Caquetío language

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Caquetio language
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Caquetío
Native to
Arawakan
  • Northern
    • Ta-Arawakan
      • Caquetío
Language codes
ISO 639-3None (mis)
Glottologarub1238  Caquetio

Caquetío is an

Arawakan language family. The language was spoken along the shores of Lake Maracaibo, in the coastal areas of the Venezuelan state of Falcón, and on the Dutch islands of Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao
.

The Caquetíos and the Jirajara spoke an Arawak language, and their cultures showed great similarities.[2] Arawak or Caquetío is referred to as a "ghost language"[3] because no tangible evidence of it remains. Only the name still exists, as mentioned in references from 17th-century texts.

Name

An important discovery was the term kakïtho

Caqueta River.[7][8] The misspelling of "Caquetío" as "Caiquetio" stems from an early Spanish document.[9][8]

In the 16th and 17th centuries, the collection and study of indigenous languages were irregular, lacking a systematic approach. There are no remaining documents specifically dedicated to the syntax or grammar of Arawak languages from that time.[10] It was only in the late 18th century that linguists began to study and classify Arawak languages.[11]

Origin

Around 5000 BCE, the Proto-Equatorial language emerged in Peru and Ecuador, specifically near the Madre de Dios and Ucayali rivers, close to the source of the Amazon River.[a] This language led to two distinct language families: Tupí-Guaraní, which moved southward, and the Arawak family, which migrated northward. By about 3500 BCE, the Proto-Arawak language appeared in the Amazon region and the northern sources of the Río Negro area.[15]

Between 3000 and 2000 BCE, speakers of the Proto-Arawak language journeyed along the Río Negro. They navigated the Casiquiare canal and settled in the Orinoco River area. This migration gave rise to the Proto-Arawak language and the formation of the Proto-Maipuran language.

Around 1500 BCE, they arrived in the Middle Orinoco region near the

.

Others continued downstream along the Orinoco,

Island Carib in the Lesser Antilles. The Proto-Northerners who settled in the Greater Antilles developed the Taíno language.[18]

Around 500 BCE, the Caquetío language group separated from the Middle to Upper Orinoco areas,[19] migrated alongside the Apure River, and headed northwest to Venezuela. Eventually, they reached the islands of Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao. Simultaneously, other groups like the Carib, Lokono, and Taíno evolved due to migrations from the Orinoco to the Caribbean region.

Vocabulary

The vocabulary of northwestern Venezuela was shaped by numerous Arawak communities along the coast of Falcón state and the Guajira Peninsula. The Wayuu people communicate in Guajiro, while the Paraujano language, once spoken by the Paraujano or Añú people, has faded. With the arrival of Europeans, the dominant Caquetío language emerged. Many place names (toponymy) and personal names (anthroponymy) persist along the Falcón coast,[20] and some have survived on Aruba, Curaçao, and Bonaire.[21][22] Caquetío was spoken not only on the islands but also along the Venezuelan coast, particularly in the Yaracuy, Portuguesa, and Apure river regions, known as the states of Falcón and Lara. The language declined as the indigenous Amerindian population decreased during Spanish occupation.[23] Although Caquetío's influence on Papiamento is limited, some original Caquetío words are present in Papiamento.[24]

Indigenous names are prevalent in specific regions of Aruba, such as Sasiriwichi at the northwestern tip,[25] near the California lighthouse. Additionally, the hilly areas in eastern Aruba, from Cashiunti, Huliba, Kiwarcu to Coashiati or Jamanota, and the north coast between Andicuri and Oranjestad, abound in Caquetío toponyms.[26] Notably, many Caquetío words in Papiamento pertain to local flora and fauna, unfamiliar to European settlers and African slaves who arrived in the area in early 16th century.[24]

Sources

Notes

References

  1. ^ "The First Inhabitants of Aruba" (PDF). The National Archaeological Museum Aruba. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-10-13. Retrieved 2014-12-26.
  2. ^ "Caquetío | people | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2023-07-06.
  3. ^ "ghost language", Wiktionary, 2022-11-03, retrieved 2023-07-06
  4. ^ a b Oliver 1989, p. 166.
  5. ^ Taylor 1977, p. 82.
  6. ^ Oliver 1990, p. 85.
  7. ^ Arcaya 1951, p. 27.
  8. ^ a b Haviser 1987, p. 55.
  9. ^ Arcaya 1951, p. 14.
  10. ^ Oliver 1989, p. 54.
  11. ^ a b Rouse 1986, p. 121.
  12. ^ Noble 1965, p. 107.
  13. ^ Oliver 1989, p. 77.
  14. ^ Haviser 1991, p. 73.
  15. ^ Rouse 1986, pp. 121–123.
  16. ^ Rouse 1986, pp. 120–126.
  17. ^ Haviser 1991, p. 74.
  18. ^ Rouse 1992, p. 40.
  19. ^ Oliver 1989, pp. 177–178.
  20. ^ Oliver 1989.
  21. ^ Buurt & Joubert 1997.
  22. ^ Versteeg & Ruiz 1995.
  23. ^ Kinney 1970.
  24. ^ a b Buurt & Joubert 1997, p. 5.
  25. ^ "NL-HaNA_4.VEL_649". www.nationaalarchief.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 2023-11-13. Groote land baaij van de N:W:Hoek bij de indianen Sesereweetje genaamt.
  26. ^ Versteeg & Ruiz 1995, p. 69.