Anne Chapman

What's in name ? Problems of meaning and denotation apropos of a corpus of Selk'nam personal names
In: Journal de la Socit des Amricanistes. Tome 67, 1980. pp. 327-357.

Citer ce document / Cite this document : Chapman Anne. What's in name ? Problems of meaning and denotation apropos of a corpus of Selk'nam personal names. In: Journal de la Socit des Amricanistes. Tome 67, 1980. pp. 327-357. doi : 10.3406/jsa.1980.2199 http://www.persee.fr/web/revues/home/prescript/article/jsa_0037-9174_1980_num_67_1_2199

Resumen El articulo plantea problemas que han sido discutidos hace tiempo : ? Tienen sentido los nombres propios ? ? Son signos linguisticos ? Tratando de contestar, se prsenta un modelo sobre el sentido de los nombres propios, segun la dicotomia palabra /lengua de Saussure. Este modelo distingue dos categorias de sentidos y plantea la hiptesis de que, al origen, todos los nombres tenian sentido y que algunos lo han conservado. Para tratar el segundo problema y siempre segun la definicin del signo lingustico de Saussure, si el sentido de los substantivos esta dado el concepto (significado), no puede ser el caso de los nombres propios porque no todos tienen sentido (o lo han perdido). La segunda parte del articulo prsenta un corpus de nombres Selk'nam. Abstract This article treats problems which have long been subject to debate : do proper names have meanings ? Are they linguistic signs ? In an attempt to offer a response, a model is presented concerning the meaning of proper names, utilizing the Saussurian dichotomy parole I langue . This model distinguishes two categories of meaning and proposes that all proper names originally had a meaning and that some (still or do) have meaning or traces thereof. With respect to the second problem, the Saussurian definition of the linguistic sign is introduced. While the meanings of common nouns are accounted for by the signified (concept), this cannot be true of proper names because not all have (or no longer have) meanings. The second part of the article introduces the corpus of Selk'nam names. Rsum Cet article pose des problmes qui sont depuis longtemps sujets controverse : les noms propres ontils un sens ? Sont-ils des signes linguistiques ? Pour tenter de rpondre, un modle est prsent concernant le sens des noms propres, en reprenant la dichotomie saussurienne parole/ langue. Ce modle distingue deux catgories de sens et pose l'hypothse qu' l'origine, tous les noms propres ont eu un sens et que certains l'ont gard. Quant au deuxime problme, et suivant la dfinition saussurienne du signe linguistique, si le sens des substantifs est rendu par le signifi (concept), cela ne peut tre vrai pour les noms propres car tous n'ont pas de sens (ou ils n'en ont plus). La deuxime partie de l'article est constitue par un corpus de noms Selk'nam.

WHAT'S IN A NAME ? PROBLEMS OF MEANING AND DENOTATION APROPOS OF A CORPUS OF SELKT4AM PERSONAL NAMES by Anne CHAPMAN

I. PROBLEMS OF MEANING AND DENOTATION Personal names are simple or composite words or short phrases. They are classed with proper names and are distinguished semantically from common nouns in that they designate either a single thing (including persons) or more than one thing which do not necessarily have any common characteristics. Common nouns, on the other hand, refer to objects which share at least one element 2. At the onset, a question should be posed. Do proper names contrast with common nouns by being meaningless or lacking sense ? S^rensen (1963 : 3 1 , 50) writes : Proper names seem to be destined to lead the scholars astray... The thesis that proper names have no meaning is false and it is false on an explanation of the notion of meaning whose adequacy cannot reasonably be called in question 3... Lyons (1977: 21 9): One of the questions that has been most hotly disputed is whether names have a sense. What is probably the most widely accepted philosophical view nowadays is that they may have reference, but not sense, and that they cannot be used predicatively purely as names ; and this is also the view that we shall adopt... Searle(1971 : 139) : My answer, then, to the question, Do proper names have senses ? if this asks whether or not proper names are used to describe or specify characteristics of objects is No . But if it asks whether or not proper names are logically connected with charact eristics of the object to which they refer, the answer is Yes, in a loose sort of way .

328 Ullmann(1962:74,77):

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... This is just another way of saying that the specific function of a proper name is to identify and not to signify... The essential difference between common nouns and proper names lies in their function : the former are meaningful units, the latter mere identifi cationmarks. Gardiner (1954: 43): A proper name is a word or group of words recognized as indicating or tending to indicate the object or objects to which it refers by virtue of its distinctive sound alone, without any regard to any meaning possessed by that sound from the start, or acquired by it through association with the said object or objects. And Lvi-Strauss (1962 : 242) : On voit que le problme des rapports entre noms propres et noms communs n'est pas celui du rapport entr nomination et signification. On signifie toujours, que ce soit l'autre ou soi-mme. The authors cited here define their terms carefully but meaning , sense and signification are largely homonyms in this context. I employ the term meaning and define it, with reference to proper names, in the model which follows. This model attemps to situate the problem of meaning and non-meaning of proper names. The defini tionof the term meaning becomes apparent during the elaboration of the model. Model of the meaning and non-meaning of proper names A. Some proper names belong exclusively to the category of speech or performance (parole) and not to that of language or competence (langue) 4 in that they are not or not yet incorporated into the language. They may be nonsense words, recently invented words, slang, baby -talk, spontaneous onomatopoetic expressions, etc. Some words having such an origin are adopted by the social body, but others are not5. Although a person having such a name might be known socially by it, only a restricted circle of intimates understand its meaning. After the person so named dies, the name might disappear or it might become a part of the language (langue), either preserving its meaning or losing it. In the corpus which follows, the names listed under the numbers 4% to 505 and 561 are of this type. B. Proper names which originally had meanings may become meaningless through the loss of all oral or written traces of their meanings. C. There may exist some trace(s) of the meaning. 1) Etymologically some proper names may be traced back to other proper names. For example : Paris is derived from the word Parisii, the name of the people who at the time Of Caesar had their capital on the island of La Cit, on the Seine, the present site of the cathedral Notre Dame de Paris, in the heart of the city. The meaning of the word Parisii however is apparently not known 6.

