Numerals in Lokono-Wayuunaiki: Reconstruction and implications for internal classification

Abstract

Abstract The goal of this paper is to contribute to the understanding of the diachronic development of the Lokono-Wayuunaiki subgroup of the Arawak language family by focusing on a structured set of lexemes of recurrent interest for historical linguists. In this paper, I reconstruct the cardinal numerals from ‘one’ to ‘four’ in Proto-Lokono-Wayuunaiki (PLW). For each reconstructed etymon, I will discuss how regular sound change and attested morphological patterns support the reconstructed forms and the implied diachronic developments in the two daughter languages, Lokono and Wayuunaiki. On the basis of these reconstructions, I argue that the form for ‘three’ and the construction involved in the derivation of the form for ‘four’ constitute innovations shared only by Lokono and Wayuunaiki among Arawak languages, thus supporting the recognition of Lokono-Wayuunaiki as a legitimate subgroup of the Arawak family.