Waikuri (Guaycura, Waicura) is an extinct language of southern Baja California spoken by the Waikuri or Guaycura people. The Jesuit priest Baegert documented words, sentences and texts in the language between 1751 and 1768.
| Waicuri | |
|---|---|
| Guaicurian Guaycura | |
| Native to | Mexico |
| Region | Baja California |
| Ethnicity | Guaycura |
| Era | last attested 1768 |
unclassified (Guaicurian) | |
| Dialects |
|
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | None (mis) |
qjg Guaicura (Waikura, Waykuri) | |
qea Waicuri (Waicuru) | |
qny Cora (Huchití) | |
| Glottolog | guai1237 Guaicurianmonq1236 Monqui |
 The location of Guaycura. Monqui and Pericú are essentially unattested; Cochimí, which is also extinct, is a Yuman language. | |
Waikuri may be, along with the Yukian and Chumashan languages and other languages of southern Baja such as Pericú, among the oldest languages established in California, before the arrival of speakers of Penutian, Uto-Aztecan, and perhaps even Hokan languages. All are spoken in areas with long-established populations of a distinct physical type.[1]
Name
editThe ethnonym Waikuri and its variants likely originates from the Pericú word guaxoro 'friend'. Variations of the name include Waicuri, Waicuri, Guaicuri, Waicura, Guaycura, Guaicura, Waicuro, Guaicuro, Guaycuro, Vaicuro, Guaicuru, Guaycuru, Waikur.[2]: 187
Classification
editBaegert's data is analyzed by Raoul Zamponi (2004). On existing evidence, Guaycura appears to be unrelated to the Yuman languages to its north. Some linguists have suggested that it belonged to the widely scattered Hokan phylum of California and Mexico (Gursky 1966; Swadesh 1967); however, the evidence for this seems inconclusive (Laylander 1997; Zamponi 2004; Mixco 2006). William C. Massey (1949) suggested a connection with Pericú, but the latter is too meagerly attested to support a meaningful comparison. Other languages of southern Baja are essentially undocumented, though people have speculated from non-linguistic sources that Monqui (Monquí-Didiú), spoken in a small region around Loreto, may have been a 'Guaicurian' language, as perhaps was Huchití (Uchití), though that may have actually been a variety of Guaycura itself (Golla 2007).
The internal classification of Guaicurian (Waikurian) languages is uncertain. Massey (1949), cited in Campbell (1997:169), gives this tentative classification based on similarity judgments given by colonial-era sources, rather than actual linguistic data.
- Guaicurian (Waikurian)
- Guaicura branch
- Guaocura (Waikuri)
- Callejue
- Huchiti branch
- Cora
- Huchiti
- Aripe
- Periúe
- Pericú branch
- Pericú
- Isleño
- Guaicura branch
However, Laylander (1997) and Zamponi (2004) conclude that Waikuri and Pericú are unrelated.
Phonology
editConsonants
editConsonants were voiceless stops p t c k and maybe a glottal stop; voiced b d, nasal m n ny, flap r, trill rr, and approximants w y.
| Labial | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Glottal | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plosive | voiceless | p | t | k | (ʔ) | |
| voiced | b | d | ||||
| Affricate | t͡ʃ | |||||
| Nasal | m | n | ɲ | |||
| Rhotic | ɾ, r | |||||
| Approximant | w | j | ||||
Vowels
editWaikuri had four vowels, /i, e, a, u/. Whether or not vowel length was phonemic is unknown.[2]
Grammar
editThe little we know of Guaycura grammar was provided by Francisco Pimentel, who analyzed a few verbs and phrases. Guaicura was a polysyllabic language that involved much compounding. For example, 'sky' is tekerakadatemba, from tekaraka (arched) and datemba (earth).
Beagert and Pimentel agree that the plural is formed with a suffix -ma. However, Pimentel also notes a prefix k- with the 'same' function. For example, kanai 'women', from anai 'woman'. According to Pimentel, the negation in -ra of an adjective resulted in its opposite, so from ataka 'good' is derived atakara 'bad'.
