The Nambikwaran languages are a

language family A language family is a group of languages related through descent from a common ancestor, called the proto-language of that family. The term ''family'' is a metaphor borrowed from biology, with the tree model used in historical linguistics ...

of half a dozen languages, all spoken in the state of

Mato Grosso Mato Grosso ( – ) is one of the states of Brazil, the List of Brazilian states by area, third largest by area, located in the Central-West Region, Brazil, Central-West region. The state has 1.66% of the Brazilian population and is responsible ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

. They have traditionally been considered

dialect A dialect is a Variety (linguistics), variety of language spoken by a particular group of people. This may include dominant and standard language, standardized varieties as well as Vernacular language, vernacular, unwritten, or non-standardize ...

s of a single language, but at least three of them are mutually unintelligible. * Mamaindê (250-340) *

Nambikwara The Nambikwara (also called Nambikuára) are an indigenous people of Brazil, living in the Amazon. Currently about 1,200 Nambikwara live in indigenous territories in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso along the Guaporé and Juruena rivers. The ...

(720) * Sabanê (3) The varieties of Mamaindê are often seen as dialects of a single language but are treated as separate Northern Nambikwaran languages by ''

Ethnologue ''Ethnologue: Languages of the World'' is an annual reference publication in print and online that provides statistics and other information on the living languages of the world. It is the world's most comprehensive catalogue of languages. It w ...

''. Sabanê is a single speech community and thus has no dialects, while the

Nambikwara language Nambikwara (also called ''Nambiquara'' and ''Southern Nambiquara'', to distinguish it from '' Mamaindê'') is an indigenous language spoken by the Nambikwara, who reside on federal reserves covering approximately 50,000 square kilometres of land ...

has been described as having eleven. The total number of speakers is estimated to be about 1,000, with Nambikwara proper being 80% of that number.Nambiquaran languages
Ethnologue. Retrieved on 2012-07-29. Most Nambikwara are

monolingual Monoglottism ( Greek μόνος ''monos'', "alone, solitary", + γλῶττα , "tongue, language") or, more commonly, monolingualism or unilingualism, is the condition of being able to speak only a single language, as opposed to multilingualism. ...

but some young men speak Portuguese. Especially the men of the Sabanê group are trilingual, speaking both Portuguese and Mamainde.

Genetic relations

Price (1978) proposes a relationship with

Kanoê The Kanoê (also as the Canoe, Kapixaná and Kapixanã) are an indigenous people of southern Rondônia, Brazil, near the Bolivian border. There are two major groups of Kanoê: one residing in the region of the Guaporé River and another in the R ...

(Kapixaná), but this connection is not widely accepted.

Language contact

Jolkesky (2016) notes that there are lexical similarities with the Aikanã, Irantxe, Itonama, Kanoe, Kwaza, Peba-Yagua,

Arawak The Arawak are a group of Indigenous peoples of northern South America and of the Caribbean. The term "Arawak" has been applied at various times to different Indigenous groups, from the Lokono of South America to the Taíno (Island Arawaks), w ...

Bororo The Bororo are indigenous people of Brazil, living in the state of Mato Grosso. They also extended into Bolivia and the Brazilian state of Goiás. The Western Bororo live around the Jauru and Cabaçal rivers. The Eastern Bororo (Orarimogodoge) l ...

, and Karib language families due to contact.

Varieties

Jolkesky (2016)

Internal classification by Jolkesky (2016):Jolkesky, Marcelo Pinho De Valhery. 2016.
Estudo arqueo-ecolinguístico das terras tropicais sul-americanas
'. Ph.D. dissertation,

University of Brasília A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Uni ...

. († = extinct) * Nambikwaran ** '' Sabane'' ** Nambikwara, Northern *** Guaporé: '' Mamainde''; '' Negarote''; '' Tawende'' *** Roosevelt: '' Lakonde''; '' Latunde''; '' Tawande'' ** Nambikwara, Southern *** Alantesu: '' Alantesu''; '' Hahãintesu''; '' Waikisu''; '' Wasusu'' *** Halotesu: '' Halotesu''; '' Kithãulhu''; '' Wakalitesu''; '' Sawentesu'' *** Manduka: '' Hukuntesu''; '' Niyahlosu''; '' Siwaisu'' *** ''

Sarare Sarare is a town in the Venezuelan state of Lara. It is the seat of the Simón Planas Municipality. The town and surroundings have about 12535 inhabitants. It is located on the shores of the Sarare River, which flows into the Orinoco The Ori ...

Loukotka (1968)

Below is a full list of Nambikwaran language varieties listed by Loukotka (1968), including names of unattested varieties. * Nambikwaran ** Eastern dialects *** Tagnaní - spoken on the Castanho River (

Roosevelt River The Roosevelt River (Rio Roosevelt, sometimes Rio Teodoro) is a Brazilian river, a tributary of the Aripuanã River about in length. Course The Roosevelt River begins in the state of Rondônia and flows north through tropical rainforest. It is ...

