Nationality American | Religion Presbyterian Name Cyrus Byington | |
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Died December 31, 1868, Belpre, Ohio, United States Books Dictionary of the Choctaw Language Residence Massachusetts, United States, Mississippi, United States, Oklahoma, United States | ||
Cyrus Byington (March 11, 1793 – December 31, 1868) was a White Christian missionary from Massachusetts who worked with the Choctaw in Mississippi and later in Indian Territory, later called Oklahoma, during the 19th century. He sought to construct a lexicon of the Choctaw language to translate Christian prayers, hymns, and bible passages. Byington's work is considered one of the most complete lexicons for a Native American language. He worked nearly 50 years translating Choctaw as a written language.
Contents
Byington's work
The Choctaw language is a member of the Muskogean family and was well known among the frontiersmen, such as US President Andrew Jackson and William Henry Harrison. The language is closely related to Chickasaw; some linguists consider the two varieties a single language. The following table is an example of Choctaw text and its translation:
Orthography
The written Choctaw language is based upon English version of the Roman alphabet and was developed in conjunction with the civilization program of the United States in the early 19th century. Byington's alphabet and a version modified by John Swanton is seen here.