Pronouns were as follows (Golla 2011):
| Subject | Object | Inalienable possessive |
Alienable possessive | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | be | my | be- ~ m- | bekún | ||
| thou | e’i | thee | e’i ? | thy | e- | ekún |
| s/he | ? | his/her | ti- ~ t- | |||
| we | katé | us | kepe | our | kepe- | kepekún |
| you | peté | ? | ||||
| they | ? | their | kikún | |||
Text
editThe Pater Noster is recorded in Guaycura, with a literal gloss by Pimentel (1874: cap. XXV).
| Kepe-dare | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Padre Nuestro | |||||||||
| Kepe-dare | tekerekadatemba | daï, | ei-ri | akatuike | pu-me, | tschakarrake | pu-me | ti | tschie. |
| Padre nuestro | (que en el) cielo | estás, | te | reconocemos | todos (los que) existimos | (y te) alaban | todos (los que) somos | hombres | y. |
| Ecun | gracia | ri | atume | cate | tekerekedatemba | tschie. | Ei-ri | jebarrakeme | ti |
| (Y por) tu | gracia | ? | tengamos | nosotros | (el) cielo | (y). | Te | obedeceremos | (los) hombres |
| pu | jaupe | datemba | pae | ei | jebarrakere | aëna | kea. | Kepekun | bue |
| todos | aquí | (en la) tierra | como | a ti | obedientes | arriba | siendo. | Nuestra | comida |
| kepe | ken | jatupe | untairi. | Kate | kuitscharrake | tei | tschie | kepecun | atakamara, |
| (a) nos | da | este | día. | (Y a) nos | perdona | (y) | nuestro | malo (pecado), | |
| pae | kuitscharrakere | cate | tschie | cavape | atukiara | kepetujake. | Cate | tikakamba | tei |
| como | perdonamos | nosotros | también | (a) los | (que) mal | (nos) hacen. | (A) nos | ayuda | |
| tschie | cuvume | ra | cate | uë | atukiara. | Kepe | kakunja | pe | atacara |
| y | (no) querremos | no | nosotros | algo | malo. | (Y a) nos | protege | de | mal |
| tschie. | |||||||||
| y. | |||||||||
Vocabulary
editWaikuri vocabulary from Zamponi (2004), which was compiled primarily from 18th-century sources by Johann Jakov Baegert,[3] as well as from Lamberto Hostell and Francisco de Ortega:[2]
Nouns
edit| English gloss | Waikuri | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| earth, land | datembà; atembà | |
| sky | tekerekádatembà | lit. ‘arched earth/land’ |
| day | untâiri, untáîri | |
| week | ambúja | ‘place where one lives; house; church’ |
| year; pitahaya | ambía | |
| mescal | pui; kenjei, kennei | |
| horse; mule | titschénu-tschà | ‘child of a wise mother’ |
| k.o. snake | matanamu | ‘light red . . . [snake] with black spots’ |
| k.o. eagle | jatacrie | lit. ‘deer-catcher’ |
| man; person | éte (pl. ti) | |
| woman | ánaï (pl. kánaï) | |
| father | -dáre, -áre (man speaking); -cue (woman speaking) | |
| parent | pera kari | |
| son | -tschánu, -tschénu | |
| shaman | taniti; tantipara | |
| missionary | tià-pa-tù | ‘one who has his house in the north' |
| forehead | -tapà ~ -apà | |
| nose | -inamù | |
| arm; hand | -kére | |
| right arm | -tschuketà | |
| pain | -enembeû | |
| food | búe | |
| place where one lives; house; church | ambúja | |
| ceremonial wand | tiyeicha | lit. ‘he can talk’ |
| dance floor | amaeka | |
| word | -tanía | |
| a song | ambéra didì | |
| a dance | agénari | |
| payment | tenkíe |
Pronouns
edit| English gloss | Waikuri | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| I | be (subject) | |
| you (sg.) | eï | subject |
| we | catè | subject |
| you (pl.) | petè | subject |
| you (sg.); to you | eï | direct/indirect object |
| us; to us | kepe | direct/indirect object |
| mine | becún, beticún | also used adjectivally with alienably possessed nouns |
| yours (sg.) | ecún, ecùn; eiticún | also used adjectivally with alienably possessed nouns |
| ours | kepecùn | also used adjectivally with alienably possessed nouns |
| theirs | kicùn | also used adjectivally with alienably possessed nouns |
| this one | tâupe | |
