Transcriber’s Supplement

The First Song of the First Dancers, with translation, is here given in a more conventional spelling, using the following substitutions based on the author’s Note on Orthography:

¢ > ð (eth)
ç > þ (thorn)
j > ʒ (ezh)
q, Q > χ, Χ (chi)

The use of “c” has been retained.

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Χaniè χaò yaè, χaniè χaò yaè Χaniè iè oayè oayè.
1. Χadʒinäìa χaò yaè, 2. Kaþ dsil ðilhyíli χaò yaè, 3. ‘þaltsoï tsèë χaò yaè, 4. Ciʒa cigèlgo χaò yaè. Náhi ìni èhi oayè, náhi ini èhi oöhè.	9. Χadʒinäìa χaò yaè, 10. Kaþ dsil litsòï χaò yaè, 11. Bitselitsòï χaò yaè, 12. Ciʒa cigèlgo χaò yaè. Náhi ìni, etc.
5. Niχoyastcàdʒe χaò yaè, 6. Kaþ dsil þolíʒi χaò yaè, 7. Kini bitsèë χaò yaè, 8. Ciʒa cigèlgo χaò yaè. Náhi ìni, etc.	13. Niχoyastcàdʒe χaò yaè, 14. Kaþ dsil lakàie χaò yaè, 15. A‘a‘i tsèe χaò yaè, 16. Ciʒa cigèlgo χaò yaè. Náhi ìni, etc.

Translation.—1, 9. Χadʒinàï, “Place-where-they-came-up,” a locality in the San Juan Mountains where, according to their mythology, the Navajo emerged from the lower world to this. 5, 13. Niχoyastcàdʒe, another name for Χadʒinàï. 2, 6, 10, 14. Kaþ, now; dsil, mountain; ðilhyíli, black; þolíʒi, blue; litsòï, yellow; lakàie, white. These verses refer to four mountains surrounding Χadʒinàï, which are designated by colors only to indicate their topographical positions. 3, 7, 11, 15. ‘þaltsoï = aþa litsòï, “yellow wing,” a large bird of prey; kini, hen hawk; bitselitsòï, “yellow tail,” a bird of undetermined species; a‘a‘i, magpie; tse, a tail; bitse, its tail. 4, 8, 12, 16. Ciʒa, my treasure; cigèl, my desideratum, my ultimatum, the only thing I will accept. When supposed to be said by a god, as in this song, it means the particular sacrifice which is appropriate to him. In this case probably the feathers spoken of are “cigèl” and the mountains “ciʒa.” The refrain “χaò yaè” is a poetic modification of χaa‘, it looms up, or sticks up, said of some lofty object visible in the distance, whose base cannot be seen.