The Panará are the last descendants of the southern Cayapós, a large ethnic group which inhabited a vast area in Central Brazil in the 18th century, from the northern borders of the state of São Paulo, Triângulo Mineiro and south of Goiás, stretching eastwards from Mato Grosso, eastern and southeastern portion of Mato Grosso do Sul. The Panará belong to the Jê-speaking group in Central Brazil,[3] a subgroup of the northern Jê, which encompasses the Kayapó, Suyá, Apinayé and the Timbira languages. Latest researches indicate that the southern Cayapó and Panará are in fact one single language.