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Vocabulary Words in Native American Languages: Mandan

We have included twenty basic words, enough to give you a feeling for each language. All the nouns are singular and all the verbs are 3rd person singular ("he or she sings") because many Native American languages don't have a separate infinitive ("to sing") the way English and French do.

If you need to know a Mandan word that is not currently on our page, you can take part in our Indian translations fundraiser or visit our main Mandan language site for more free resources.

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Mandan Word Set

Note that the Mandan sounds "m" and "n" vary phonologically with "w" and "r"--the word "mini" is pronounced "wiri" in Mandan under certain conditions. This is normal and didn't cause any problems for Mandan speakers to understand each other, any more than the different ways English speakers pronounce "l" at the beginning and end of words does. However, these variations are disappearing as the Mandan people work to teach their children to speak the language again.

English (Français) Mandan
One (Un) Maxana
Two (Deux) Nunp
Three (Trois) Namini
Four (Quatre) Toop
Five (Cinq) Kixon
Man (Homme) Numank
Woman (Femme) Wiinh
Sun (Soleil) Minaki
Moon (Lune) Ištunminaki
Water (Eau) Mini

Click here to see Mandan vocabulary words compared to words in related Siouan languages: Siouan Indian Words



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