Karirian Language
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The Karirí languages, generally considered dialects of a single language, were a group of languages formerly spoken by the
Kiriri people Kiriri people are indigenous people of Eastern Brazil. Their name is also spelled Cariri or Kariri and is a Tupi word meaning "silent" or "tactiturn." History The French Capuchin missionary Martin of Nantes (1638–1714) was the apostle of the ...
of Brazil. It was spoken until the middle of the 20th century; the 4,000 ethnic Kiriri are now monolingual Portuguese speakers, though a few know common phrases and names of medicinal plants.


History

After the Dutch were expelled from Northeast Brazil in the 17th century, Portuguese settlers rapidly colonized the region, forcing Kariri speakers to become widely dispersed due to forced migrations and resettlement. Hence, Kariri languages became scattered across
Paraíba Paraíba ( Tupi: ''pa'ra a'íba''; ) is a state of Brazil. It is located in the Brazilian Northeast, and it is bordered by Rio Grande do Norte to the north, Ceará to the west, Pernambuco to the south and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Paraíba ...
,
Ceará Ceará (, pronounced locally as or ) is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the northeastern part of the country, on the Atlantic coast. It is the eighth-largest Brazilian State by population and the 17th by area. It is also one of the ...
, Pernambuco, Bahia, and other states.


Languages

The four known Kariri languages are: * Kipeá (Quipea, Kariri) * Kamurú (Camuru) * Dzubukuá (Dzubucua, Kiriri) * Sabujá (Sapoyá, Pedra Branca) There are short grammatical descriptions of Kipeá and Dzubukuá, and word lists for Kamurú and Sabujá. Ribeiro established through morphological analysis that Kariri is likely to be related to the Jê languages.
Mason Mason may refer to: Occupations * Mason, brick mason, or bricklayer, a craftsman who lays bricks to construct brickwork, or who lays any combination of stones, bricks, cinder blocks, or similar pieces * Stone mason, a craftsman in the stone-cut ...
(1950) lists: *Cariri ** Kipea ** Camurú ** Dzubucua ** Pedra Branca * Sapuya


