Chono language
# Chono language

Chono is a poorly attested extinct language of confusing classification. It is attested primarily from an 18th-century catechism, which is not translated into Spanish.

Various placenames in Chiloé Archipelago have Chono etymologies, despite the main indigenous language of the archipelago at the arrival of the Spanish being Veliche.

## Classification

Campbell (2012) concludes that the language called Chono or Wayteka or Wurk-wur-we by Llaras Samitier (1967) is spurious, with the source material being a list of mixed and perhaps invented vocabulary.

Viegas Barros, who postulates a relationship between Kawesqar and Yaghan, believes that 45% of the Chono vocabulary and grammatical forms correspond to one of those languages, though it is not close to either.

Glottolog concludes that "There are lexical parallels with Mapuche as well as Qawesqar, ... but the core is clearly unrelated." They characterize Chono as a "language isolate", which corresponds to an unclassified language in other classifications.

## Samitier (1967) word list

The following list of Chono (Wayteka) words, as spoken in the Gulf of Penas, is from Samitier (1967). It was later found to be spurious by Campbell (2012).

| Chono (Wayteka) | English gloss (translated) | Spanish gloss (original) | notes (English translations) | notes (Spanish original) |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| tónkekoq | grandfather | abuelo | same as 'old man' | igual que ‘hombre viejo’ |
| maáksa | water | agua | drinking water | agua potable |
| kamóka | wing | ala | | |
| neks | bitter | amargo | bitter taste | gusto amargo |
| káaʃer | friend | amigo | same as 'like a son' | igual que ‘como un hijo’ |
| saco | anchor | ancla | | según Fitz Roy |
| noksawlek | year | año | | |
| walete | plow | arado | wooden stick for removing dirt | según Fitz Roy. Pala para remover la tierra en las islas. Era de madera |
| mékta | tree | árbol | any tree | cualquier árbol |
| walt | bow | arco | bow for shooting arrows | arco para disparar flechas |
| kénkapon | rainbow | arco iris | lit. 'eye of sky' | significa ‘ojo del cielo’ |
| káukan | bustard | avutarda | | |
| tékam | blue | azul | cf. tepon 'color of the sky' | también, tepon, que significa ‘color del cielo’ |
| katáiʃ | whale | ballena | | |
| táiʃkoq | beard | barba | beard of old man | barba del ‘hombre viejo’ |
| léikse | drink | beber | | |
| taiʃo | moustache | bigote | | |
| wékorq | white | blanco | like foam of ocean waves | como espuma de la ola |
| láur | mouth | boca | lit. 'to speak'; cf. la 'tongue' | ‘para hablar’, igual que la, lengua |
| rálm | ember | brasa | | |
| tákfo | sorcerer | brujo | | igual que Fo, un brujo legendario |
| mókstap | head | cabeza | | |
| wampus | canoe | canoa | pirogue | piragua (dalca en araucano) |
| pon | sky | cielo | | |
| ɣas’e | clarity | claridad | daylight (without sun); also daytime deity | la luz del día, sin sol. Divinidad diurna ... citada en sus mitos. |
| swa’kalk | heart | corazón | | que golpea adentro |
| ka’wais | Chiloé | Chiloé Island | our 'island of stones' | nuestra ‘isla de piedra’ |
| kémaway, ketámaway | hut | choza | | |
| arks | finger | dedo | also called: lek 'one' | también lo llamaban lek, que quiere decir uno |
| wárʃɣa | day | día | from dawn to night | desde el amanecer hasta la noche |
| mótok | doubt | dudar | same as 'to think' | igual que ‘pensar’ |
| kseksel | age | edad | | |
| ʃérri-ʃúpon | good spirit | espíritu bueno | lit. 'son of the sky' | el ‘hijo del cielo’ |
| sacima | evil spirit | espíritu malo | | |
| terk | spit | escupir | | |
| kíχie | star | estrella | | |
| oméke | lantern | farol | | |
| pénkel | cold | frío | | |
| ʃéku | fire | fuego | | |
| wur | speak | hablar | | |
| ʃer | son | hijo | | |
| ʃérse | daughter | hija | | |
| téka | native man | hombre nativo | | |
| kúwa | white man | hombre blanco | | Fitz Roy anota kubba |
| yagépo | winter | invierno | lit. 'time without sin' | significa ‘tiempo sin sol’ |
| wa, we | island | isla | | |
| ʃo | lip | labio | | |
| táka | wolf | lobo | same as 'seal' | igual que foca. Píur según; Juan I. Molina. |
| gérak | bright star | lucero | | |
| ay | place | lugar | cf. aysen 'place of drizzle/fog' | aysen, significa lugar de las lloviznas o neblinas |
| kiráke | moon | luna | | |
| omése | mother | madre | | |
| ma’a | mother (voc.) | mamá | first words of infants | primera voz de los niños |
| ksewa | hand | mano | | |
| wanéʃe | woman | mujer | | |
| ksárro | blanket | manta | blanket made from dyed animal skins | carro, según Molina. Manta de pieles teñidas |
| nékseks | swim | nadar | | |
| ko’o | black | negro | | |
| konkóse | girl | niña | | |
| konkok | boy | niño | | |
| λosen | snow | nieve | | |
| sen | fog | niebla | also 'drizzle' | también ‘llovizna’ |
| nenke | no | no | negation | negación |
| pónse | cloud | nube | means 'fog of the sky' | ‘niebla del cielo’ |
| cincimen | otter | nutria | | según Juan I. Molina |
| ʃóko | ocean | océano | Pacific Ocean | el océano Pacífico |
| pérkse | darkness | obscuridad | same as 'night' | igual que la noche. Divinidad nocturna |
| ténkok | father | padre | | |
| áwitem | paradise | paraíso | afterworld | mansión en que imaginaban a sus muertos |
| táiʃ | hair | pelo | | |
| téwa | dog | perro | dogs to help with fishing | perro, que empleaban para ayudarles en la pesca |
| akína | priest | papa | priests in the forest | papas silvestres. Darwin anota el mismo vocablo |
| ménka | foot | pie | | |
| éwenk | blood | sangre | animal blood | sangre de animales |
| wíwe | whistle (v., n.) | silbar, silbido | | |
| kilineχa | rope | soga | rope from plant fibers | soga vegetal según Juan I. Molina |
| gépon | sun | sol | | |
| wil | south | sud | also 'southerly wind' | también llamaban asi al viento frío del sud |
| sékewil | dream | sueño | | |
| tiki | table, plank | tabla o tablón | canoe planks | tablones de las canoas. Según Molina también nombre de un árbol |
| wask | earth | tierra | | |
| kákwe | green | verde | same as prairie grass | igual que el pasto de las vegas |
| pokéye | summer | verano | sunny season, 'to shine (of sky)' | tiempo de sol, ‘brilla el cielo’ |
| áriɣm | wind | viento | storm winds only | únicamente el viento de la tempestad |
| lek | one | uno | | |
| wo, wotok | two | dos | | dos, ‘un par’ |
| kselek | three | tres | | |
| wowo | four | cuatro | 2 x 2 | dos pares |
| ksewo | five | cinco | 5 | una mano |
| kselekwo | six | seis | 2 x 3 | tres, dos veces |
| ksewowo | seven | siete | 3+4 | tres, más cuatro |
| ksewowolek | eight | ocho | 5+2+1 | una mano, un par y uno |
| lekwonenk | nine | nueve | 5+5-1 | dos manos menos uno |
| wire | ten | diez | 5+5 | o wire-ksewo, dos manos completas |
