This is a list of

Indigenous languages An indigenous language, or autochthonous language, is a language that is native to a region and spoken by indigenous peoples. This language is from a linguistically distinct community that originated in the area. Indigenous languages are not neces ...

that are or were spoken in the present territory of

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

. Although the official language of

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

, several

Indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention *Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band *Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...

languages are in use. Most are spoken only within their respective indigenous communities, some with very few remaining speakers. Others, especially

Aymara Aymara may refer to: Languages and people * Aymaran languages, the second most widespread Andean language ** Aymara language, the main language within that family ** Central Aymara, the other surviving branch of the Aymara(n) family, which today ...

Quechua Quechua may refer to: *Quechua people, several indigenous ethnic groups in South America, especially in Peru *Quechuan languages, a Native South American language family spoken primarily in the Andes, derived from a common ancestral language **So ...

(

South Bolivian Quechua South Bolivian Quechua, also known as Central Bolivian Quechua, is a dialect of Southern Quechua spoken in Bolivia and adjacent areas of Argentina, where it is also known as ''Colla''. It is not to be confused with North Bolivian Quechua, which ...

and Santiago del Estero Quichua), Toba (Qom) and

Guaraní Guarani, Guaraní or Guarany may refer to Ethnography * Guaraní people, an indigenous people from South America's interior (Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Bolivia) * Guaraní language, or Paraguayan Guarani, an official language of Paraguay * ...

( Western Argentine Guaraní,

Paraguayan Guaraní The guaraní (, plural: ''guaraníes''; sign: ₲; code: PYG) is the national currency unit of Paraguay. The guaraní was divided into 100 céntimos but, because of inflation, céntimos are no longer in use. The currency sign is ; if unavailab ...

, Mbyá Guaraní), are alive and in common use in specific regions. Finally, some such as Abipón and Yaghan, are now completely extinct. Since 2004 the

Guaraní language Guaraní (), specifically the primary variety known as Paraguayan Guarani ( "the people's language"), is a South American language that belongs to the Tupi–Guarani family of the Tupian languages. It is one of the official languages of ...

is official, together with Spanish, in the northeastern

Corrientes Province Corrientes (, ‘currents’ or ‘streams’; gn, Taragui), officially the Province of Corrientes ( es, Provincia de Corrientes; gn, Taragüí Tetãmini) is a province in northeast Argentina, in the Mesopotamia region. It is surrounded by (fr ...

. Aboriginal languages in Argentina , ____ Living , , ____ Tupi–Guaraní family , , , _Guaraní subfamily , , , ___ Subgroup I , , , ___ Paraguayan Guaraní , , , ___ Western Guaraní (Avá Guaraní or "chiriguano") , , , ___ Mbyá Guaraní , , , ___ Chiripá , , , ___ Kaiwá , , , ___ Tapieté , , ____ Guaycuruan family , , , ___ Qom group , , , ___ Mocoví , , , ___ Pilagá , , , ___ Toba , , ____ Mataguayo ("Mataco") family , , , ____Wichí group ("Mataco") , , , , ___ Nocten (Oktenay) , , , , ___ Güisnay (Wenhayéy) , , , , ___ Vejoz (Wehwos) , , , ____Nivaklé group ("Chulupí") , , , , ___ Forest Nivaklé (Yita'a lhavós) , , , , ___ River Nivaklé (Chishamne and Shichaam lhavos) , , , ____Chorote group , , , ___ Jo'wuwa or Iyo'wujwa (Manjui) , , , ___ Yofwaja or Iyojwa'ja (Eklenjui) , , ____ Quechua family , , , ____Quechua II C , , , ___ Southern Bolivian (Kolla) , , , ___ Santiago del Estero Quichua , , ____ Araucanian family , , , _____________ Mapudungun (Mapuche) , , ____ Isolated and unclassified , , _____________ Aymara , , _____________ Yagan, Yámana or Háusi-kúta , ____________ Endangered or nearly extinct , , ____ Lule–Vilela family , , , _____ Vilela , , ____ Isolated and unclassified , , _____ Gennaken ("Puelche") , ___ Extinct (an incomplete list) , ____ Arawakan family , , _____ Chané , ____ Charruan (?) , , _____ Güenoa , , _____ Chaná (?) , ____ Guaicuruan family , , _____ Abipón , , _____ Mbayá , , _____ Payaguá , , _____ Mbeguá (?) , ____ Lule–Vilela family , , _____ Lule , ____ Chon family , , _____ Manek'enk or Haush , , _____ Teushen , , , _____ Aönikën ("Tehuelche") , , _____ Śelknam ("Ona") , ____ Isolated and unclassified , ___ Huarpe group , , ___ Allentiac or Alyentiyak , , ___ Millcayac or Milykayak , _____ Toconoté , _____ Omaguaca , _____ Cacán (Diaguita-Calchaquí) , _____ Kunza, or Likanantaí (Atacameño) , _____ Henia-camiare or "Comechingon" , _____ Sanavirón , _____ Het Dubious. Fabre states (with convincing arguments) that no Kaiwá live in Argentina. Some authors give this languages as extinct. (?) Tentative classification

