Kanamarí language
| Kanamarí | |
|---|---|
| Katukina-Kanamari | |
| Native to | Brazil |
| Region | Amazonas |
| Ethnicity | 3,340 (2006–2008)[1] |
Native speakers | 1,300 (2006)[1] |
Harákmbut–Katukinan
| |
| Dialects |
|
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | Either:knm – Kanamarikav – Katukina |
| Glottolog | kana1291 |
| ELP | Dyapá |
Kanamarí, or Katukina-Kanamari, is a Katukinian language spoken by about 650 individuals in Amazonas, Brazil. It is considered endangered.
The two principal varieties, Kanamari (Canamarí) and Katukina (Catuquina), are mutually intelligible, and have both been confused with neighboring languages with the same or similar names.[2]
Synonyms and dialect names include Tshom-djapa, Tsohon-djapa, Wiri-dyapá, Pidá-dyapá, Kutiá-dyapá (Kadiu-diapa, Cutiadapa), Tucun-diapa, Bendiapa, Parawa.
Phonology
Consonants
| Labial | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Glottal | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plosive | voiceless | p | t | tʃ | k | |
| voiced | b | d | dʒ | |||
| Nasal | m | n | ɲ | |||
| Fricative | h | |||||
| Approximant | l | |||||
An alveolar lateral consonant /l/ may be realized as a retroflex lateral [ɭ]. A velar nasal [ŋ] sound is often heard when following after nasal vowels. A glottal stop [ʔ] can be heard before word-initial vowels. A word-final /k/ may also sound unreleased [k̚].
Vowels
| Front | Central | Back | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High | i iː | ɯ ɯː | u uː | |
| Low | a aː | |||
/i/ and /u/ may be realized as approximant sounds [j] and [w], when preceding another vowel.[3]
Grammar
The syntax of Kanamarí is characterized by ergative–absolutive alignment.[4] The absolutive argument (i.e. the subject of intransitive verbs and the object of transitive verbs) is unmarked for case, and usually appears following the verb phrase.
tyuku
die
wa:pa
dog
'The dog died.'
no-ti
2.SG.GEN-kill
paiko
grandfather
'You killed grandfather.'
If the absolutive argument is a pronoun it is represented by its free from.
ki:tan
sleep
idi:k
2.SG
'You slept.'
The ergative argument (i.e. the agent of transitive verbs) is marked for genitive case. If the agent is a pronoun, it is represented by a genitive prefix (as in no-ti paiko 'you killed grandfather' above). If the agent is a full noun, it is linked to the verb with the case marker na, which phonologically attaches to the verb:
pi:da
jaguar
na=ti
GEN=kill
paiko
grandfather
'The jaguar killed grandfather.'
References
- ^ a b Kanamari at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
Katukina at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required) - ^ Harald Hammarström (2013) Review of the Ethnologue, 16th Ed.
- ^ dos Anjos, Zoraide (2011). Fonologia e Gramática Katukina-Kanamari (PDF) (Ph.D. Dissertation). Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. Retrieved 12 June 2020.
- ^ Queixalós, Francesc (2010). "Grammatical relations in Katukina-Kanamari". In Gildea, Spike; Queixalós, Francesc (eds.). Ergativity in Amazonia. pp. 235–284.
- Queixalós, Francesc 2012. The Katukina-Kanamari antipassive. In: Gilles Authier and Katharina Haude (eds). Ergativity, Valency and Voice. Berlin: De Gruyter Mouton. (pp. 227–258)