Stepping through a course - Lesson 11

This is a very short lesson. I think beginning with this lesson, in addition to just giving the translation of each sentence and introducing any new vocabulary, I'll also include a couple more example sentences of my own. It's time to start getting used to creating my own output.

Dialog - 

M: Giwii-naawakwe-wiisin na?
F: Henyanh. Niwii-naawakwe-wiisin.
M: Wegonen waa-minikweyan aniibiishaaboo maagizhaa nibi?
F: Nibi niwii-minikwen.

And the line-by-line breakdown:

M: Giwii-naawakwe-wiisin na?

• We have a new word - naawakwe, which is a verb meaning "be noon"/"be midday. When combined with "wiisin" we create a new verb meaning "eat lunch". So the sentence reads "Do you want to eat lunch?"

F: Henyanh. Niwii-naawakwe-wiisin.

• "Yes. I want to eat lunch"

M: Wegonen waa-minikweyan, aniibiishaaboo maagizhaa nibi?

• Another new word here: "maagizhaa", means "maybe" or perhaps". When stuck between two nouns or objects, it means "or". So he asks: "What would you like to drink, tea or water? Remember that because we're using the question word  for "what" (wegonen), we need to use the conjunct conjugation of minikwe.

F: Nibi niwii-minikwen.

• I want to drink water.

New words this lesson:

• maagizhaa - maybe; perhaps; or
• naawakwe-wiisini - eat lunch; eat at midday; eat at noon
• naawakwe (vii) -be noon; be midday

A couple new phrases mixed in with what we've already learned:

• Maagizhaa niwii-babaamose. (Maybe I'll go for a walk.)
• Wegonen waa-minikweyan, makade-mashkikiwaaboo maagizhaa doodooshaaboo? (What would you like to drink, coffee or milk?)  
• Giwii-naawakwe-wiisin noongom? (Will you eat lunch today?)

Progressing further through the course, we'll keep producing our own sentences at the end of each lesson. 

Pimsleur Ojibwe Summary, lessons 1-10

Pimsleur sort of gets a bad rap in some language-learning circles, due to the limited amount of vocabulary it teaches. With this review of the first ten lessons, I want to demonstrate that it doesn't have to be that way. We can extend what we're learning with a little bit of thought and legwork. I've only used an online dictionary to supplement what we've already learned. No new grammar is introduced. I've recommended the Ojibwe People's Dictionary before, and it's what I used.

I'm at an advantage because I found some good grammar explanations and not-so-exact dialog transcripts for the course online, but I should also note that this Ojibwe course is better than some of the other Pimsleur courses I've seen. It's not a copy of the same dialog in every other language course that Pimsleur sells, so it's more tailored to the language's special characteristics.

The following is a short list of all grammatical parts we've learned so far in lessons one through ten. The brown text is what we've actually learned, noted with the lesson number. The text in green is new vocabulary I've added, with example sentences using only the grammatical rules we've learned up to this point. Some of the vocabulary will be introduced in later Pimsleur lessons, but I chose to add them into the mix now, because they require no further grammar knowledge and can easily extend what we've already learned.

At the end of this review I've also included a list of basic phrases learned, broken down by lesson number.

I plan on doing a review like this of lessons 11 through 20 and 21 through 30, too, once we've completed them.

So here's the breakdown of what we've learned so far:

preverbs
ga- future tense marker (will), Lesson 1
izhi- thus; so; such, Lesson 2
mino- good; nice; well, Lesson 2
maazhi- bad; unwell; ill-formed, Lesson 3
wii - future tense (want to, would like to), Lesson 6
gichi-/chi- large; big; much; very, Lesson 10

bi- toward, here, this way
Come here (Bi-izhaan omaa.)

adverbs
eta go - just, only, Lesson 1
gaawiin - no, Lesson 1
henh/henhyanh - yes, Lesson 1
miinawaa - again, also, too, Lesson 1
gaye - also; too; and; as well, Lesson 7
niibowa - much; a lot, Lesson 7
apii - then; while; at that time, Lesson 8
baanimaa - later; afterwards, Lesson 8
baanimaa apii - after a while; later on, Lesson 8
noongom - now; present; today, Lesson 8

still, yet (geyaabi)
I'm still hungry. (Geyaabi imbakade,)

soon (wayiiba)
I'm going to cook soon (Wayiiba niwii-jiibaakwe.)

always (moozhag)
I always drink water. (Moozhag nibi niminikwe,)

interrogative
aaniish (questions word) - what?; how?; why?, Lesson 2
aaniindi (question word) where?, Lesson 5
Where are you going?
aaniish apii - when?, Lesson 8
wegonen - what?, Lesson 9

who (Awenen)
Whos is this?, Who is that? (Awenen wa'aw?, Awenen a'aw?)

