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Amundava Indian Language (Amondawa, Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau)

Language: Amondawa is a Tupi-Guarani language of South America. The language of a neighboring Tupian tribe, Uru-eu-wau-wau (or Jupau) is so closely related to Amundava that many linguists consider them dialects of a single language. Both are agglutinating languages with many particles and variable word order. They are spoken by a combined 200 people in the Brazilian rainforest.

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Names: Amundava is a name given to them by the neighboring Tenharim tribe, meaning "riverbank people." The Amundava themselves do not normally use a tribal name, instead identifying themselves by their band and clan names or by the term Kagwaviha, which is their word for indigenous people. However, some Amundava people do refer to their tribe by the name Imbyga (or Envuga.) The Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau (Oro Vovoga) are a separate tribe who speak a dialect of the same language. Like the Amundava, they normally identify by band and clan, but sometimes use the tribal name Jupau. Collectively, the Amundava, Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau, Tenharim and some other related tribes of the same region call themselves Kagwahiva, which means "jungle dwellers," or just Avaga, "people." Alternate spellings of these names include Amondawa, Amondaua, Amondáwa, Amundavaga, Amondava, Amundawa, Mondawa, Mondáwa, Imby'ga, Uruewawáu, Uruewauwau, Uru-Eu-Uaw-Uaw, Vovo'ga, Yvovoga, Jupaú, Jupa, Jupauhua, Kagwahib, Kawahiv, and Awaga.

Our Online Amondawa/Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau Materials

Amundava Words:
    Our list of vocabulary words in the Amundava language.
Amundava Pronunciation Guide:
    How to pronounce Amundava words.

Amondawa/Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau Language Resources

Language Map of Western Central Brazil: * Language Families of Rondonia:
    Maps showing where in Brazil the Amundava language is spoken.
Amundava Phonology:
    Linguistic chart of phonemes in the Amundava language.
Amondawa tribe lacks abstract idea of time: * The Timeless Amondawa:
    Amondawa concept of time and the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis:
    Articles explaining the sociolinguistics of the Amondawa and Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau tribes.
Kagwaviha Languages:
    Wikipedia article on Amondawa and other related languages.
Amundava Papers:
    Archive of linguistics papers on Amundava, in English and Spanish.
Amondawa Language Tree:
    Theories about Amundava's language relationships compiled by Linguist List.
Idioma Uruewauwau:
    Information about the Amundava language in Spanish.
OLAC: Amundava:
    Reference list of Amundava language materials.
Endangered Languages Project: Uruewawau:
    Bibliography of Amundava language resources.

Amondawa and Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau Culture and History

Indigenous Peoples in Brazil: Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau:
    Online ethnography of the Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau tribe.
War for Survival: * Land In Dispute: * Uru-ew-wau-wau indigenous reserve invaded:
    Articles and a documentary film about abuses and deforestation of Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau land.
Amondawa Hunter-Gatherer Fact Sheet:
    Anthropological data about the Amondawa tribe.
Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau Cultural Objects:
    Museum exhibit with photographs of Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau artifacts.

Links, References, and Additional Information

  Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau:
   Encylopedia articles about the Amondawas and the Uru-eu-wau-waus.
  Native Brazilians:
   Information and links about indigneous Brazilian culture and issues.
  Povo Amundava * Amundauas:
   Information about the Amondawa tribe in Portuguese.



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