Chibchan languages


The Chibchan languages is a language family indigenous to the Isthmo-Colombian Area, a geo-cultural region extending from Mosquitia in eastern Central America to northern Colombia, and encompassing parts of Costa Rica and Panama. The name is derives from the now-extinct Chibcha or Muisca language, once spoken on the Altiplano Cundiboyacense present day Colombia. Recent genetic and linguistic evidence now indicate that the original nucleus of Chibchan languages and peoples might not have been in Colombia, but along the south-eastern coast of Mosquitia, where the greatest diversity of Chibchan languages has been identified.

External relations

A larger family called Macro-Chibchan, which would contain the Misumalpan languages, Xinca, and Lenca, was found convincing by Kaufman.
Based primarily on evidence from grammatical morphemes, Pache suggests a distant relationship with the Macro-Jê languages.

Language contact

Jolkesky notes that there are lexical similarities with the Andaki, Barbakoa, Choko, Duho, Paez, Sape, and Taruma language families due to contact.

Classification

The Chibchan family was first formally recognized by Max Uhle in an 1890 publication in the journal of the International Congress of Americanists entitled Verwandtschaften und Wanderungen der Tschibtscha ("Kinships/relationships and migrations of the Chibcha".

Loukotka (1968)

Below is a full list of Chibchan language varieties listed by Loukotka, including names of unattested varieties. Loukotka also included other language families, like Barbacoan, Kamëntšá, and Paezan, which are no longer accepted as Chibchan.
;Rama group
;Guatuso group
  • Guatuso – spoken on the Frío River, Costa Rica, now perhaps extinct.
  • Guetar / Brusela – extinct language once spoken on the Grande River, Costa Rica.
  • Suerre / Camachire / Chiuppa – extinct language once spoken on the Tortuguero River, Costa Rica.
  • Pocosi – extinct language once spoken on the Matina River and around the modern city of Puerto Limón, Costa Rica.
  • Voto – extinct language once spoken at the mouth of the San Juan River, Costa Rica.
  • Quepo – extinct language once spoken in Costa Rica on the Pacuare River.
  • Corobisi / Corbesi / Cueresa / Rama de Rio Zapote – spoken by a few individuals in Costa Rica on the Zapote River.
;Talamanca group
  • Terraba / Depso / Quequexque / Brurán – extinct language once spoken in Costa Rica on the Tenorio River.
  • Tirub / Rayado / Tiribi – extinct language spoken once in Costa Rica on the Virilla River.
  • Bribri / Lari – spoken on the Coca River and Tarire River, Costa Rica.
  • Estrella – Spanish name of an extinct language, the original name of which is unknown, once spoken on the Estrella River, Costa Rica.
  • Cabecar – language spoken on the Moy River, Costa Rica.
  • Chiripó – language spoken in Costa Rica on the Matina River and Chirripó River.
  • Viceyta / Abiseta / Cachi / Orosi / Tucurrique – extinct language once spoken on the Tarire River, Costa Rica.
  • Brunca / Boruca / Turucaca – extinct language of Costa Rica, spoken on the Grande River and in the Boruca region.
  • Coto / Cocto – extinct language once spoken between the sources of the Coto River and Grande River, Costa Rica.
;Dorasque group
;Guaymi group
  • Muoi – extinct language once spoken in the Miranda Valley of Panama.
  • Move / Valiente – now spoken on the Guaymi River and in the Veragua Peninsula.
  • Norteño – dialect without an aboriginal name, spoken on the northern coast of Panama, now perhaps extinct.
  • Penonomeño – once spoken in the village of Penonomé.
  • Murire / Bucueta / Boncota / Bogota – spoken in the Serranía de Tabasara by a few families.
  • Sabanero / Savaneric / Valiente – extinct dialect without aboriginal name, once spoken on the plains south of the Serranía de Tabasara.
  • Pariza – extinct dialect spoken in the Conquest days on the Veragua Peninsula.
;Cuna group
  • Coiba – extinct language once spoken on the Chagres River, Panama.
  • Cuna / Bayano / Tule / Mandingo / San Blas / Karibe-Kuna / Yule – language spoken in eastern Panama, especially on the Bayano River, in San Blas and the small islands on the northern coast.
