THE LINGUISTIC ATLAS OF AMAPA PROJECT (ALAP): PATHWAYS AND CURRENT STAGE

ABSTRACT:

The field of dialectology, with a focus on the geolinguistic method, has expanded in Brazil, and it can be found in all the States with very significant projection. The linguistic Atlas of Amapa project (ALAP) evolves in this context. The present paper aims to show the state of arts of the ALAP Project and its first results. The project adopted the geolinguistic method (CARDOSO, 2010) and developed in three stages: 1) training of the research group members; 2) conducting the experimental investigations, training for phonetic transcription, conducting field work research (application of phonetic-phonological and semantic-lexical questionnaires), among 40 informants distributed in 10 cities; 3) review of phonetic transcriptions, preparation of the linguistic maps and organization of recorded data, in order to systematize and publish the results. Currently, the ALAP Project seeks financial support for its publication, which provides about 100 linguistic maps distributed in phonetic and lexical ones.

KEYWORDS:
Dialectology; Geolinguistics; Linguistic Atlas of Amapa

RESUMO:

O campo da dialetologia, com foco no método geolinguístico, tem crescido muito no Brasil, está presente e representado em todos os Estados da Federação e com uma projeção bastante significativa. Neste contexto se insere o Projeto Atlas Linguístico do Amapá (ALAP). O objetivo principal deste artigo é mostrar a trajetória do Projeto ALAP e os seus primeiros resultados. O projeto adotou o método geolinguístico (CARDOSO, 2010) e foi desenvolvido a partir de três etapas: 1ª) formação e treinamento dos membros do grupo de pesquisa; 2ª) realização dos inquéritos experimentais, treinamento para transcrição fonética, execução da pesquisa in loco (aplicação dos questionários fonético-fonológico e semântico-lexical), com a localização de 40 informantes distribuídos em 10 pontos de inquéritos; 3ª) revisão das transcrições fonéticas, confecção das cartas e mapeamento dos dados registrados, tendo em vista a sistematização, organização e publicação dos resultados. Atualmente, o Projeto ALAP busca apoio financeiro para sua publicação, que prevê cerca de 100 cartas linguísticas distribuídas em cartas fonéticas e lexicais.

PALAVRAS-CHAVE:
Dialetologia; Geolinguística; Atlas; Amapá

Introduction

The expansion of dialeclogical and geolinguistic studies in Brazil is undeniable, and there is a long way of investigation ahead. Looking back at the two last decades, one can notice how much the areas of Sociolinguistics and Dialectology have developed through studies and research around the country. Indeed, the launching of the Linguistic Atlas of Brazil project - (ALiB), in 1996, contributed significantly to boost those studies.

Since the publication of the first linguistic atlas in 1963, the “Atlas Prévio dos Falares Baianos”, a total of 12 linguistic Atlases have been published, including the first two volumes of the ALiB, released in 2014. It does not seem much if one takes into account the time dimension, but considering the financial difficulties, the lack of specialized human resources and academic interest for this type of research, and especially the great bureaucracy in the teaching institutions and development agencies to subsidize scientific research in our country, it is certainly a great advance due to the adversities and peculiarities that the production of a linguistic Atlas requires.

This growth is also reflected in the large number of regional linguistic Atlases being developed. There are on average some 15 projects, in the vast diversity of bibliographical publications and numerous research projects in undergraduate and graduate scope that are annually produced and published all over the country. Thus, the area of dialectology has developed a lot in Brazil, and it is present and represented in all the States of the Federation and with a very significant projection. The ALAP Project is inserted in this context of emergence and expansion.

