Pronouns are any word, such as I, she, he, you, it, we, or they, in a language that are used as substitutes for nouns, such as objects, people, things, possessions, etc.

​

There are many types of pronouns, such as:

Demonstrative pronouns (distinguishing one thing from another) are this, that, these, those.

Examples:

"This beaded necklace belongs to that woman."

"These frybread are for those dancers."

​

Indefinite pronouns (unspecified things that are counted or unable to be counted) are some-, any-, every-, or no- in combination with -thing, -one, -where, or -body​​.​

Examples:​​

"Someone ate everything in refrigerator. Who is it?"

"A vacation anywhere is fine with everybody."

 

Interrogative pronouns (asks a questions) are who, what, when, where, or why.

Examples:

"Who is that person?"

"Why did tewá:ken by that and where did he by it at?

"Notonanan! What ceremony are we going to and where is it at?

There are more types of pronouns and we encourage you to learn more about them.

​

People also use pronouns in how they refer to themselves, to other people, and how they want people to refer to them.

​

Personal pronouns (used in place of a specific person or thing) are she, her, he, him, they, their, ze, zir and more.

Examples:

"My cheii sang one of his songs that his grandfather taught him."

"Uŋčí showed her shawl to the family that she inherited from her mother."

"The taco vendor cooked all of their foods that they prepped and people thanked them."

"My relative bought blankets for zir niblings and ze was excited. Gift giving is zirs specialty."

​

Reflexive pronouns (refers to another noun or pronoun within the same sentence) end in -self or -selves.

Examples:

"My cheii introduced himself to the audience."

"Uŋčí was proud of herself for showing family heirlooms."

"The taco vendor and their family keep their delicious recipes to themselves.

"My relative finally got a day to relax to zirself."