Languages
Nahahup consists of about four languages, based on mutual intelligibility. Nadeb and Kuyawi, Hup and Yahup, and Nukak and Kakwa, however, share 90% of their vocabulary and are mutually intelligible, and so are separate languages only in a sociolinguistic sense. These four branches are not close: Although the family was first suggested in 1906, only 300 cognates have been found, which include pronouns but no other grammatical forms.
| gloss | Nadëb | Hup | Dâw | Nïkâk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| father | ʔɨb | ʔip | ʔiːp | ʔiːp (Kakwa ʔip) |
| egg | tɨb | tip | tɨp | tip (Kakwa) |
| water | mi | mĩh | mĩʔ | mah (Kakwa) |
| tooth | təɡᵑ (Kuyawi) | təɡᵑ | təɡ | — |
| house | — | mõj | mɔ͂j | mɨ͂ |
Nadëb may be the most divergent; of the other languages, there is disagreement on the placement of Nïkâk. Martins (1999) propose two classifications, pending further research:
- Martins, proposal A
| Nadahup |
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- Martins, proposal B
| Nadahup |
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However, Epps considers Hup and Yahup to be distinct languages, and maintains that the inclusion of the poorly attested Nukak and Kakwa has not been demonstrated and is in fact highly dubious:
- Epps
| Nadahup |
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Read more about this topic: Nadahup Languages
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