O Tupi e o Guarani nos catecismos jesuíticos: uma contribuição aos estudos lexicais das línguas indígenas brasileiras

Abstract

This paper proposes a reflection on the process of linguistic elaboration in catechisms, specifically on the strategies used to translate prayers of the Catholic faith into Tupi and Guarani, languages ​​of the Tupi-Guarani linguistic family. In the elaboration of the catechisms, terms from indigenous languages ​​corresponding to Portuguese were selected, in the case of the Catecismo Brasílico, and Spanish, in the case of the Catecismo de la Lengua Guaraní. In addition, the priests adopted different strategies to insert new terms, including the appropriation and resignification of terms already existing in those languages. To understand the grammatical aspects of indigenous languages, we used specialized historical sources in the area and contemporary literature, in addition to descriptions of Jesuit grammars, the Arte de Gramática of the language most widely used on the coast of Brazil, and the Arte de la lengua Guaraní. The results obtained demonstrate the different strategies used by the Jesuits in the elaboration of catechisms, such as the tendency to maintain terms from the European language in the Brazilian Catechism and the creation of new terms in the Catecismo de la Lengua Guaraní. Furthermore, the specific comparison between Old Guarani and the contemporary varieties spoken in Brazil revealed data on variation and linguistic change in the descendant languages.