Eyay Verbs
Eyay verbs are idioms that describe the state of a person's heart as a way to convey how they are feeling. Eyay means "his heart", as in one's metaphorical center of emotion. In some dialects, it can literally mean one's "heart" or "chest", but in Mesa Grande it is usually meant figuratively, with the actual physical heart being called iichih "his chest, heart, lungs".
To inflect eyay verbs for person, one only needs to change the prefix on eyay as needed, with '- (glottal stop) for first person and m- for second person, indicating whose heart it is. The verb part always stays in third person, as its subject is always the word eyay. For example:
Eyay 'ehan. His heart is good. He is happy.
Meyay 'ehan. Your heart is good. You are happy.
'Eyay 'ehan. My heart is good. I am happy. (This is also a way of saying "thank you")
Here is a list of eyay verbs:
To inflect eyay verbs for person, one only needs to change the prefix on eyay as needed, with '- (glottal stop) for first person and m- for second person, indicating whose heart it is. The verb part always stays in third person, as its subject is always the word eyay. For example:
Eyay 'ehan. His heart is good. He is happy.
Meyay 'ehan. Your heart is good. You are happy.
'Eyay 'ehan. My heart is good. I am happy. (This is also a way of saying "thank you")
Here is a list of eyay verbs:
From Mesa Grande:
'Iipay Aa:
Eyay 'ehan
Eyay wellich Eyay hwattehwatt wii Eyay sakesak wii Eyay kwilkwil wii |
Literal translation:
His heart is good
His heart is bad His heart is red all over His heart is itchy His heart goes round and round |
Meaning:
is glad, happy
is sad, feels bad is angry, provoked, very annoyed is anxious, nervous feels very weak |
From other dialects:
'Iipay Aa:
Eyay wellich
Eyay hwattehwatt wii Eyay saksak Eyay hwam Eyay melekwil Eyay uukull Eyay werap Eyay aakatt Yay wax maaw Yay kwiny Yaykwa'xan Yay xantuk Yay shuupitt Yay mat shema Iichach yay shuupitt Yay mat uwiiw Yay maat wesaaw Yay nye'mich Yay puum Yay wenak Yaynaak wii Yaytaanak Yay wemaaw |
Literal translation:
His heart is bad
His heart is reddish His heart is itchy ? ? His heart is pulled out His heart hurts His heart is cut His heart is not there ? His heart is a good one His heart is straight His heart is closed His heart falls asleep His heart is closed to his mind His heart goes against itself His heart eats itself His heart is something else ? His heart rests His heart rests? His heart sits him down? His heart is nonexistent |
Meaning:
is upset, feels sad, faint, sorry
is nervous is angry, irritated, disappointed, impatient his heart is not in it does not feel good has a heart attack has heartache, his heart aches is heartbroken his heart is not in it, he is unwilling he is unwilling to put effort into it is a good-hearted person is at ease, at peace, calm forgets is, acts crazy, loses his mind temporarily, is forgetful he "forgets his mind", loses his mind harms oneself by trying to harm another talks in a self-aggrandizing way his mind is someplace else, can't think straight calms down calms down is calm, contented is calm, at peace, relieved is out of his mind, drunk, can't think straight |
Crossing dialects
As you can see, other dialects of Kumeyaay have a wide array of expressions with eyay, as well as some different meanings for the same word. It is possible that Mesa Grande speakers were familiar with some of these expressions, but they never made it into the Mesa Grande dictionary. For eyay verbs with a clear literal translation, one could potentially translate these expressions into the Mesa Grande way of speaking so that one could use them while speaking in a way consistent with the Mesa Grande dialect. Here are some proposed adaptations:
'Iipay Aa:
|
Literal translation:
|
Meaning:
|
Eyay ewaah umaaw
Eyay kwa'han Eyay halettuk Eyay shuupitt Iichach eyay shuupitt Eyay hemaa Eyay mat uuniiw Eyay mat wesaaw Eyay 'ehin or purp Eyay wenak Eyay etaanak Eyay umaaw |
His heart is not there
His heart is a good one His heart is straight His heart is closed His heart is closed to his mind His heart falls asleep His mind goes against itself His heart eats itself His heart is different His heart sits down, rests His heart sits him down His heart is nonexistent |
his heart is not in it
is a good-hearted person is at ease (eyay hantuk is also close enough) forgets loses his mind acts crazy, is forgetful, loses mind temporarily harms oneself by trying to harm another talks in a self-aggrandizing way his mind is somewhere else calms down is calm, at peace, relieved is out of his mind, drunk, can't think straight |
Plurals
While there is no plural for eyay, some eyay verbs can have plural forms if the verb portion is a regular verb with a plural form. These include:
Eyay 'ehaan. Their hearts are good. They are glad.
Eyay welliich. Their hearts are bad. They are sad.
Eyay weraap. Their hearts ache.
Eyay achekaat. Their hearts are cut. They are heartbroken.
Eyay nyewayh umaaw. Their hearts are not there. Their heart is not in it.
Eyay shetepiitt. Their hearts are closed. They forget.
Eyay pehemach. Their hearts fall asleep. They act crazy, lose their mind temporarily.
Eyay mat ucheniw. Their hearts go against themselves. They harm themselves trying to harm someone else.
Eyay mat wesuw. Their hearts eat themselves. They talk in such a way to make themselves look better.
Eyay penak. Their hearts rest. They calm down.
Eyay 'ehaan. Their hearts are good. They are glad.
Eyay welliich. Their hearts are bad. They are sad.
Eyay weraap. Their hearts ache.
Eyay achekaat. Their hearts are cut. They are heartbroken.
Eyay nyewayh umaaw. Their hearts are not there. Their heart is not in it.
Eyay shetepiitt. Their hearts are closed. They forget.
Eyay pehemach. Their hearts fall asleep. They act crazy, lose their mind temporarily.
Eyay mat ucheniw. Their hearts go against themselves. They harm themselves trying to harm someone else.
Eyay mat wesuw. Their hearts eat themselves. They talk in such a way to make themselves look better.
Eyay penak. Their hearts rest. They calm down.