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Mexico is derived from the word Mexica, the authentic name of the Aztecs who, during the years 1427-28, vanquished their overlords, the Tepanecas, and began their ascendancy in the valley of Mexico. The meaning of the word Mexica is subject to controversy among specialists7. 2) The proper name may consist of a common word or expression which no longer applies to the persons or places so named. smith : 1) a worker in metal. 2) a blacksmith. Smith : 1) Adam, 1723-90. Scottish political economist. 2) Alfred Emmanuel, 18731944. U.S. political leader 8... Dupont : nom de famille trs rpandu... Maison voisine du pont ou surnom du pager (la plupart des ponts taient page), ou encore : originaire du pont , nom de localit (surtout hameau) des plus rpandus 9. 3) A proper name may be an archaic common noun which has become obsolete, chapman : 1) British, a hawker or peddler. 2) Archaic, a merchant. Chapman : George, 15597-1636, British poet, dramatist and translator 10. 4) A proper name may be derived from a foreign loan-word or expression whose meaning was never or is no longer functional in the language which adopted the name. Mary : from Hebrew : rebellion . Benjamin : from Hebrew : son of the right hand 12. Theodore : from Greek : gift of God 13. Peter : from Greek : a stone 14. 5) The name may be a loan-word and the corresponding noun, adjective, etc. conserved in the language which adopted the name, though not in association with the name. Barbara : from Greek : foreign, barbarian 15. Grace : from Latin : grace 16. 6) The meaning of the name, though obsolete, may be traced back to words from diffe rentlanguages ; that is, the etymology may be confused. Ada : from Germanic ? meaning noble but ? confused with Hebrew adah , ornament 17. Roy : from Gaelic : red, confused with French roi, king 18. 7) Part of the meaning may be known, though obsolete, while other part(s) are unknown. Morgan : from Welsh : the first element mor, sea ; second element uncertain 19. Belinda : from Germanic : the first element uncertain, second element from Germanic, serpent 20. 8) A name may have a prefix or a suffix which categorizes the name in the society, though otherwise the name is meaningless. Among the Selk'nam many of the prestigious names carried either the prefix kau and/or the suffixes iol, ol or o. Most of these names were otherwise meaningless 21. D. Proper names may have meanings on at least two levels. Here the examples will be confined to personal names. 1) Names, drawn from the lexicon of the language (not from fortuitous words or expres sion of the speech, see (A), may in some way define, refer or allude to the individual's

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insertion in the society 22. However the defining feature here is not the association of the name with a social group or the like, but rather the fact that the name has a meaning and that its meaning does not refer directly to the individual named. The name may be that of a clan, caste, etc. It may be that of a mythological hero or otherwise drawn from the myths. The name may be of a htroclite set of words which is claimed as names for the exclusive use of a clan, a religious group, etc. The majority of names cited by Lvi-Strauss in La Pense Sauvage are of this type 23. Here are some examples : Wa '-tse-a-xe : from Osage : cries-for-a-star 24. Ho '-ki-a-ci : from Osage : wriggling-fish 25. Con-ci'-gthe : from Osage : footprints-in-the-woods 26. Pantamo'a : from Wik-Munkan : iguana runs up a tree 27. Pampointjalama : from Wik-Munkan : kangaroo sniffs the air and smells a man 28. Hapu : from Selk'nam : the mythical name of an owl whose common noun appella tion was kaux . This bird was associated with the West as was the person so named 29. K'onipiol : from Selk'nam : the mythical name of a penguin, K'onip, whose common name was hasten. This penguin was associated with the North as was the person so named 30. 2) In contrast to the above type, other meaningful names evoke the person named as an individual. The name may describe or allude (sometimes humorously) to a physical or psychological trait of the individual, to a personal idiosyncracy, etc. It may refer to his/her profession, work, home, immediate environment, etc. It may evoke the indi vidual's parents or other relatives in a personal way. All the names of the corpus in this study may be included in this category. So-called nicknames are usually of this type31. Judging from a rather cursory look at the literature, this type of meaningful names is far rarer than the former type described above under D-l 32. This model may be stated in the following terms. All personal names probably once had a meaning, either in terms of language or of speech (here again the reference is to Saussure's categories of langue and parole). If the name belongs to the category speech, the meaning may be lost when the person so named dies, or the name, with or without the meaning, may be incorporated in the language (Model - A). If the name belongs originally to the category of language, the meaning may have been lost, leaving no trace (Model - B) or it may leave a trace (Model - C) or its meaning may be known (Model - D). In the latter case, the meaning may not allude directly to the individual so named (D-l) or it may do so in some fashion (D-2). The social function of the personal name within a given society or culture must be clearly distinguished from the semantics of the name. A name or names may serve to classify, identify or situate the individual in a cultural context; in terms of a religion (institutions, mythologies, ceremonies, etc.), a social organization (civil status, families, lineages, clans, fratrias, secret or esoteric groups, etc.), socio-economic strata or classes, ethnic groups or minorities, etc. Within a given culture, personal names and proper names in general may compose one or more code systems or classificatory sets. The most obvious examples in western culture are the sets of aristocratic versus non-aristo cratic surnames ; surnames which are prestigious in contrast to those considered common or ordinary. A person with a very ordinary surname may, however, obtain a position of

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great prestige and power just as the bearer of an aristocratic surname may be a very unimportant person . The social status of a name may become obsolete, just as its meaning. The social function of a personal name is, nonetheless, an independent variable with respect to whether or not the name is meaningful. Meaningless names may fulfill a social function just as adequately as meaningful ones. This leads to the problem of denotation. While only some proper names have meaning (as defined above), all denote. With reference to Saussure's definition of the linguistic sign as consisting of a signifier (an acoustic image) and a signified (a concept)33, can proper names be considered signs ? Not all proper names have a meaning, hence they cannot be treated as common nouns and other words whose meaning is accounted for by the signified. Another question may now be posed. What relation does the denotation of the proper name have to the signified (the concept) of the sign, if any ? In the act of naming, the speaker (and normally the hearer) conceives of the object 34, he/she is in the act of naming. The speaker has some kind of mental representation of the object (the referent). So, it may be proposed that the denotation of the proper name takes the place, so to speak, of the meaning of other linguistic signs; that is becomes the signified35. If this is granted, no problem on this level would arise if all proper names were meaningl ess. But all are not. In certain languages, perhaps not in all languages, some proper names do have meanings as defined in the above model. What, then, is the role of the meaning of proper names in the context of the sign ? The meaning of a proper name, in counterdistinction to its denotating, creates an analogy between the name (as a sign) and its object 36. It establishes a semantic relation between the sign and the object , either indirectly, mediated through the culture, or directly with reference to the individual named (see Model - D). To what extent is the meaningful name motivated ? It does appear to be motivated but only secondarily so, only relatively so37. For instance, the Selk'nam name K'osh-til, meaning face-thin , that is, Thin-face (no. 88) has no primary motivation. The signs k'osh and til are in no way analogous to the object face or to the state of being thin . But the meaning motivates the name Thin-face secondarily. The four Selk'nam people who had this name were so called because they were considered to have rather remarka bly thin faces. A greater number of Selk'nam very probably could have had this name. And the four persons who were so named could undoubtedly have had one of a number of other names which were used or inventible in this culture. But none of the four people named K'osh-til could have had any one of all the available names. In this sense the name is secondarily motivated. It creates an analogy between the sign and its object or referent. The same is true of the name Thin (til) (no. 5) and of all the mtonymie names (1414) in the following corpus. The metaphorical names (415495) are also secondarily motivated even though the referent is mediated by a poetical allusion. For example, Wren legs (415) might simply have been named Thin legs . Many common nouns are also secondarily motivated, especially composite words such as skyscraper, automobile, television, baby-sitter. Just as the meaningful names, they establish an analogical relation with their referent. The analogy may take the form of a metonymy (such as automobile, television, corpus nos. 1414) or a metaphor (such as skyscraper, corpus nos. 415495). Personal names may also evoke some incident in the life of the individual named (corpus nos. 496-561) and be secondarily motivated in

