, helping communities maintain accurate oral and pictographic records across generations."
16. Describe the ceremonial significance of at least two Dakota color terms. How does understanding these meanings change how you read the Dakota color vocabulary as a whole?
Rubric / Sample Answer
Full credit (10 pts): Student accurately describes the ceremonial/directional associations of at least two colors (e.g., red/šá = east/new beginnings; black/sápa = west/transformation; white/sáŋ = north/purity; yellow-gold/žiží = south/growth). Student reflects on how this context transforms color vocabulary from simple description to cosmological meaning.
Partial credit (5–7 pts): Student identifies ceremonial significance of two colors but does not reflect on the broader implications for language learning.
Sample answer: "Red (šá) is associated with the east and new beginnings — the direction of sunrise, of birth, of starting. Black (sápa) is associated with the west and transformation — the direction of sunset, of endings that are also transitions. Knowing this changes how I read the color vocabulary. These aren't just words for labeling objects; they are carriers of a whole cosmological framework. When a Dakota speaker says a robe is šá, they may be expressing not just its color but its sacred orientation — that it belongs to the energies of the east. The language encodes the worldview."