Cuitlatec language

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Cuitlatec, or Cuitlateco, is an extinct language isolate of Mexico, formerly spoken by an indigenous people known as Cuitlatec.

Cuitlatec
Uhpɨnéʔlu
Native toMexico
RegionGuerrero
EthnicityCuitlatec people
Extinct1960s, with the death of Juana Can
Language codes
ISO 639-3cuy
Glottologcuit1236
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Classification

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Cuitlatec has not been convincingly classified as belonging to any language family. It is believed to be a language isolate. In their controversial classification of the indigenous languages of the Americas, Greenberg and Ruhlen include Cuitlatec in an expanded Chibchan language family (Macro-Chibchan), along with a variety of other Mesoamerican and South American languages.[1] Escalante Hernández suggests a possible relation to the Uto-Aztecan languages.[2]

Geographic distribution

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Cuitlatec was spoken in the state of Guerrero. In the 16th century, the Relaciones geográficas recorded Cuitlatec spoken in Ajuchitlán and Tetela del Rio, while it was also known to be spoken along much of the Costa Grande.[3] By the 1930s, Cuitlatec was spoken only in San Miguel Totolapan. The last speaker of the language, Juana Can, is believed to have died in the 1960s.[2] In 1979, only two elderly women, Florentina Celso and Apolonia Robles, were able to remember about fifty words of the language.[4]

Phonology

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Consonants

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Cuitlatec consonant phonemes
Labial Dental Palatal Velar Labio-velar Glottal
Plosive p b t d k ɡ ʔ
Fricative ɬ ʃ h
Approximant l j w
Nasal m n

Vowels

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Cuitlatec vowel phonemes
  Front Central Back
High i ɨ u
Low e a o

Grammar

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Sentences generally follow SVO word order. Adjectives precede the nouns they modify.

Vocabulary

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CuitlatecEnglish
aʔnelgáiCuitlatec people
uhpɨnéʔluCuitlatec language
aikimɨhello
šelopɨlʔmɨthanks
aškɨliman
ɬɨnóʔowoman, wife
cɨʔɨchildren
iwililúmɨriver
úmɨwater
ahpúʔɬɨsun
tuɬíʔimoon, month
kúʔliland
ɬahouse
ihšɨɬɨsky
iʔkɨʔɨtomb
iʔyɨʔléɬɨdoor

Trees

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CuitlatecCommon nameScientific name
citakáʔliSweet acacia, CascaloteVachellia farnesiana, Caesalpinia coriaria
éhciCapireSideroxylon cartilagineum
nempáʔaMonkeypod tree, CamachilePithecellobium dulce
ɨncipéʔɬuCharamascaTanacetum annuum
puɬɨʔmelpɨmɨNanche, hogberryByrsonima crassifolia
ɬɨmšíli; šemɨʔšilíTololoteAndira inermis
šiɬiʔáTepemesquiteLysiloma divaricatum
wíhciChupandiaCyrtocarpa procera
yóʔoWhite leadtreeLeucaena leucocephala
mɨnɨmɨliGliricidiaGliricidia sepium''

Placenames

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CuitlatecEnglish
šamigéliSan Miguel Totolapan
šišmɨwɨAjuchitlán
pulkúʔwɨMexico City

Body Parts

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CuitlatecEnglish
kwérpubody
íhcɨarm
ɨmtéhead
úlihair
kúʔbeneck
šuwéʔenose
šúhpemouth
kahcíʔdiears
ihpɨlélastomach
puɬkéback
álmɨheart
ehtɨʔitongue
díšcileg
iškélɨfoot
dehpɨlkoyóankle
ihtalóiwaist
dašíʔiknee
dašilapɨelbow
gɨléwɨface
enhkeyátathe whole face

Numerals

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CuitlatecNumbers
tɨʔɨ, tɨwɨlɨ, téʔɬi1
káɬɨ2
kalíɬɨ3
páɬa4
puwáɬɨ5
dašíɬa6
wɨšíɬɨ7
puhtalíɬa8
nɨɬɨ9
šɨɬɨ10
pɨli11
méɬi20
kɨɬmɨli30
kaltɨwɨlméɬi40
puhmé100

References

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  1. Greenberg, Joseph; Ruhlen, Merritt (2007-09-04). "An Amerind Etymological Dictionary" (PDF) (12 ed.). Stanford: Dept. of Anthropological Sciences Stanford University. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-12-25. Retrieved 2008-06-27. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  2. 1 2 Escalante Hernández, Robert (1962). El Cuitlateco. México, D.F.: Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia.
  3. Cline, Howard F. (1972). Handbook of Middle American Indians, Volume 12: Guide to Ethnohistorical Sources, Part One. University of Texas Press. p. 308. ISBN 1477306803.
  4. Valiñas Coalla, Leopoldo; Cortina Borja, Mario; Mireles Padilla, Miguel (2010-03-11). "Notas sobre el cuitlateco". Anales de Antropología (in Spanish). 21 (1). doi:10.22201/iia.24486221e.1984.1.15915 (inactive 11 July 2025). ISSN 2448-6221.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of July 2025 (link)

Bibliography

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  • Susana Drucker, Roberto Escalante, & Roberto J. Weitlaner. 1969. The Cuitlatec. In Evon Z. Vogt, ed., Handbook of Middle American Indians, Ethnology: Vol 7, Chapter 30. University of Texas Press, Austin: 565–575
  • McQuown, Norman A. 1945. Fonémica del Cuitlateco. El México Antiguo 5: 239–254.
  • Weitlaner, Roberto J. 1939. Notes on the Cuitlatec language. El México Antiguo 4: 363–373.
  • Escalante Hernández, Robert (1962). El Cuitlateco . Mexico City: National Institute of Anthropology and History.==External links==