The Macro-Jê family was first proposed in 1926, and has undergone moderate modifications since then. Eduardo Ribeiro of the
University of Chicago finds no evidence to classify
Fulniô (Yatê) and
Guató as Macro-Jê,
pace Kaufman, nor
Otí,
pace Greenberg. Ribeiro does include
Chiquitano,
pace Rodrigues.
Glottolog accepts a 'Nuclear Macro-Je' consisting of Jean, Karaja, Krenak-Maxakalian, Ofaie, Rikbaktsa, and Yabutian (Jabuti), with extinct
Jeicó unclassified within the family. Lexical parallels with Kamakanan and Purian have yet to be corroborated with reconstructions; the similarities with Purian disappear once Coropo is reclassified as Maxakalian. It notes suggestive grammatical similarities with Bororoan, Kariri, and Chiquitano, of the kind also shared with Tupian and Cariban, but little lexical evidence. These languages share irregular morphology with the
Tupi and
Carib families, and Rodrigues (2000) and Ribeiro connect them all as a
Je–Tupi–Carib family. Pache (2018) suggests a distant genetic relationship between Macro-Jê and
Chibchan.
Nikulin (2020) Nikulin (2020) proposes the following internal classification of Macro-Jê: •
Macro-Jê •
Karajá • Western •
Mato Grosso •
Ofayé •
Rikbáktsa •
Jabutí •
Arikapú •
Djeoromitxí • Eastern • ?
Jaikó •
Jê (
see) •
Akuwẽ;
Northern Jê,
Panará •
Ingain;
Southern Jê •
Trans–São Francisco • Borum •
Krenák •
Maxakalí •
Malalí • Nuclear Maxakalí •
Maxakalí •
Ritual Maxakalí;
Makoní •
Pataxó;
Pataxó-Hãhãhãe •
Koropó • ?
Kamakã (possibly part of
Trans-São Francisco) •
Masakará • Southern Kamakã •
Menien •
Kamakã;
Kotoxó/
Mongoyó Nikulin (2020) does not accept the following languages and language families as part of Macro-Jê. •
Boróro •
Yaathê (Fulniô) •
Purí •
Guató •
Karirí •
Otí However, Nikulin (2023) considers
Chiquitano to be a Macro-Jê language.
Jolkesky (2016) Jolkesky (2016) proposes the following internal classification of Macro-Jê: •
Macro-Jê • Nuclear Macro-Je •
Jê (45,000 speakers) • Maxakali-Borum •
Borum (Krenák, Botocudo; Proto-Macro-Jê is notable for having relatively few consonants and a large vocalic inventory. There are also complex onsets with
rhotics, as well as contrastive
nasalization for vowels. Phonological inventory of Proto-Macro-Jê as reconstructed by Nikulin (2020): • Consonants: */p, m, w, t, n, r, c, ñ, j, k, ŋ/ • Complex onsets: */pr, mr, kr, ŋr/ • Vowels: */a, â, ə, ə̂, y, o, ô, u, e, ê, i, ə̃, ỹ, ũ, ẽ, ĩ/ • Maximal syllable structure: , where /°/ =
echo vowel For a list of Proto-Macro-Jê reconstructions by Nikulin (2020), see the corresponding
Portuguese article. ==Language contact==