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a great many other ways (Model D-l, D-2). These comments are largely inspired by Ullmann's three types of motivation38. The one which concerns us here, he describes (1962 : 91) as consisting of semantic factors . While Benveniste clarified the non-arbitrary nature of the relation between the signified and the signifier, he proposed that the Saussurian concept of arbitrary applies rather to the relation between the signified and the real object . It would seem, however, that in some cases this relation is not entirely arbitrary. Conclusions The controversy concerning whether or not the proper name has meaning is partly due to the confusion in the use of the term meaning . Moreover it may be attributed to a dearth (or in some cases, a lack) of truly meaningful (semantically motivated) names in the languages upon which many specialists concentrated their analyses and from which they drew their examples. According to the hypothesis presented here, the proper names which in different languages do have meaning (Model - D), the meaning constitutes a semantic (though secondary) motivation of the name. This postulate situates proper names in the same category with common nouns, some of which are also semantically motivated. It is generally accepted that the main difference between a proper name and a common noun is that the former denotes a specific object or a number of objects which do not necessari ly have anything in common, while the latter means (or signifies) objects which share one or more traits39. Just as all common nouns have meaning, in this sense, all proper names denote. It is further proposed here that this distinction (meaning/ denotation) is non-operative in the sign in that what is often called the meaning of the common noun is expressed in its signified (concept) while the denotation plays the role of the signified of the proper name. Both meaning and denotation function as the signified of the sign, of the common noun and proper name respectively. The signifier obviously is represented by the acoustic image. Therefore, although proper names differ from common nouns on a formal semantic level (as well as morphologically, etc.), the proper name is a linguistic sign, just as are common nouns and all other words. To terminate this part of the study, it may be said with S^rensen (1963 : 107) : Proper names are neither more or less linguistic than other signs. Proper names are signs. They are signs with distinctive features... Proper names are signs, just signs.

II. THE CULTURAL CONTEXT OF THE CORPUS OF SELKT4AM NAMES The Selk'nam inhabited the Great Island of Tierra del Fuego, south of the Magellan Strait in what is now Argentina and Chile. They lived principally from hunting (guanaco, rodents, foxes, seals and birds) though they also gathered (shellfish, edible plants and eggs) and fished. Another group, the Haush, were their neighbours on the island and had

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333

a similar subsistence economy. Each group spoke a distinctive language. Selk'nam is related to the Tehuelche language of southern Patagonia (Argentina) and has been studied, though not in great detail 40. Very little is known of the Haush language. The Haush had preceded the Selk'nam to the Great Island, from Patagonia. During the final Indian period until the beginning of White colonization of the island, about 1880, the Selk'nam occupied most of the island and the Haush, who were located in its southeastern section, were far less numerous than the Selk'nam. The pre-White population of the two groups was calculated by Martin Gusinde (1931 : 148), the author of the classical work on the Selk'nam, as 3500 to 4000 individuals. By the time of his visits to Tierra del Fuego, between 1919 and 1923, the population had been reduced to some 280 persons, partly because of the genocide against the Indians committed by the Whites, but mainly due to the high mortality caused by the diseases brought by the newcomers. After the turn of the century, when the population had been decimated and its culture virtually annihi lated, the two groups intermingled in the central-southern part of the island, near lake Fagnano, on lands which were not then considered productive for sheep raising, the main economic activity of the White settlers. By then many of the remaining Indians worked on the sheep farms during the summer months. When Gusinde visited the island, a consider able number of the 280 Indians spoke Selk'nam as well as Haush and the younger people also spoke Spanish. When I began my work in Tierra del Fuego, in 1965, there were some ten descendants of the Selk'nam and Haush, among whom however only a few were very knowledgeable about the Indian culture and mode of life. Over the years since then, with the data given to me principally by four of the survivors (Lola Kiepja, Angela Loij, Federico Echeuline and Luis Garibaldi Honte), I drew up 70 Selk'nam and 7 Haush genealogies. Approximately 3500 individuals are registered in the genealogies which cover a maximum of eight and a minimum of two generations. Many of the members of the sixth and virtually all those of the seventh and eighth generations are Mestizo-Indians and Whites married to them. The Indian names I documented all represent persons who appear in the genealogies. The corpus which is presented here consists exclusively of common names translated into English. Other articles will follow in which the entire corpus of over a thousand names will be published41. This larger corpus may be divided into three semantic categories with respect to the model formulated above, as follows : meaningful common names (Model A, D-2), meaningful sacred names (Model D-l), and meaningless and partially meaningful names (Model B, C), many of which were considered sacred by my informants. A number of the Haush which are registered in my genealogies had Selk'nam common names though many of them had sacred names, of Haush origin. The latter names were also frequently given to the Selk'nam. The sacred names were bestowed upon the child by a person of high status and great prestige at the request of the parents. If the parents esteemed that their child (boy or girl) showed signs of particular intelligence, they would make such a request, which was rarely, if ever, refused. In pre-White times, the majority of people apparently had only one name. The individuals who had two names usually hid a common and a sacred name. No ceremony or ritual was performed when a child was named. A child might be given a common name when it was an infant or not until it was two or three years old or even later. A person acquired a common name in the most casual fashion. It might even be suggested by a visitor to the camp. The name finally chosen may have simply been the one of several which had been most frequently repeated42.

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Occasionally an adult might acquire a second name. For example, Eye (no. 137) was that of a woman who had a sacred name and was given this common name because when adult, as the result of a wound, she had lost sight in one eye. Usually the proper names were employed as reference, not in address. According to one author who was in Tierra del Fuego at the beginning of the century, Gallardo (1910 : 355), it was considered impolite to speak to a person by his/her name unless the person was a close friend of the speaker. Gusinde (1931 : 383) comments that a name which was in some way offensive, such as Ugly face (no. 101), was not pronounced in the presence of the person who had it. It was likewise improper to say the name of a dead person. Circumlocution was employed when a deceased person was mentioned and tekonyms were also used. There may well have been far more tekonyms than one would surmise from the small number (only eight) recorded in this corpus. Gallardo (1910 : 235) states that if a person had the name of an animal, upon the death of the name-bearer, the animal in question would be referred to by a generic term for a long time afterwards. He gives the example of a man named Teel Mosquito (no. 515). With reference now to the corpus which follows, it will be noted that most of the common names originate in some physical characteristic or flaw of the individuals, others express a personality trait while some recall an event which occurred before the child was named, or make a humorous allusion to the child. The names have been classified as : metonymies (nos. 1-414), metaphors (nos. 415495), motivated by contingencies (nos. 496-561), tekonyms (nos. 562-569) and miscellaneous (nos. 570-587). The great majority are metonymies. The metaphoric names are also metonymies in that one trait of the individual is selected to represent the whole , the individual named, but they are distinguished from metonymies because the relation between the signified (the concept) and the referent is mediated by a poetical allusion. The corpus is presented in the hope that other ethnographers will publish comparative data and thus contribute to the resolution of the complex problem of analyses of proper names.

