Gununa Kune, also known as Puelche, Gennaken, Northern Tehuelche or Ranquelche, is an extinct Chonan language formerly spoken by the Gununa Kune people of the Pampas region of Argentina, in what is now Rio Negro Province and southern Neuquen Province. It became extinct in 1960 with the death of its last known speaker, Jose Maria Cual, and UNESCO's Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger lists it as extinct. Its exact relationship within the Chonan family is debated: it has long been treated as potentially isolated within the group, though some researchers have proposed a connection to the extinct Querandi language on limited evidence.
Facts
Disputed
Proto-Language StatusNo proto-language; long considered a language isolate within the Chonan family 1 Viegas Barros (2005) proposed a relation to the Chon languages, but the family affiliation remains unsettled. RegionRio Negro and southern Neuquen, Argentina 1 Speaker Count In the Other Atlases
Sources
1. Puelche language, Wikipedia
Infobox, Region field
Region: Rio Negro and southern Neuquen
Infobox, Extinct field
1960, with the death of Jose Maria Cual
Classification section
Gununa Kune has long been considered a language isolate.
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