| these ones | cávape | |
| that one | tutâu | |
| those ones | tucáva | |
| this same one | tâuvérepe | probably also used as a demonstrative determiner |
| who? | aipe(e), ci pe | |
| all, everything | pu | also quantifier; cf. 'all' |
| something | uë | |
| nothing | vâra, buarà |
Other parts of speech
edit| English gloss | Waikuri | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| great | apánne | |
| good | atacá (pl. atacámma), aata ce; atukià | |
| ugly; bad | entuditù (pl. entuditámma) | |
| washed | kunjukaráü (pl.) | |
| beaten | tschipitschürre (pl. kutipaû) | |
| dead | tibikíu (pl.) | |
| arched | tekereká | |
| alone | íbe | |
| many (?) | pari; cuncari | |
| all | pù | |
| three | akúnju | |
| this | jatúpe, jaûpe | |
| in (a region); from (separation); by means of | pè | preposition |
| from (source); at the side of; in (time) | me | preposition |
| of | te | preposition |
| on, upon | tína | preposition |
| below | búnju | postposition |
| on account of | déve; tiptischeû | preposition |
| acknowledge | akátuikè | |
| be | daï (sg.?); kéa (pl.?) | |
| be ashamed | ié | |
| be born | pedára | |
| beat | tschípake | |
| become | punjére | |
| believe | irimánju | |
| bury | kejenjùta (pl.?) | |
| can | puduéne | |
| chat | jake (pl. kuáke) | |
| come | ku | |
| command | ïebitschéne | |
| confess | kutéve | |
| die | pibikí (?) | |
| do (cause) | tujakè | |
| fight | piabakè (pl. kupiábake) | |
| forgive | kuitscharrakè, kuitscharaké | |
| give | uteürì, utere; kên | |
| go down, descend | keritschéü | |
| go up | tschukíti | |
| hate | kumbáte | |
| have | atú | |
| help | tikakambà | |
| kiss | tschumuge | |
| know | kériri, rthe risi, kereri | |
| lie (down) | tíe | |
| live | tipè, tipé | |
| make, create | uretì | |
| obey | jebarraké | |
| play | amukíri | |
| praise | tschakárrake | |
| protect | kakunjà | |
| remember | umutù (pl. kumutú) | |
| sit | penekà | |
| stretch out | kutikürre (pl. ?) | |
| suffer | híbitsche | |
| talk | tiyeicha | ‘can talk’ ?; cf. 'ceremonial wand' |
| there is | epí | |
| touch | undiri | |
| wish, desire | cuvu | |
| then | enjéme | |
| above | aëna | |
| from there | aipúreve | |
| and | tschie | |
| as | páe, pàe | |
| imperative particle | têi (sg.); tu (pl.) | |
| no | vâra | ‘nothing’; cf. 'nothing' |
| thanks (?) | payro |
References
edit
- ^ Golla, Victor. (2011). California Indian Languages. Berkeley: University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-5202-6667-4
- ^ a b c d Zamponi, Raoul. 2004. Fragments of Waikuri (Baja California). Anthropological Linguistics 46. 156–193.
- ^ Baegert, Johann Jakob. 1772. Nachrichten von der Amerikanischen Halbinsel Californien. Mannheim: Thurfürstliche Hof- und Academia Buchdruckerei
- Golla, Victor. 2007. Atlas of the World's Languages.
- Golla, Victor. 2011. California Indian Languages.
- Gursky, Karl-Heinz. 1966. "On the historical position of Waicuri". International Journal of American Linguistics 32:41–45.[1]
- Laylander, Don. 1997. "The linguistic prehistory of Baja California". In Contributions to the Linguistic Prehistory of Central and Baja California, edited by Gary S. Breschini and Trudy Haversat, pp. 1–94. Coyote Press, Salinas, California.
- Massey, William C. 1949. "Tribes and languages of Baja California". Southwestern Journal of Anthropology 5:272–307.
- Mixco, Mauricio J. 2006. "The indigenous languages". In The Prehistory of Baja California: Advances in the Archaeology of the Forgotten Peninsula, edited by Don Laylander and Jerry D. Moore, pp. 24–41. University Press of Florida, Gainesville.
- Swadesh, Morris. 1967. "Lexicostatistical Classification". in Linguistics, edited by Norman A. McQuown, pp. 79–115. Handbook of Middle American Indians, Vol. 5, Robert Wauchope, general editor. University of Texas Press, Austin.