. CORPUS OF SELK'NAM COMMON NAMES METONYMIES 1) Bone 2) Thin bones 3) Short bones 4) Bone like * ** M. : man, W. : woman. ... signifies that the meaning is obvious. because very thin ...** ... Man-because very thin : Woman-because white M.I* W.I W.2 M.I W.2 M.I W.I

WHAT'S IN A NAME ? 5) Thin 6) Thin 7) Thin body 8) Slender 9) Small 10) Big 11) Fat 1 2) Grease 1 3) Short 14) Short 15) 1 6) 1 7) 18) 19) Tall Square Bland Flabby Heavy different name from above, same meaning. ... reference to animal fat : because fat. different name from above : because lovely body. different name from above.

335 M.3 W.2 W.I M.I M.I M.I W.3 M.I M.2 W.I W.I M.2 W.3 M.I M.I M.2 W.I W.I M.2 W.I W.I W.I M.I W.I M.I M.I M.I M.I W.I W.I W.I M.I M.I

20) Trembling body 21) Covered with sores 22) Stunted 23) Rachitic 24) 25) 26) 27) 28) 29) 30) 31) Lame Crooked Bent over Raised burden

because continually twiched (two different names)...

he didn't develope well because he was an orphan because hunchedbacked ibid. because lame and when she transported things on her back, the burden stood up at an angle.

Loose fleash Loose skin Wrinkled Dry -skin

32) Black skin 33) Black body

because only skin and bones because when a child he Dlaved in the mud banks of the lagoons and the skin on his feet remained cracked and dry. darker than normal

W.3 W.2

336 34) 35) 36) 37) Red skin Grey Head Head ... + *

SOCIT DES AMRICANISTES W.I M.I W.I M.2 W.I M.I M.2 M.I W.3 W.I W.I W.I W.I M.I W.I M.I W.I W.I W.I W.I M.I W.I W.I M.I W.2 W.2 M.I W.2 M.I M.2 W.2 W.I W.I M.I W.2 M.I M.I

38) Much head 39) Round 40) 41) 42) 43) 44) 45) 46) 47) 48) 49) 50) 51) 52) 53) 54) 55) Round head Thin head Long head Smooth head Flat head Pointed Pointed head Bland head Black head Path over the head Deformed head Broken head Bone projects from the head Piece of a head Mobile head Burnt head

because had been frost bitten because big the woman because she had some defect on her head or was bald because had a protrubance because of the head, a pretty name .

because of the head

because had scar, bone showing

56) Burnt head 57) Bone protrudes head 58) Pimple head 59) Swollen head 60) Ugly head 61) Mole on the crown 62) Injured crown 63) Lacks hair 64) + ... bald 65) Child bald

different name from above same meaning... because bone protruded from the head , as result of a tumor

... because he was so as a child

* ... + signifies that the meaning of only part of the name was known to my informants.

WHAT'S IN A NAME ? 66) Slanted 67) Bone face 68) Grey-hair 69) Curley hair 70) Falling hair 71) Scanty hair 72) Scanty hair 73) 74) 75) 76) Tangled hair Greasy hair Scabby hair Stinking hair because very high forehead name given to one of the aries because his head was t ild like his face . born with grey hair. hair fell out because of sickness but grew back. ... different name from above but same meaning...

337 W.2 M.I M.I M.3 W.I W.3 M.2 W.4 M.3 M.I M.I W.I M.I W.2 W.2 M.I W.3 M.I M.2 M.5 M.I W.I W.I M.2 W.I M.I W.2 M.2 W.2 W.2 M.I W.I W.I M.2 W.I W.2 W.I M.2

77) Stinky bangs 78) Tangled bangs 79) 80) 81) 82) 83) 84) 85) 86) 87) 88) 89) 90) 91) 92) 93) Raised bangs White bangs Has no bangs Has no crown Lacking on the crown Black crown White crown Fur Face Thin face Small face Big face Round Slanted Black face

bald on top of head scant hair on top of head

because he had a big beard because wide

reference to face because held head to the left

94) Red face 95) White face 96) Wrinkled face

wrinkled when verv voung

338 97) Loose face 98) 99) 100) 101) Burnt face Cut face Pimple face Ugly face

SOCIT DES AMRICANISTES because skin loose as result of burn when a child W.I M.I W.I W.3 M.I W.2 M.I W.I W.I W.I M.I M.2 W.I W.I M.I W.I M.4 W.5 W.3 M.I W.I W.3 W.2 W.2 M.2 M.I M.I W.I W.I M.I W.3 M.I W.I M.I

two women were considered ugly but one was said to have been pretty.

102) Strange face 103) Wide front of the face 104) Injured on the front of the face 105) Temples ... + 106) Bald temples 107) Bald temples 108) 109) 110) 111) 112) 113) 114) 115) 116) 117) 118) 119) 120) 121) 122) 123) 124) 125) 126) White temples Burnt temples Bland temples Mole on the temple Brow bone Forehead ... + Hairless forehead Big forehead Wide forehead Short forehead White forehead Sunken forehead Fine forehead Loose forehead Black forehead Hole in the forehead Pimply forehead Burnt forehead Tranquil forehead different word but same meaning as above... because eyes on a plane with temples.

because brow very high. no explanation. one of the women-because of burn on forehead...

127) Red cheeks 128) White cheeks 129) Yellow cheeks

A NAME? 1 30) 131) 132) 133) Grey cheeks or Scraped cheeks Mole on cheek Flabby cheeks Wounded cheeks ...

339 W.I W.I M.I W.I M.I W.2 M.I W.I M.I M.I W.I W.I W.I W.I M.I W.I M.I M.I M.I W.I W.I W.2 M.I W.I M.I M.I W.I M.I M.3 W.2 W.I M.I M.2 W.I W.I M.I

because a dog bit her, when she was a child.

1 34) Burnt cheeks 135) Wounded brow 1 36) Big brow 1 37) Eyes 138) 1 39) 1 40) 141) 1 42) 143) 144) 145) 146) Raised eyes Big eyes Small eyes Small eyes Eyes with small corners White eyes Blind Eyes lacking Winker ... because beautiful ... different word, same meaning... ...

147) Sick eyes ... + 148) Watery sick eyes 149) Loose sick eyes 1 50) Bloody sick eyes 151) Busted sick eyes 152) Blured sick eyes 1 53) Ugly sick eyes 1 54) Ugly sick eyes 155) Hit sight 156) Injured eyes 157) Eye 158) He looks down

because blind because of sickness blinked eyes continuously

in their childhood they were wounded in an eye while playing with bows & arrows

ibid, above in Haush language because he was hit in an eye

because lost sight in one eye, when adult : this woman had another name. because could not raise his head : born with this defect .

