Languages of Mexico

Several different languages are spoken in Mexico, with a large majority of the population fluent in Spanish while some Mexicans still only speak their native indigenous language. Indeed, the government of Mexico recognizes 68 distinct indigenous Amerindian languages (from seven different families, and other four isolated languages) as national languages in addition to Spanish. According to the Commission for the Development of Indigenous Peoples (CDI) and National Institute of Indigenous Languages (INALI), while 10–14% of the population identifies as belonging to an indigenous group, only around 6% speak an indigenous language. Of course, there are other languages not native to Mexico that are spoken in the country, with the most common being English. Nevertheless, most Mexicans are monolingual Spanish-speakers.

Legislation

Spanish is the de facto national language spoken by the vast majority of Mexicans, though it is not defined as an official language in legislation. The second article of the 1917 Constitution defines the country as multicultural, recognizes the right of the indigenous peoples to "preserve and enrich their languages" and promotes "bilingual and intercultural education".

In 2003 Congress approved the General Law of Linguistic Rights of the Indigenous Peoples, which recognizes that Mexico's history makes its indigenous languages, "national languages". Accordingly, they "have the same validity [as Spanish] in their territory, location and context". At the same time, legislators made no specific provisions for the official or legal status of the Spanish language. This law means that indigenous peoples can use their native language in communicating with government officials and request official documents in that language. The Mexican state supports the preservation and promotion of the use of the national languages through the activities of the National Institute of Indigenous Languages.

Mexico has about six million citizens who speak indigenous languages. That is the second-largest group in the Americas after Peru. However, a relatively small percentage of Mexico's population speaks an indigenous language compared to other countries in the Americas, such as Guatemala (42.8%), Peru (35%), and even Ecuador (9.4%), Panama (8.3%), Paraguay and Bolivia.

The only single indigenous language spoken by more than a million people in Mexico is the Nahuatl language; the other native American language with a large population of native speakers include Yucatec Maya.

History

A page of the Florentine Codex written in romanized Nahuatl (Nahuatl is not known to have been a written language prior to its romanization).

The slow process of replacing Mexico's indigenous languages with Spanish began with the arrival of Spanish forces and colonists in Mexico in the 16th century. Some monks and priests attempted to describe and classify indigenous languages with Spanish. Philip II of Spain decreed in 1570 that Nahuatl become the official language of the colonies of New Spain in order to facilitate communication between the natives of the colonies. However, in 1696 Charles II reversed that policy and banned the use of any languages other than Spanish throughout New Spain. Beginning in the 18th century, decrees ordering the "Hispanization" of indigenous populations became more numerous and Mexican colonizers no longer learned the indigenous languages.

After the independence the government initiated an educational system with the primary aim of Hispanization of the native populations. This policy was based on the idea was that this would help the indigenous peoples become a more integrated part of the new Mexican nation.

Except for the Second Mexican Empire, led by the Habsburg Maximilian I, no Mexican government tried to prevent the loss of indigenous languages during the 19th century.

In 1889, Antonio García Cubas estimated that 38% of Mexicans spoke an indigenous language, down from 60% in 1820. By the end of the 20th century, this figure had fallen to 6%.

For most of the 20th century successive governments denied native tongues the status of valid languages. Indigenous students were forbidden to speak their native languages in school and were often punished for doing so.

In 2002, Mexico's constitution was amended to reinforce the nation's pluricultural nature by giving the State the obligation to protect and nurture the expressions of this diversity. On June 14, 1999, the Council of Writers in Indigenous Languages presented Congress with a document entitled "Suggested legal initiatives towards linguistic rights of indigenous peoples and communities", with the goal of beginning to protect the linguistic rights of indigenous communities. The Ley General de Derechos Lingüísticos de los Pueblos Indígenas was passed in December 2002, establishing a framework for the conservation, nurturing and development of indigenous languages. Critics claim that the law's complexity makes enforcement difficult.

Classification

Main articles: Indigenous languages of the Americas and List of endangered languages in Mexico

The following is a classification of the 65 indigenous languages grouped by family:

Language families with members north of Mexico

• Algonquian languages: Kikapú

• Yuman–Cochimí languages: Paipai, Kiliwa, Cucapá, Cochimi and Kumiai

• Uto-Aztecan languages:
  • Tepiman branch: Pápago, Pima Bajo, Northern and Southern Tepehuán
  • Taracahita branch: Tarahumara, Guarijio language, Yaqui and Mayo
  • Corachol branch: Cora and Huichol
  • Nahuan branch: Nahuatl, dialects

Language families with all known members in Mexico

• Totonacan languages:
  • Totonac (different varieties)
  • Tepehua (different varieties)

• Oto-Manguean languages:
  • Oto-pamean branch: Northern Pame, Southern Pame, Chichimeca Jonaz, Otomí, Mazahua, Matlatzinca and Ocuiltec.
  • Popolocan branch: Popoloca language, Chocho, Ixcatec language*, Mazatecan languages
  • Tlapanec–Subtiaban branch: Me'phaa
  • Amuzgoan branch: Amuzgo de Guerrero, Amuzgo de Oaxaca
  • Mixtecan branch: Mixtecan languages, Cuicatec and Trique language.
  • Chatino–Zapoteca branch: Chatino (and its dialects), Zapotec languages.
  • Chinantec branch: Chinantec (and its dialects)
  • Chiapaneca–Mangue branch: Chiapaneco*

• Mixe–Zoquean languages:
  • Zoque languages
  • Mixe languages
  • Popoluca (Texistepec Popoluca, Sierra Popoluca (Both Zoquean) and Sayula Popoluca Oluta Popoluca (Both Mixean))

Language family with members south of Mexico

• Mayan languages:
  • Huastecan branch: Wastek language,
  • Yucatecan branch: Yukatek Maya, Lacandón,
  • Cholan branch: Ch'ol language, Chontal Maya language, Tzeltal language, Tzotzil language,
  • Qanjobalan–Chujean branch: Chuj language, Tojolabal language, Q'anjob'al language, Jakaltek, Motozintlec, Akatek language
  • Quichean–Mamean branch: Mam language, Tektitek language, Ixil, K'iche' language, Kaqchikel and Q'eqchi'.

Language isolates:

• Seri
• Tequistlatecan languages: Lowland Chontal, Highland Chontal
• P'urhépecha
• Huave

*In danger of extinction.

Other languages

The non-indigenous languages spoken in Mexico include English (by English-speaking as well as by the residents of border states). One example of this group is of the Emperor Memo the American Mormon colony of Nueva Casas Grandes in Chihuahua, which settled in the late 19th century. German (spoken mainly in Mexico City and Puebla), Arabic, Venetian (in Chipilo), Italian, French, Occitan, Catalan, Basque, Galician, Asturian, Filipino, Chinese, Hebrew, Korean, Ladino, Plautdietsch, Armenian, Cherokee and other languages are spoken by smaller numbers. Some of these languages (Venetian and Plautdietsch) are spoken in isolated communities or villages. The rest are spoken by immigrants or their descendants who tend to live in the larger cities and towns.

As far as second languages go, many educated Mexicans (and those with little or no education who have immigrated to the US and returned) have different degrees of fluency in English. Many Mexicans working in the tourist industry can speak English.

External links

• CDI
• "¿Qué lengua hablas?", a portal that contains multimedia files of phrases spoken in some of the national indigenous languages
• [7] National Institute of Indigenous Languages / in Spanish
• Ethnologue report for Mexico
• General Law of Linguistic Rights of Indigenous Peoples (in Spanish)