Damana (also known as Malayo, Wiwa, Arosario, Arsario, Guamaca, Guamaka, Maracasero, Marocasero, Sancá, Sanja, Sanka, Wamaka)[2] is a Chibchan language spoken by the indigenous Wiwa people on the southern and eastern slopes of Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in northern Colombia. According to Ethnologue, it was spoken by 1,850 people in 2007;[2] however, according to the Colombian Ministry of Culture, there were 13,627 Wiwa people in 2010, of whom some 60% speak Damana well.[3]
| Damana | |
|---|---|
| Malayo | |
| Native to | Colombia |
| Region | Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta |
Native speakers | 1,850 (2007)[1] |
| |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | mbp |
| Glottolog | mala1522 |
| ELP | Guamaca |
 | |
There are seven phonemic vowels in Damana:[4]
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i | ɨ | u |
| Mid | e | ə | o |
| Open | a |
Damana has 19 phonemic consonants:[4]
| Labial | Dental/ Alveolar |
Palatal | Velar | Glottal | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m | n | ||||||||
| Stop | p | b | t | d | tʃ | dʒ | k | g | ||
| Fricative | s | z | ʃ | ʒ | h | |||||
| Flap | ɾ | |||||||||
| Trill | r | |||||||||
| Continuant | w | l | ||||||||