Kariri languages
Encyclopedia
The Karirí languages, generally considered dialects of a single language, are extinct language
s spoken until the middle of the 20th century; the 4,000 ethnic Karirí are now monolingual Portuguese speakers, though a few know common phrases and names of medicinal plants.
The four known Kariri languages are:
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.
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:
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...
s spoken until the middle of the 20th century; the 4,000 ethnic Karirí are now monolingual Portuguese speakers, though a few know common phrases and names of medicinal plants.
The four known Kariri languages are:
- KipeáKipea languageKipeá , or Kariri, is an extinct Karirian language of Brazil. It is sometimes considered a dialect of a single Kariri language. A short grammatical treatment is available....
(Quipea, Kariri) - Kamurú (Camuru)
- DzubukuáDzubukua languageDzubukuá , or Kiriri, is an extinct Karirian language of Brazil. It is sometimes considered a dialect of a single Kariri language. A short grammatical description is available....
(Dzubucua, Kiriri) - Sabujá (Sapuya, 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.
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 RiverSão Francisco River
The São Francisco is a 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...
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:
- KatembriKatembri languageKatembri was a divergent language of northeastern Brazil that appears to be distantly related to Taruma.-References:...
(Kiriri, Kariri, Kariri de Mirandela [near BanzaêBanzaêBanzaê is a town and municipality in the state of Bahia in the North-East region of Brazil.-References:...
& QuijingueQuijingueQuijingue is a town and municipality in the state of Bahia in the North-East region of Brazil.-References:...
])- 100 words in the early 1960s from an elder with vague memories of the language.
- Kaufman (1990) classified it as Katembri–Taruma. LinguistList code qef
- Xukurú (Kirirí, Kirirí-Xokó [in PernambucoPernambucoPernambuco is a state of Brazil, located in the Northeast region of the country. To the north are the states of Paraíba and Ceará, to the west is Piauí, to the south are Alagoas and Bahia, and to the east is the Atlantic Ocean. There are about of beaches, some of the most beautiful in the...
])- A few words from an elder in 1961.
- Loukotka (1968) says this forms a small familyXukuru languagesThe Xukuru languages are a language family proposed by Loukotka that links two extinct and poorly attested languages of eastern Brazil, *Paratió-Other languages with this name:...
with Paratió. ISO 639-3: xoo
- Xocó (Xokó, Chocó [in SergipeSergipeSergipe , is the smallest state of the Brazilian Federation, located on the northeastern Atlantic coast of the country. It borders on two other states, Bahia to the south and west and Alagoas to the north, and to the east is the Atlantic Ocean...
], Kariri-Xocó, Kariri-Shoko, Cariri-Chocó [in AlagoasAlagoasAlagoas is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil and is situated in the eastern part of the Northeast Region. It borders: Pernambuco ; Sergipe ; Bahia ; and the Atlantic Ocean . It occupies an area of 27,767 km², being slightly larger than Haiti...
], Xukuru-Kariri, Xucuru-Kariri, Xucuru-Cariri [in AlagoasAlagoasAlagoas is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil and is situated in the eastern part of the Northeast Region. It borders: Pernambuco ; Sergipe ; Bahia ; and the Atlantic Ocean . It occupies an area of 27,767 km², being slightly larger than Haiti...
])- Three populations. A few dozen words from one Kariri-Xoco elder and three Xukuru-Kariri elders in 1961. Not clear if this was one language or three.
- Conflated with the Kariri family as ISO 639-3 kzw; Ethnologue does not indicate if this was a conscious decision.