Varieties

Below is a full list of Kiriri languages and dialects listed by Loukotka (1968), including names of unattested varieties. *Kariri / Quipea / Cariri - originally spoken in the Serra dos Velhos, Paraíba state, later at the old missions of
Missão Velha Missão Velha is a municipality in the state of Ceará in the Northeast region of Brazil. See also *List of municipalities in Ceará This is a list of the municipalities in the state of Ceará (CE), located in the Northeast Region of Brazil. ...
, Missão Nova, Milagres, Crato, and others, in the states of Paraíba, Pernambuco and Ceará. Now entirely extinct, and the survivors speak only Portuguese. *Kiriri / Dzubucua / Quiriri - extinct language once spoken on the islands of the
São Francisco River The São Francisco River (, ) is a large river in Brazil. With a length of , it is the longest river that runs entirely in Brazilian territory, and the fourth longest in South America and overall in Brazil (after the Amazon, the Paraná and t ...
near
Cabrobó Cabrobó is a city in the Brazilian state of Pernambuco, 536 km away from the state's capital, Recife. The city is located just to the north of a section of the São Francisco River that contains many archipelagos. History The Truká peop ...
, Pernambuco. Now extinct, and the last survivors spoke only Portuguese. * Sapuyá / Sabuya - extinct language originally spoken in the Serra Chapada, later in Caranguejo, Bahia * Kamurú - originally spoken on the Pardo River and in Pedra Branca; the last survivors on the
Gongogi River The Gongogi River (Portuguese: Rio Gongoji) is a river of Bahia state in eastern Brazil. It flows through the municipalities of Gongogi, Nova Canaã, Iguaí, and Itagibá. It empties into the De Contas River See also *List of rivers of Bahia ...
spoke only Portuguese. ;Unattested varieties *Iñamum - once spoken on the Inhamum Island of the
São Francisco River The São Francisco River (, ) is a large river in Brazil. With a length of , it is the longest river that runs entirely in Brazilian territory, and the fourth longest in South America and overall in Brazil (after the Amazon, the Paraná and t ...
, Pernambuco. (Unattested) *Quesque - once spoken on the
Pajeú River The Pajeú River is a tributary of the São Francisco River in the state of Pernambuco Pernambuco () is a States of Brazil, state of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast region of the country. With an estimated popula ...
, state of Pernambuco. (Unattested) *Abacatiara - once spoken on an island in the
São Francisco River The São Francisco River (, ) is a large river in Brazil. With a length of , it is the longest river that runs entirely in Brazilian territory, and the fourth longest in South America and overall in Brazil (after the Amazon, the Paraná and t ...
, Pernambuco. (Unattested) *Icozinho - once spoken around the confluence of the Salgado River and
Jaguaribe River The Jaguaribe River is a highly seasonal river in Ceará state of northeastern Brazil. Two large dams were constructed across the Jaguaribe, the Orós Dam, completed in 1960, and the Castanhão Dam, completed in 2003. The Castanhão Dam flooded th ...
, Ceará. (Unattested) *Icó - once spoken between the Salgado River,
Piranhas River The Piranhas River ( pt, Rio Piranhas-Açu), also known as the Açu River, is a river of northeastern Brazil. It originates in southeastern Paraíba state, near the border with Ceará, and flows north-northeast through Paraíba and Rio Grande do ...
and Peixe River, Ceará. (Unattested) *Calabaça - the Portuguese name of an extinct language of the Salgado River, Ceará. (Unattested) *Cariú - once spoken between the Cariús River and Bastiões River, Ceará. (Unattested) *Corema - formerly spoken on the
Piancó River The Piancó River is a river of Paraíba state in northeastern Brazil. See also *List of rivers of Paraíba A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List College, ...
, state of Paraíba. (Unattested) *Jucá - once spoken south of the sources of the
Jaguaribe River The Jaguaribe River is a highly seasonal river in Ceará state of northeastern Brazil. Two large dams were constructed across the Jaguaribe, the Orós Dam, completed in 1960, and the Castanhão Dam, completed in 2003. The Castanhão Dam flooded th ...
and near Arneiroz, Ceará. (Unattested) *Ichú / Ansus - once spoken on the sources of the Salgado River in the state of Ceará. (Unattested) *Ariú / Peba - extinct language formerly spoken on the
Piranhas River The Piranhas River ( pt, Rio Piranhas-Açu), also known as the Açu River, is a river of northeastern Brazil. It originates in southeastern Paraíba state, near the border with Ceará, and flows north-northeast through Paraíba and Rio Grande do ...
and
Sabugi River The Sabugi River is a river of Paraíba and Rio Grande do Norte states in northeastern Brazil. See also *List of rivers of Paraíba *List of rivers of Rio Grande do Norte List of rivers in Rio Grande do Norte (Brazilian State). The list is arr ...
in the state of Paraíba. (Unattested) *Bultrin - extinct language of the
Serra da Borborema The Borborema Plateau (Portuguese ''Planalto da Borborema'', also known as the ''Serra da Borborema'') is a plateau in northeastern Brazil which extends across the states of Pernambuco, Paraíba, and Rio Grande do Norte. The plateau is the northea ...
of the state of Paraíba. (Unattested) *Quixexeu - once spoken on the
Jaguaribe River The Jaguaribe River is a highly seasonal river in Ceará state of northeastern Brazil. Two large dams were constructed across the Jaguaribe, the Orós Dam, completed in 1960, and the Castanhão Dam, completed in 2003. The Castanhão Dam flooded th ...
, Ceará. (Unattested) *Quixelu - once spoken on the
Jaguaribe River The Jaguaribe River is a highly seasonal river in Ceará state of northeastern Brazil. Two large dams were constructed across the Jaguaribe, the Orós Dam, completed in 1960, and the Castanhão Dam, completed in 2003. The Castanhão Dam flooded th ...
, Ceará. (Unattested) *Aracapa - extinct language once spoken on Aracapa Island in the
São Francisco River The São Francisco River (, ) is a large river in Brazil. With a length of , it is the longest river that runs entirely in Brazilian territory, and the fourth longest in South America and overall in Brazil (after the Amazon, the Paraná and t ...
, Pernambuco. (Unattested) ''Tumbalalá'', now extinct, is an unattested and unclassified language, but words for Tumbalalá ritual objects used in their traditional '' toré'' religion appear to be of Kariri origin, namely ''pujá'', ''kwaqui'', and ''cataioba''.


Other languages called 'Kariri'

