Mazatecan languages
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The Mazatecan languages are a closely related group of languages spoken in the northern part of the state of Oaxaca in southern Mexico, and in some communities in the states of Puebla and Veracruz. They are classified, linguistically, as a division of the Popolocan subfamily of the Oto-Manguean language family. They are called Mazatec in English, Mazateco in Spanish. Under the "Law of Linguistic Rights" they are recognized as "national languages" along with the other indigenous languages of Mexico and Spanish.
Like other Oto-manguean languages, the Mazatecan languages are tonal. Because tone is so important in the phonology of the language, these languages are particularly well suited to be whistled.
The Ethnologue enumerates eight Mazatecan languages, which it calls
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- Mazatec, Ayautla
- Mazatec, Chiquihuitlán
- Mazatec, Huautla
- Mazatec, Ixcatlán
- Mazatec, Jalapa de Díaz
- Mazatec, Mazatlán
- Mazatec, San Jerónimo Tecóatl
- Mazatec, Soyaltepec
In 2005 there were 206,559 speakers of Mazatecan languages according to INEGI. Approximately 80% of these speakers know and use Spanish for some purposes. However, many Mazatec children know little or no Spanish when they enter school.
[edit] Further reading
- Mazateco Whistle Speech by George M. Cowan, Language, Vol. 24, No. 3. (Jul. - Sep., 1948), pp. 280-286.
[edit] External links
- Mazateco Rosetta Project Entry
- SIL Ethnologue entry for the Mazatecan Languages
- Mazatec Languages - Some notes on six of the Mazatecan dialects.
- Eloxochitlán Mazatec ('Én Ngixó)
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