Wayampi (Wajãpi)

Wayampi is a member of the Northern Tupí-Guarani branch of the Tupian language family spoken by about 1,200 people. The majority of Wayampi speakers are found in Pará and Amapá states in northern Brazil, mainly in the Terra Indígena Waiãpi (Wayampi Indigenous Territory). There are also Wayampi speakers in Camopi commune in the southeast of French Guiana.

Wayampi is also known as Wayãpi, Waiãpi, Guayapi or Oiampí. There are three dialects: Amapari Wayampi, Jari and Oiyapoque Wayampi.

There is a whistled form of Wayampi which can be used to communicate across long distances, especially when hunting and fishing.

Wayampi is written with the Latin alphabet using a spelling system based on the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), however few Wayampi speakers are literate in their language.

Wayampi alphabet and pronunciation

Notes

In open syllables e = [e]. ẽ = [ẽ], o = [o] and õ =[õ]
In closed syllables e = [ɛ]. ẽ = [ɛ̃], o = [ɔ] and õ =[ɔ̃]
J j is also written I i

Download an alphabet chart for Wayampi (Excel)

Sample text

ka'a lupoi olo-o ipi. je'iwe olo-o ipi. najkoj moma'e ka'a lupi, aĝe'elemẽ ky'y. nele-ese'ãj moma'e mũ, ele-o te ele-jko ke'ĩluwã we ipe olo-o. najkoj moma'e. kaalu-pytũ olo-waẽ. moma'e 'ymate olo-waẽ.

Translation

We are going to the forest. We go there in the morning. There is nothing in the forest now. If you can’t find anything, you keep walking. There is nothing. We come back after dark. We come back with nothing.

Source: Grammaire wayampi by François Copin

Sample video in Wayampi

Links

Information about Wayampi
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayampi_language
https://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Língua_oiampi
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayampi
http://www.language-archives.org/language/oym
https://www.sil.org/resources/search/language/oym
https://www.ethnologue.com/language/oym/

Tupian languages

Cocama, Emerillon, Guarani, Kaiwá, Makurap, Nheengatu, Old Tupi, Wayampi

Languages written with the Latin alphabet

Page created: 24.07.23. Last modified: 18.10.23

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