Cañari–Puruhá languages


Cañari and Puruhá are two poorly-attested extinct languages of the Marañón River basin in Ecuador that are difficult to classify. Puruhá is scarcely attested, and Cañari is known primarily from placenames. Loukotka suggests they may have been related instead to Mochica in a family called Chimuan, but Adelaar thinks it is more likely that they were Barbacoan languages.

Varieties

Cañari and Puruhá:
"Northern Chimú" varieties listed by Loukotka are given below. All are unattested except for Huancavilca and Manabí.