Awa-Cuaiquer language

language
name=Awa-Cuaiquer
nativename="Awane"
states=Northwestern South America
speakers=21,000 (1986, 1991)
Comombia 20,000 (1986)
Ecuador 1,000, (1991)
familycolor=American
fam2=Barbacoan
fam3=Pasto
iso2=kwi|iso3=kwi

Awa-Cuaiquer is a Barbacoan language family, Indigenous American language spoken in Northwestern South America. [http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=kwi Awa-Cuaiquer] , per SIL, Ethnologue, 1986 and 1991, access date 04-16-08]

It has 21,000 speakers nearly all in the Colombian pacific slopes, with 1,000 speakers in an adjacent area of Ecuador. Most males also speak Spanish; however, children and females are predominantly monolingual.

Literacy is less than 1% in their native language, and under 5% are literate in the auxiliary Spanish language.

The language uses the subject-object-verb structure and uses the Latin/Roman alphabet script.

In Colombia variations of the name include: Coaiquer, Quaiquer, Kwaiker, Awa, Awa Pit, and Cuaiquer; in Ecuador its is also known as Awa, Awapit, and Cuaiquer.

Notes