The the Language of the Inuit: Syntax, Semantics, and Society in the Arctic

by Louis-Jacques Dorais

The culmination of forty years of research, The Language of the Inuit maps the geographical distribution and linguistic differences between the Eskaleut and Inuit languages and dialects. Providing details about aspects of comparative phonology, grammar, and lexicon as well as Inuit prehistory and historical evolution, Louis-Jacques Dorais shows the effects of bilingualism, literacy, and formal education on Inuit language and considers its present status and future. An enormous task, masterfully accomplished, The Language of the Inuit is not only an anthropological and linguistic study of a language and the broad social and cultural contexts where it is spoken but a history of the language's speakers.

Genres: Linguistics, Language, Nonfiction

396 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Qristy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Let's be honest, you don't sit down and read a book on grammar like a novel. I'm skimming it mostly because I find polysynthetic languages delightful and I wanted to take a close look at one. And, you know, the community colleges around here don't offer classes in Inuktitut. And learning about the history and cultures of the peoples who actually speak these languages is not only fascinating but reminding me how much colonialism sucks.

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It took me two years to get around to finishing this thing. L O L. Dry in some places, repetitive in others, totally fascinating in others. It was definitely worth the read.

[Wendelle]

This isn't a textbook on learning the Inuit language, instead it is a book discussing the Inuit Language which may find a broader audience than a textbook. It discusses the Eskaleut family of Languages, which has 4 broad groups of 16 dialects, dispersed among the Inuit, Yupiit, Unangans and Yupik. Then the book focuses on the Inuit language, and the Nunavik dialect, for being the languages with the most current speakers. The book traces the prehistory of this language family, as the Eskimo-Aleut migrated between continents from Siberia to Canada above the tree line in pursuit of whale and walrus. It also discusses the historical origins of the language, its structure of affixes, and its recognizability from the Amerindian language structure. It also discusses the history of writing and orthography of this oral language family thanks to European contact and religious missionary purposes. Finally, it discusses the language's current status in formal education, bilingualism, and culture of the Inuit.

[Megan Harrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this book for a linguistics class and I have to admit, I was far more intrigued by the book than I thought I would be. There's something so interesting about learning about languages that function so differently from your own. Along with talking about the language and how it functions, there is information about the history of the language and its speakers. Highly recommend if you are interested in Indigenous languages!

[Felix · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dorais's book was an easy read. It's of a French guys research and interpretation of the languages of the Inuit people in a kind of story format plus some language data charts.

[Henry · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent overview of the Inuit language. Everything from its history to dialectical differences to current use and future prospects. It can be easy to get lost at times in the technical linguistic terminology, but the chapters lend themselves to not necessarily being read in sequence or in total. I found the discussion of Inuit's use today to be the most compelling and this section alone is worth the price of the book. Anyone seriously interested in Inuit would do well to add this book to their collection.

(Note that although they are briefly discussed in the historical section, the Yupik languages of Southwest Alaska & Siberia are not covered in this book)