Aymara languages
| Aymaran | |
|---|---|
| Jaqi, Aru | |
| Geographic distribution |
Central South America, Andes Mountains |
| Linguistic classification |
Quechumaran ?
|
| Subdivisions | |
| Glottolog | ayma1253 |
Dark color: current extent of Aymaran languages. Light color: former extent, as evidenced by toponomy.
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Aymaran (also Jaqi, Aru, Jaqui, Aimara, Haki) is one of the two dominant language families of the central Andes, along with Quechuan.
Hardman (1978) proposed the name Jaqi for the family of languages (1978), Alfredo Torero Aru 'to speak', and Rodolfo Cerrón Palomino Aymaran, with two branches, Southern (or Altiplano) Aymaran and Central Aymaran (Jaqaru and Kawki).
Quechuan languages, especially those of the south, share a large amount of vocabulary with Aymara, and the languages have often been grouped together as Quechumaran.This proposal is controversial, however; the shared vocabulary may be better explained as intensive borrowing due to long-term contact.
Aymaran languages have only three phonemic vowels /a i u/, which in most varieties of Aymara and Jaqaru are distinguished by length. Length is commonly transcribed using umlauts in Aymara and length diacritics in Jaqaru.
Though Aymaran languages vary in terms of consonant inventories, they have several features in common. Aymara and Jaqaru both contain phonemic stops at labial, alveolar, palatal, velar and uvular points of articulation. Stops are distinguished by ejective and aspirated features. Both also contain alveolar, palatal, and velar fricatives and several central and lateral approximants.
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