The trajectory of the ALAP Project

The ALAP Project was launched in 2010. It's linked to the ALAP research group of the Federal University of Amapa - UNIFAP, including students and professors of the course of Letters at that Institution and also from the Federal University of Para – UFPA. It is under the coordination of Abdelhak Razky (UFPA) and Celeste Ribeiro (UNIFAP). The ideas behind the project go back to 2008, thanks to the supervisions and records of lectures of Professor Razky during the master's degree programme at UFPA. This led first to a master´s degree thesis on the behavior of the medial post-vocalic variable (r) in the states of Para and Amapa, exploring the data collected for the Linguistic Atlas of Brazil – AliB, which was presented by Ribeiro in 2008. All this helped the creation of the ALAP research group registered in the Research Department of Graduate Degrees / UNIFAP and linked to the Group Directory of the Lattes Platform. Since the area of sociolinguistic variational studies is almost non-existent, in terms of studies and research, the group initially limited itself to fulfill theoretical and methodological readings in order to broaden the knowledge of researchers, providing them with clear and consistent training about the work they would develop, i.e. the production of a linguistic atlas.

Thus, the ALAP Project's main objective is the description and mapping of Brazilian Portuguese spoken in 10 cities of the State of Amapa, to account for the linguistic varieties, focusing more specifically on the phonetic-phonological and semantic-lexical aspects of each locality. It is worth mentioning that linguistic atlases constitute one of the main mechanisms for the dissemination of the linguistic reality of a locality at different levels. Therefore, a linguistic Atlas has a great scientific and social relevance in the university context and for society as a whole.

It should also be remembered that linguistic atlases should not only be viewed as a way of documenting and registering the language, in the form dictated only by linguists, but must also be considered as a teaching and learning resource of the mother tongue, as they reflect diversity and dialect heterogeneity, concretized in diverse communicative situations, of different linguistic fields.

About Amapa

According to IBGE (2016) statistics, Amapa State has an extension of 142,828,521 km², where, currently, approximately 750,000 people live in 16 municipalities. Its borders are the State of Para, in the West and the South; French Guiana to the North; The Atlantic Ocean to the East; and Suriname to the Northwest.

Historically, the incorporation of Amapa to Brazil begins in 1901 according to the Swiss Report. Switzerland acted as arbiter in the territorial and diplomatic disputes between France and Brazil. The sovereignty over the disputed Territory was granted to Brazil. For Nunes Filho (2009), these disputes are common features of the roots of the Amazonian formation. Other factors related to this formation were the discovery of gold and the extraction of rubber in the region, which generated a great migratory flow.

Until 1988, Amapa was a Federal Territory, when, through the Brazilian Constitution, it was elevated to position of a State. According to Andrade (2005), this transformation from a Territory into a State enabled new opportunities for work and employment. This influenced the increase of the population contingent in the State. According to this author, since the 1990s, the migratory dynamics has been significant in the State, mainly composed by migrants from the states of Para and Maranhão.

Methodology

The ALAP Project has been developed strictly under the geolinguistic method (CARDOSO, 2010), taking as a reference the Linguistic Atlas of Brazil project (CARDOSO et al., 2014) and, consequently, adopting the presuppositions of multidimensional dialectology and geolinguistics. The ALAP is a multidimensional atlas, as it presents aspects of the diatopic and diastratic variation since it controls age and sex variables. Data collection for the composition of the corpus was carried out from 2012 to 2014, by professors and trained students of the course of Letters of the Federal University of Amapa - UNIFAP who integrate the ALAP research group. It's worth mentioning that in 2011 some experimental investigations were carried out as a form of training for members of the group who then acted as inquirers.

The ALAP Project was carried out in three stages:

• 1st stage: the training of group members;

• 2nd stage: the experimental investigations, the training for phonetic transcription, and the application of on-site research (phonetic-phonological and semantic-lexical questionnaires) with the participation of 40 informants distributed in 10 points for the survey;

• 3rd stage: the review of the phonetic transcriptions, the preparation of the linguistic maps and the mapping of the recorded data in order to systematize, organize and publish the results.

Selection of the geographic points

Amapa State has 16 municipalities, but the selection of the network of points followed the tradition of Dialectology. 10 municipalities were chosen, considering demographic and population density a priori, as well as historical (time of origin), economic and socio-cultural criteria.

The points fixed for the field work were: (1) Macapá, (02) Santana, (03) Mazagão, (04) Laranjal do Jarí, (05) Pedra Branca do Amapari, (06) Porto Grande, (07) Tartarugalzinho, (09) Calçoene and (10) Oiapoque. Figure 01 shows these points, according to the geographic location of each one.

