HUASTECA LANGUAGE: ORIGIN, CHARACTERISTICS AND WORDS - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2025

The Huasteca language is one of the languages ​​of the indigenous communities that lived during the Mesoamerican period. It is part of the Mayan languages ​​that were spoken or continue to be used in countries such as Guatemala, Mexico and Belize.

The Huasteco is characteristic of the communities that settled in the state of Veracruz and in San Luis de Potosí. It is the only dialect that is still in use by the Huasteco group, since the Chicomuseltec language disappeared around the 80s.

Traditional celebration of the Huasteca-speaking communities. Source: Juanmendiola, via Wikimedia Commons. There are three ways of referring to the Huasteco language in their own language: tének, tenec and teenek.

According to the general law of linguistic rights of indigenous peoples, Huasteco is a national language in Mexico, as is the case with more than 60 indigenous languages ​​(without taking into account some variants).

Like all indigenous languages, Huasteco has gone through many problems to maintain its validity and importance in the communities. The arrival of the Spanish had a great impact and it was a language that became prohibited and its use resulted in some sanction.

Origin

Huasteca communities date back thousands of years before Christ. They were formed thanks to the migrations of the Mayan civilizations. Although the Huastecos are derived from the Mayans, they are communities that differed from all other Mayan groups or societies that existed.

In the case of the Huasteca language, one of the most important events was that the Spanish punished the use of this language when they arrived in the American continent during the time of colonization.

It managed to overcome these obstacles and is currently one of the indigenous languages ​​that remains alive and is still spoken by thousands of people in different communities in Mexico. A very relevant fact considering that its origin dates from the pre-Columbian period.

With the passage of time, scientists have studied everything related to indigenous languages ​​in Mexico and it has been determined that the Huasteco language had many similarities with the Chicomuselteco (a language that disappeared at the end of the 20th century).

The Huasteca language is also subdivided into two other dialects that have to do with the area where their communities are located, San Luis de Potosí or Veracruz. Although the most notorious differences between these two types of Huasteco have to do with phonemes.

Characteristics of the Huasteca language

One of the most significant elements of the Huasteco language is that it is known as an ergative language. It is a common characteristic of the Mayan dialects, of the Basque language, or of the languages ​​that derive from Eskimo or those that are spoken in Australia.

The fact that the Huasteca language is ergative means that a word is used to give meaning to a part of the sentence. In Spanish there are no ergative cases, but the prepositions would fulfill more or less the same function. The difference is that the ergative is used to point to the protagonist of the action and not to the receiver as it happens in Spanish.

It is also differentiated by the use of words to establish personal pronouns, to differentiate between singular and plural or simply to indicate the non-personal forms of verbs.

It is also known as an accent language. This is a classification that is made of the languages ​​taking into account the rhythm with which the words of the Huasteca language are said. In this sense, the accent of the Huasteca language is always used in the last long vowel of the words typical of this language.

If the term does not have a long vowel, the accent is placed on the initial vowel of the word.

The alphabet is made up of five types of vowels that are in turn divided into closed, intermediate and open.

While there are 15 consonants that in turn have variants. The way these vowels are pronounced have many similarities with Spanish, although there are some aspects that must be taken into account.

Confusion

It is important to know how to recognize the different uses that are made of the term Huasteco. There is the Huasteco language that is derived from the Mayan and there is the Nahuatl of the Huasteca that was spoken in nearby areas but is born, as its name well explains, from Nahuatl.

Words in Huasteco and their meaning

Usually knowing the basics in the most important languages ​​is key to defend yourself in other cultures, especially when traveling to other countries.

In the case of the Huastec, some basic words that can be useful at any time are: taj kanenek, wakla neneck, kgack namal itz tam; which means: good morning, good afternoon and thank you.

Ushum means woman, īnik means man. On the other hand, the numbers from 1 to 5 are jún, tsáb, óx, tse 'and bó'.

Curiosities

One of the most relevant events to preserve the Huasteca language was thanks to the work of Ana Kondik, who was in charge of translating the story of The Little Prince into this indigenous dialect.

According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) there are six levels to determine the vitality of the different languages ​​recognized in the world: safe, vulnerable, in danger., seriously endangered, critical and extinct.

According to the census carried out by UNESCO on the languages ​​that are in danger of disappearing in the world, Huasteco is currently considered a language in a vulnerable situation. It is estimated that more than one hundred thousand people speak this language in different regions of Mexico.

Languages ​​that are at a vulnerable level are those that are used mostly at the family level to communicate. Children often know the rules and elements of these languages.

After the United States and China, Mexico is the country with the most languages ​​recognized by UNESCO with a total of 143. 52 of these languages ​​have a level of vitality considered vulnerable.

The National Institute of Indigenous Languages ​​in Mexico (INALI) has also reached the same conclusion as UNESCO and considers that the level of danger of disappearance of the Huasteca language is not imminent. It is especially used in cities such as Tantoyuca or Tancoco, both located in the state of Veracruz.

Carlos de Tapia Zenteno was an important Mexican author of Huastec works. In the middle of the 18th century, he published two works in this indigenous language.

References

1. Hooft, Anuschka van 't, and José Antonio Flores Farfán. Nahua Language and Culture Studies of the Huasteca. Autonomous University of San Luis Potosi, 2012.
2. Martínez Hernández, Epifanio. An Tenec Cau. Editions Café Cultura, 2008.
3. Ruvalcaba Mercado, Jesús et al. La Huasteca, A Tour Through Its Diversity. Center for Research and Higher Studies of Social Anthropology, 2004.
4. Stresser-Péan, Guy, and Guilhem Olivier. Trip To La Huasteca With Guy Stresser-Péan. Economic Culture Fund, 2008.
5. Tapia Zenteno, Carlos de, and Bartolomé Catanõ. News of the Huasteca Language. Print From La Bibliotheca Mexicana, 1767.
6. Tapia Zenteno, Carlos de et al. Apologetic Paradigm And News Of The Huasteca Language. Univ. Nacional Autónoma de México, Inst. Of Philological Research, 1985.