A Reference Grammar of Kotiria (Wanano)

Description

Published through the Recovering Languages and Literacies of the Americas initiative| supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

This volume is the first descriptive grammar of Kotiria (Wanano)| a member of the eastern Tukanoan language family spoken in the Vaupes River basin of Colombia and Brazil in the northwest Amazon rain forest. The Kotirias| who have lived in this remote region for more than seven hundred years| participate in the complex Vaupes social system| characterized by long-standing linguistic and cultural interaction. The Kotirias remained relatively isolated from the dominant societies until the early part of the twentieth century| when increasing outside influence in the region triggered rapid social and linguistic change. Today the Kotirias number only about sixteen hundred people| and their language| though still used in traditional communities| is in risk of becoming endangered.

Kristine Stenzel draws on eight years of intensive work with the Kotirias to promote| record| and revitalize their language. Working with dozens of native speakers and drawing on numerous oral narratives and written texts| this book is the first comprehensive study of this endangered language and one of the few reference grammars of this language family.