Zaparoan languages

The Zaparoan languages or Záparas are a group of almost extinct indigenous languages of the Americas spoken in the Amazonian regions of Peru and Ecuador. According to Morris Swadesh (1959), the degree of internal differentiation would imply at least 4,100 years of linguistic divergence. It currently consists of five languages, all of which are endangered or already extinct. According to existing evidence, two other now extinct languages, Omuran and Aushiri, are part of the family.

Classification

In general, there is a consensus among modern linguists about the classification of the Zaparona family. The territory of the Záparo language speakers extends between the Napo rivers to the north, Tigre to the south and Marañón to the southeast. The original nucleus of the proto-Záparo seems to be located (Payne (1984)) in the surroundings of the current city of Iquitos, from where the Tigre River would have ascended to its sources, forming the nucleus of the Arabela- go.

The ASJP Comparative Project shows some lexical relationship to the Bora languages. However, such similarity could be due to accidental reasons or loanwords and is not firm proof of kinship.

Family languages

Toward the end of the 20th century, four Zaparoan languages were still spoken: Andoa, Arabela, Cahuarano, Iquito, and Zaparo proper. The latter, which was once spoken in large areas of Ecuador, is practically extinct.

The Auishiri and Omurano languages, extinct in the middle of the 20th century, are of doubtful classification, some authors have conjectured that they could be Zaparoan languages given their geographical proximity. Kaufman considers that Omurano would not be related to the Zaparoan languages, but to Candoshi or Taushiro.

Relationship with other languages

There are several speculative proposals that relate the Zaparoan languages in a supposed Kawapano-Záparo macrophile, and others in a Záparo-Peba macrophile, based on geographic proximity. There are those who classify this family within the Andean-kacupana-záparo family and there are others who include it in the záparo-peba, together with the yawan, which has 6,000 years of linguistic diversification. In general, none of these proposals has received wide acceptance by specialists.

Linguistic description

Zaparoan languages generally have a simple phonological system typically made up of four vowels (a, i, i , u and a generally small number of consonants.The vowels present an opposition of quantity.

Grammar

Záparo languages have a relatively free order. The person is not marked on the verb but, as in English, it is indicated by an independent pronoun. The use of these pronouns is mandatory, to the point that even when an explicit lexical subject appears, the use of a third person pronoun is required. The following table summarizes the forms of personal pronouns in various languages:

Despite the relatively free order in the composite syntagmas the kernel appears at the end, as in the following examples taken from the foil:

(1) sawanaw iawka [chuckles]sawiawka]

cotton

'Cotton hair'

(2) ko-ano ariáwko

1aP.SG- Mother dog.

'My mother's dog'

Lexical comparison

Here are some lexical comparisons between the numerals of Andean languages:

Terms in parentheses are borrowings from Quechua.