The Uru language, more specifically known as Iru-Itu, and Uchumataqu, is an extinct language formerly spoken by the Uru people. In 2004, it had 2 remaining native speakers out of an ethnic group of 140 people in the La Paz Department, Bolivia near Lake Titicaca, the rest having shifted to Aymara and Spanish. The language is close enough to the Chipaya language to sometimes be considered a dialect of that language. Uru is also called Ochosuma (Uchuzuma), a historical name for the Uru ethnic group. In 2010, there was 1 single native speaker left of this language. By 2012 the language had no speakers left.

Identifying Uchumataqu

Since one of the Urus' names for their language was "Pukina", Uchumataqu has previously been mistakenly identified with Puquina. While the personal and possessive pronouns of the unrelated Puquina bear limited similarities to those of Arawakan languages, Uru differs drastically from Arawakan languages in its person-marking system and its morphology. The pronoun system of Uchumataqu is naturally very similar instead to its close relative Chipaya. Uchumataqu has also borrowed grammatical and lexical morphemes from prolonged exposure to Aymara, with which it is not related, however. Unlike Aymara, Uru is not polysynthetic and has a phonemic five-vowel system /a e i o u/, while Aymara has a three-vowel system /a i u/. One contrast between Uru and the related Chipaya is that Uru does not identify gender morphologically as Chipaya does.

Phonology

Consonants

Vowels

Dialects

There are mentions of two Uru dialects: Uru of Ch'imu and Sun Island. Though it is unclear whether the former was a dialect or its own language. Uru of Ch'imu was spoken in the town of Ch'imu and was first recorded in 1929 and while not published there are detailed notes of the language in existence. The second variety was spoken on Isla del Sol in Lake Titicaca and was first described in the 1960s though there it is far less documented.

Orthography

Uru did not have a standardized orthography but when written it used the English Alphabet or the IPA alphabet.

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