Xukuru (Xucuru, Shukurú, Ichikile, ) is a poorly attested

extinct language An extinct language or dead language is a language with no living native speakers. A dormant language is a dead language that still serves as a symbol of ethnic identity to an ethnic group; these languages are often undergoing a process of r ...

of Brazil. It was also known as ''Kirirí, Kirirí-Xokó'', and ''Ichikile''. It is known only from a few word lists and a sketch by

Geraldo Lapenda Geraldo Calábria Lapenda (December 6, 1925, in Nazaré da Mata – December 19, 2004, in Recife) was a Brazilian philologist and university professor. Lapenda is known for his extensive work on the indigenous languages of South America. He spen ...

(1962).Lapenda, Geraldo Calábria. 1962
O dialecto Xucuru
''Doxa'' (Revista Oficial do Departamento de Cultura do Diretório Acadêmico da Faculdade de Filosofia de Pernambuco da Universidade do Recife), ano X, n. 10, p. 11-23. It was originally spoken in the Serra de São José and on the Meio River,

Capibaribe River The Capibaribe River () is a river located in Pernambuco state, Brazil, with a length of 240 kilometers. The Capibaribe originates in the Serra do Jacarará, in the municipality of Poção, and flows to the Atlantic Ocean at Recife. Etymology ...

and Taperoa River in the states 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 population of 9.5 million people as of 2024, it is the List of Brazilian states by population, ...

and

Paraíba Paraíba ( , ; ) is a states of Brazil, 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 i ...

. Loukotka (1968) reports the most recent locations as the Serra Ararobá and Cimbres.

Classification

Loukotka (1968) considers Xukurú to form a small family with Paratió and Garanhus. Glottolog, following Fabre (2005), treats Xukuru and Paratió as dialects.

Distribution

(1962) reported that the Xukuru people can be found primarily in the settlements of Canabrava and Brejinho in the ''aldeia'' of Cimbres, Pesqueira municipality. They can also be found in the settlements of

Cajueiro Cajueiro is a municipality located in the western of the Brazilian state of Alagoas. Its population is 21,331 (2020) and its area is 124 km².IBGE - Its name comes from the Portuguese for the cashew tree — in the 19th century, a villa ...

, Ipanema Velho, Caldeirão, Jitó, Lagoa, Machado, Sitio do Meio, Riacho dos Afetos, Trincheiras, Bem-te-vi, Santana, and São José. Although the Xukuru traditionally occupied the Serra do Ororobá, they could also be found in other municipalities of

, namely

Caruaru Caruaru is a Brazilian Municipalities of Brazil, municipality in the States of Brazil, state of Pernambuco. The most populous city in the interior of the state, Caruaru is located in the microzone of Agreste and because of its cultural importance ...

Brejo da Madre de Deus Brejo da Madre de Deus (''Swamp of the Mother of God'') is a city located in the Federative units of Brazil, state of Pernambuco, Brazil. Located at 202 km away from Recife, capital of the state of Pernambuco. Has an estimated (Brazilian ...

Belo Jardim Belo Jardim (''Beautiful Garden'') a Brazilian municipality in the state of Pernambuco. It has an estimated population in 2020 of 76,687 and a total area of 647.7 km2. It is located at 608 meters above the sea level and 182 km away fr ...

Sanharó Sanharó is a city located in the Federative units of Brazil, state of Pernambuco, Brazil. Located at 198 km away from Recife, capital of the state of Pernambuco. Has an estimated (Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics, IBGE 2 ...

Poção Poção is a city located in the state of Pernambuco, Brazil. Located at 241 km away from Recife, capital of the state of Pernambuco. Has an estimated ( IBGE 2020) population of 11,305 inhabitants. Geography * State - Pernambuco * Regi ...

, Pesqueira, and

Arcoverde Arcoverde is a municipality in Pernambuco, Brazil. It is located in the mesoregion of '' Sertão Pernambucano''. Arcoverde has a total area of 344 km² and lies west of the capital Recife by 256 km. Arcoverde has boundaries with Paraíba to the ...

