Maynas (Mayna, Maina), also known as Rimachu, is a
Cahuapanan language of
Peru
Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...
. Several sources have listed it as a dialect of
Omurano, which also goes by the name ''Mayna'', but Hammarström (2011) showed that they are separate languages. Attempts have been made to link Maynas with the Jivaroan, Cahuapanan, Zaparoan, and Candoshi languages, but they have not yet been conclusive (Campbell 2012).
According to Rojas-Berscia,
the group referred to as Maynas spoke two different languages: Northern Maynas could be related to
Candoshi
Candoshi-Shapra (also known as Candoshi, Candoxi, Kandoshi, Kandozi-Chapra, and Murato) is an indigenous American language isolate, spoken by several thousand people in western South America along the Chapuli, Huitoyacu, Pastaza, and Morona rive ...
, whereas Southern Maynas clearly belongs to the
Kawapanan group.
It was once spoken between the
Nucuray River,
Chambira River, and
Pastaza River
The Pastaza River (, formerly known as the SumataraEnock, Charles Reginald (1914) ''Ecuador: its ancient and modern history, topography and natural resources, industries and social development'' Charles Scribner's sons, New Yorkpages 177–178 ) ...
.
References
Languages of Peru
Unclassified languages of South America
Extinct languages of South America
Cahuapanan languages
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