Tacanan languages

"Tacanan" redirects here. For the Peruvian region, see Tacna Region.

Not to be confused with Tucanoan languages.

Tacanan is a family of languages spoken in Bolivia, with Ese’ejja also spoken in Peru. It may be related to the Panoan languages. Many of the languages are endangered.

Takanan
Tacanan
Geographic distribution	Bolivia
Linguistic classification	Pano–Tacanan? Takanan
Subdivisions	Ese Ejja Araona–Tacana
Language codes
Glottolog	taca1255
Takanan languages (light green) and Panoan languages (dark green). Spots indicate documented locations.

Family division

• Tacanan
  • Ese Ejja (a.k.a. Ese’eha, Tiatinagua, Chama, Huarayo, Guacanawa, Chuncho, Eseʼexa, Tatinawa, Ese exa)
  • Araona–Tacana
    • Araona (a.k.a. Carina, Cavina)
    • Cavineña–Tacana
      • Cavineña (a.k.a. Kavinenya)
      • Tacana
        • Tacana (a.k.a. Tupamasa, Takana)
        • Reyesano (a.k.a. San Borjano, Maropa)
        • Toromona (†?)

Toromono may be extinct. Another possibly extinct Tacanan language is Mabenaro; Arasa has been classified as Tacanan, but appears to have more in common with Panoan.

Loukotka (1968)

Below is a full list of Tacanan language varieties listed by Loukotka (1968), including names of unattested varieties.^[1]

• Tacana - language with many relationships with the Arawak and Pano languages, spoken on the Beni River, Tuichi River, and Tequeje River, territory of Colonia, Bolivia; now spoken by only a few families. Dialects are:
  • Tumupasa / Maracáni - spoken on the Uchipiamona River in the same region.
  • Isiama / Ydiama - spoken on the Unduma River and around Ydiama.

• Araona - spoken on the Madre de Dios River and Manuripi River in Colonia, Bolivia
• Capechene / Capaheni - unknown language spoken on the Xapuri River and Rosiano River, Acre territory, Brazil. (Unattested.)
• Sapiboca - extinct language once spoken at the old mission of Reyes, Beni province, Bolivia.
• Chirigua / Shiribá - extinct language once spoken at the old mission of Santa Buenaventura, Beni. (Unattested.)
• Guarizo - extinct language once spoken at the old missions of Reyes and San Antonio de Isiama.
• Maropa - spoken in the vicinity of Lake Rogoaguado, Beni, now probably extinct.
• Guacanahua / Chama / Ese'ejja - spoken by a small tribe on the Madidi River and Undumo River, La Paz province, Bolivia.
• Mabenaro - spoken on the Manuripi River.
• Caviña / Cavineña - once spoken on the Cavinas River, Madidi River, and Beni River, now probably extinct.
• Toromona - once spoken between the Madidi River, Beni River, and Madre de Dios River, now perhaps extinct.
• Arasa - language spoken by the greater part of the Arazaire tribe (of Pano stock) on the Marcopata River and Arasa River.
• Tiatinagua / Mohino / Chuncho / Huarayo / Baguaja / Tambopata-Guarayo / Echoja - spoken by a tribe on the Peru-Bolivia border, on the Tambopata River.

Language contact

Jolkesky (2016) notes that there are lexical similarities with the Kayuvava, Tupi, and Arawak language families due to contact.^[2]

Vocabulary

Loukotka (1968) lists the following basic vocabulary items for the Tacanan languages.^[1]

gloss	Tacana	Tumupasa	Isiama	Araona	Sapiboca	Maropa	Guacanahua	Mabenaro	Caviña	Toromona	Arasa	Tiatinagua
one	peada	peada	peáda	peada	pebbi	pembive			pea		nonchina	owi
two	beta	beta	beta	beta	beta	beta	béka		beta	béka	béta	bikapiai
head	e-chua	e-shua	é-cho	e-chua	e-chuxa	e-chuxa		i-yoa	i-yuka		é-osha	é-osha
eye	e-tásha	é-tasha	ey-raha	e-sásha		é-shakuéna		i-thaha	i-xaka	e-shásh	é-shásha	i-sash
hand	e-me	ä-ma	e-me	e-me	e-mé	e-me	iá	i-miatsa	e-metuku	i-á	e-mä	e-mé
water	eavi	ahui	eahui	eavi	eubi	xubi		eowi	ena		ena	éna
fire	kuati	kuáti	kuáti	kuati	kuati	kuati	kuáti	kwathi	etiki	kuáti	chi	kuáti
sun	ideti	itaːti	itatti	izeti	iseti	icheti			igeti		huári	eshét
maize	dixe	oːtisha	ärishe	shíshe		chixe	shishé		ixike	shishé	shishe	shishi
tapir	ähuadi	aːhuadi	ahuáta			ahuánsha			auada	sháawi		shauví
house	ete	äte	ete	etai	etae	étai		ithai	etare	ekíi	soːpo	eti

Sample vocabulary of four Tacanan languages, along with Proto-Panoan for comparison, from Nikulin (2019):^[3]

gloss	Ese Ejja	Araona	Cavineña	Tacana	Proto-Panoan
liver	e-kakʷa	tákʷa	e-takʷa	e-takʷa	*takʷa
tongue	ej-ana	e-ána	j-ana	j-ana	*hana
blood		ami	ami	ami	*himi
you (sg.)	mi-a	mi	mi-	mi	*mi
hand	e-me	e-me	e-me-tuku	e-me	*mɨ-
earth	meʃi	mezizo	metʃi ‘soil’	med’i	*mai
meat	e-jami	e-ami	e-rami	j-ami ‘muscle’	*rami
stone		mahana	makana		*maka
bone	e-sá	e-tsoa	e-tsau	e-tsau	*ʂao
(finger)nail	e-me-kiʃe	Ø-mé-tezi		e-me-tid’i	*mɨ̃-tsis
fat	e-sei	e-tsei	e-tseri	e-tsei	*ʂɨ[n]i
tooth	e-sé	e-tse	e-tse	e-tse	*ʂɨta

Verbal morphology

Associated motion

Tacanan languages, in particular Cavineña and Ese Ejja, have among the richest associated motion systems in the world's languages.^[4]

Further reading

• Girard, Victor (1971). Proto-Takanan Phonology (University of California Publications in Linguistics, 70.) Berkeley/Los Angeles: University of California Press.