similar contrasts are known only for a few other Amazonian languages. However, it has a very simple vowel system with only three contrastive vowels, the back one of which can range from to . Paumarí has a (C)V syllable structure: a syllable can only contain one vowel, which may or may not be preceded by a consonant. This is consistent among all Arawan languages (Dixon (1999), 295). Often two vowels will occur in a sequence, CVV, however, the length of the resulting syllable will often make a phonetic difference between the two vowels, and the syllable’s duration will correspond to the amount of vowels, reflecting a moraic structure also common in Japanese. Often in the Paumarí language, when an identical vowel occurs word-final and then word-initial in two sequential words, one of the two vowels will be dropped within the phrase. Syntax Paumarí tends to be a head-final language. Typically, in intransitive phrases (those without direct objects) the order is VS. The SV intransitive order also occurs, although only when the Subject is marked for informational prominence (the demonstrative (DEM) is occluded in such SV phrases). In transitive phrases, the word order is mainly SVO, in which the ergative case marking system tends to be used. The affix used for ergative marking is the suffix , and the object of the sentence is preceded by a word denoting a demonstrative case. These demonstrative case nouns are either for male, or for female. The gender and number of the object noun, not the subject, dictates the gender and number suffixes on the verb. Two other word orders that occur in Paumarí transitive phrases are OVS and SOV. In these cases, the object is marked with a suffix denoting it as such () and is placed directly before the verb. In these cases, it is thought that the accusative system has taken over, as the subject of the sentence no longer receives the ergative suffix and is free to occur at the beginning or end of the phrase (but not directly before the verb). This shows the split ergativity evident in Paumarí language – they employ the ergative system for some word orders and the accusative system for others. Adjectives always follow the noun that they describe and if there is also a number in the clause, it follows the adjective (“Three big dogs” becomes “dogs big three”). The Paumarí language has