Mataguayo–Guaicuru, Mataco–Guaicuru or Macro-Waikurúan is a proposed language family consisting of the Mataguayan and Guaicuruan languages, as well as the language isolates Guachi and Payagua. Pedro Viegas Barros claims to have demonstrated it.Pedro Viegas Barros (1992-1993). ¿Existe una relación genética entre las lenguas mataguayas y guaycurúes? Em: J. Braunstein (ed.), Hacia una nueva carta étnica del Gran Chaco V, 193-213. Las Lomitas (Formosa): Centro del Hombre Antiguo Chaqueño (CHACO).Pedro Viegas Barros (2006). La hipótesis macro-guaicurú. Semejanzas gramaticales guaicurú-mataguayo. Revista UniverSOS, 3:183-212. Valencia: Universidad de Valencia.Pedro Viegas Barros (2013). La hipótesis de parentesco Guaicurú-Mataguayo: estado actual de la cuestión. Revista Brasileira de Linguística Antropológica, 5.2:293-333. These languages are spoken in Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Bolivia.
Genetic relations Jorge Suárez linked Guaicuruan and Charruan in a Waikuru-Charrúa stock. Kaufman (2007: 72) has also added Lule–Vilela and Zamucoan,Kaufman, Terrence. 2007. South America. In: R. E. Asher and Christopher Moseley (eds.), Atlas of the World’s Languages (2nd edition), 59–94. London: Routledge. while Morris Swadesh proposed a Macro-Mapuche stock that included Matacoan, Guaicuruan, Charruan, and Mascoyan. Campbell (1997) has argued that those hypotheses should be further investigated, though he no longer intends to evaluate it.
Language contact Jolkesky (2016) notes that there are lexical similarities with the Arawakan, Tupian, Trumai, and Ofayé language families due to contact, pointing to an origin of Proto-Mataguayo-Guaicuruan in the Upper Paraguay River basin.
Classification Internal classification by Jolkesky (2016):
( = extinct)
Macro-Mataguayo-Guaykuru Payagua Guachi Guaykuru Kadiweu Qom-Abipon Abipon Qom Qom, Southern: Mokovi Qom, Northern: Pilaga; Toba Mataguayo Mataguayo, Western Chorote: Chorote Iyojwa'ja; Chorote Iyo'wujwa Wichi: Wichi Guisnay; Wichi Nokten; Wichi Vejoz Mataguayo, Eastern Maka Nivakle
Chaco linguistic area
Campbell and Grondona (2012) consider the languages to be part of a Chaco linguistic area. Common Chaco areal features include SVO word order and active-stative verb alignment.
See also Gran Chaco people
References
Kaufman, Terrence. (1990). Language history in South America: What we know and how to know more. In D. L. Payne (Ed.), Amazonian linguistics: Studies in lowland South American languages (pp. 13–67). Austin: University of Texas Press. . 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.