Lexical phylogenetics of the Tupí-Guaraní family: Language, archaeology, and the problem of chronology.

Tupí-Guaraní is one of the largest branches of the Tupían language family, but despite its relevance there is no consensus about its origins in terms of age, homeland, and expansion. Linguistic classifications vary significantly, with archaeological studies suggesting incompatible date ranges while ethnographic literature confirms the close similarities as a result of continuous inter-family contact. To investigate this issue, we use a linguistic database of cognate data, employing Bayesian phylogenetic methods to infer a dated tree and to build a phylogeographic expansion model. Results suggest that the branch originated around 2500 BP in the area of the upper course of the Tapajós-Xingu basins, with a split between Southern and Northern varieties beginning around 1750 BP. We analyse the difficulties in reconciling archaeological and linguistic data for this group, stressing the importance of developing an interdisciplinary unified model that incorporates evidence from both disciplines.

TuLeD (Tupían lexical database): introducing a database of a South American language family.

The last two decades witnessed a rapid growth of publicly accessible online language resources. This has allowed for valuable data on lesser known languages to become available. Such resources provide linguists with opportunities for advancing their research. Yet despite the proliferation of lexical and morphological databases, the ca. 456 languages spoken in South America are poorly represented, particularly the Tupían family, which is the largest on the continent. This paper therefore introduces and discusses TuLeD, a lexical database exclusively devoted to a South American language family. It provides a comprehensive list of lexical items presented in a unified transcription for all languages with cognacy assignment and relevant (cultural or linguistic) notes. One of the main goals of TuLeD is to become a full-fledged database and a benchmark for linguistic studies on South American languages in general and the Tupían family in particular.