Mapoyo-Yabarana language

Mapoyo, or Mapoyo–Yavarana, is a Carib language spoken along the Suapure and Parguaza Rivers, Venezuela. The ethnic population of Mapoyo proper is about 365. Yabarana dialect is perhaps extinct; 20 speakers were known in 1977.^[1] An additional dialect, Pémono,^[2] was discovered in 1998. It was spoken only by an 80-year-old woman and has since gone extinct.

Mapoyo
Mapoyo–Yavarana
Native to	Venezuela
Region	Suapure River
Ethnicity	520 Mapoyo & Yabarana (2007)[1]
Extinct	after 1998 (Pemono)[1] A few semi-speakers (2007, Mapoyo proper) 20 (1977, Yabarana)
Language family	Carib Venezuelan Carib Mapoyo–Tamanaku Mapoyo
Dialects	Mapoyo Yabarana Pemono †
Language codes
ISO 639-3	Variously: mcg – Mapoyo yar – Yabarana pev – Pémono
Glottolog	mapo1245
ELP	Yawarana
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Phonology

Consonants

	Labial	Alveolar	Palatal	Velar	Glottal
Stop	p	t		k	ʔ
Nasal	m	n	ɲ
Fricative	β	s			h
Rhotic		ɾ
Approximant	w		j

• /h/ can be heard as a palatal [ç] when preceding a voiceless plosive.
• /n/ can be heard as a velar [ŋ] when preceding a velar /k/.
• /β/ can be heard as a voiced stop [b], when after a voiceless plosive or glottal /ʔ/.
• /s/ can be heard with an allophone of [ts] when word-initially, or after a glottal /ʔ/.
• /j/ can be heard as a voiced fricative [ʝ], when before a back vowel.

Vowels

	Front	Central	Back
High	i	ɨ	u
Mid	e	ɘ	o
Low		a

• Sounds /i, u/ are reduced to [ɪ, ʊ] in syllable-final position.
• /ɘ/ is heard as a lower [ə] sound when preceding /h/, or following /β/.
• /a/ is heard as [ɑ] when occurring after an initial bilabial sound.^[3]