340 159) Slanted ... + 1 60) Cross-eyed 161) White back 162) 163) 1 64) 1 65) Full of sleepers flow Black tears Corners of the eyes

SOCIT DES AMRICANISTES refers to eyes as crossed. i.e. cross-eyed because eyes sick no explanation (the hyaloid canal) because the corners of the eyes on a plane with the rest of the face considered pretty. considered ugly... M.3 M.I M.I W.I W.2 M.I M.I W.2

1 66) 167) 1 68) 1 69) 170) 171) 172) 173) 174) 175) 176) 177) 178) 179) 180) 181) 182) 183) 184) 185) 186)

Wide corners of the eyes Red bags under the eyes Red around the eye Bones around the eyes Black eyebrows White eyebrows White streaked eyebrows Heavy eyelids Thick eyebrows Flulfy eyebrows Short eyebrows Crooked eyebrows Wart on the eyebrows Scar on the eyebrows Smooth eyebrows Loose eyebrows Wounded eyebrows Pusy eyebrows Knit eyebrows Snub-nose Snub-nose

(one word in Selk'nam)... because eyes sunken. because of a scar because eyes sick and eyelids drooped. ...

W.I W.I W.2 W.I W.I M.I M.I W.I W.I W.I M.I W.I W.2 W.I W.I W.I M.5 M.I M.I W.2 W.2 W.2 M.I W.I M.I W.4 M.I

same meaning as above, another word...

187) Snub-nose ... + 1 88) Flat-nose 1 89) Big nose 190) Black nose 191) Tumor on the nose

because a black spot on the nose.

WHAT'S IN A NAME ? 192) Speaks strongly through the nose 193) Slender-nose 1 94) Raised nose 195) One nose 196) 197) 198) 199) 200) 201) 202) 203) 204) 205) 206) 207) 208) 209) 210) 211) 212) 213) 214) 215) 216) 217) 218) 219) 220) 221) 222) 223) 224) 225) 226) Pimple on the nose Pointed nose Thin healthy mouth Burnt mouth Lacks mouth Yellow mouth Crooked sick mouth Small sick mouth Thick lip Black lips Black upper lip Red upper lip Round upper lip Gums Black gums Pussy gums Injured gums Tongue ... + Black tongue Red tipped tongue Short tongue Crooked tongue Raised teeth Thin teeth Teeth showing Jaw Red painted chin Ear like a heart Black ear Ear wounded by an arrow Does not listen because hoarse

341 W.I W.I M.I M.I W.I W.I M.I W.I M.I M.I W.I M.I M.I M.I M.I W.I W.I W.2 M.I M.I M.I W.I M.I M.2 W.I W.I W.I M.I W.I W.3 W.I W.I W.I M.I W.I M.I M.I

whiteman (one of the killers) whiteman (another killer) because only one nasal cavity.

because mute by birth whiteman (one of the killers) because of blond beard.

because of the

no explanation

no explanation because mole on tongue

because swallowed her words

because protruded because big no explanation because of shape

an insult

342 227) Deaf 228) Red throat 229) Saliva throat 230) Injured larynx 231) Hoarse 232) 233) 234) 235) 236) 237) 238) 239) 240) 241) 242) 243) 244) 245) 246) 247) 248) 249) 250) 251) 252) 253) 254) 255) 256) 257) 258) 259)

SOCIT DES AMRICANISTES from birth red here is synonymous to beautiful the salesian nuns in general ; refers to nun's bib compared to a baby's bib. M.I W.I M.I W.I W.2 M.I W.2 M.I M.I M.I W.I W.I W.I W.2 M.2 M.2 M.I M.I W.I M.I w M.I M.2 M.I M.I W.I W.I W.2 W.3 M.2 w w

Obstructed larynx Thick larynx Defective nape of the neck Noty nape of the neck Bald nape of the neck Wounded nape of the neck Pimply nape of the neck Nape of the neck Slender nape of the neck Thick nape of the neck White nape of the neck Black skin of the neck Black back of the neck Wounded on the neck Neck tendon Thin neck tendon Loose neck tendon Thick neck tendon Side ... + Raised side Striped side Striped side White side Black side Shoulder Mole on shoulder Injured shoulder Back

because of something there : a mole or wart.

because of some defect ... probably because of some marks. different word from above ... not same word as those above ... because of something there

two different words

260) Burnt back

WHAT'S IN A NAME 7 261) Wounded back 262) Crooked back 263) < Black back > 264) 265) 266) 267) 268) 269) 270) 271) 272) 273) 274) 275) 276) 277) 278) 279) 280) 281) White back Red back Scraped on the back White ribs Burnt breasts Waist Mole on the waist Injured waist Striped waist Black waist Thick stomach Raised stomach

343 W.I M.I M.I W.I W.2 W.I W.I W.I W.I W.I W.I M.I W.I W.I W.I W.2 M.2 W.2 W.3 W.2 W.2 W.3 W.I W.I M.I W.2 M.I W.I M.I M.I M.I W.I W.I M.3 M.I W.2 W.I W.I M.I

two different words

here back is a preposition

no explanation

or pot-belly (panzon in Spanish)

Mole on the stomach Stripped stomach Burnt stomach Raised paunch Much paunch Navel... +

maybe because it was swollen

282) Raised navel 283) Fallen umbilical cord 284) Umbilical cord of stone 285) Cut umbilical cord 286) Burnt umbilical cord 287) Lost umbilical cord 288) Groin 289) 290) 291) 292) 293) Raised hip Mole on the hip Black hip Thin hips Loose hips

no explanation obtained : probably refers to a tumor on the stomach : see no. 430. no explanation

because could not walk well walked like a duck.

because of black spot

344 294) 295) 296) 297) 298) 299) 300) 301) 302) 303) 304) 305) 306) 307) 308) 309) 310) 311) 312) 313) 314) 315) <c Burnt hip Buttocks ... + Mole on the buttocks Eye on the buttocks Injured hind > Intestine ... + Wide intestine String intestine Raisen intestine Hung intestine Round intestine Big liver Good heart Crooked heart Open heart Ugly bladder White bladder Penis eggs Cut nerve Lacks nerves Raised backbone Vertebra

SOCIT DES AMRICANISTES ... no explanation no explanation no explanation M.I M.2 M.2 M.I M.I M.I W.2 W.I M.I M.I W.I M.I W.I M.I M.I W.I W.I M.2 M.I M.I W.I W.I W.2 W.I M.I W.3 M.I M.I M.2 M.3 M.4 M.I W.I W.I M.2 W.I

reference to his personality no explanation because sunken chest because cried a great deal when a child (should be classed under Contigencies ). no explanation because of large testicles no explanation because almost as fleshless as a skeleton because hunchbacked perhaps because of tumor : see nos. 284, 430. because of black scar in this part of body perhaps because they protruded

316) Pointed vertebra 317) Stone-clavicule 318) Black clavicule 319) 320) 321) 322) 323) 324) 325) 326) 327) Ribs Burnt ribs Injured back ribs Black ribs Slender ribs Thick legs Short legs Short legs Burnt thigh

different noun form above ...