The names ''Kariri'' and ''Kiriri'' were applied to many peoples over a wide area in the east of Brazil, in the lower and middle
São Francisco River The São Francisco River (, ) is a large river in Brazil. With a length of , it is the longest river that runs entirely in Brazilian territory, and the fourth longest in South America and overall in Brazil (after the Amazon, the Paraná and t ...
area and further north. Most of their now-extinct languages are too poorly known to classify, but what is recorded does not suggest that they were all members of the Kariri family. Examples are: * Katembri (''Kiriri, Kariri, Kariri de
Mirandela Mirandela () is a city and a municipality in northeastern Portugal. The city itself has a population of about 15,000. The population of the municipality in 2011 was 23,850, in an area of 658.96 km². Mirandela is famous for its cuisine, part ...
'' ear Banzaê and Quijingue">Banzaê.html" ;"title="ear Banzaê">ear Banzaê and Quijingue in Bahia]) **Kaufman (1990) classified it as Katembri–Taruma languages, Katembri–Taruma. *Xukuru language, Xukurú (''Kirirí, Kirirí-Xokó'' [in the Serra do Urubá of Pesqueira, Pernambuco]) **Loukotka (1968) says this forms a Xukuru languages, small family with Paratió. * Xocó (''Xokó, Chocó'' n Sergipe">Sergipe.html" ;"title="n Sergipe">n Sergipe ''Kariri-Xocó, Kariri-Shoko, Cariri-Chocó'' [in Alagoas], ''Xukuru-Kariri, Xucuru-Kariri, Xucuru-Cariri'' [in Alagoas]) **Three populations. Not clear if this was one language or three. In the
Porto Real do Colégio Porto Real do Colégio is a municipality located in the Brazilian state of Alagoas. Former indigenous languages The unclassified extinct Wakoná language was formerly spoken in Penedo. Loukotka (1968) reported that the remaining ethnic descendants ...
and
Palmeira dos Índios Palmeira dos Índios is a municipality located in the western of the Brazilian state of Alagoas. , it has a population of around 70,000. The city is situated in the interior of Alagoas. The Brazilian writer Graciliano Ramos was its mayor in 1927. ...
areas of Alagoas. Other nearby
language isolate Language isolates are languages that cannot be classified into larger language families. Korean and Basque are two of the most common examples. Other language isolates include Ainu in Asia, Sandawe in Africa, and Haida in North America. The num ...
s and language families: * Natú (in the area of
Porto Real do Colégio Porto Real do Colégio is a municipality located in the Brazilian state of Alagoas. Former indigenous languages The unclassified extinct Wakoná language was formerly spoken in Penedo. Loukotka (1968) reported that the remaining ethnic descendants ...
, Alagoas) * Wakoná (Aconã) (in Penedo, Alagoas) (unattested) * Wasu (in Joaquim Gomes, Alagoas) (unattested) * Pankararú (in
Brejo dos Padres Tacaratu is a municipality in the state of Pernambuco, Brazil. The population in 2020, according with IBGE is 26,106 and the area is 1264.5 km2. Demographics The indigenous Pankararú people live in Brejo dos Padres and other villages of Ta ...
, Tacaratu, Pernambuco) * Tuxá (in
Rodelas Rodelas is a municipality in the state of Bahia in the North-East region of Brazil. Geography The municipality contains part of the Raso da Catarina Ecological Station, created in 2001. The municipality was designated a priority area for conserv ...
, Bahia) * Truká (in
Cabrobó Cabrobó is a city in the Brazilian state of Pernambuco, 536 km away from the state's capital, Recife. The city is located just to the north of a section of the São Francisco River that contains many archipelagos. History The Truká peop ...
, Pernambuco) (unattested) * Kapinawá (in
Buíque Buíque is a Brazilian municipality in the state of Pernambuco, mesoregion of Agreste. It has an estimated population of 58,919 in a total area of 1345,1 km2. The Kapinawá Indigenous Reserve is located in the municipality of Buíque. His ...
, Pernambuco) (unattested) * Wamoé (Atikum) (in the
Serra Negra Serra Negra is a municipality in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. It belongs to the meso-region of Campinas. Population (2020) was 29,452 inhabitants. Total area: 203,5 km2, demographic density: 112 inhabitants/km2 Location The name of th ...
of Pernambuco and surroundings) * Kambiwá (in Barreira,
Petrolândia Petrolândia (''Petroland'', named in honour of Dom Pedro II) is a municipality in the state of Pernambuco, Brazil. It is in the São Francisco Region. Petrolândia has a total area of 1056.6 square kilometers and had an estimated population of 3 ...
, Pernambuco) * Yaté (Fulniô) (in
Águas Belas Águas Belas (literally ''Beautiful Waters'') is a Brazilian municipality in the state of Pernambuco. History The region where Águas Belas is located was originally inhabited by the Tupiniquim, who were expelled by the Carnijó tribe. The first ...
, Pernambuco) * Baenan (near
Itaju Itaju is a municipality in the state of São Paulo in Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million ...
, Bahia) * Kaimbé (in Caimbé, Euclides da Cunha, Bahia) *
Kamakã languages The Kamakã languages are a small family of extinct Macro-Jê languages of Bahía, northeastern Brazil. The attested Kamakã languages are: * (northern) Kamakã (dialects: Mongoyó/Mangaló), Kotoxó, Menién * (southern) Masakará Varietie ...
(in Bahia and Minas Gerais states) ** Masakará (in Massacará, Euclides da Cunha, Bahia and Mirandela,
Banzaê Banzaê is a municipality in the state of Bahia in the North-East region of Brazil. Indigenous communities Seven indigenous communities were set up in 1990, namely (Mirandela) Sacão, Cacimba Seca, Canta-Galo, Lagoa Grande, Baixa da Cangalha, M ...
, Bahia) * Tarairiú (in Rio Grande do Norte and
Ceará Ceará (, pronounced locally as or ) is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the northeastern part of the country, on the Atlantic coast. It is the eighth-largest Brazilian State by population and the 17th by area. It is also one of the ...
states) *
Tremembé Tremembé is a municipality in the state of São Paulo in Brazil. It is part of the Metropolitan Region of Vale do Paraíba e Litoral Norte. The population is 47,714 (2020 est.) in an area of 191.09 km². The elevation is 560 m. A shr ...
(in
Ceará Ceará (, pronounced locally as or ) is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the northeastern part of the country, on the Atlantic coast. It is the eighth-largest Brazilian State by population and the 17th by area. It is also one of the ...
and surroundings) (unattested) * Gamela (in
Viana, Maranhão Viana is a municipality in the state of Maranhão in the Northeast region of Brazil. Languages The Gamela language was spoken in the municipality of Viana. Geography The municipality contains a small part of the Baixada Maranhense Environmental ...
) The Maxakalían, Krenák (Botocudo, Aimoré), and Purían families, which are probable
Macro-Jê languages Macro-Jê (also spelled Macro-Gê) is a medium-sized language stock in South America, mostly in Brazil but also in the Chiquitanía region in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, as well as (formerly) in small parts of Argentina and Paraguay. It is centered o ...
, are spoken further to the south in
Espirito Santo ''Espirito'' (Brazilian for "Spirit") is the second album by Lawson Rollins. Rollins composed all of the music and co-produced the album with Persian-American musician and producer Shahin Shahida (of Shahin & Sepehr) and multi-platinum producer Do ...
and Minas Gerais states.