  • Cueva / Darien – extinct language Once spoken at the mouth of the Atrato River, Colombia.
  • Chochama – extinct language once spoken on the Suegro River, Panama.
;Antioquia group
  • Guazuzú – once spoken in the Sierra de San Jerónimo, department of Antioquia, Colombia.
  • Oromina / Zeremoe – extinct language once spoken south of the Gulf of Urabá, Antioquia, Colombia.
  • Catio – once spoken in the region of Dabaiba, Colombia.
  • Hevejico – once spoken in the Tonusco and Ebéjico Valleys.
  • Abibe – once spoken in the Sierra de Abibe.
  • Buritaca – once spoken at the sources of the Sucio River.
  • Caramanta – once spoken around the city of Caramanta.
  • Cartama – once spoken around the modern city of Cartama.
  • Pequi – once spoken in the Pequi region.
  • Arma – once spoken on the Pueblanco River.
  • Pozo – once spoken on the Pozo River and Pacova River.
  • Nutabé – once spoken in the San Andrés Valley.
  • Tahami – once spoken on the Magdalena River and Tora River.
  • Yamesi – once spoken at the mouth of the Nechi River and on the Porce River.
  • Avurrá – once spoken in the Aburrá Valley.
  • Guamoco – once spoken around the modern city of Zaragoza, Antioquia.
  • Anserma / Humbra / Umbra – once spoken on the Cauca River around the city of Anserma, Caldas.
  • Amachi – once spoken in the San Bartolomé Valley.
;Chibcha group
  • Chibcha / Muisca / Mosca – extinct language once spoken on the upper plateau of Bogotá and Tunja, department of Cundinamarca, Colombia.
  • *Duit dialect – once spoken on the Tunja River and Tundama River.
  • Tunebo / Tame – language now spoken by many tribes living in the area east of the Chibcha tribe. Dialects:
  • *Tegría – spoken on the Tegría River, department of Boyaca.
  • *Pedraza – spoken on the Pedraza River.
  • *Boncota – spoken on the Boncota River.
  • *Manare – spoken on the Manare River.
  • *Sinsiga / Chita – spoken in the village of Chita, Boyacá and on the Chisca River.
  • *Uncasica – spoken in the Sierra Librada.
  • *Morcote – spoken on the Tocaría River and in the village of Morcote.
  • Chitarero – extinct language once spoken around the modern city of Pamplona, department of Santander.
  • Lache – extinct language once spoken on the Chicamocha River and in the Sierra de Chita, department of Boyacá.
;Motilon group
  • Dobocubí / Motilon – spoken on the Tarra River and around the old mission of Atacarayo, department of Norte de Santander, Colombia.
  • Bartra / Cunaguasáya – spoken by a tribe on the Oro River, Rincón River, and Lora River in the Norte de Santander region.
  • Mape – spoken by a little known tribe on the Catatumbo River and Agua Blanca River in the Norte de Santander region and in the state of Zulia, Venezuela.
;Arhuaco group
  • Tairona / Teyuna – extinct language once spoken on the Frio River and on the Caribbean coast, department of Magdalena, Colombia, now a secret language of the priests in the Cagaba tribe.
  • Zyuimakane – extinct language once spoken on the Volador River in the same region.
  • Bungá – extinct language once spoken on the Santa Clara River.
  • Ulabangui – once spoken on the Negro River, in the Santa Clara River region.
  • Cashingui – once spoken on the Palomino River.
  • Masinga – once spoken on the Bonda River, in the Palomino River region.
  • Bonda / Matuna – once spoken on the Bonda River and Santa María River.
  • Cágaba / Köggaba / Kaugia / Koghi – language spoken in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in the villages of San Andrés, San Miguel, San José, Santa Rosa, and Pueblo Viejo.
  • Guamaca / Nábela / Sanha / Arsario – spoken in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta region in the villages of El Rosario, Potrerito, and Marocaso.
  • Bintucua / Ijca / Ika / Iku / Machaca / Vintukva – spoken in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta region in the village of San Sebastián.
  • Atanque / Campanaque / Busintana / Buntigwa / Kallwama – spoken in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, in the village of Atanquez.
  • Upar / Eurpari / Giriguana – extinct language once spoken on the César River.
  • Cariachil – once spoken between the Molino River and Fonseca River.
  • Ocanopán / Itoto – once spoken around Cerro Pintado.
;Paya group