Heart

Southern Uto-Aztecan words for "heart", fall into two groups: those based on *sura and those based on *hikwɨyawa. The forms are not neatly grouped, and indeed several groups have reflexes of both proto-forms, making it necessary to reconstruct both roots for PSUA.

Heart and Breath: In SUA and in PUA, words for "heart" are semantically related to words for "breath" and "life": Stubbs 2011#302 gives *hikwis "breath, spirit, heart"; VVH:140 give *hikwɨ(sɨ) "to breathe" from cognates in Tohono O'odham (ʔíibhɨ), Hopi (híkwsɨ) and Raramuri (iwí). In Nahuatl we see that both the word for "breath" and for "heart" as well as for "to live" are derived from the proto-Corachol-Nahua root *hiyaori, attesting to the cultural and semantic association between these words, also later on in the development of the SUA languages.

This suggests that these roots participate in a semantic complex of words related generally to "life force", "soul", "animating principle". It seems this force has been located at different times and among different groups in the breath or in the heart. Also words for "blood" and "liver" participate in this complex, though they seem to be more related to "thought" and "emotions".

*sura

Tepiman

Proto-Tepiman: *hura

Nevome: huura-di

Northern Tepehuán: úra

Southern Tepehuán: hur

Sonoran

proto-Sonoran *sura

Mayo: suula

Guarijío: sulá

Tarahumaran: surá

Cora?

• xáijnyu'kari (Muñiz); xaíjnyu'ucari (Casad)

*hikwɨyawa

Tepiman

• 'ibɨdaga < *híkwɨyáwa

Ópatan

• Eudeve: híbes

Cahitan

• hiapsi < *híyáwri

Nahuan

• yo:l < *iyáuri

Coracholan

• (i)yauri

ruuri < *yuuri

iyaari

Development

PSUA *híkwɨyáwa

Tepiman *'ibɨdaga "?"

Sonoran: *hiyawari < *hikwyawa-ri

Cahitan hiapsi "heart" < *hiyaw-ri

Corachol-Nahuan *hiyao-ri

Coracholan: *iyau-ri

Wixárika iyaa-ri "heart, soul"

Náayeri ruu-ri "heart", "life"

Nahuan *yo:li "life" < *yao-ri "heart"

/yo:llo:/ < yo:l-yo:- "heart"

/yo:lloh/ < yo:l-yoh- "heart"

Nahuan ihiyo: "breath"