WHAT'S IN A NAME ? 328) Thin thighs 329) Fat thighs 330) Long thighs 331) 332) 333) 334) 335) Raised leg tendon Injured skin of the knee Knee cap Red skin of the knee Hit on the calf

345 M.3 W.I M.2 M.I W.I M.I W.I M.I W.I M.I W.I W.I W.I M.I M.2 M.4 W.2 W.2 W.I M.I M.I W.I M.I M.I W.I W.I M.I W.I W.I W.I M.2 W.2 W.I M.I W.I

because wounded

336) Mole on the bend of the knee 337) Burnt on the bend of the knee 338) Injured on the bend of the knee 339) Crooked lower legs 340) Thin lower legs 341) 342) 343) 344) 345) 346) 347) 348) 349) 350) 351) 352) 353) 354) Short lower legs Feet ... + Burnt feet Cold feet Crooked foot Big feet Deficient feet

no explanation

Short feet Invalid in the feet Stretched foot Lazy feet Flat feet Speaking feet Black on the top part of the foot 355) Wounded on the top part of the foot 356) Sprained heel 357) Burnt heel 358) Slender or thin heel

because were late in learning to walk ... ... was lame ... no explanation

...

...

346 359) Heel nerve 360) Raised toes 361) Crooked toes 362) Lacks a toe 363) Black arnnshoulder 364) 365) 366) 367) 368) 369) 370) 371) 372) 373) 374) 375) 376) 377) 378)

SOCIT DES AMRICANISTES because something happened toit in one case because 2 toes stuck together like a duck : no explanation for the others by birth because of a black mark : arm-shoulder is one word M.3 W.I W.I W.I W.I W.I W.2 M.2 W.I M.I W.I W.I W.I W.I M.I W.I M.I W.I W.I M.I W.I W.I M.I M.I W.I W.I M.I M.2 W.I W.I

Burnt arm-shoulder Black arm Red arm Underside-of-upper-arm Biceps ... + Raised biceps Mole on the biceps Black biceps Mole on the forearm Short forearm Elbow Short elbow Black elbow Large hands Tied hand

one word : because of a mark there no explanation

...

because deformed

379) Useless hand 380) Crooked hand 381) Lazy hands 382) Greasy hand 383) 384) 385) 386) Black hand Lacks a hand Noty hand Side-ways hand

because as a child his hand had been infected & bandaged : it never completedly healed. because one hand severely burnt when a child.

because spot on it, the color of grease

because paralized because paralized (from a bullet wound) no explanation

387) Left-handed 388) Fist

WHAT'S IN A NAME ? 389) Crooked finger 390) Lacks a finger 391) Fingernail ... + 392) Black finger nail 393) Lacks finger nail 394) 395) 396) 397) 398) 399) 400) 401) 402) 403) 404) 405) Rotten finger nail Sharp finger nails Menstrual blood Ground blood Scar ... + Perspiring hot Sweaty Spittle Pimples Death sick Sickly Dizzy ... because deformed, on left hand.

347 M.2 W.I W.2 M.I W.I W.I M.I W.2 W.I W.I W.I W.I M.I M.I W.I M.2 M.I W.I M.I M.I W.I M.I M.I W.I M.I M.3 W.I M.I W.I M.I W.2 W.I

... no explanation ibid.

because always sick

406) Lacks words 407) Silent or Quiet 408) Soft voice 409) Black 410) 411) 412) 413) 414) Dark White White Red Yellow

because born deaf because did not talk much because of skin color ibid. ibid. because of white spot on leg because of skin color ibid. METAPHORS

415) Wren legs 416) Duck eyes 417) Finch

because legs thin like this bird ( Cisto thorus platensis) because of red eyes like this bird (Podiceps major) : one of the nuns was also given this name. because of white streak of hair which recall the markings of this bird (Melanodera melanodera)

M.I W.I W.2 M.I

348 418) Blackbird

SOCIT DES AMRICANISTES because of dark skin like the feathers of this bird which is of the passerine order, similar to the woodpecker. because had a spot of the shape of an arm head shaped like a tooth Plate is the word for shoulder blade. The shoulder blade of a guanaco or seal was used as a plate or dish. the crown of the head had the form of a basket because of its shape for the color of the skin loose-earth is one word : in one case because of a scar on the face ; in the others because of skin. no explanation because of tone of skin rsine (found on beaches from ships) : because black skin because of sunken eyes because had tumor on cheek when child because of shape of face ; but he was described as handsome. meaning white for shape of head for skintone ibid. because always tangled ... M

419) Arm on the front of the face 420) Tooth head 421) Plate eyelids

M M.2 M.I

422) Basket crown 423) Bag head 424) Wet earth 425) Loose-earth on the front

W.I M.3 W.3

426) Dirt head 427) Frozen earth 428) Rsine 429) Sand dune face 430) Stone cheeks 431) Grind stone face 432) Limestone face 433) Big stone 434) 435) 4-36) 437) 438) 439) 440) 441) Ash Like ashes Fire hair Oder of tinder Thistle hair Weed hair Reed hair Bark of the hoshern tree

M.I M.I W M.I W.3 w w M.I M.2 M.I w w w

442) Trunk ... + 443) Pampa grass 444) Beauty of the pampa bush

the irregularities on the skin of her face like the rough bark of this tree. no explanation ibid. because she was born near this bush.

A NAME ? 445) Odor of the pampa bush 446) Root of the pampa bush 447) Mushroom 448) Mushroom head 449) Guanaco eyes 450) Like a rodent 451) Whale whiskers hair 452) Sea lion 453) Trout 454) Baby trout 455) Head of sea-urchin 456) Legs of sea-urchin 457) She has scales 458) Limpet-belly 459) 460) 461) 462) 463) 464) 465) 466) 467) 468) 469) 470) Ankel mussel Bird stomach Bird stomach ... 4- Hanging bird stomach Thick bird stomach Mole on bird stomach Full bird stomach Raised bird stomach Raised breast of bird Sunken breast of bird Open breast of bird Goose because she had a bad odor, like this bush no explanation this name is the word for a certain species of mushroom (no explanation obtained) ibid, but another species because of skin tone : here the word rfres to a small unidentified rodent called koru because it was tangled like a bird trap made of whale whiskers for her ugly manner of walking ... probably because of some mark : see no. 454 for a sport on her body which resembled the spots of the baby trout because his legs were badly formed because of her skin because he was short and puggy like the mythological personage of the same name ... no explanation ibid. ibid. because big stomach when child no explanation ibid. had a tumor on her stomach no explanation ibid. ibid. Chlaephaga pic ta : no explanation Polyborus plancus : so called because he was a fierce warrior

349 W W.3 W.2 W.I W W.2 W M.I W W.I M.I W.2 M.2 W.4 W.I W.I W.I W M.I M.I

471) Cara ncho -fighter

350 472) Owl 473) Owl ... + 474) Owl head 475) Owl egg 476) Hawk 477) Head of the owl 478) Biceps of the owl 479) Owl head 480) Cormorant head