Living languages

* Caiwá ( Kaiwá) * Chiriguano * Chiripá * Chorote *

* Mapudungun *

Wichí The Wichí are an indigenous people of South America. They are a large group of tribes ranging about the headwaters of the Bermejo River and the Pilcomayo River, in Argentina and Bolivia. Notes on designation This ethnic group was named by the En ...

(''Wichí Lhamtés'') *

Mocoví The Mocoví ( Mocoví: ''moqoit'') are an indigenous people of the Gran Chaco region of South America. They speak the Mocoví language and are one of the ethnic groups belonging to the Guaycuru peoples. In the 2010 Argentine census, 22,439 peopl ...

* Nivaclé ( Chulupi) * Pilagá *

* Tapieté * Toba Qom

Extinct languages

A large number of languages once spoken in Argentina have disappeared. According to Censabella (1999), two thirds of the languages spoken when the Spaniards arrived became extinct. In some cases, the languages disappeared along with the ethnic groups that spoke them; in other, the acculturation and transculturation phenomena associated with deep changes in the living conditions of the indigenous peoples caused the extinction, even if a number of individuals of the ethnical group still survive. * Abipón, from the Guaykuruan family, somewhat related to Kadiwéu of

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. No living speakers of this language are known. * Cacán, spoken by peoples known as

Diaguita The Diaguita people are a group of South American indigenous people native to the Chilean Norte Chico and the Argentine Northwest. Western or Chilean Diaguitas lived mainly in the Transverse Valleys which incised in a semi-arid environment. Ea ...

s and

Calchaquí The Calchaquí or Kalchakí were a tribe of South American Indians of the Diaguita group, now extinct, who formerly occupied northern Argentina. Stone and other remains prove them to have reached a high degree of civilization. Under the leadership ...

es, in northwestern Argentina. Extinct since the mid-17th century or beginning of 18th century. Its genetic classification remains unsolved. The language was supposedly documented by the Jesuit Alonso de Bárcena, but the manuscript is lost. *

Chané Chané is the collective name for the southernmost Arawakan-speaking peoples. They lived in the plains of the northern Gran Chaco and in the foothills of the Andes in Paraguay, Brazil, Bolivia, and Argentina. The historical Chané are divided i ...

, from the Arawakan family. It has been sometimes compared with Guana or Kashika language of

Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

, and also with the

Terena The Trans-European Research and Education Networking Association (TERENA, ) was a not-for-profit association of European national research and education networks (NRENs) incorporated in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. The association was originally f ...

of Brazil, but both are different. Chané was spoken about 300 years ago in the north-east of Salta Province; the ethnical group, now called Izoceño, became subject as vassals to the Avá Guaraní people, and the language was lost. All surviving Chané individuals speak Western Guaraní. * Güenoa (or ''Wenoa'') and Chaná languages, of Charrúan stock, were spoken in today's central-eastern Argentina and

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

. Charruan languages became extinct by the beginning of the 19th century west of

Uruguay River The Uruguay River ( es, Río Uruguay, ; pt, Rio Uruguai, ) is a major river in South America. It flows from north to south and forms parts of the boundaries of Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay, separating some of the Argentine provinces of La M ...