Figure 01
The network of geographical points of ALAP

Profile of the informants

A total of 40 informants were selected, 04 in each location. They were stratified by age, sex and schooling. The sample consists of 04 speakers - 1 man and 1 woman from 18 to 30 years; 1 man and 1 woman from 50 to 75 years old. The following criteria were also considered: a) being born in the municipality; b) be the child of parents born in the region; c) not having lived in another State or Region for more than one year; d) have a level of school education ranging from illiterate to complete Elementary School; e) have good health and phonation conditions; and f) be available for the interview.

Data collection questionnaires

The data originated from the phonetic-phonological (QFF) and semantic-lexical (QSL) questionnaires proposed by the ALiB Project team (2001); The QFF consists of 159 closed questions and the QSL of 202 open questions distributed in 22 semantic fields. There are almost 400 questions that usually take place in an average time of 2 to 3 hours, since it depends a lot on the behavior and availability of each interviewee, as in some surveys he/she may be shy, indifferent or of limited elocution. On the other hand, there may be an informant who is eloquent and spontaneous. From what was observed in the speech of the 40 informants who participated in the interviews, the participants of the second age group were the ones who were more receptive, spontaneous, willing and, consequently, took the longer inquiries.

Interviewers

The ALAP Project team is made up of professors Celeste Ribeiro (UNIFAP) and Abdelhak Razky (UFPA), both project coordinators; professor Romário Sanches (UFPA/UEPA), teacher Doraci Guedes and teacher Aldenice Couto (UNIFAP). The project counted on the participation of undergraduate students of letters (UNIFAP) who are currently teachers of the basic education network of Amapa: Monique Jacques, Jefter Gonçalves, Francisco Tiago Meirelles, Natália Almeida, Hanna Line, Veg Andrade, Elicelma Sena, Maria Cristina Amaral and Sarah Cristina Gibson.

Elaboration of linguistic maps

Thanks to current cartographic art, modern dialectology has a set of techniques called linguistic cartography. Through the cartographic process, maps that constitute a linguistic atlas are elaborated. For the production of the linguistic maps that form the atlas of Amapa, a cartographic base was produced by a specialist of the area. Initially, a layout of the base map was drawn up indicating the positions of each element that would be inserted in the map. This resulted in the ALAP base map in which geographical and linguistic information are recorded. Geographic information includes: scale, geographical orientation, a localization map of the area in relation to the Latin American Continent, Brazil, the State, and the municipalities. The linguistic information includes the atlas title, the map number, the type of question, the geographical points under research, the organization of linguistic items and their occurrences. Figure 02 is an example of this base map.

Figure 02
ALAP lexical base map

For a better understanding of the phonetic and lexical maps, the following convention scheme will be adopted:

1. the number of the map is on the upper right side, next to the title, and will be represented by a letter marking the linguistic domain under study - be it phonetic or lexical - and the number of the question. For example in MAP L01, the letter L indicates that it is a lexical map and 01 refers to the sequence of lexical items; in MAP F01, the letter F indicates that it is a phonetic map and 01 refers to the sequence of phonetic phenomena;

2. From the upper right side, below the title, the most frequent variants will be listed, with orthographic transcription. To simplify the reading of the data, only the five most frequent variants with their respective colors in the form of circles will be mapped. The order of the colors indicates the order of occurrences (from the more productive to the less productive variant). The colors were selected according to the RGB¹ system (color system), and based on the Linguistic Atlas of Brazil. The non-productive variants will be grouped under the title ‘Other’ and ‘Non-response’, and will be available in a chart displayed on the back of the map, showing all the mapped and unmapped variants;

   Table 01
   Colors for the lexical maps, up to 5 variants (RGB)
   

   Colors	R	G	B
   1	255	0	0
   2	0	0	255
   3	255	255	0
   4	0	200	0
   5	248	150	201
   Others	204	204	204
   Non-response	255	255	255

   Source:Razky, Ribeiro e Sanches (2017

3. the graphs showing the percentages corresponding to the occurrences of each variant in all the geographical points of the survey are below the listed variants, and further down, the percentage of realizations through pie charts (from 25% to 100%);

4. the respective questions with a number referring to the questionnaire are also on the lower right side;

5. in the center of the chart, the map of Amapa is presented along with the 10 geographical points of the survey, (see Figure 01).

