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Item type:Publication, Untangling the evolution of body-part terminology in Pano: conservative versus innovative traits in body-part lexicalization(Royal Society, 2022-12-09)Although language-family specific traits which do not find direct counterparts outside a given language family are usually ignored in quantitative phylogenetic studies, scholars have made ample use of them in qualitative investigations, revealing their potential for identifying language relationships. An example of such a family specific trait are body-part expressions in Pano languages, which are often lexicalized forms, composed of bound roots (also called body-part prefixes in the literature) and non-productive derivative morphemes (called here body-part formatives). We use various statistical methods to demonstrate that whereas body-part roots are generally conservative, body-part formatives exhibit diverse chronologies and are often the result of recent and parallel innovations. In line with this, the phylogenetic structure of body-part roots projects the major branches of the family, while formatives are highly non-tree-like. Beyond its contribution to the phylogenetic analysis of Pano languages, this study provides significative insights into the role of grammatical innovations for language classification, the origin of morphological complexity in the Amazon and the phylogenetic signal of specific grammatical traits in language families. - Some of the metrics are blocked by yourconsent settings
Item type:Publication, Language Classification in Western Amazonia(University of Campinas, 2023-02-16)The languages of the Pano and Takana families exhibit a considerable number of lexical and structural affinities that cannot be ascribed to mere chance and are not readily detectable instances of borrowing. After the comparative studies by Key (1968) and Girard (1971) the proposal of a genetic relationship between these two families was generally accepted (e.g. Loos 1973, 2005; Suárez 1973; Kaufman 1990; Campbell 1997). Without solid argumentation, however, this classification was later put into question (Fabre 1998; Loos 1999; Fleck 2013) and, even today, there is no full consensus as to whether the observed similarities are due to genetic inheritance or long-term language contact. The present paper offers lexical and grammatical evidence in support of the hypothesis that Pano and Takana are genetically connected. Comparing for the first time what can be considered Proto-Pano and Proto-Takana reconstructions, it is shown that 18 of the 40 items in the basic vocabulary list proposed by the Automated Similarity Judgment Program (asjp) (Holman et al. 2008) might be cognate; this includes 9 body-part terms. Also, a set of alleged grammatical cognates are assembled, and shared constructions involving motion verbal morphology, intransive and transitive auxiliaries, transitivity harmony restrictions, and switch-reference are discussed. - Some of the metrics are blocked by yourconsent settings
Item type:Publication, The forgotten mid vowels(John Benjamins Publishing Company, 2026-07-10)This study re-examines the phonological inventory of Proto-Pano, challenging the prevailing view that it had only four oral vowels. Through a comparative analysis of 23 contemporary Pano languages/varieties, we reconstruct a Proto-Pano system with two additional mid vowels, proposing a six-vowel inventory. This finding diverges from all previous reconstructions, which overlooked historically significant distributional differences between mid vowels in Northern Pano languages, Kakataibo, and Kaxarari. We argue that Pano mid vowels exhibit both conservative and innovative traits, questioning the assumption that all Pano mid vowels are innovations. Our analysis highlights the role of merger in shaping Pano phonological diversity, supporting a six-vowel reconstruction as a more accurate reflection of the comparative data. This revised perspective underscores the importance of carefully analyzing sound correspondence patterns and offers new insights into the historical evolution and internal classification of the Pano language family. Additionally, it calls for a thorough revision of previous Proto-Pano reconstructions and opens promising avenues for future research on the Pano-Takana stock.