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Apalai Indian Language (Aparai)

Language: Apalai or Aparai is a Carib language of the Northern Amazon, spoken by 400 people in Brazil. It is most closely related to Wayana. Apalai is an agglutinative language with complex verb morphology. Along with a few other Cariban languages, like Hixkaryana and Patamona, Apalai is notable for using OVS word order (just the opposite of English), which is the rarest typology to be found in the world's languages.

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Names: Aparaí is the people's own name for themselves. It is spelled a few different ways including Apalaí, Apalay, Aparai, and Aparay; the differences in pronunciation come because "l" and "r" are the same sound in Apalai, but different in Portuguese. Their allies the Wayanas call them Pirixiana, and they are sometimes also known by regional names of Makapai, Inumi, and Arawkayu.

Apalai Language

Apalai language samples and resources.

Apalai Culture and History

Information and links about the Apalai tribe past and present.

Apalai Legends

Introduction to the mythology of the Apalais.

Apalai Language Resources

Our Online Apalai Materials

Apalai Words:
Our list of vocabulary words in the Apalai language, with comparison to words in other Cariban languages.

Apalai Pronunciation Guide:
How to pronounce Apalai words.

Apalai Animal Words:
Illustrated glossary of animal words in the Apalai language.

Apalai Colors:
Worksheet showing color words in the Apalai language.

Apalai Body Parts:
Online and printable worksheets showing parts of the body in the Apalai language.

Apalai Numbers:
Worksheet showing how to count in the Apalai language.

Apalai Dictionaries and Language Books for Sale
Our organization earns a commission from any book bought through these links

Léxico Bilingüe Aparai-Português
Portuguese-Aparai dictionary for sale online.

On Reconstructing Grammar: Comparative Cariban Morphosyntax:
Linguistics text on the grammatical structure of Apalai and other Cariban languages.

Languages of the Amazon
In-depth book about Apalai and dozens of other Amazonian Indian languages.

American Indian Dictionaries:
American Indian language books and other materials for sale.

Apalai Language Lessons and Linguistic Descriptions

Languages of Northeastern Brazil:
Map showing the areas of South America where the Apalai language is spoken.

Dicionario da lingua Apalai:
Online Portugues-Apalai dictionary.

Apalai Phonology:
Linguistic chart of phonemes in the Apalai language.

House of Languages: Aparaí
Information about Aparai language usage.

Apalaí Language Tree:
Theories about Apalai's language relationships compiled by Linguist List.

Apalai Language Structures:
Apalai linguistic profile and academic bibliography.

Apalai New Testament:

Apalai Words of Life:

Language Museum: Aparai:
Translation of Bible passages into the Apalai language.

Apalai Papers:
Archive of language materials on Apalai, in English and Portuguese.

Links, References, and Additional Information

Endangered Languages Project: Apalai:

OLAC: Apalai:
Bibliographies of Apalai language resources.
Wikipedia: Apalaí:
Encyclopedia articles about the Apalai language.
La Lengua Apalaí:
Information on the Apalai language in Spanish.
Língua Aparaí

Palavras em Apalai:
Information on the Apalai language in Portuguese.
Apalai Resources:
Apalai language links.

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