SOCIT DES AMRICANISTES Speo ty to cunicularia : perhaps because of some body trait which resembled that of this owl. Bubo magellanicus because of big head ibid. no explanation Accipiter bicolor because of dark skin Aslo flammeris because of round head Glancidium nanum because round head probably Phalacrocorax albiventer : because of small head no explanation ibid. Larus dominicanus : one woman because she was a big eater : no explanation for the other because of skinny thighs same species as above Sterna hirundinacca probably because of very slender legs Anas flavirostris because of small legs Podiceps rolland chilensis : one woman because of dark skin : no explanation for the others meaning a nice person because small and fat because of rather dark skin because of white forehead no explanation ibid. because of shape of body Selk'nam name of a lagoon plant (Myriophyllum elatinoides) : because she had a bad oder like the plant W.I W.I W.I M W.I W.I W M.I M.I W.I M.I W.2 M.I M.I W.I M.I W.3 M.I W.2 M.I M.I W.3 W.3 W.I M.I W.2 W.I

481) Feather of cormorant ... + 482) Raised feather of cormorant 483) Sea gull 484) Sea gull thighs 485) Sea gull legs 486) Duck 487) Duck 488) Butterfly 489) Spider 490) Evening 49 1 ) 492) 493) 494) Sunlit forehead Rainbow bangs Late afternoon Ax

495) Kar ...

WHAT'S IN A NAME ? DUE TO CONTINGENCIES 496) 497) 498) 499) 500) 501) Kewilkek Na'na Shater Atil Altile Mil babytalk reference unknown ibid. ibid. babytalk for art, stick ibid. babytalk meaning milso'on don't do that babytalk meaning kewaachin to undress babytalk meaning oli'k?en fatty meat babytalk, from te te, meaning give me babytalk meaning chapl, worm Buteo polyosomo because of child play Falco sparverius : when a child, a falcon of this species perched beside her ibid. : (the words inverted) : because she played with one as a child because of teasing when a child an affectionate term her mother used while playing with her as a child reference to a joke when he was a child reference to child play because of something which occured when he was a child because as a child he imitated this dance as a child he threw it at his brothers at play : or Mosquito because of some happening in childhood from child play ibid. to learn to walk ibid.

351

W.I M.I W.I W.I W.I W.I M.I M.2 M.I M.I W.I W.I W.I W.I W.I M.I W.I M.I M.I M.I

502) Kewichich 503) Hotil 504) Mete't 505) - Chapelo 506) Scratches like a hauk 507) Falcon lover 508) Lover-falcon 509) Made love with a worm 510) Ugly woman 511) Old woman 512) Friend 513) Absent 514) Victory dance 515) Fish vesicle or Mosquito 516) Covered with grease 517) + ... grease 518) Lazy 519) ... +lazy

M.2 W.I M.I W.I W.2

352 520) Edge of cape ... + 521 ) 522) 523) 524) 525) 526) < < <

SOCIT DES AMRICANISTES in one case because learned to walk late (edge of cape assimilated to feet) ibid. reference to a child play ibid. ibid. ibid. because when a child afraid of water which seeps out of a spring reference to child play, imitation of mother digging soil for water because of child play no explanation because he liked raw meat as a child because urinated in bed beyond normal age ibid. because she urinated so much when a child because as a child she soiled herself frequently ibid. because of child play reference to child play because almost so killed when a child because of child play because always thirsty when a child because cold when a child because burnt in the mouth while a child because almost frozen when a child reference to child play ibid. ibid. a joke when she was a child because as a child he talked an adult M.2 M.I W.I M.I M.I W.I W.I W.I W.2 W.2 M.I M.I W.I W.I W.I M.I W.I M.I W.I W.I W.I M.2 W.2 M.I W.I W.I M.2 W.I M.I M.3 W.I M.I

Lazy edge of cape Seated in the middle Burden ... + Burden pilled up She threw off her burden Spring water

527) Well 528) Loose earth in the eyes 529) Loose earth ... + 530) Raw 531) Urine 532) Stinking urine 533) Wet 534) <c Excrement 535) Oder of excrement 536) Palate of excrement 537) Rotten walking stick 538) Dead as a result of a fallen branch 539) She laughs at something 540) Is thirsty 541) He is cold 542) Mouth smoke 543) Frozen 544) Rolling down 545) He looks above 546) Cannot arrive soon because overloaded 547) She ran away 548) He spoke

A NAME ? 549) She spoke 550) I flee 551) Scatterer 552) He cut his tongue 553) The departed 554) Not dead 555) Dead 556) She was dead 557) Returned to life 558) Dead in the creek 559) Full of berries of the berberry bush 560) Skin of the face 561) 'ehe as a child she said something long remembered reference to an incident in childhood because as a child scattered things as a child because he almost died when a child ibid. almost died when a child : he moved as he was being buried because fainted from attacks when a child when a child almost died because was almost drown as a child because liked them so much as a child because wounded or hurt there as a child imitation of the call of a bird (possibly Railus antarcticus) which she imitated as a child TEKNONYMS (Names given after death) 562) Infant 563) Chi-un 564) He who killed himself 565) Died in war 566) Eaten by the cliff 567) Carried away by the sea 568) Crazy 569) Lost she died as an infant endearing term : she died as a child ... fell off a cliff while hunting cormorants died thus because died of mental sickness never found MISCELLANEOUS 570) Baby 571) The last born both women lived to be adults : no explanation

353 W.2

W.I W.I M.I M.I M.I M.I M.I W.2

W.2 W.I

354 572) One 573) Only woman 574) Wanderer 575) Lyer 576) Loose woman

SOCIT DES AMRICANISTES because only boy child in the first case and only child in the second because all her (four) siblings where boys because used to visit his mother's territory frequently and was criticized for doing so a Haush word ... because she would have sexual relations with any man : her mother gave her this name when she was a young woman ... elder brother was so named : no. 424 because parents died when young and continued mourning for a long time because kind to others as a child W W M M.I W.I

577) Elder brother is ' Wet earth ' 578) Alone in mourning 579) He (who) went out of his way 580) Mountain climber 581) Tranquil head

M.I M.2 M.I M.I

582) Has no name 583) 584) 585) 586) Racer Green Bad omen bird Soft earth

signifies does not speak connotes fool but here referred to someone who was the contrary, who was a sage informant assured me that this was his name but could not explain it no explanation no explanation no explanation no explanation

W.I M.I W.I

587) Oder of bed

NOTES 1. For their very helpful critiques of the first part of this article, I wish to thank Aurore MonodBecquelin and Christos Clairis, both of whom are linguists. 2. ULLMANN (1962 : 118) states : Except for proper names and a small number of common nouns referring to unique objects, words denote not single items but classes of things or events bound together by some common element . JAKOBSON (1963 : 177) writes : Les noms propres, que Gardiner, dans son essai 'polmique ', prsente comme un des problmes les plus pineux de la thorie du langage, prenant une place parti culire dans notre code linguistique : la signification gnrale du nom propre ne peut se dfinir en dehors d'un renvoi au code .

WHAT'S IN A NAME ?

