The SSBMI Language Department has created Nisenan and Miwok versions of the game Go Fish! called "Welk’óy!" and "Wélse’!", respectively.
Here, you can find information about these games including learn Nisenan and Miwok language that you can use to play, listen to Nisenan and Miwok audio recordings, read about how we created "Welk’óy!" and "Wélse’!", and more.
SSBMI Language Department staff created "Welk’óy!" and "Wélse’!" to teach Nisenan and Miwok animal names and other language for talking about "having", "giving", and "taking" to youth and adult learners. We invite you to explore this website so that you can learn more language for playing these games, and we encourage you to try to use as much Nisenan or Miwok as you can while you play.
We wish to thank Asa Campbell, who first suggested that we could adapt "Go Fish!" as a language game by using animal flashcards instead of traditional playing cards. For this set of cards, we selected 32 animals that meet one or more of the following criteria:
Many animals, like Deer and Flicker, meet all three of these criteria. We had to omit many other animals who meet some of these criteria, like Condor (who is significant to many California Native communities), Wolf (who appears in a story that we share at Beeteyihí), and Junco (who can be seen on the rancheria grounds most prominently in winter). We hope to include more animals in future "expansion" card sets.
We present an illustration of a different animal on each "Welk’óy!"/"Wélse’!" card, which we obtained from the following sources:
We designed the "Welk’óy!"/"Wélse’!" cards in Adobe Photoshop, and printed them through Smartpress via their "flashcard" printing service.
If you have questions or would like to know more about how to design your own "Go Fish!" cards, please contact us at language@ssband.org.
The "Welk’óy!" cards feature Nisenan animal names from speakers of the Valley dialect of Nisenan like SSBMI Matriarch Pamela Adams and her brother Tom Cleanso as well as speakers of the Southern Hill dialect of Nisenan like William Joseph, Ida Starkey, and Charlie Hunchup.
Valley Nisenan and Southern Hill Nisenan are very similar to one another in their words and grammar. Where these dialects differ, we typically prioritized Valley Nisenan language. Where Valley Nisenan speakers differ, we typically prioritized language from Pamela Adams.
The "Wélse’!" cards feature Northern Sierra Miwok animal names taken primarily from linguist Catherine Callaghan's Northern Sierra Miwok dictionary. Callaghan worked with several Northern Sierra Miwok speakers including Queenie Miller, Elena McCauley, and Nicolas Villa Sr.
As you play "Welk’óy!" and "Wélse’!", you may notice that many of the Nisenan and Miwok names are very similar.
For some animals, this is because Nisenan and Miwok speakers borrowed the names from one another and adapted them to the sounds of their own language. For example, Nisenan "Suuyú" and Miwok "Súyyu" (Red-Tailed Hawk) are likely related via borrowing. Many other Nisenan and Miwok words are related via borrowing, which is a common process by which all languages acquire words from neighboring languages.
For other animals, this is because the Nisenan and Miwok names imitate the call of that animal. This is called onomatopoeia, which is where the name for an animal or object is associated with the sound that it makes. Because the sound is the same, the names are similar too. For example, Nisenan "Tokk’óok’" and Miwok "Ṭókkokko" (Burrowing Owl) are similar because they both imitate Burrowing Owl's call.
Onomatopoeia is a common source of animal names in many languages. This is why some names, such as Nisenan "Kook" and Miwok "Káakulu" (Raven), are similar to the names for the same animal in other languages spoken throughout North America and even across the globe!
Still, it is important to remember that Nisenan and Miwok are different languages with their own vocabularies. Most animal names, such as Nisenan "May" and Miwok "Ṭukúunu" (Salmon) or Nisenan "Kuuyúl" and Miwok "Calákkukka" (Dragonfly) are not related.
If you have questions or would like to know more about Nisenan and Miwok similarities/differences, please contact us at language@ssband.org.
If you would like a copy of the Nisenan "Welk’óy!" and/or Miwok "Wélse’!" cards to play at home, please contact us at language@ssband.org. Please understand that supplies are limited and we cannot guarantee copies for non-SSBMI Tribal Members.
If you would like to download a copy of the Nisenan "Welk’óy!" cards which you can print at home, please click here. (instructions)
If you would like to download a copy of the Miwok "Wélse’!" cards which you can print at home, please click here. (instructions)
Webpage last updated: 2024-05-07
