Language Atlas

How Languages Connect
Sign In
Text size
100%
Theme

Switch Atlas

Language Family

Chicham

South American Language Families

The Chicham languages, also known as Jivaroan, are a small language family of northern Peru and eastern Ecuador, spoken across the Amazonas, Cajamarca, Loreto and San Martin regions of Peru. Speakers call the family aent, and its four living languages are Shuar, Achuar-Shiwiar, Awajun (Aguaruna) and Huambisa. The extinct Palta language may also have belonged to the family, and the poorly attested Tabancale is a possible relative on limited evidence. Some linguists propose a broader Macro-Jibaroan connection linking Chicham to Cahuapanan and other Amazonian language isolates, though this wider grouping remains unconfirmed.

Facts
Region
Northern Peru and eastern Ecuador 1
Region
Northern Peru and eastern Ecuador, across the Amazonas, Cajamarca, Loreto and San Martin regions of Peru 1
Speaker Count
100,000 2
Proto-Language Status
Reconstructed: Proto-Shuar reconstructed by Payne (1981) 1
Partially Attested
Proto-Language Status
Partially reconstructed: no unified Proto-Chicham (Proto-Jivaroan) reconstruction covers the whole family; Payne's (1981) Proto-Shuar reconstruction covers only the Shuar branch, drawing on data from Shuar, Achuar, Aguaruna and Huambisa. 1
Only the Shuar branch has a published reconstruction (Payne 1981); no reconstruction covers the whole Chicham/Jivaroan family.
In the Other Atlases
  • Also in Geography Atlas: Ecuador, found in there.
  • Also in Geography Atlas: Peru, found in there.
  • Also in Geography Atlas: South America, found in there.
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Chicham Languages
Wikimedia Foundation
  • Introduction, first sentence
    The Chicham languages, also known as Jivaroan (Hívaro, Jívaro, Jibaro), and natively as aent, is a small language family of northern Peru and eastern Ecuador, in Amazonas, Cajamarca, Loreto, and San Martin, Peru and the Oriente region of Ecuador.
  • Proto-language section, first sentence
    Payne's (1981) Proto-Shuar reconstruction is based on data from Shuar, Achuar, Aguaruna, and Huambisa, while his Proto-Shuar-Candoshi reconstruction also integrates data from Candoshi and Shapra.
  • Classification and reconstruction section
    Payne's (1981) Proto-Shuar reconstruction is based on data from Shuar, Achuar, Aguaruna, and Huambisa
  • Overview section
    The Chicham languages, also known as Jivaroan (Hivaro, Jivaro, Jibaro), and natively as aent, is a small language family of northern Peru and eastern Ecuador
View the Source
2. Chicham (Wikidata)
Wikimedia FoundationWikidata number of speakers (P1098) statement (EntityId 301215): 100000
Quote, Wikidata number of speakers (P1098) statement (EntityId 301215): 100000
Wikidata item Q1393074, property P1098 (number of speakers): 100000, point in time 2008-00-00 (normal rank, non-deprecated)
View the Source
Wikidata: Jivaroan
Wikidata Q1393074, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source
Comments (0)
No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.
Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.