Other languages with this name

''Xukuru-Kariri'' is a variety of Xokó, which may be a Kariri language. The name ''Kiriri'' is shared by Dzubukuá, another Kariri language, and by Katembri. The name ''Kiriri-Xoko'' is shared with yet another variety of Xokó.

Phonology

Consonants

Xukuru consonants:

Vowels

Xukuru vowels: Xukuru also has nasalized vowels. Lapenda (1962) transcribes nasalized vowels as ''Vn'' (orthographic vowel followed by ''n'').

Morphology

Common suffixes in Xukuru include -''go'', which forms verbs, adjectives, and nouns, and -''men'', of uncertain meaning.

Vocabulary

Pompeu (1958)

Xucurú vocabulary from Pompeu (1958),Pompeu Sobrinho, Thomaz. 1958. ''Línguas Tapuias desconhecidas do Nordeste: Alguns vocabulários inéditos''. Boletim de Antropologia (Fortaleza-Ceará) 2. 3-19. cited from

Kurt Nimuendajú Kurt is a male given name in Germanic languages. ''Kurt'' or ''Curt'' originated as short forms of the Germanic Konrad/Conrad, depending on geographical usage, with meanings including counselor or advisor. Like Conrad, it can also a surname an ...

:Nimuendajú, Kurt. “Revista do Instituto Arqueológico, Histórico e Geográfico Pernambucano”. ns. 155, 158.Pompeu Sobrinho, Thomaz. 1958. ''Línguas Tapuias desconhecidas do Nordeste: Alguns vocabulários inéditos''. Boletim de Antropologia (Fortaleza-Ceará) 2. 3-19. : These word lists of language varieties from the

Serra do Urubá Serra (Latin for "saw") may refer to: People and fictional characters * Serra (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Serra (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Serra (footballer), Portuguese footballer Jos� ...

(also known as the Serra do Arorobá or Serra do Ororubá, located in the municipality of

Pesqueira, Pernambuco Pesqueira (formerly known as Cimbres) is a Brazilian municipality in the state of Pernambuco. It had an estimated population in 2020 according to the IBGE, of 67,735. Its area is 980.876 km2. History The municipality was created in 1762 ...

) are reproduced from Pompeu Sobrinho (1958).Pompeu Sobrinho, Thomaz. 1958. ''Línguas Tapuias desconhecidas do Nordeste: Alguns vocabulários inéditos''. Boletim de Antropologia (Fortaleza-Ceará) 2. 3-19. Vocabulary collected by José Joaquim in Rio Branco, Pernambuco of a language spoken in the

: :

Meader (1978)

Xukuru is also known from a word list elicited in 1961 by Paul Wagner from Antônio Caetano do Nascimento, the chief of Brazinho village in the Serra Urubu of

State. The list is reproduced below, with English translations also given.

Lapenda (1962)

The following Xucuru words are from

(1962). The data was collected by Raimundo Dantas Carneiro and Cícero Cavalcanti. (Xukuru also has nasalized vowels. Lapenda (1962) transcribes nasalized vowels as ''Vn'' (orthographic vowel followed by ''n'').)

Loukotka (1949)

The following Shukurú words are from Loukotka (1949). The data is from a 137-word manuscript list collected by

Curt Nimuendajú Curt Unckel Nimuendajú (born Curt Unckel; 18 April 1883 – 10 December 1945) was a German-Brazilian people, Brazilian ethnologist, anthropologist, and writer. His works are fundamental for the understanding of the religion and cosmology of some ...

in 1934 from 4 elderly semi-speakers in

. The list was obtained by Loukotka in 1940. :

Sentences

The following sentetces were recorded by Cicero Cavalcanti,which are syntactically artificial (LAPENDA - 1962, pg 21).

References

*Lapenda, Geraldo Calábria. 1962
O dialecto Xucuru
''Doxa'' (Revista Oficial do Departamento de Cultura do Diretório Acadêmico da Faculdade de Filosofia de Pernambuco da Universidade do Recife), ano X, n. 10, p. 11-23
Biblioteca Digital Curt Nimuendaju

External links

* Tarairiú Language {{South American languages Language isolates of South America Extinct languages of South America Xukuruan languages Indigenous languages of Northeastern Brazil