The Tapajó language is an extinct and unclassified language. In the 1660s, it, along with the language of the neighboring Urucucú, was used for

catechism A catechism (; from , "to teach orally") is a summary or exposition of Catholic theology, doctrine and serves as a learning introduction to the Sacraments traditionally used in catechesis, or Christian religious teaching of children and adult co ...

, as the people did not speak Tupinamba ( Lingua geral). Records of the language have been lost. All that remain are three names: ''Tapajó'' as the name of the tribe, the name of their chief, ''Orucurá'', and ''Aura'', which was identified with the Christian devil. These names cannot be explained as Tupi and nothing appears to have been preserved of the neighboring Urucucú language. The Tapajós river is named after the Tapajó people.

References

Extinct languages of South America Unclassified languages of South America {{South American languages