Note 137 — SENECA FICTION, LEGENDS, AND MYTHS (continued 9)

Skahnowa is correctly written Skăʼnōʹwā, which is not the usual Seneca form of the name. Hăʼnōʹwā is the customary form of this word denoting the turtle. But the text form is that employed in proper names. The initial s-sound is an intensive affix which is explained in note 136. The following kă is the zoic pronominal affix of the singular third person, meaning, “it” or “its.” And -ʼnōwā is the noun stem, denoting “the carapace of the turtle.” The whole means, “Its carapace (is) very great,” freely, “It is the-great-turtle.” The initial hă of the customary form is the anthropic pronominal affix of the singular masculine third person, meaning “he.”