Extinct unclassified language of Brazil
Kaimbé is an extinct unclassified language of eastern Brazil. The ethnic population numbered an estimated 1,100 to 1,400 in 1986. The language is scarcely attested; in 1961 one elder was able to remember a few single words mixed with Kiriri .
The district of Caimbé in Euclides da Cunha, Bahia is named after the tribe.
Vocabulary
Kaimbé words collected from an elderly rememberer in Massacará, Euclides da Cunha, Bahia by Wilbur Pickering in 1961:[ 2]
Portuguese gloss (original)
English gloss (translated)
Kaimbé
fogo
fire
ˈlumi
fumo
smoke
buzʌ̨
ave, (tipo aracuão ?)
bird (rufous-vented ground cuckoo ?)
kwakwι
barraco
house, shed
toˈkaya
caça (gambá ?)
wild game (possum ?)
koˈřoa
deus
God
ˈmeutipʌ̨
rede
net
kiˈsε
References
Alain Fabre, 2005, Diccionario etnolingüístico y guía bibliográfica de los pueblos indígenas sudamericanos: KAIMBÉ [1]
Official language Regional languages Indigenous languages
Interlanguages Sign languages Non-official