An ethnographically based linguistic documentation of Araona: a Takanan language of Bolivia

The Endangered Language Documentation Programme (ELDP) provides grants worldwide to for the linguistic documentation of endangered language and knowledge. Grantees create multimedia collection of endangered languages. These collections are preserved and made freely available through the Endangered Languages Archive (ELAR) housed at the library of SOAS University of London.

This project will produce a collection of transcribed, translated and analyzed narratives, conversations and other culturally relevant speech practices from the endangered Araona language of the Takanan family, spoken by approximately 120 to 150 people on the Manurimi and Manupari rivers in the department of la Paz, Bolivia. These materials will serve as the basis for a grammatical description of the language and a linguistically based ethnography of the Araona people. Such a project is urgent because there are currently few documentary materials (either linguistic or cultural) available on the Araona, while they face pressure to adapt to the outside because of rapid economic growth in the national economy. Primary investigator: Adam Tallman

Project Details


Location: Bolivia, South America, Americas Organiser(s): Endangered Languages Documentation Programme Project partner(s): Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) Funder(s): Arcadia Funding received: £115,691.00 Commencement Date: 01/2014 Project Status: Active
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