Palikúr (Brazilian Portuguese: Palicur, French: Palikur) is an Arawakan language of Brazil and French Guiana, spoken by the Palikur and formerly the Karipuna do Amapá. Knowledge of French and Portuguese is common among the Palikur, and French Guianese Creole is used as the common language among the tribes in the area and with the local population. Palikúr is considered endangered in French Guiana and vulnerable in Brazil.
History The name "Palikur" is first mentioned in 1513 as "Paricura" by Vicente Yáñez Pinzón. However, regular mention of the Palikur only began around the mid-17th century, starting with the expedidition of Father in 1653.
Phonology Consonants +Consonant phonemesLabialAlveolarPalatalVelarGlottalPlosivevoicelessvoicedFricativeNasalGlide
Plosives in word-final position are heard unreleased as [p̚, t̚, k̚, b̚, d̚, ɡ̚]. /p/ can be heard as or when before close vowels /i, u/, or within intervocalic positions. /t, d, n/ when before front vowels /i, ĩ/ are heard as palatal and post-alveolar sounds [tʃ, dʒ, ɲ].
Vowels +Vowel phonemesFrontCentralBack Close Mid Open
/e, o/ are heard as [ɛ, ɔ] within different positions. /a/ is heard as a nasalized central vowel sound [ɐ̃] when preceding a nasal consonant.
Pronouns Palikúr has dependent and independent personal pronouns. The verb marks the object by using suffixes, but not the subject, which must appear in the form of a nominal group or as an independent pronoun. This affixation of only the object and not of the subject is linguistically very rare: the norm is the affixation for both or for only the subject. The noun complement is marked by a possessive prefix.
Palikúr English PrefixesNoun, Relation, Subject of Verb SuffixesObject of verb Independent Pronouns I n(u)- -(u)n náhu you (singular) pi- -pi písu he ri- -ri irV she ru- -ru erV . we (inclusive) u- -wi wísu . we (exclusive) w(a)- u-su you (plural) ji- -ji jí-su they ri-...-kisV, ru-...-kisV -rikisV, rukisV irV-kisV
Loanwords Palikúr has several loanwords, many of which are wildlife-related, from the Carib language, including:
English Palikúr Carib Sloth waikuli waikore Anteater tamanua tamaanuwa Giant armadillo malulaima manuraimo Paca urana urana Agouti kuʃiwai akusiwai Peccary pakira pakiira Coati kuwaʃ kuwasi Otter saruru sarooro Squirrel monkey akarma akarima Pied tamarin kusiri kusiri Spider monkey kuwata kuwata Hummingbird tukusi tukuʔsi Juruti wilusi werusi Thrush kuwaswi kurasiwai Southern American bushmaster urukru urukuku Tortoise wajamu wajaamu Giant Amazonian ants irakrĩ irako
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