Date: Fri, 18 Nov 1994 12:48:38 CST

From: salikoko mufwene mufw[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]MIDWAY.UCHICAGO.EDU

Subject: Re: Suwanee



In Message Fri, 18 Nov 1994 12:23:00 EDT,

"David A. Johns" DJOHNS%UFPINE[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]uicvm.uic.edu writes:



Our library just got a copy of Joseph E. Holloway's _The African

Heritage of American English (Indiana U. P., 1993). _Suwanee_ is

listed under both Georgia and Florida place names as possibly of

African origin. On page 115-116 they suggest that it could have come

from Bantu _nsub-wanyi_ 'my house'.



Use this infamous book at your own risk! Should you read my review of it

in the AMERICAN ANTHROPOLOGIST 96.477-478 (1993), please remember that I

originally characterized the authors as zealots who have ignored what has

been learned on African contributions to African-American language

varieties since Lorenzo Turner's (1949) AFRICANISMS IN THE GULLAH DIALECT.

The Editor changed the wording to something less strong. I also say that

"Turner himself would have been embarrassed by the uncritical use of his

methodology" in the piece dedicated to him. Some time later, Michael

Montgomery told me, justifiably, that I had been too kind to Holloway and

Vass. Victor Manfredi actually found it worthwhile tearing the work apart in

his very elaborate review to appear in... Oops! I have misplaced the

manuscript, fortunately after reading it.

Sali.

Salikoko S. Mufwene

University of Chicago

Dept. of Linguistics

1010 East 59th Street

Chicago, IL 60637

s-mufwene[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]uchicago.edu

312-702-8531; fax: 312-702-9861