Daniel G. (Daniel Garrison) Brinton
Notes on the Mangue: An Extinct Dialect Formerly Spoken in Nicaragua
"Notes on the Mangue: An Extinct Dialect Formerly Spoken in Nicaragua" by Daniel G. Brinton, M.D. is a scientific publication written in the late 19th century. The book provides an in-depth examination of the Mangue language, an extinct dialect that was once spoken by a group of indigenous people in Nicaragua. With a focus on linguistic features, social history, and cultural context, Brinton aims to preserve the remnants of a language that has disappeared. The content of the book is a scholarly effort to document the vocabulary and structural characteristics of the Mangue language, based on the notes and resources gathered from earlier researchers, including the incomplete works of Don Juan Eligio de la Rocha and Dr. C. H. Berendt. Brinton emphasizes the collaborative nature of linguistic fieldwork, detailing the challenges faced in collecting words and phrases from the last speakers of the dialect. The book includes a vocabulary list, analyzes phonetics, and discusses grammatical structure, while also touching upon the cultural and historical implications of the language’s extinction. Through this study, Brinton contributes to our understanding of the connection between language and identity among the Mangué people, as well as its significance in the broader context of Nicaraguan ethnology.