As for the reading of the stratified maps we present an organization of the data based on the cross stratification, as shown in the following figure:

Figure 03
ALAP Stratified base-map

1. the upper right side, next to the title, will show the number of the map that will be represented by the letter E (stratified) and the question number. For example, MAP E01, the letter E indicates that it is a stratified (multidimensional) map and 01 refers to the sequence of lexical items. Only the lexical items were mapped in the stratified map;

2. from the upper right side, below the title, the most productive variants will be listed with orthographic transcription. To simplify the reading of the data, only the five most frequent variants with their respective colors (as shown in the lexical and phonetic maps) will be delimited;

3. the respective questions numbered according to the questionnaire are below the listed variants, on the lower right side,;

4. from the lower left side, the stratification cross is presented with the following conventions: MA indicates the male informant (M) and the first age group (A); FA indicates the female informant (F) and the first age group (A); MB indicates the male informant (M) and the second age group (B); FB indicates the female informant (F) and the second age group (B);

5. the center of the map shows the 10 geographical points under investigation (see Figure 01) as well as the distribution of the variants according to the age and sex of the speakers. For example, at point 01 (Macapa), the stratification cross shows that the informant MA produces the variants 01 and 02; in the case of FA, she produced variant 02 and others; MB uses variant 01 and FB uses variant 03. The other geographical points can be read following the same pattern.

Procedures for data processing

Data collected follow the guidelines of the ALiB National Committee (2001). After the audio recordings, the following procedures were adopted for data processing:

1. archiving all interviews recorded in MP3 format in folders corresponding to the points of inquiry and informants. A symbol convention was used to represent points and informants. The following table shows an example using the point (01) Macapa:

   Table 02
   Symbol convention for data archiving
   

   01AHF	01BMF
   01 = geographical point (Macapá)	01 = geographical point (Macapá)
   A = age (1st age group)	B = age (2nd age group)
   H = Sex (Man)	M = Sex (Woman)
   F = Education (Elementary school)	F = Education (Elementary school)

   Source:Sanches (2015

2. after the data weren properly archived, audio files were cut using the Cool Edit Pro 2.1 software. For phonetic and phonological questions, only the immediate context preceding and following the expected response was selected from the survey. For the lexical questions, on the other hand, the clipping was done from the beginning of the question up to the end of the interview related to each lexical item;

3. once the audio data base was organized, phonetic transcriptions were initiated using tables, indicating the type of questionnaire, the point of inquiry, the questions and the four informants interviewed. The codification of the phonetic symbols adopted the International Phonetic Alphabet - IPA within the Times New Roman 12 font;

4. After reviewing all the transcriptions and preparing all the base-maps, the process of cartography of the linguistic maps was facilitated. All maps were designed with CorelDRAWX5 software.

Preliminary results

For the first analyses, experimental diatopic lexical maps were elaborated to register the five most frequent variants, the first being predominant, in all the geographical points. Figures 03 and 04 are a sample of these maps to account for the first results. These are lexical map samples, the phonetics ones are under elaboration.

Figure 04
Map L01 – córrego/riacho item

Figure 04, about lexical L01, shows answers to the first QSL question.

Fig. 4 shows that from a geographical point of view, igarapé (little river) is the predominant variant in Amapa, thus characterizing the Portuguese spoken in this region. It was followed by lago (lake), córrego (stream), lagoa (lagoon) and the group others - rio (river), grota (grotto) and enseada (cove). It was more frequent in four localities of the State: Santana (02), Mazagão (03), Laranjal do Jari (04) and Calçoene (09). It is worth noting that, in the capital Macapa (01), the use of lago predominates for this designation. Table 03 below reflects these results in percentage, confirming the use and predominant frequency in Amapa of igarapé variant in the designation of a small river of about two meters in width.

Table 03
Percentage of the lexical variants per geographical point (Córrego/Riacho).

