| Karirí | |
|---|---|
| Karirian, Kipeá-Dzubukuá | |
| Native to | Brazil |
| Region | betweenBahia andMaranhão |
| Ethnicity | 4,000Kiriri people (2020)[1] |
| Extinct | ca. 1970 |
| Revival | 1989 (Dzubukuá)[2] |
Macro-Gê?
| |
Early form | Proto-Kariri |
| Dialects | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | kzw (Dzubukuá only) |
| Glottolog | kari1254 Kariri |
 Distribution of Kariri among the Macro-Jê languages | |
TheKarirí languages, generally considered dialects of a single language,[3] are a group of languages formerly spoken by theKiriri people ofBrazil. It was spoken until the middle of the 20th century; the 4,000 ethnic Kiriri are now monolingual Portuguese speakers, though a few know common phrases and names of medicinal plants. A revival of theDzubukuá variety has been ongoing since 1989.[2]
After the Dutch were expelled fromNortheast Brazil in the 17th century, Portuguese settlers rapidly colonized the region, forcing Kariri speakers to become widely dispersed due to forced migrations and resettlement. Hence, Kariri languages became scattered acrossParaíba,Ceará,Pernambuco,Bahia, and other states.[4]
The four known Kariri languages (or dialects) are:
There area short grammatical description[5] anda catechism[6] in Kipeá, a catechism in Dzubukuá,[7] and word lists for Kamurú and Sabujá.[8] Ribeiro established through morphological analysis that Kariri is likely to be related to theJê languages. This is now disputed.[9]
Below is a full list of Kiriri languages and dialects listed byLoukotka (1968), including names of unattested varieties.[11]
The original language of theTumbalalá [pt], now extinct, is an effectively unattested and unclassified language, but words for Tumbalalá ritual objects used in their traditionaltoré religion appear to be of Kariri origin, namelypujá,kwaqui, andcataioba.[12]
The namesKariri andKiriri were applied to many peoples over a wide area in the east of Brazil, in the lower and middleSão Francisco River 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:
Other nearbylanguage isolates and language families:[13]
TheMaxakalían,Krenák (Botocudo, Aimoré), andPurían families, of which the first two areMacro-Jê languages, are spoken further to the south inEspírito Santo andMinas Gerais states.
Ramirez et al. (2015) notes that Kariri languages display some lexical similarities withCariban languages. Similarities withKatembri (also known asKariri of Mirandela orKaimbé) may be due to either a Kariri superstratum or substratum in Katembri.[4]
Unlike mostMacro-Jê languages which are SOV, Karirí languages are verb-initial (VSO) and make use of prepositions.[14][verification needed][disputed –discuss]
 | This articleshould specify the language of its non-English content using{{lang}} or{{langx}},{{transliteration}} for transliterated languages, and{{IPA}} for phonetic transcriptions, with an appropriateISO 639 code. Wikipedia'smultilingual support templates may also be used.See why.(June 2025) |
Loukotka (1968) lists the following basic vocabulary items for the Kariri languages.[11]
| gloss | Quipea | Dzubucua | Sapuya | Kamurú |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ear | beñe | beñé | penix | benyen |
| tooth | dza | dza | zá | zah |
| tongue | nunu | nunú | nunü | nunuh |
| hand | amísa | musang | musoé | musang |
| water | dzu | isú | dzú | dzu |
| stone | kro | kro | kro | |
| sun | ukie | uxe | uché | uchih |
| moon | kayaku | kayakú | gayakú | gayakúh |
| star | bati | bathü | bathü | batthüh |
| tree | bewó | tsi | tsui | |
| tobacco | badze | paewi | poyú | |
| pot | ruñu |
Eastern Macro-Jê loanwords in Kariri languages:[15]
| gloss | Kipeá | Dzubukuá | other languages |
|---|---|---|---|
| beans | ghinhé | guenhie | giñá (Kotoxó) |
| hammock | pité | pitta | pita (Coroado) |
| Black person | gorá | engorá (Krenák) | |
| swamp, marsh | pôhô | pohok (Maxakalí) | |
| cow, cattle | cradzó | cradzo | krazo ‘tapir’ (Masakará) |
Tupinambá loanwords in Kariri languages:[15]
| gloss | Kipeá | Dzubukuá | Tupinambá | other EasternMacro-Jê languages |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| needle | awí | abi | Maxakalíãmix | |
| banana | bacobá | pacova | Coroadobacóba | |
| White person | caraí | carai | caraíba | Iatêklai,Krenákkrai |
| box | cramemú | caramẽmuã | ||
| domestic pig | curé | curê | Krenákkurek | |
| pumpkin | erumú | jurumũ, jeremũ | Puríšurumúm ‘potato’ | |
| bread | miapé | miapé | ||
| beads | myghý | muihi | mboýra | |
| oil | nhendí | nianddi | nhandy | |
| bench | pycá | apycába | ||
| chicken, hen | sabucá | dapuca | (güyra)ssapucáia | |
| Black person | tapanhú | tapwinhiu | tapyyiúna | Coroadotabañiú,Makonitapagnon,Malalítapagnon |
| Black person | tapyýia | Iatêtupia | ||
| hoe | tasí | itassýra | Maxakalítaxunna | |
| money | tayú | tayu | itajúba | Maxakalítayũmak |
| God | tupã | tupam | tupã | Maxakalítopa,Krenákkupan,Coroadotupan |
| priest | waré | padzuare | abaré | Maxakalíãmãnex,Macuniamattèih,Coroadouáre,Masakaráampari |
| mirror | waruá | guaruguá | ||
| sugarcane mill | wirapararã | ybyrapararánga |
Portuguese loanwords in Kariri languages borrowed viaTupinambá and other intermediate sources:[15]
| gloss | Kipeá | Dzubukuá | Possible intermediate sources | Portuguese | otherMacro-Jê languages |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| goat | cabará | cabara | cabará (Tupinambá) | cabra | |
| horse | cabarú | cavarú (Tupinambá) | cavalo | Coroadokawarú,Cotoxócavaró | |
| cross | crusá | crudzá | curussá (Tupinambá) | cruz | Iatêklusa |
| devil | nhewó | niẽwo | niñavoo (Kapoxó) | diabo | |
| paper | papera | papel | Iatêwapela,Coroadotapera |