Kagwahiva language

Kawahíva (Kawahíb, Kagwahib) is a Tupi–Guarani dialect cluster of Brazil. The major variety is Tenharim.

The Tenharim (self-designation, Pyri 'near, together'), Parintintín, Jiahúi, Amondawa, Karipúna (not to be confused with neither the Panoan group, nor the Carib-based creole spoken in the state of Amapá, which all have the same name), Uru-eu-wau-wau (self-designation, Jupaú), Júma, Piripkúra, and Capivarí all call themselves Kawahíva. Their speech is mutually intelligible, and also similar with other languages now extinct. The closest Tupí-Guaraní language seems to be Apiaká, spoken in Mato Grosso.

Varieties

There are different internal classifications of the pan-Kawahíwa, which differ in, e.g., whether Kayabí and Apiaká should be included as part of the dialectal cluster. The one listed in Aguilar (2013, 2018) follows:

Languages spoken in north-central Rondônia are Karipúna, Uru-eu-wau-wau (Jupaú), Amondawa, and unidentified varieties by some isolated groups. Languages spoken in northeastern Mato Grosso and southern Pará are Apiaká, Kayabí, Piripkúra, and unidentified varieties by some isolated groups.

Phonology

Tenharim dialect

Phonemic inventory of the Tenharim/Uruewawau dialect:

  • /a, ã/ are heard as [ə, ə̃] in unstressed syllables.
  • /ɲ/ can be heard as [j] when in unstressed positions.
  • /β/ can also be heard as [w] in the Uruewawau dialect.

Júma dialect

Phonemic inventory of the Júma dialect:

References

Further reading

  • dos Santos, W. N. (2024). Topics on the syntax of Kawahíva: A Tupí-Guaraní language from the Brazilian Amazon. Doctor's Thesis. University of California, Berkeley. Retrieved from https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7n3020c1
  • Lev, Michael; Stark, Tammy; Chang, Will (2012). "Phonological inventory of Tenharim". The South American Phonological Inventory Database (version 1.1.3 ed.). Berkeley: University of California: Survey of California and Other Indian Languages Digital Resource.
  • Lev, Michael; Stark, Tammy; Chang, Will (2012). "Phonological inventory of Júma". The South American Phonological Inventory Database (version 1.1.3 ed.). Berkeley: University of California: Survey of California and Other Indian Languages Digital Resource.
  • Portal Japiim (online dictionary)
Uses material from the Wikipedia article Kagwahiva language, released under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license.