355

Personal names may also be place names, as, for example, Florence, Lorraine, Virginia. The name of an animal may also be a personal name, as Bessie, Buddy, Chadwick. There is no formal distinction, I believe, among the different types of names but this text focuses on personal names. Moreover, I am not concerned here with the distinction between first names and surnames or generally with the number of names a person may have, nor the acquisition of names, nor special categories of names such as tekronyms, death names (necronyms), burial names, etc. 3. See S)RENSEN (1963 : 50) for quoted statements of seven grammarians and logicians who advocated the theory that proper names have no meaning. 4. The distinction between language and speech is based on SAUSSURE (1960 : 36-39). Concerni ng it, BUCHER (1974 : 50) remarks : Comme l'on sait, Saussure rejette du code de la parole la performance individuelle et les libres combinaisons du discours ; tandis qu'il situe au plan de la langue l'aspect institutionnel du langage, sa systmaticit transhistorique. Cette premire csure fondamentale le conduit dfinir une science pure du langage et paralllement circonscrire des sciences connexes qui, prenant appui sur des connaissances extrieures au champ restreint de la linguistique (la physiol ogie, la psychologie, la sociologie) conditionnent l'acte de parole individuel . 5. SAUSSURE writes (1960 : 232) : La langue ne retient qu'une minime partie des crations de la parole ; mais celles qui durent sont assez nombreuses pour que d'une poque l'autre on voie la somme des formes nouvelles donner au vocabulaire et la grammaire une toute autre physionomie . 6. Petit Larousse (dictionary), 1962. 7. See SOUSTELLE, 1955 : 25, notes 2-4. 8. The American College Dictionary. 9. Dictionnaire Etymologique des Noms de Lieux en France. 10-20. The American College Dictionary. Most of the examples in this part of the text are drawn from English as a matter of convenience. They might just as well have been taken from other languages. 21. CHAPMAN (1965 76). Because these names are prestigious, they are not included in the corpus which follows. They will be the subject of another article. 22. I have seen only one name composed of meaningful words which form an apparently meaningl ess name. The name is that of a Seminole Indian of Florida. Crazy-spherical-puma. LVI-STRAUSS (1962 : 242) cites it from STURTEVANT (1960 : 508). 23. LVI-STRAUSS (1962 : 228-38, 243-45, 250). See also LVY-BRUHL (1938 : 235-38) and ROYS (1940). Another author, LAROCK (1932 : 94-95, 168-69), draws a distinction between rel igious or sacred names and profane or social names and inserts this typology in an evolutionary scheme. 24. LAFLESCHE(1928 : 125). 25. Ibid. : 128. 26. Ibid. : 129. 27. This is the language of a people of Cap York Peninsula, Australia. McCONNEL (1930 : 183). 28. Ibid. : 184. 29-30. CHAPMAN (1965-76). These are not listed in the corpus presented here because they are sacred (not common) names. 31. For nicknames in western culture see SHARP (1972) ; among the Maya of Mexico see COLLIER and BRICKER (1970) and ROYS (1940 : 39) ; among the Yanmami of Venezuela see LIZOT (1973 : 66); among certain peoples of Malaya see BENJAMIN (1968 : 119); and in two societies of Oceania see GOODENOUGH (1965 : 267, 270). 32. References to this type of names, which are not considered nicknames, see GRAY (1917 : 164), LIZOT (1973 : 61-62) and CHAGNON (1968 : 11). VROONEN (1973 : 627-28, 676-77) allude* to this type without, however, giving any examples. LVI-STRAUSS (1962 : 237-38) states that among the proper names of the Lugbara people of Uganda, some evoke an attribute of the child named. Some of the children's proper names of the Lakalai people of New Britain, to which GOODENOUGH refers (1965 : 269), are of the first type described in this text (D-l) and are those of the sibs, while others are of the second type (D-2) and are associated with the time or circumstances of the child's birth. 33. SAUSSURE (1960 : 97-100, 167). He does not treat proper names in this context and only mentions them (on p. 237), especially with respect to place names as Paris, Genve, Agen, as not being susceptible to analogy; as not permitting an analysis or an interpretation of their elements, nor giving rise to concurrent creations. LOTRINGER (1973 : 75) follows Saussure in this context. 34. Object is placed in quotation marks because, in this text, it encompasses unreal, mythological or imaginary referents as well as real things. I am aware that this statement is at variance with an accepted principle, but it is indispensable to the development of my hypothesis and therefore assumed as axiomatic. 35. This is in disagreement with, for example, GODZICH (1974 : 45) who writes : semblerait que pour Saussure le sens d'un nom propre existerait sans la mdiation d'un Se (signified), mais par simple convention individuelle entre un Sa (signifier) et un Ref (referent), de sorte que le nom propre ne serait pas un signe du tout puisqu'il n'aurait pas de Se (signified) .

356

SOCIT DES AMRICANISTES

On another level SipRENSEN (1970 : 70-72) states that meanings cannot be identified with denotata (p. 70). But his three main objections (pp. 71-72) are not relevant to my demonstration, if the content of note 34 is accepted as axiomatic. 36. BARTHES (1977 : 51) : ... and we shall say that a sign is motivated when the relation bet ween the signified and its signifier is analogical... I am applying this concept to secondary motivation between the signified and its object or referent. 37. See SAUSSURE (1960 : 180-84) for the sign as arbitrary either absolutely or relatively. The critique of BENVENISTE in his well-known article of 1939 (republished in 1966) is utilized in this analysis. BARTHES (1977 : 50-54) and the other authors cited in this article were consulted on this question as well as KOERNER (1972 : 20-28). 38. Commenting on his three types of motivation, ULLMANN (1962 : 81, 82) states : While a great many words are thus entirely conventional, others are motivated in various ways. The motivation may lie either in the sounds themselves, or in the morphological structure of the words, or in its semantic background. The onomatopoetic terms he mentions (on p. 84) are considered by him to be either of a primary form (such as buzz, crack, hum) or of a secondary form (as dither, slink). 39. See note 2. 40. NAJLIS (1973, 1975) has made the most recent study with the last few Selk'nam. 41. An article, Observaciones Etnolgicas y Lingiitsticas acerca de Antropnimos Selk'nam, now completed and written in collaboration with Christos CLAIRIS, is destined to be published in vol. 16. (1981) of the journal Estudios Filolgicos, Universidad Austral de Chile, Valdvia, Chile. This article includes a list of the 441 proper names taped with Selk'nam informants and which are transcribed by the linguist, Christos Clairis. Some 215 of these names are common names and thus they appear in the present article, in an English translation. In the article in Spanish, these names are accompanied by the number which they carry in the present article. Thus the two articles supplement each other. Eventually the remaining names (which were not taped) will be published with an approximate tran scription in the Selk'nam language. I also intend to write an article presenting an analysis of the meani ngful sacred names, as they relate to the mythology. 42. CHAPMAN (1965-76); GALLARDO (1910 : 234-35, 355-56); GUSINDE (1931 : 380-83).

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