A Reference Grammar of Kotiria (Wanano) (Studies in the Native Languages of the Americas)

Published through the Recovering Languages and Literacies of the Americas initiative, supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation This volume is the first descriptive grammar of Kotiria (Wanano), a member of the eastern Tukanoan language family spoken in the Vaupes River basin of Colombia and Brazil in the northwest Amazon rain forest. The Kotirias, who have lived in this remote region for more than seven hundred years, participate in the complex Vaupés social system, characterized by long-standing linguistic and cultural interaction. The Kotirias remained relatively isolated from the dominant societies until the early part of the twentieth century, when increasing outside influence in the region triggered rapid social and linguistic change. Today the Kotirias number only about sixteen hundred people, and their language, though still used in traditional communities, is in risk of becoming endangered. Kristine Stenzel draws on eight years of intensive work with the Kotirias to promote, record, and revitalize their language. Working with dozens of native speakers and drawing on numerous oral narratives and written texts, this book is the first comprehensive study of this endangered language and one of the few reference grammars of this language family. This book offers a descriptive grammar of Kotiria (Wanano), a member of the Tukanoan language family spoken in the Vaupes River basin of Colombia and Brazil in the northwest Amazon rain forest. The Kotirias have lived in this remote region for more than seven hundred years and participate in the complex Vaupes social system characterized by longstanding linguistic and cultural interaction. The Kotirias remained relatively isolated from the dominant societies until the early part of the twentieth century, when the region began to experience increasing outside influence leading to processes of rapid social and linguistic change. The author draws on eight years of intensive work with the Kotirias to promote, record, and revitalize their language Published through the Recovering Languages and Literacies of the Americas initiative, supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. This is the first descriptive grammar of Kotiria (Wanano), a member of the Tukanoan language family spoken in the Vaupes River basin of Colombia and Brazil in the northwest Amazon rain forest. The Kotirias have lived in this remote region for more than seven hundred years and participate in the complex Vaupes social system characterized by longstanding linguistic and cultural interaction. The Kotirias remained relatively isolated from the dominant societies Cover Title Page Contents List of tables List of figures and maps Preface Acknowledgments Abbreviations used in glosses Abbreviations for example sources Format of examples and texts 1 The Kotiria and their language 2 Phonology 3 Words 4 Noun classes and noun formation 5 Nominal morphology 6 Noun phrases 7 Verbal semantics and serialization processes 8 Nonroot stem morphemes in the verb 9 Clause modality 10 Clause structure 11 Complex sentences Appendix 1: Texts Appendix 2: Vocabulary References Index Studies in the Native Languages of the Americas