A “Presence” Paradigm in Plains Cree: Context, Form, and Content

This article considers how speakers of Plains Cree (Algonquian, western Canada) use obviation, independent vs. conjunct verb inflection, and evidentials in their speech performances, in the light of a grammatical paradigm constructed by elders from the Hobbema area. Borrowing insights from anthropological work on Cree ways of speaking, I adapt Dell Hymes’s ideas so as to better understand how Plains Cree cultural practices are embedded and expressed in the language. Recent linguistic generalizations about these Cree grammatical categories are integrated with previous work on the concept of “presence” and Cree genres; this is exemplified through detailed examination of a Plains Cree text.