, and around 1830 in the eastern shores of the same river. * Kunza (also ''Cunza'', ''Likanantaí'', ''Lipe'', ''Ulipe'' or ''Atacameño''), probably an isolated language, was spoken in northwestern Argentina, northeastern

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

and Bolivia, in and around the region of

Atacama The Atacama Desert ( es, Desierto de Atacama) is a desert plateau in South America covering a 1,600 km (990 mi) strip of land on the Pacific coast, west of the Andes Mountains. The Atacama Desert is the driest nonpolar desert in the w ...

up to Bolivian Salar de Uyuni by the Lickan-amtay (''Atacameño'') people. It is almost certainly extinct in Chile too. * Henia-Camiare or ''Hênia-Kamiare'', sometimes considered as two different languages, was spoken by the ethnic group of the same name, known by Spaniards as "'' comechingones''". The extant elements of this language (some

toponym Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of '' toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage and types. Toponym is the general term for a proper name of ...

s and plant names) are not enough to establish its genetic relationships, nor to attempt a reconstruction. * Het was the language spoken by the original dwellers of the

Pampas The Pampas (from the qu, pampa, meaning "plain") are fertile South American low grasslands that cover more than and include the Argentine provinces of Buenos Aires, La Pampa, Santa Fe, Entre Ríos, and Córdoba; all of Uruguay; and Brazi ...

, known as ''Pampas'' or ''Querandíes'', before they became intermixed with peoples of

Mapuche The Mapuche ( (Mapuche & Spanish: )) are a group of indigenous inhabitants of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina, including parts of Patagonia. The collective term refers to a wide-ranging ethnicity composed of various groups who s ...

origin and progressively switched to Mapudungun. Its very existence as a unique language (by opposition to a group) is merely speculative. * Allentiac or ''Alyentiyak'' and Millcayac or ''Milykayak'' languages belonged to the

Huarpe The Huarpes or Warpes are an indigenous people of Argentina, living in the Cuyo region. Some scholars assume that in the Huarpe language, this word means "sandy ground," but according to ''Arte y Vocabulario de la lengua general del Reino de Chi ...

or ''Warpe'' family and were spoken in the Cuyo region in central-western Argentina. The scarcity of remaining elements prevents accurate classification or reconstruction. * Lule, supposed to be part of the Lule–Vilela family, was spoken by peoples living in today's

Salta Salta () is the capital and largest city in the Argentine province of the same name. With a population of 618,375 according to the 2010 census, it is also the 7th most-populous city in Argentina. The city serves as the cultural and economic ce ...

Tucumán and Santiago del Estero provinces. Only a few toponyms and names remain, but their precise meaning is often obscure. However, the language is fairly well documented in a vocabulary and grammar composed by the Jesuit Antonio Machoni in 1732. * Tonocoté, sometimes confused with Lule, was spoken by a

settled A settler is a person who has migrated to an area and established a permanent residence there, often to colonize the area. A settler who migrates to an area previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited may be described as a pioneer. Settle ...

people dwelling in western and central regions of today's

Santiago del Estero Province Santiago del Estero (), also known simply as Santiago, is a province in the north of Argentina. Neighboring provinces, clockwise from the north, are Salta, Chaco, Santa Fe, Córdoba, Catamarca and Tucumán. History The indigenous inhabita ...

. There is some speculation among scholars about the possible Arawakan origin of that ethnic group, while other sources state that they were switching to

in the 16th century. No evidence of the language has survived. * Yaghan, ''Yámana'', ''Háusi-Kúta'' or ''Yagán'' is a language spoken by indigenous peoples of southern shores and islands of

Tierra del Fuego Tierra del Fuego (, ; Spanish for "Land of the Fire", rarely also Fireland in English) is an archipelago off the southernmost tip of the South American mainland, across the Strait of Magellan. The archipelago consists of the main island, Isla ...

. A very analytical language, it had an extensive vocabulary. In Argentina Yaghan became extinct at the beginning of the 20th century, but lexicons and early recordings remain. It is recognised in a number of well known toponyms as

Ushuaia Ushuaia ( , ) is the capital of Tierra del Fuego, Antártida e Islas del Atlántico Sur Province, Argentina. With a population of nearly 75,000 and a location below the 54th parallel south latitude, Ushuaia claims the title of world's souther ...

, Lapataia,

Tolhuin Tolhuin is a town in the province of Tierra del Fuego, Argentina. It has 2,949 inhabitants as per the . It is located on the eastern shore of Lake Fagnano, in the southern part of the Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego. It is the third largest settlem ...

, etc. Some elder speakers (between 1 and 5) remain in Chile, where the language is nearly extinct. *

Ona Ona or ONA may refer to: Anthropology * Ona people, an indigenous people of southern Argentina and Chile ** Ona language, a language once spoken in Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego * Ona, a pre-Aksumite culture in Sembel, Eritrea Geography * On ...

. * Puelche. *

Tehuelche language Tehuelche (''Aoniken, Inaquen, Gunua-Kena, Gununa-Kena'') is one of the Chonan languages of Patagonia. Its speakers were nomadic hunters who occupied territory in present-day Chile, north of Tierra del Fuego and south of the Mapuche people. It is ...

