Toba-Qom

The Guaicuruan language Toba-Qom [tob] is spoken in Paraguay mainly in the settlement of Cerrito in a Fransiscan community some hundred kilometres from Asunción. There are roughly 1,500 speakers of Toba-Qom who call themselves Qomlik. Younger members of the Toba-Qom community frequently do not speak the language, so it is in clear decline in Paraguay. There are also Toba-Qom speakers in the Argentinian Chaco as well. Living Tongues visited the Paraguayan Toba-Qom community in 2009 and made an assessment of the present status and vitality of the language. The language has a delightfully complex grammar. Our primary consultant is Qawotaga.

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