noun
Anishinaabe - Human; Indian; People; Person, Lesson 1
Ojibwe - Ojibwa , Lesson 1
inini - man; person, Lesson 3
ikwe - woman, Lesson 3
Zhaaganaashi - English; Irish; Scottish; British; Anglo-Canadian. Colloquially: non-Native; White, Lesson 4
zaaga'igan - lake, Lesson 5
giniw - eagle, Lesson 8
waabigwan - flower, Lesson 8
waakaa'igan - building; house; cabin; fort, Lesson 10
nibi - water, Lesson 10
aniibiishaaboo - tea, Lesson 10

coffee (makade-mashkikiwaaboo)
milk (doodooshaaboo)
beer (bilewaagoo)
food (miijim)


I want to buy coffee, milk, beer (Object + ni-wii-adaawen.)
Makade-mashkikiwaaboo ni-wii-adaawen.
Doodooshaaboo ni-wii-adaawen.
Bilewaagoo ni-wii-adaawen. 

Will you buy milk? (Gi-wii-adaawen doodooshaaboo?)

river (ziibi) (Gichi-ziibing is Mississippi River)
city/town (gichi-oodena/oodena)
store/shop (adaawewigamig)


I want to go to the store, city, river (Place +(ang/ing/ong) + ni-wii-izhaa)
Adaawewigamigong ni-wii-izhaa.
Oodenaang ni-wii-izhaa.
Ziibing ni-wii-izhaa.

pronoun and demonstrative
ni/in/ind/indo and gi/gid/gido 1st and 2nd person singluar, Lesson 1
niin - I, me, my, Lesson 2
giin - you, your, yours, Lesson 2
aawi - he, she, it, Lesson 3
a'aw (demonstrative) - that (one), Lesson 4
-wag (conjunct) - third person plural: they; their; them; theirs verbal conjugation, Lesson 5
iwidi (demonstrative) - over there; yonder; that way, Lesson 5
omaa (demonstrative)- over here; hither; this way, Lesson 5
gegoo - something, Lesson 7

this (one) (wa'aw/wa'awe)
Whos is this? (Awenen wa'awe?)

verb
aawi (vai) - is; am; be; are, Lesson 1
ojibwemo (vai) - speak the Ojibwa language, Lesson 1
waabam (vta) -find SB; see SB, Lesson 1
giizhigad (vii) - be day; be light, Lesson 2
ayaa (vai) - am; be, Lesson 2
nisidotam (vai2) - understand, Lesson 3
bakade (vai) - hunger; be hungry; be starving, Lesson 4
onjibaa (vai) - come from SOMEWHERE; originate from SOMEWHERE, Lesson 5
niimi'idi+wag (vai) - dance (with each other), Lesson 5 (always plural)
gikendan (vti) - know SOMETHING, Lesson 6
minikwe (vai) - drink, Lesson 7
daa (vai) - reside; live at; home; stay, Lesson 9
miijin (vti3) - eat ST, Lesson 9

go (izhaa)
I'm going to the city. (Gichi-oodenaang nindizhaa.)

come (izhaa)
Come to the restaurant (Bi-izhaan wiisiniwigamigong,) ** Notice the "bi-" preverb

buy (adaawe)
I'll buy food. (Ni-wii-miijimadaawe) ** Notice that "food" and "buy" are combined to form a new verb "buy food"

cook (jiibaakwe)
She is still cooking. (Geyaabi jiibaakwe.)

thirst/be thirsty (giishkaabaagwe)
I'm thirsty. (Ningiishkaabaagwe.)
Are you thirsty? (Giishkaabaagwe na?)

sit (namadabi)
He's sitting over there. (Namadabi iwidi.)

stand (niibawi)
I want to stand (Ni-wii-niibawi,)

go for a walk/stroll (babaamose)
I will go for a walk. (Ni-wii-babaamose.)

sleep (nibaa)
I want to sleep. (Ni-wii-nibaa.)

interjection/salutation
Aaniin - Hello, Lesson 1
boozhoo (interjection particle) - hello, Lesson 2
miigwech - thank you (discourse particle), Lesson 2
ahaaw - OK; alright [male usage], Lesson 7
daga - please; by all means, Lesson 9

other particles
na - question marker, Lesson 1
dash (contrastive particle) - used after words ending in a vowel or n, Lesson 2
igo - express assertiveness, express affirmation after words ending in a consonant, Lesson 6


Basic phrases learned in Lessons 1 through 10:

Lesson 1
Aaniin.
Anishinaabe na gidaaw?
Henh/Henhyanh
Anishinaabe indaaw.
Gidoojibwem na?
Gaawiin.
Bangii eta go.
Indoojibwem.
Giga-waabamin, miinawaa.

