'dog' vs. 'horse' in Native American languages

Why are dogs called 'little horses' in some Native American languages?

'dog' vs. 'horse' in Native American languages
Photo by Sheila Swayze / Unsplash

One of my favorite facts about Native American languages is the history of words for ‘dog’ and ‘horse’. After Europeans reintroduced the horse to North America, horses quickly became a common feature of everyday life in many Native American communities.

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Horses were originally native to North America, but went extinct sometime between 15,000–10,000 BP. See Wikipedia: “Horses in the United States” for details.