), Mato Grosso. *** Tamaindé - spoken on the Papagaio River and Marquez de Sousa River, state of Mato Grosso. *** Neneː - spoken at the confluence of the

Juína River The Juína River is a river of Mato Grosso state in western Brazil. It is a tributary of the Juruena River. See also *List of rivers of Mato Grosso List of rivers in Mato Grosso (Brazilian State). The list is arranged by drainage basin, with r ...

and

Juruena River The Juruena River () is a long river in west-central Brazil, in the state of Mato Grosso. Course The Juruena originates in the Parecis plateau. Within Mato Grosso the river defines the eastern boundary of the Igarapés do Juruena State Park, ...

, Mato Grosso. *** Tarunde - spoken in the same region on the . ** Central dialects *** Kokozú / Uaindze / Ualíxere - spoken on the left bank of the . *** Anunze / Soálesu - spoken between the Papagaio River and

Camararé River The Camararé River () is a river of Mato Grosso state in western Brazil. It is a tributary of the Juruena River. See also *List of rivers of Mato Grosso List of rivers in Mato Grosso (Brazilian State). The list is arranged by drainage basin, ...

, Mato Grosso. *** Kongoreː - spoken on the Buriti River, Mato Grosso. *** Navaite - spoken on the

Dúvida River The Roosevelt River (Rio Roosevelt, sometimes Rio Teodoro) is a Brazilian river, a tributary of the Aripuanã River about in length. Course The Roosevelt River begins in the state of Rondônia and flows north through tropical rainforest. It is ...

, Mato Grosso. (Unattested) *** Taduté - spoken by the neighbors of the Navaite tribe on the

. ** Western dialects *** Tauité / Tawite - spoken on the

, state of Mato Grosso. *** Uaintasú / Waintazú - spoken in Mato Grosso on the right bank of the

Pimenta Bueno River The Pimenta Bueno River is a river of Rondônia state in western Brazil. See also *List of rivers of Rondônia List of rivers in Rondônia (States of Brazil, Brazilian State). The list is arranged by drainage basin, with respective tributaries ...

. (Unattested) *** Mamaindé - spoken on the Cabixi River, state of Mato Grosso. (Unattested) *** Uamandiri - spoken between the Cabixi River and Corumbiara River. (Unattested) *** Tauandé - spoken on the São Francisco Bueno River, Mato Grosso. (Unattested) *** Malondeː - spoken in the same region but exact location unknown. (Unattested) *** Unetundeː - spoken on the upper course of the

. (Unattested) *** Tapóya - language of the same region, exact location unknown. (Unattested) ** Northern dialects *** Sabané - spoken on the Ananáz River (now the Tenente Marques River) and Juína-Mirim River, state of Mato Grosso. *** Jaiá - spoken on the Ananáz River (now the Tenente Marques River). (Unattested) *** Lacondeː - spoken on the right bank of the Castanho River (

). (Unattested)

Mason Mason may refer to: Occupations * Mason, brick mason, or bricklayer, a worker who lays bricks to assist in brickwork, or who lays any combination of stones, bricks, cinder blocks, or similar pieces * Stone mason, a craftsman in the stone-cutti ...

(1950) lists the following varieties under "Nambicuara proper":

Mason (1950)

* Nambikwaran ** Northeastern *** Eastern: Cocozu *** Northeastern: Anunzé ** Southwestern *** Western: Tamaindé *** Central and Southern **** Uaintazu **** Kabishi **** Tagnani **** Tauité **** Taruté **** Tashuité Sabane is listed by Mason (1950) as "Pseudo-Nambicuara" (Northern).

Vocabulary

Loukotka (1968) lists the following basic vocabulary items for various Nambikwaran languages.

Proto-language

Proto-Nambiquara reconstructions by Price (1978):Price, D. (1978). The Nambiquara Linguistic Family. In Anthropological Linguistics, Vol. 20, No. 1, pp. 14-37. Published by: Trustees of Indiana University. Accessed fro
DiACL
9 February 2020.

Bibliography

*Costa, Januacele Francisca da; W. Leo M. Wetzels. 2008. ''Proto-Nambikwara Sound Structure''. Amsterdam: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. *Araujo, G. A. (2004). A Grammar of Sabanê: A Nambikwaran Language. Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. 94. Utrecht: LOT. *Gomes, M. A. C. F. (1991). Dicionário Mamaindé-Português/Português-Mamaindé. Cuiabá: SIL. *Kroeker, M. H. (1996). Dicionário escolar bilingüe Nambikuara-Português, Português-Nambikuara. Porto Velho: SIL. *Price, D. P. (1978). The Nambiquara Linguistic Family. Anthropological Linguistics 20:14-37.

References

{{South American languages Language families * ur:نمبیکوارائی زبانیں