Locality	01	02	03	04	05	06	07	08	09	10
Variants
1. Igarapé	33%	49%	75%	57%	25%	50%	22%	67%	33%	40%
2. Lago	50%	-	-	14%	13%	-	-	33%	17%	40%
3. Riacho	17%	17%	-	29%	-	-	34%	-	33%	-
4. Córrego	-	17%	25%	-	-	50%	22%	-	17%	-
5. Lagoa	-	17%	-	-	25%	-	-	-	-	-
6. Rio	-	-	-	-	13%	-	11%	-	-	20%
7. Grota	-	-	-	-	25%	-	-	-	-	-
8. Enseada	-	-	-	-	-	-	11%	-	-	-

Source:Sanches (2015

This variant occurs in all 10 ALAP investigation points, being almost categorical in Mazagão (point 03) and less frequent in Tartarugalzinho (point 07). It is interesting to note that, in the capital Macapa (point 01), the predominant variant in the study appears as the second most used. These results also reveal that the cities where igarapé is predominant, points 02, 03 and 04, are concentrated in the southern part of the state, portraying, in a certain way, a dialectal area, although it is also quite frequent in point 08, which is located in the North. Therefore, the variants igarapé, lago, and riacho are the most frequent in Amapa State. The others have very limited use, once per informant, like in grota and enseada.

Map L25 (Figure 05) refers to the answers given to question 88 of the QSL, which searched for the names used for the small, long-legged insect that sings in people's ears.

Figure 05
Map L25 – mosquito

As shown in map L25, carapanã is more frequent in almost all points, except at point 05, where muriçoca prevails, with 57% of occurrences. It is worth mentioning that the carapanã variant occurs in 100% in point 06 and the mosquito variant occurs only in points 01, 07 and 09. Table 4 shows these occurrences in statistical terms.

Table 04
Percentage of the lexical variants per geographical point (pernilongo)

Locality	01	02	03	04	05	06	07	08	09	10
variants
1. Carapanã	66%	80%	50%	67%	43%	100%	50%	57%	50%	80%
2. Muriçoca	17%	20%	37%	33%	57%	-	37%	43%	12%	20%
3. Mosquito	17%	-	-	-	-	-	13%	-	26%	-
4. Maruim	-	-	13%-	-	-	-	-	-		-
5. Pium	-	-		-	-	-	-	-	12%	-

Source:Sanches (2015

From the above results, the predominance of carapanã is confirmed in almost all points, except in point 05 where muriçoca accounts of 57% of occurrences. The variant carapanã appears in point 06 where it registered 100%. On the other hand, the mosquito variant occurs only in points 01, 07 and 09, while maruim appears only in point 03 and a very little use of pium in 09.

These percentages also reveal an interesting aspect regarding the locality of Pedra Branca (05), in which the most frequent variant was muriçoca. It is probable that this frequency is related to the fact that this point has a very heterogeneous population and is formed, mainly, by inhabitants of the Northeast of Brazil, migrants who came to work in mining companies and who settled there in the 1990s, to join their families. This municipality has between 8000 and 9000 inhabitants, of which about 40% correspond to migrants from the Northeast, 50% from the North, and the remaining 10% from other Regions of the Country. It is therefore valid to infer that this Northeastern population introduced a variant that has spread in the locality. The variant muriçoca is predominant in the Northeast, according to a study by Costa and Isquerdo (2010), and does not have much vitality in the state of Amapa, which is characterized by the use of carapanã, like other Northern States.

Therefore, under the local geographic aspect, which will be part of the ALAP, it is valid to say that the use of córrego e mosquito (suggestion for the first answer to questions 01 and 88 of QSL ALiB), does not figure in the state of Amapa. In both previous maps, regional variants predominate, which reflects the dialectical heterogeneity in the State, especially in the case of the item depicted in the map L01.

Covered and future paths

This paper aimed at giving an outline of how the ALAP project has been developed, up to the present phase, showing its organization and improvement of the maps in order to guarantee a coherent and adequate Atlas to the linguistic reality of the State. In the last five years many difficulties were encountered, mainly organizing meetings among the members of the group, since most were involved in other academic and institutional activities. The project had a great lack of infrastructure as there was no proper space for the development of its activities.

