Ocaina language
Bora–Huitoto language spoken in South America
| Ocaina | |
|---|---|
| Xáfahxajoh | |
 An Ocaina chief in 1924. | |
| Native to | Peru, Colombia |
Native speakers | 55 (2000–2012)[1] |
Language family | Bora–Huitoto
|
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | oca |
| Glottolog | ocai1244 |
| ELP | Ocaina |
 | |
| This article contains IPA phonetic symbols. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Unicode characters. For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, see Help:IPA. | |
Ocaina is an indigenous American language spoken in western South America.
Classification
Ocaina belongs to the Witotoan language family. It is its own group within the Huitoto-Ocaina sub-family.
Geographic distribution
Ocaina is spoken by 54 people in northeastern Peru and by 12 more in the Amazonas region of Colombia. Few children speak the language.[citation needed]
Dialects/Varieties
There are two dialects of Ocaina: Dukaiya and Ibo'tsa.
Phonology
Consonants
| Bilabial | Alveolar | Postalveolar/ Palatal | Velar | Glottal | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | lenis | m | n | ɲ | ||
| fortis | mː | nː | ɲː | |||
| Plosive | p b | t r | tʲ dʲ | k ɡ | ʔ | |
| Affricate | ts dz | tʃ dʒ | ||||
| Fricative | ɸ β | s | ʃ ʒ | x | h | |
Vowels
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High | i, ĩ | ɨ, ɨ̃ | |
| Low | e | a, ã | o, õ |
Tone
Syllables in Ocaina may be marked with one of two tones: high or low.
Syllables
Syllables in Ocaina consist of a vowel; single consonants may appear on either side of the vowel: (C)V(C).
Writing system
Ocaina is written using a Latin alphabet. A chart of symbols with the sounds they represent is as follows:
| Latin | IPA |
|---|---|
| a | /a/ |
| b | /b/ |
| c | /k/ - /ts/ |
| ch | /tʃ/ |
| ds | /dz/ |
| dy | /dʲ/ |
| e | /e/ |
| f | /ɸ/ |
| g(u) | /ɡ/ - /h/ |
| h | /ʔ/ |
| i | /i/ |
| j | /h/ |
| k | /k/ |
| ll | /dʒ/ |
| m | /m/ |
| m̈ | /mː/ |
| n | /n/ |
| n̈ | /nː/ |
| ñ | /ɲ/ |
| ñ̈ | /ɲː/ |
| o | /o/ |
| p | /p/ |
| qu | /k/ |
| r | /r/ |
| s | /s/ |
| sh | /ʃ/ |
| t | /t/ |
| z | /ts/ |
| ty | /tʲ/ |
| u | /ɨ/ |
| v | /β/ |
| x | /x/ |
| y | /ʒ/ |
- Because the Ocaina alphabet is based on Spanish, c is used to indicate /k/ before a, o, and u, qu is used before e and i, and k is used in loan words, such as kerosene "kerosene".
- Nasalization is indicated by inserting n after a vowel. Compare: tya tyója [tʲa tʲóha] "hang it" vs. tya tyonjan [tʲa tʲṍhã] "clean it".
- High tone is indicated with the acute accent: á, é, í, ó, ú.
References
- ^ Ocaina at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022)
- Agnew, Arlene; Evelyn G. Pike (January 1957). "Phonemes of Ocaina (Huitoto)". International Journal of American Linguistics. 23 (1): 24–27. doi:10.1086/464385.
- Leach, Ilo M. (2008). Mary Ruth Wise (ed.). Vocabulario Ocaina (PDF). Serie Lingüística Peruana (in Spanish). Vol. 4 (2nd ed.). Yarinacocha, Peru: Instituto Lingüístico de Verano.