Language contact

Ramirez et al. (2015) notes that Kariri languages display some lexical similarities with
Cariban languages The Cariban languages are a family of languages indigenous to northeastern South America. They are widespread across northernmost South America, from the mouth of the Amazon River to the Colombian Andes, and they are also spoken in small pocke ...
. Similarities with Katembri (also known as ''Kariri of Mirandela'' or ''Kaimbé'') may be due to either a Kariri superstratum or substratum in Katembri.Ramirez, H., Vegini, V., & França, M. C. V. de. (2015)
Koropó, puri, kamakã e outras línguas do Leste Brasileiro
''LIAMES: Línguas Indígenas Americanas'', 15(2), 223 - 277.


Syntax

Unlike most
Macro-Jê languages Macro-Jê (also spelled Macro-Gê) is a medium-sized language stock in South America, mostly in Brazil but also in the Chiquitanía region in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, as well as (formerly) in small parts of Argentina and Paraguay. It is centered o ...
which are SOV, Karirí languages are verb-initial and make use of prepositions.Ribeiro, Eduardo Rivail. ''On the inclusion of the Karirí family in the Macro-Jê stock: additional evidence''. Paper presented at SSILA 2011 (Pittsburgh), January 7, 2011.


Vocabulary

Loukotka (1968) lists the following basic vocabulary items for the Kariri languages. : Kiriri word list recorded by Wilbur Pickering in 1961 from João Manoel Domingo of Mirandela,
Banzaê Banzaê is a municipality in the state of Bahia in the North-East region of Brazil. Indigenous communities Seven indigenous communities were set up in 1990, namely (Mirandela) Sacão, Cacimba Seca, Canta-Galo, Lagoa Grande, Baixa da Cangalha, M ...
, Bahia: :


Loanwords

Eastern Macro-Jê loanwords in Kariri languages: : Tupinambá loanwords in Kariri languages: : Portuguese loanwords in Kariri languages borrowed via Tupinambá and other intermediate sources: :


Further reading

*Rodrigues, A. D. (1942). O Artigo Definido e os Numerais na Língua Kiriri. Arquivos do Museu Paranaense, 2:179-212.


References


Notes

*Ribeiro, Eduardo. (2002) 'O marcador de posse alienavel em Kariri: um morfema macro-je revisitado'. ''Revista Liames,'' 2: 31-48. *Fabre, Alain. 2005. ''Diccionario etnolingüístico y guía bibliográfica de los pueblos indígenas sudamericanos: KARIRI

{{South American languages Kariri languages, Macro-Jê languages Indigenous languages of Northeastern Brazil Extinct languages of South America Language families