ayāpēw
The Cree word for bull is ayāpēw.
ayāpēw is a noun used to refer to an uncastrated adult male bovine.
Meaning: uncastrated adult male bovine (noun)
Did you know?
- The concept of a 'bull' is a relatively recent addition to the Cree vocabulary, as bovines were introduced to the region by Europeans.
- Because Cree is an agglutinative language, a single word based on ayāpēw can be expanded with suffixes to mean 'the place where the bulls are' or 'the bull's owner'.
- The Cree language uses 'animate' and 'inanimate' categories for nouns, and ayāpēw is classified as animate because it is a living being.
Example conversation
Two people are looking at livestock in a field.
- Aᐁᠶᐄᐐᐤ ayāpēw ᓂᐊᐊᐊ ᒫᐣᐤ.ayāpēw nīwīw mānu.That bull is huge.
- Bᐁᐊᐊᐊ ᓂᐊᐊᐊ ᒫᐣᐤ.ēwīw nīwīw mānu.Yes, it is very big.
- Aᐁᠶᐄᐐᐤ ayāpēw ᓂᐊᐊᐊ ᐅᐊᐊᐊ ᐊᐊᐊ.ayāpēw nīwīw ōwīw wīw.Is the bull dangerous?
- Bᐊᐊᐊ ᓂᐊᐊᐊ ᐅᐊᐊᐊ.wīw nīwīw ōwīw.I think it is.