However, despite the various obstacles, the ALAP Project is developing its activities. Due to lack of financial support, fieldwork was significantly delayed and only began to be carried out at the end of 2012, when the Project was granted financial support under the public announcement 476225/2011-6/CNPq. Thanks to CNPq´s subsidies, all data collection in the 10 geographical points, as well as the purchase of equipments and materials were possible.

The contribution of UNIFAP has been modest, but the Pro-Rectory of Extension and the Pro-Rectory of Research have lately granted financial support for the group members to participate in scientific events throughout the country. A scientific initiation grant (PROBIC / UNIFAP) to a team member, and a space belonging to the ALAP group, equipped with a table, chairs and a computer, were provided by the university. However, for us on the team, the important thing about all this has been the learning experience, the interchange, the knowledge acquired, and the motivation to move on and reach the final objective. The last maps are being produced, and the next challenge is seeking the financial support for publishing the long awaited atlas.

Final considerations

As a conclusion, the ALAP project has contributed significantly to the diffusion of scientific knowledge, since it has developed within its members and academics of the UNIFAP Letters course, interest in variation research. After the implementation of the ALAP project, the number of monographs at the undergraduate level and articles related to geo-sociolinguistics increased considerably within the University. It is worth remembering that, before the ALAP Project, there was nothing produced or published in this area and, from 2010 to the present, production has been quite intense.

In order to illustrate this progress, the Scientific Initiation Report includes three final undergraduate papers, one master's thesis and one PhD dissertation in progress, a research project for thesis production, the publication of five scientific papers in journals and two in the proceedings of Scientific events (national and international). All these, as well as several other oral communications and posters/banners presented in events all over the country, are partial results of this Project, on phonetic and lexical aspects of the Portuguese language spoken in Amapá State.

The ALAP project will provide a great help in language teaching in the region, since the different ways of speaking of people form Amapa can be subject to objective classroom enabling students to know their linguistic reality. Therefore, because the project emphasizes the linguistic uses of Amapa State, it has a very significant social relevance, since it will present a faithful portrayal of this language for the entire community that uses the Portuguese language in its daily interactions, showing the specificities of usages. Another important aspect is that language is a form of identification both geographically and socially and through the Atlas it concretizes the culture of the people, the community and the nation.

• 1
  RGB is an additive color system that represents light mixture, as opposed to subtractive CMYK, which represents a mixture of pigments. The name RGB is an acronym formed from the initials of the names of its primary colors: red, green and blue. In the RGB system, each color is defined by the amount of red, green and blue which composes it.

REFERÊNCIAS

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• COSTA, D.; ISQUERDO, A. N. Designações para “pernilongo” nas capitais brasileiras: um estudo geolinguístico e léxico-semântico. Revista Travessias, Cascavel, v. 04, n.3, p. 509-520, 2010.
• INSTITUTO BRASILEIRO DE GEOGRAFIA E ESTATÍSTICA [IBGE]. Amapá Estados@, 2016. Disponível em: <http://www.ibge.gov.br/estadosat/perfil.php?sigla=ap#>. Acesso em: 30 jun. 2015.
  » http://www.ibge.gov.br/estadosat/perfil.php?sigla=ap#
• NUNES FILHO, E. Formação histórica, econômica, social, política e cultural do Amapá: descrição e análise do processo de formação histórica do Amapá. In: OLIVEIRA, A.; RODRIGUES, R. (Org.). Amazônia, Amapá: escritos de história. Belém: Paka-Tatu, 2009. p.211-234.
• RAZKY, A.; RIBEIRO, C. M. da R.; SANCHES, R. D. Atlas linguístico do Amapá São Paulo: Labrador, 2017.
• SANCHES, R. Variação lexical nos dados do projeto atlas geossociolinguístico do Amapá 2015. Dissertação (Mestrado em Letras) – Universidade Federal do Pará, Belém, 2015.

Publication Dates

• Publication in this collection
  May-Aug 2017

History

• Received
  May 2016
• Accepted
  Feb 2017