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syllabics
DCHP-1 (pre-1967)
Entry from the DCHP-1 (pre-1967)
This entry may contain outdated or offensive information, terms, and examples.
n. pl.
a syllabary devised by the Reverend James Evans, a Wesleyan missionary, for the Crees (about 1840) and adapted to Eskimo toward the end of the nineteenth century.
Quotations
1861
The whole Bible is in course of publication in the Cree language and in the syllabics of the Rev. J. Evans, under the superintendence of the Rev. W. Mason.
1896
They wanted . . . pencils and paper for writing letters in syllabics when sending for supplies. . . .
1936
Syllabics are not "Indian writing," as some suppose, but were concocted by the white man for the use of the Indians, and we must take off our hats to the originator for his ingenuity in inventing so simple and yet so adaptable a form of writing the Indian language.
1965
And their descendants have been reading the syllabics of James Evans ever since.