| Xukurú | |
|---|---|
| Ichikile, Shukurú | |
| Brobo | |
| Pronunciation | [bɾɔbɔ] |
| Native to | Brazil |
| Region | Pernambuco |
| Ethnicity | 8,500 Xukuru people (2020)1 |
| Extinct | after 1870s2 |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | xoo |
| Glottolog | xuku1239xucu1234 |
 Municipality of Pesqueira, Pernambuco, where Xukuru was spoken | |
Xukuru (Xucuru, Shukurú, Ichikile, Xukurú: Brobo4) is a poorly attested extinct language of Brazil. It is known only from a few word lists and a sketch by Geraldo Lapenda (1962).5
It was originally spoken in the Serra de São José and on the Meio River, Capibaribe River and Taperoa River in the states of Pernambuco and Paraíba. Loukotka (1968) reports the most recent locations as the Serra Ararobá and Pesqueira (formerly Cimbres).6
Classification
Loukotka (1968) considers Xukurú to form a small family with Paratió and the unattested Garanhun (Garañun).6 Glottolog, following Fabre (2005), treats Xukuru and Paratió as dialects.7
Distribution
Geraldo Lapenda (1962) reported that the Xukuru people can be found primarily in the settlements of Canabrava and Brejinho in the aldeia of Cimbres, Pesqueira municipality. They can also be found in the settlements of Cajueiro, Ipanema Velho, Caldeirão, Jitó, Lagoa, Machado, Sitio do Meio, Riacho dos Afetos, Trincheiras, Bem-te-vi, Santana, and São José. Although the Xukuru traditionally occupied the Serra do Ororobá, they could also be found in other municipalities of Pernambuco, namely Caruaru, Brejo da Madre de Deus, Belo Jardim, Sanharó, Poção, Pesqueira, and Arcoverde.5
Other languages with this name
Xukuru-Kariri is a variety of Xokó, which may be a Kariri language. The name Kiriri is shared by Dzubukuá, another Kariri language, and by Katembri. The name Kiriri-Xoko is shared with yet another variety of Xokó.
Phonology
Consonants
Xukuru consonants:5
| Bilabial | Labiodental | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Glottal | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plosive | voiceless | p | t | k | |||
| voiced | b | d | g | ||||
| Fricative | voiceless | f | s | ʃ ⟨x⟩ | h | ||
| voiced | v | z | ʒ ⟨j⟩ | ||||
| Nasal | m | n | |||||
| Lateral | l | ||||||
| Approximant | r | ||||||
Vowels
Xukuru vowels:5
| Front | Back | |
|---|---|---|
| Close | i | u |
| Close-mid | e ⟨é⟩ | o ⟨ó⟩ |
| Open-mid | ɛ ⟨ê⟩ | ɔ ⟨ô⟩ |
| Open | a | |
Xukuru also has nasalized vowels. Lapenda (1962) transcribes nasalized vowels as Vn (orthographic vowel followed by n). Descending diphthongs are attested, but only for oral vowels.5
Morphology
Common suffixes in Xukuru include -go, which forms verbs, adjectives, and nouns, and -men, of uncertain meaning.5
References
References
- "Xukuru - Povos Indígenas no Brasil". pib.socioambiental.org. Retrieved 2025-09-18.
- Hohenthal, Jr., W. D. (1954). "Notes on the Shucurú Indians of Serra de Ararobá, Pernambuco, Brazil" (PDF). Revista do Museu Paulista (Nova Série). 8: 93–164.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - "Glottolog 5.2 - Xukurú". glottolog.org. Retrieved 2025-09-18.
- Meader, Robert E. (1978). Indios do Nordeste: Levantamento sobre os remanescentes tribais do nordeste brasileiro (in Portuguese). Brasilia: SIL International. Archived from the original on 2024-10-08. Retrieved 2020-01-23.
- Lapenda, Geraldo Calábria. 1962. O dialecto Xucuru. Doxa (Revista Oficial do Departamento de Cultura do Diretório Acadêmico da Faculdade de Filosofia de Pernambuco da Universidade do Recife), ano X, n. 10, p. 11-23.
- Loukotka, Čestmír (1968). Classification of South American Indian languages. Los Angeles: UCLA Latin American Center.
- "Glottolog 5.1 - Xukurú". glottolog.org. Retrieved 2025-04-10.
- Lapenda, Geraldo Calábria. 1962. O dialecto Xucuru. Doxa (Revista Oficial do Departamento de Cultura do Diretório Acadêmico da Faculdade de Filosofia de Pernambuco da Universidade do Recife), ano X, n. 10, p. 11-23. Biblioteca Digital Curt Nimuendaju.