. *

Vilela language Vilela (''Uakambalelté, Atalalá, Chulupí~Chunupí'')Not to be confused with Niwaklé, which is also called Chulupí~Chunupí. is an extinct language last spoken in the Resistencia area of Argentina and in the eastern Chaco near the Paragua ...

. Other extinct languages are known just by the ethnic group that spoke them, since very scarce (if any) linguistic material remains. Among them: Omaguaca; Sanavirón; several languages probably belonging to the Guaycurú family but known by their Guaraní ethnonyms as Mbayá, Payaguá, Minuané, Mbeguá, Timbú, Corondá, Quiloazá and Colastiné; and others related to the

Chon CHON is a mnemonic acronym for the four most common elements in living organisms: carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen. The acronym CHNOPS, which stands for ''c''arbon, ''h''ydrogen, ''n''itrogen, ''o''xygen, ''p''hosphorus, ''s''ulfur, r ...

stock, as

Manek'enk The Haush or Manek'enk were an indigenous people who lived on the Mitre Peninsula of the Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego. They were related culturally and linguistically to the Ona or Selk'nam people who also lived on the Isla Grande de Tierra ...

and

Teushen The Teushen or Tehues were an indigenous hunter-gatherer people of Patagonia in Argentina. They were considered "foot nomads", whose culture relied on hunting and gathering.Adelaar and Muysken 550 Their territory was between the Tehuelche people ...

References

* Adelaar, Willem F.H. (2004). ''The languages of the Andes''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press * Braunstein, José A. (1992-3A). ''Presentación: esquema provisorio de las tribus chaqueñas''. Hacia una Nueva Carta Étnica del Gran Chaco, 4: 1-8. Las Lomitas, Formosa. * ______ (1992-3B). ''Presentación''. Hacia una Nueva Carta Étnica del Gran Chaco, 5: 1-3. Las Lomitas, Formosa. * Campbell, Lyle. (1997). ''American Indian languages: The historical linguistics of Native America''. New York: Oxford University Press. . * Censabella, Marisa (1999). ''Las lenguas indígenas de la Argentina. Una mirada actual''. Buenos Aires: Eudeba. * Fabre, Alain (1998). ''Manual de las lenguas indígenas sudamericanas'', Vol. II. Munich: Lincom Europa * Gordon, Raymond G., Jr. (Ed.). (2005). ''Ethnologue: Languages of the world'' (15th ed.). Dallas, TX: SIL International. . (Online version: http://www.ethnologue.com). * Loukotka, Čestmír (1968). ''Classification of South American languages''. Los Angeles: UCLA * Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (2005). ''Encuesta Complementaria de Pueblos Indígenas (ECPI), 2004-2005 - Primeros resultados provisionales''. Buenos Aires: INDEC. ISSN 0327-7968. * Kaufman, Terrence. (1994). ''The native languages of South America''. In C. Mosley & R. E. Asher (Eds.), ''Atlas of the world's languages'' (pp. 46–76). London: Routledge. * Key, Mary R. (1979). ''The grouping of South American languages''. Tübingen: Gunter Narr Verlag. * Martín, Herminia E. and Andrés Pérez Diez (eds.) (1996). ''Lenguas indígenas de Argentina 1492-1992''. San Juan: Universidad Nacional de San Juan. * Martínez, Angelita (2004). ''Lenguas amerindias en Argentina''. In: Ariadna Lluís i Vidal-Folch & Azucena Palacios Alcaine (eds.), ''Lenguas vivas en América Latina''. Barcelona/ Madrid: Institut Català de Cooperació Iberoamericana/ Universidad Autónoma de Madrid. * Mason, J. Alden. (1950). ''The languages of South America''. In J. Steward (Ed.), ''Handbook of South American Indians'' (Vol. 6, pp. 157–317). Smithsonian Institution Bureau of American Ethnology bulletin (No. 143). Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office.
Languages spoken in Argentina
{{South American languages

Languages of Argentina Indigenous languages of the South American Chaco Indigenous languages of Central Amazonia Indigenous languages of Western Amazonia Indigenous languages of the Andes Indigenous languages of South America (Central) Indigenous languages of the South American Cone Indigenous languages of the South American Southern Foothills Indigenous peoples in Argentina

es:Lenguas de Argentina

Living languages

Extinct languages

See also

References