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Kapóng
Kapóng
Ingarikó
Native to	Guyana, Venezuela
Ethnicity	Akawaio, Patamona
Native speakers	(10,000 cited 1990–2002)
Language family	Cariban Venezuelan Carib Pemóng–Panare Pemóng Kapóng; ; ; ;
Language codes
ISO 639-3	Either:; ake – Akawaio; pbc – Patamona
Glottolog	kapo1251
ELP	Kapong

Kapóng is a Cariban language spoken mainly in Guyana, most commonly in the region of the Upper Mazaruni. Though many speakers do not live in villages, there are a number of population centers, notably Kamarang, Jawalla, Waramadong, and Kako. There are two dialects, Akawaio and Patamona.

The Macushi name of the language is Ingarikó.

History

The Carib tribes practice an indigenous system of beliefs, one that dates back to the 16th century. It was not until the 19th century that attempts were made to understand the beliefs and practices of this tribe. Much of the Kapóng language refers back to sun worship and sun spirits, which is reflective of the beliefs system of these Carib-speaking tribes. Literature has also found belief in a higher being in the sky among the Carib tribes in Guyana.^[2]

Geographic Distribution

The Kapóng language is found to be spoken in lowland tropical South America, particularly in the countries of Guyana, Brazil, and Venezuela.

In Guyana, Kapóng is spoken in forests by the Mazaruni River Basin. In 2013, a survey by the Inter-American Development Bank identified 20% fluency among Akawaio, which was the highest fluency rate among all sampled indigenous groups in Guyana. However, no indigenous language was in use by the Guyanese Patamona people in the survey.^[3]

The number of speakers in Brazil is about 10,000, and the transmission of language in Brazil is deemed to be of good standing.^[4] Speakers in Brazil are found in the Roraima Indigenous Terra Raposa.

In Venezuela, Kapóng is spoken in the states of Bolivar and Monagas.

Dialects/Varieties

Kapóng has three dialects, which are:^[5]

Akawaio (Akawayo)
Ingarikó (Ingaricó)
Patamona

Phonology

Consonants

		Bilabial	Alveolar	Palatal	Velar
Plosive	voiceless	p	t		k
Plosive	voiced	b	d		g
Fricative	voiceless		s
Fricative	voiced		z
Nasal		m	n
Flap			ɾ
Semivowel				j	w

The allophones of /k s n/ are [ʔ tʃ ŋ], as well as the allophones of /z/ being [ʃ ʒ dʒ].^[6]

Vowels

	Front	Central	Back
Close	i	ɨ	u
Close-mid	e	ʌ	o
Open		a

Orthography

Vowels and diphthongs

a - [a]
e - [ɛ/e]
i - [i]
ï - [ɨ]
o - [o/ɔ]
ö - [ʌ]
u - [u]
ai - [aj]
au - [aw]
ei - [ej]
oi - [ɔj]

Consonants

b - [b]
ch - [t͡ʃ]
d - [d]
g - [g]
j - [d͡ʒ] ~ [ʒ]
k - [k]
m - [m]
n - [n]
ñ - [ɲ]
ng - [ŋ]
p - [p]
r - [ɺ]
s - [s]
sh - [ʃ]
t - [t]
w - [w]
y - [j]
z - [z]
' - [ʔ]^[7]^[8]

Vocabulary

Much of the Kapóng language has emphasis on a higher spirit/god up in the sky, and this is reflected in the vocabulary in this language.^[2]

Kapóng = Sky People
akwalo = the spirit
akwa = God's place
Waica = warrior
Taemogoli = grandfather
Kapo = in the sky
Iopotari akuru = chief spirit

Morphology

yamok (aemvk)^{[clarification needed]} is an ending used to make words plural. (i.e.) Adding yamok to "Kapong" makes "Kapong" plural; Kapong yamok.^[2]

-da is a marker used to mark possession. (i.e.) kaata = book; da kaata = my book.^[2]

The preferred word order of Kapóng is subject-object-verb, for example:^[9]

Walawokyamàkuya

boys-PL

molok

fish

yachi

catch

"The boys catch fish"

However, the word order is flexible and there are cases where the object precedes the subject in sentences. Such as:^[9]

Kanau

boat

ikuurabök

he paddling

mang

is

"He is paddling the boat"

There are no gender distinctions found in Kapóng, as there are no differences in personal pronoun systems and affixes to indicate genders of nouns.

Similes are often used in writing, as many words in this language allow this to occur. Through the use of suffixes, many words can be converted into similes. Examples are as follows:^[10]

-kasa = 'like'
-walai = 'similar to'

References

^ Akawaio at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
Patamona at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Butt, Audrey J. (1953). "THE BURNING FOUNTAIN WHENCE IT CAME": (A study of the system of beliefs of the Carib-speaking Akawaio of British Guiana.). University of the West Indies: Sir Arthur Lewis Institute of Social and Economic Studies. pp. 114–115.
^ Bollers, Elton; Clarke, Dillon; Johnny, Teniesha; Wenner, Mark (February 2019), Guyana's Indigenous Peoples 2013 Survey (PDF), Inter-American Development Bank, p. 67, doi:10.18235/0001591, S2CID 134838441, archived (PDF) from the original on 2020-02-20, retrieved 2021-03-03
^ Brenzinger, Matthias (2015). Language Diversity Endangered. Walter de Gruyte. p. 38. ISBN 978-3-11-090569-4.
^ Cambell, Lyle (2003). American Indian Languages: The Historical Linguistics of Native America. Oxford University Press. p. 203. ISBN 978-3110170504.
^ Edwards, Walter F. (1978). "Some synchronic and diachronic aspects of Akawaio phonology". Anthropological Linguistics. 20 (2): 77–84. JSTOR 30027529.
^ Gildea, Spike and Caesar-Fox, Desrey (2006) “Clause linking in Akawaio (Cariban)”
^ Caesar-Fox, Desrey (2003) Zauro'nödok Agawayo Yau: variants of Akawaio spoken at Waramadong.
^ ^a ^b Edwards, Walter F. (September 1979). "A Comparison of Selected Linguistic Features in Some Cariban and Arawakan Languages in Guyana". Anthropological Linguistics. 21 (6): 277–297. JSTOR 30027731.
^ Butt, Audrey J. (1961). "Symbolism and ritual among the Akawaio of British Guiana". Nieuwe West-Indische Gids / New West Indian Guide. 41: 141–161. doi:10.1163/22134360-90002345.