Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 19, 2026

Apalaí language

Apalaí is a Cariban language spoken in Brazil. Approximately 450 Aparai people speak Apalaí. It is an agglutinative language which uses a rare object–verb–subject word order.

Last revised
Jul 19, 2026
Read time
≈ 1 min
Length
144 w
Citations
4
Source
Wikipedia ↗
Apalaí
Aparaí
Native toBrazil
EthnicityAparai people
Native speakers
650 (2022)1
Cariban
  • Apalaí
Language codes
ISO 639-3apy
Glottologapal1257
ELPApalaí
Apalai is classified as Vulnerable by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger.

Apalaí is a Cariban language spoken in Brazil. Approximately 450 Aparai people speak Apalaí. It is an agglutinative language which uses a rare object–verb–subject word order.2

Phonology

Consonants

Consonants of Apalai3
Bilabial Alveolar Postalveolar Palatal Velar Glottal
Stop p t k ʔ
Fricative voiceless s ʃ
voiced z
Nasal m n
Approximant j w
Tap/Flap ɾ

Vowels

Vowels of Apalai3
Front Central Back
plain nasal plain nasal plain nasal
High i ĩ ɨ ɨ̃ u ũ
Mid e ẽ o õ
Low a ã
References

References

  1. Apalaí at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022) Closed access icon
  2. "Apalai Indian Language (Aparai)". Retrieved 21 February 2016.
  3. Koehn, Edward and Sally Koehn. 1971. Fonologia da Língua Apalai. Estudos Sôbre Línguas E Culturas Indígenas. Brasília: Instituto Lingüístico de Verão. 17-28.