Pykobjê (also Gavião-Pykobjê) Pykobjê-Gavião, Gavião, Pyhcopji, or Gavião-Pyhcopji) is a dialect of Pará Gavião, a Northern Jê language, spoken by the Gavião-Pykobjê people in Terra Indígena Governador close to Amarante, Maranhão, Brazil. It has also been stated to be a distinct language.

Krĩkatí (also Krinkati or Krikati) is spoken by the Krĩkatí people in Terra Indígena Krikati in Maranhão.

Pykobjê and Krĩkatí differ in that Pykobjê retains the velar nasal of Proto-Timbira (spelt in the orthography, as in cagã 'snake', gõr 'to sleep'), which Krĩkatí has replaced with (cahã, hõr), as well as in having a voiceless fricative allophone of (spelt , as in cas pacará basket', hõhmtyx 'his/her wrist'), which occurs in the coda position only and corresponds to in all other Timbira varieties, including Krĩkatí.

There is a Krĩkatí-Portuguese dictionary by a New Tribes Mission missionary.

The remainder of this article describes Pykobjê specifically.

Phonology

Consonants LabialAlveolarPalatalVelarGlottalNasalmnᵑɡStopplainptt͡ʃkʔaspiratedkʰFricative(s)(ʃ)hApproximantwjRhoticr

Stops /p, t, k/ can be heard as voiced [b, d, ɡ] when in intervocalic positions or when preceding glide sounds /j, w/. Fricatives [s] and [ʃ] occur as allophones of /j/ when in coda position.

Vowels OralNasalFrontCentralBackFrontCentralBackClosei iːɨ ɨːu uːĩɨ̃ũClose-mide eːə əːo oːẽ ẽːə̃õ õːOpen-midɛ ɛːɔ ɔːOpena aː

+Breathy vowelsFrontCentralBackshortnasalshortnasalshortnasalClose-mide̤ẽ̤ə̤ə̤̃o̤õ̤Open-midɛ̤ɔ̤Opena̤

Morphology Finiteness morphology As in all other Northern Jê languages, verbs in Pykobjê inflect for finiteness and thus have a basic opposition between a finite (or short) form and a nonfinite (or long) form. Finite forms are used in matrix non-past clauses only, whereas nonfinite forms are used in all types of subordinate clauses as well as in some matrix clauses (such as past, negated or quantified). Nonfinite forms are most often formed via suffixation and/or prefix substitution. Some verbs (including all descriptives with the exception of cato ‘to leave, to arrive, to appear’, whose nonfinite form is cator) lack an overt finiteness distinction.

The following nonfinite suffixes have been attested: -r (the most common option, found in many transitive and intransitive verbs), -n (found in some transitive verbs), as well as -c, -m, and -x (found in a handful of intransitive verbs which take a nominative subject when finite).

+ Nonfinite suffixes in Pykobjê finite nonfinite gloss suffix -r mo mor to go slowly pẽh -pẽhr to extinguish coh -’cohr to eat (a part) cahu cahur to suck, to eat soft food -’coohquehj -’coohcjir to ask suffix -n pe -’pen to drink up pu -pun to untie cwy -’cwyn to dig -’coohpỳ -’coohpỳn to gnaw -’coh’tu -’coh’tun to spit suffix -c tyh -’tyhc to die ry -ryc to rain suffix -m tẽ -’tẽm to go (singular) ẽhjcõ -’cõm to drink xa xãm to stand (singular) suffix -x aacji -ncjix to enter (plural)

Prefix substitution or loss In addition to the aforementioned processes, the finiteness inflection may involve prefix substitution or loss. For example, the valency-reducing prefixes are a(j)- (anticausative) and a(a)-, aw- (antipassive) in finite verb forms, but -pe(e)h-, -pẽh- and -jỳ-,/-jõh-, respectively, in the nonfinite forms. In addition, some verbs which denote physiological activities or movement have a prefix (ehj- and aa-, respectively) in their finite forms but not in the nonfinite form. Some examples are given below.

+ Finiteness and prefix alternations in Pykobjê finite nonfinite gloss anticausatives axpa -pehxpar to grieve axpoh -pehxpoh to fight amteh -pẽhmtehr to dream ampraa -pẽhmpraa to wake up ajquẽ -peehquẽn to dance ajcapu -pehcapun to split up in two ajri -peehrin to get torn antipassives aapi -jỳyhpin to fish aapi -jỳyhpir to blow (of wind) aapỳ -jỳyhpỳ to eat a’tip -jỳ’tip to come close awjacu -jõhjacur to smoke awjãarẽ -jõhjãarẽn to narrate awjahi -jõhjahir to hunt awcapeh -jõhcapeh to choose awpa -jõhpar to be able to hear awpỹ -jõhpỹr to be able to smell awryh -jõhwryh to travel far away, to be far away physiological verbs ẽhjcõ -’cõm to drink ẽhjtoh -’tohr to urinate ẽhjcwỳ -’cwỳr to defecate movement verbs aajit jit to hang (singular) aaxỳ -xỳr to enter (singular) aacji -ncjix to enter (plural)

Derivational morphology Productive affixes Pykobjê widely uses the diminutive suffix -re and the augmentative suffix -teh, which may combine with nouns and descriptive predicates.

Instrumental/locative nominalizations are formed by means of the suffix -xỳ, which attached to the nonfinite forms of verbs.

References