Lesson 2
Giin dash?
Boozhoo.
Aaniish ezhi-ayaayan?
Miigwech.
Nimino-ayaa.
Mino-giizhigad

Lesson 3
Nimaanzhi-ayaa.
Ninisidotanziin.

Lesson 4
Imbakade.
Ninisidotam.
Ginisidotam/Ginisidotam na?
Ninisidotanziin.
Zhaaganaashi aawi.
Anishinaabe-inini na a'aw?
Anishinaabe-inini aawisii.
Zhaaganaashi-inini a'aw.
Zhaaganaashiikwe na a'aw?
Zhaaganaashiikwe aawisii.
Anishinaabe aawi.
Zhaaganaashi na gidaaw?

Lesson 5
Aaniindi.
Wenjibaayan?
Mii omaa.
Zaaga'igan?
Iwidi/Iwidi na?
Omaa na?
Niimi'idiwag iwidi./Niimi'idiwag (mii) omaa.

Lesson 6
Ingikendaan.
Gigikendaan./Gigikendaan na?
Ingikendanziin.
Giwii-wiisin na giin?
Niwii-wiisin igo.

Lesson 7
Aaniish ezhi-ayaayan giin?
Nimino-ayaa/Nimino-ayaa niin.
Gaye niin.
Gegoo na giwii-minikwen?
Gegoo niwii-minikwen.
Niwii-minikwe eta go.
Miigwech niibowa.
Ahaaw.

Lesson 8
Aaniish apii wii-wiisiniyan?
Baanimaa.
Baanimaa apii.
Noongom.

Lesson 9
Giwii-wiisin na endaayaan?
Daga wiisinidaa iwidi/onaa endaayan.
Wegonen waa-miijiyan?
Aaniindi wii-wiisiniyan?

Lesson 10
Niwii-wiisin iwidi Chi-waakaa'igan.
Wegonen waa-minikweyan?
Nibi niwii-minikwen.
Nibi na giwii-minikwen?
Aniibiishaaboo na giwii-minikwen?

Stepping through a course - Lesson 10

This lesson is a short one, as far as new vocabulary goes. Just a couple new words and no new verbs. The audio lesson features a lot of review of past lessons and vocabulary, though. In my next post, I'll put together a review of my own for the first third of the course. We're a third of the way through it!

Dialog - 

F: Niwii-wiisin iwidi Chi-waakaa'igan.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
F: Wegonen waa-minikweyan?
M: Nibi niwii-minikwen.
F: Nibi na giwii-minikwen?
M: Aniibiishaaboo na giwii-minikwen?

Breaking itt down line by line:

F: Niwii-wiisin iwidi Chi-waakaa'igan.

• This new word, "waakaa-igan", means house or building. The "Chi-" preceding it is actually a shortened version of  "gichi", meaning great, large or big. "Chi-waakaa-igan" is the name of a restaurant. So she's saying "I want to eat there at "Chi-waakaa-igan".

* * * * * * * * * * * *

F: Wegonen waa-minikweyan?

• As we learned in lesson 9, the "waa-[...]yan" form of the verb is the conjunct form, and has an object, in this case "wegonen" (what). So she is asking "What do you want to drink?

M: Nibi niwii-minikwen.

• We have another new word - "nibi", meaning water. So he replies "I want to drink water. Note here, that the verb conjugation is in A-form. Minikwe is an example of a type of verb that can either take an object or not, and can use either verb form. This will be covered further in a later lesson and in my notes.

F: Nibi na giwii-minikwen?

• "Do you want to drink water?"

M: Aniibiishaaboo na giwii-minikwen?

• "Aniibiishaaboo" is another new word, meaning "tea". He's asking "Do you want to drink tea?

New words learning this lesson:

• gichi- - large; big; much; very
• waakaa'igan - building; house; cabin; fort
• Chi-waakaa'igan - Big House;
• nibi - water
• aniibiishaaboo - tea

Stepping through a course - Lesson 9

This lesson is all about the way verbs are conjugated in the so-called "conjunct form". I sort of touched on this, although not explicitly, in my notes on forming basic questions, We're also introduced to the question word for "What" and an exclamation function word for "please" and "Come on!".

Dialog - 

F: Giwii-wiisin na endaayaan?
M: Henh. Miigwech niibowa.
F: Daga wiisinidaa iwidi endaayan.
F: Henyanh, daga wiisinidaa omaa endaayaan.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
M: Wegonen waa-miijiyan?
F: Daga, wiisinidaa iwidi endaayan.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
F: Aaniindi wii-wiisiniyan?
M: Daga, wiisinidaa omaa endaayaan.
F: Giwii-wiisin na omaa endaayaan?
M: Henh. Miigwech niibowa.


