Arawak language

Arawak
Lokono
Native to	French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, Venezuela
Region	Guianas
Ethnicity	Lokono (Arawak)
Native speakers	(2,500 cited 1980–2000)^[1]
Language family	Arawakan Northern Ta-Arawakan Arawak
Language codes
ISO 639-2	`arw`
ISO 639-3	`arw`
Glottolog	`araw1276`^[2]

Lokono (Lokono Dian, literally 'people’s talk' by its speakers), also referred to as Arawak (Arowak/Aruák), is an Arawak language spoken by the Lokono people of South America in eastern Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana.^[3] While the term "Arawak" has been used in reference to this people, Lokono more accurately reflects the speakers' own language, as the name has been historically extended to cover the eponymous Arawak language family.

Lokono has an active–stative syntax.^[4]

Phonology

Consonants

	Bilabial	Alveolar	Retroflex	Palatal	Velar	Glottal
Aspirated stops		tʰ			kʰ
Unvoiced stops		t			k
Voiced stops	b	d
Fricatives	ɸ	s				h
Nasal	m	n
Approximant	w	l		j
Trills		r	ɽ

William Pet observes that an additional /p/ does occur in loans.^[5]

Vowels

	Front	Central	Back
Close	i	ɨ
Mid	e		o
Open		a

Pet notes that phonetic realization of /o/ varies between [o] and [u].^[5]

Grammar

The personal pronouns are shown below. The forms on the left are free forms, which can stand alone. The forms on the right are bound forms (prefixes), which must be attached to the front of a verb, a noun, or a postposition.^[6]

	singular	plural
1st person	de, da-	we, wa-
2nd person	bi, by-	hi, hy-
3rd person	li, ly- (he) tho, thy- (she)	ne, na-

Notes

↑ Arawak at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015)
↑ Nordhoff, Sebastian; Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2013). "Lokono". Glottolog. Leipzig: Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology.
↑ Pet, Willem J. A. A Grammar Sketch and Lexicon of Arawak (Lokono Dian). SIL International. 2011. p 2. http://www-01.sil.org/silepubs/Pubs/928474543236/e-Books_30_Pet_Arawak_Suriname.pdf
↑ Aikhenvald, "Arawak", in Dixon & Aikhenvald, eds., The Amazonian Languages, 1999.
1 2 Pet, William (1988). Lokono dian: the Arawak language of Surinam: a sketch of its grammatical structure and lexicon. PhD dissertation, Cornell University.
↑ Pet, Willem J. A. A Grammar Sketch and Lexicon of Arawak (Lokono Dian). SIL International. 2011. p 12. http://www-01.sil.org/silepubs/Pubs/928474543236/e-Books_30_Pet_Arawak_Suriname.pdf

Languages of French Guiana

Official language	French

Indigenous languages	Arawak Aukan Carib Emerillon Guianese Creole Palikúr Saramaccan Wayampi Wayana

Sign languages	French Sign Language

Languages of Guyana

Official language	English

Indigenous languages	Akawaio Arawak Atorada Carib Macushi Mapidian Mawayana Patamona Pemon Waiwai Wapishana Warao

Other languages	Caribbean Hindustani Guyanese Creole Guyanese Sign Language

Languages of Suriname

Official language	Dutch

Regional languages	Aukan Caribbean Hindustani Javanese Kwinti Saramaccan Sranan Tongo

Indigenous languages	Akurio Arawak Carib Mawayana Sikiana Trió Waiwai Warao Wayana

Arawakan (Maipurean) languages

Northern

Caribbean

Palikuran

Wapishanan

Upper Amazon

Western Nawiki	Achawa Amarizana Anauyá Cabiyari (?) Cabre (?) Guarú Kawishana Mandawaca Mariaté Pasé Piapoco Resígaro (?) Warekena Waraikú (?) Wainumá Wiriná (?) Yabaâna (?) Yucuna Yumana

Eastern Nawiki	Baniwa Kurripako Tariana

Central Upper Amazon	Baré Baniwa of Guainia Guinao Maipure Marawá Yavitero

Manao	Kariaí Manao Shiriana (?)

Southern

Western	Chamicuro Yanesha'

Central Maipurean	Agavotaguerra (?) Custenau Paresí Saraveca Waura–Mehináku Yawalapití

Piro	Apurinã Iñapari Mashco Piro Piro Kanamaré

Bolivia–Parana	Baure Chané Enawené-Nawé (?) Lapachu Moxos Pauna Terêna

Campa	Asháninka Ashéninga Axininca Caquinte Machiguenga Nomatsiguenga Pucapucari

Unclassified

Macro-Arawakan

Authority control	NDL: 00560316

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