Guaicuruan is a language family

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' comes from the tree model of language origination in historical linguistics, which makes use of a metaphor comparing languages to people in a...

 spoken in northern Argentina

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

, western Paraguay

Paraguay

Paraguay , officially the Republic of Paraguay , is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the east and northeast, and Bolivia to the northwest. Paraguay lies on both banks of the Paraguay River, which runs through the center of the...

, and Brazil

Brazil

Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

 (Mato Grosso do Sul

Mato Grosso do Sul

Mato Grosso do Sul is one of the states of Brazil.Neighboring Brazilian states are Mato Grosso, Goiás, Minas Gerais, São Paulo and Paraná. It also borders the countries of Paraguay and Bolivia to the west. The economy of the state is largely based on agriculture and cattle-raising...

).

Family division

Guaicuruan/Waikurúan languages are often classified as follows:

• Kadiweu
  Kadiweu language
  Kadiweu is a Mataco–Guaicuru language spoken by 1,200-1,800 people in Brazil. It is mainly a subject–verb–object language and its ISO 639-3 code is kbc....
  
  (also known as Caduveo, Kadiwéu, Mbayá-Guaycuru, Mbayá, Guaicurú, Waikurú, Ediu-Adig)
• Southern Guaicuruan
  • Pilagá (also known as Pilacá)
  • Toba (also known as Qom, Chaco Sur, Namqom)
  • Mocoví
    Mocovi language
    The Mocoví language is a Guaicuruan language of Argentina spoken by about 4,500 people mostly in Santa Fé province.- External links :**http://www.mpi.nl/DOBES/INFOpages/Posters/Argentina/Argentina.pdf*http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/10412b.htm...
    
    (also known as Mbocobí, Mokoví, Moqoyt)
  • Abipón
    Abipón language
    The Abipón language was a native American language of the Mataco–Guaycuru family that was at one time spoken in Argentina by the Abipón people. Its last speaker is thought to have died in the 19th century.-Consonants:- Vowels :-Bibliography:...
    
    (also known as Callaga, Kalyaga, Abipon) (†)
• Eastern Guaicuruan
  • Guachí (also known as Wachí) (†)
  • Payaguá (also known as Payawá) (†)

Abipón, Guachí, and Payaguá all are extinct

Extinct language

An extinct language is a language that no longer has any speakers., or that is no longer in current use. Extinct languages are sometimes contrasted with dead languages, which are still known and used in special contexts in written form, but not as ordinary spoken languages for everyday communication...

.

Harriet Klein argues against the assumption that Kadiweu is Guaicuruan. Most others accept the inclusion of Kadiweu into the family.

• Toba is spoken in the eastern part of the Chaco and Formosa provinces of Argentina, in southern Paraguay, and in the eastern part of Bolivia; there are approximately 25,000 speakers. The Guaicuruan Toba language here should not be confused with the Mascoy language of the Mascoyan family which is also called Toba (or Toba-Emok, Toba-Maskoy).
• Pilagá, with about 4,000 speakers, is spoken in the northeastern part of Chaco province, and in eastern Formosa, Argentina;
• Mocoví, with about 7,000 speakers, is spoken in Argentina in the northern part of Santa Fe and southern Chaco provinces.
• Abipón, which was spoken in the eastern part of Chaco province, Argentina, is now extinct and was very closely related to the other languages in the southern branch

Genetic relations

Jorge Suárez includes Guaicuruan with Charruan

Charruan languages

The Charruan languages are an extinct group of languages once spoken in Uruguay and the Argentine province of Entre Ríos. Recently a semi-speaker of Chaná language has appeared...

 in a hypothetical Waikuru-Charrúa stock.

Morris Swadesh

Morris Swadesh

Morris Swadesh was an influential and controversial American linguist. In his work, he applied basic concepts in historical linguistics to the Indigenous languages of the Americas...

 includes Guaicuruan along with Matacoan, Charruan

Charruan languages

The Charruan languages are an extinct group of languages once spoken in Uruguay and the Argentine province of Entre Ríos. Recently a semi-speaker of Chaná language has appeared...

, and Mascoyan within his Macro-Mapuche stock.

Joseph Greenberg

Joseph Greenberg

Joseph Harold Greenberg was a prominent and controversial American linguist, principally known for his work in two areas, linguistic typology and the genetic classification of languages.- Early life and career :...

 places Guaicuruan within a Mataco–Guaicuru grouping similar to Swadesh's Macro-Mapuche with the exception that his Mataco–Guaicuru also includes Lule–Vilela. Mataco–Guaicuru is then connected with Panoan, Tacanan, and Mosetenan in his larger Macro-Panoan phylum.

Kaufman (1990) suggests that the Guaicuruan–Matacoan–Charruan–Mascoyan–Lule–Vilela proposal deserves to be explored – a grouping which he calls Macro-Waikurúan. Kaufman's (1994) Macro-Waikurúan proposal excludes Lule–Vilela.