Breaking itt down line by line:

F: Giwii-wiisin na endaayaan?

• "Endaayaan" is a new word, meaning "my house", so she is asking "Do you want to eat at my house?" The "yaan" ending means it refers to the first person singlur (mine).

M: Henh. Miigwech niibowa.

• "Yes, thanks a lot", covered in Lesson 7.

F: Daga wiisinidaa iwidi endaayan.

• Here is another new word - "Daga", which means "Please" or more emphatically, "Come on!" We also see that "wiisini" is conjugated differently. Here, it functions as "Let's go". Also notice that "endaayan" has and ending of "yan". This "yan" refers to the second person singular (yours). So he is saying "Come on!, let's eat there at your house."

F: Henyanh, daga wiisinidaa omaa endaayaan.

• Here, she is saying "Yes, come on (or please), let's eat here at my house. Again, notice the "yaan" first person singular ending, meaning "mine".

* * * * * * * * * * * *

M: Wegonen waa-miijiyan?

• The new word "What" is introduced here. Also notice that we have another new word for "eat" - miijin. The difference with this verb and wiisini, is that miijin can take an object, either explicitly, or as in this case, the question word "wegonen" (what). We also attach the "waa" to the beginning to denote that it is "want to/would like to". So  The sentence would be translated as "What would you like/do you want to eat?"

F: Daga, wiisinidaa iwidi endaayan.

• Again, "Come on/Please, let's eat there at your house."

* * * * * * * * * * * *

F: Aaniindi wii-wiisiniyan?

• Since "Aaniindi" (Where) is also a question word, "wiisini" is conjugated as a conjunct verb. So she is asking "Where do you want to eat?"

M: Daga, wiisinidaa omaa endaayaan.

• Again, "Come on/Please, let's eat at my house" (yaan ending for "mine").

F: Giwii-wiisin na omaa endaayaan?

• "Do you want/Would you like to eat here at my house?"

M: Henh. Miigwech niibowa.

• "Yes, thanks a lot."

This lesson is actually a good extension of my last post regarding question words, and gives us a bit more exposure and practice with this new "conjunct" verb conjugation.


New words learned in this lesson:

• wegonen - what?; why?; how?; what [THING(S)]?
• daga - please; by all means
• daa - reside; live at; home; stay
• miijin - eat [SOMETHING]

Ojibwe - forming basic questions, Part 1

I mentioned in my last post that I wanted to write separately about questions and how they are formed in Ojibwe.

So far, we've hit upon two different types of questions: the first type being simple yes/no questions, such as

• "Giwii-wiisin na?" (Do you want to eat?)
• "Gegoo na giwii-minikwen?" (Do you want to drink something?)

These examples all use "na" as a question marker, either at the end of the sentence or to emphasize either the subject or object, such as "that man" or "something".

Noticing the new vocabulary notes at the end of each lesson, we see that in these cases the verb used is marked with a (vai):

• wiisini (vai) == eat
• minikwe (vai) == drink

This means the verb is an animate intransitive verb. What that in turn means is that the verb has an animate subject.. So the verb can be conjugated simply by adding the subject, "gi" (you) in front of the verb in simple form. The "wii" that follows the subject in both these examples tells us that it is "want to" or "would like to" (it's actually a future tense marker, but we'll get into that in a later lesson).

The second type of question we've encountered so far is one that uses a question word, or interrogative, such as:

• "aaniish" (how)
• "aaniish apii" (when)
• "aaniindi" (where)

When using these question words, the verb is conjugated differently.

Let's look at the word "onjibaa" (to come from somewhere). It's also an animate intransitive verb, but we change "onjibaa" to "wenjibaa" and add the second person singular (you) ending of "yan". So the sentence would be "Aaiindi wenjibaayan". So far, all our interrogative word sentences are formed this way. Back in lesson 4 in the notes, there are examples of off the different persons (1st, 2nd, 3rd persons, both single and plural).

So, another example with a verb we've already learned with the 3rd person plural "waad" (they): "Aaniindi niimi'idiwaad?" (Where are they dancing?) The verb base is "niimi'idi" , also (vai), and we simply add "waad" to it with the question word "aaniindi" to start the sentence.

In the next Pimsleur lesson, we'll learn another question word: "Wegonen" (What), but it's used the same way as the other question words listed here, so there's no harm in trying out examples with it.

There are other ways to form a question, some with confusing grammatical terminology. We'll cover them in detail as they come up in the lessons, but armed with a good dictionary, we can already form loads of questions. I recommend The Ojibwe People's Dictionary because it also gives great examples and has audio samples too!