Totonacan languages facts for kids

The Totonacan languages are a group of closely related languages. They are also known as the Totonac–Tepehua languages. About 290,000 people speak these languages in Mexico. Most speakers are Totonac people (around 280,000), and a smaller group are Tepehuas (about 10,000).

These languages are spoken in the Mexican states of Veracruz, Puebla, and Hidalgo. A long time ago, during the Spanish conquest, Totonacan languages were spoken all along Mexico's Gulf Coast.

In the past, during the colonial period, people sometimes wrote in Totonacan languages. At least one grammar book was even created. However, in the 1900s, fewer people started speaking these languages. This happened because being Indigenous became less accepted, and many speakers chose to use Spanish instead.

Recently, experts have started comparing Totonacan languages to other language families. They have found that Totonacan languages share many features with other languages in the Mesoamerican Linguistic Area. These include languages like the Mayan languages and Nahuatl. Some new research even suggests that Totonacan languages might be related to the Mixe–Zoque language family. But this idea still needs more proof.

How Totonacan Languages Are Grouped

The Totonacan language family is split into two main parts: Totonac and Tepehua.

The Tepehua part usually includes three languages: Pisaflores, Huehuetla, and Tlachichilco. The Totonac part is much bigger and has more different kinds of languages.

Experts like MacKay (1999) divide Totonac into four main groups:

• Papantla Totonac: Spoken in places like El Escolín, Papantla, Cazones, Tajín, and Espinal along the Gulf Coast of Veracruz.
• North-Central Totonac: Spoken between Poza Rica in Veracruz and Mecapalapa, Pantepec, and Xicotepec de Juárez in Puebla.
• South-Central Totonac: Mostly spoken in the Sierra Norte de Puebla. This includes towns like Zapotitlán de Méndez, Coatepec, and Huehuetla in Puebla.
• Misantla Totonac: Spoken in Yecuatla and other areas near the city of Misantla.

The website Ethnologue lists 12 languages in the Totonacan family. There are three Tepehua languages and nine Totonac languages:

Mexico's National Institute of Indigenous Languages (INALI) also recognizes 10 different languages or "linguistic variants" in the family. These include 3 Tepehua and 7 Totonac languages.

Sounds in Totonacan Languages

The sounds in Totonacan languages can be a bit different from one area to another. But here's a typical set of sounds you might find:

Consonant Sounds

Totonacan languages have many consonant sounds. These include sounds made with your lips (like 'p' and 'm'), with your tongue behind your teeth (like 't' and 'n'), and further back in your mouth (like 'k' and 'q'). They also have sounds like 'ts' (like in "cats") and 'ch' (like in "chair").

The glottal stop (ʔ, like the sound in "uh-oh") is not always used in these languages.

Vowel Sounds

Most Totonacan languages have three main vowel sounds: 'i', 'u', and 'a'. These sounds can also be long or short. Some Totonac languages have five vowel sounds, adding 'e' and 'o'.

How Totonacan Grammar Works

Totonacan languages have some interesting grammar rules. They often put the verb first in a sentence. They also use many prefixes and suffixes (small parts added to words) to change their meaning.

These languages are very "agglutinative" and "polysynthetic." This means they can add many different parts to a single word to create a complex meaning. For example, a single verb might include information about who is doing the action, who it's being done to, and even how it's being done.

Nouns in Totonacan languages don't change their form much. There's no special ending for plural (more than one) or for male/female words. When you count things, you use special prefixes called "classifiers." These change depending on the type or shape of the object you're counting. This is quite unique for languages!

Adding Meaning to Verbs

Totonacan languages have many ways to add meaning to verbs.

Making things happen (Causatives)

All Totonacan languages have a special prefix, ma:-, that means "to make something happen." For example, in Upper Necaxa Totonac:

Here, ma:- helps to change "know" into "make know" or "let know."

Doing things for someone (Applicatives)

Another common way to add meaning is with a suffix that means "for someone" or "for their benefit." For example, in Ozelonacaxtla Totonac:

The -ni- part means "for him."

Doing things with someone (Comitative)

Totonacan languages also have a way to show that someone is doing an action "with" another person. For example, in Huehuetla Tepehua:

The t’aː- part means "with."

Using something (Instrumental)

There's also a prefix to show that something is used as a tool or means to do an action. For example, in Olintla Totonac:

The liː- part means "with it."

Body Part Prefixes

Totonacan languages use special prefixes that come from body parts. These are added to verbs to show which part of a person or object is affected by the action. For example, in Huehuetla Tepehua:

Here, laʔapuː (face) shows where the mask was put.

These prefixes can also describe the shape of an object. For example, ča̰ː (shin) can be used when talking about cutting something long and thin like a birch tree.

Body part prefixes are also used to describe where objects are located. They combine a body part prefix with words for 'sit', 'stand', 'lie', or 'be high'. For example, in Upper Necaxa Totonac:

Here, a̰kpuː (crown) is used to mean "on top of."

Showing Who Owns What

In Totonacan languages, you show who owns something by adding a prefix to the thing that is owned, not to the owner. For example, in Upper Necaxa Totonac:

The ḭš- means "his" and is attached to "corn."

Here's how it works for "my," "your," and "their" corn:

Some words, like family terms or body parts, always have a possessor prefix.

Counting Things

When you count in Totonacan languages, the numbers are attached to special prefixes. These prefixes change depending on what you are counting. For example, there's one prefix for counting flat things like tortillas, another for long things like sticks, and another for round things like pots.

Upper Necaxa Totonac has about 30 different counting prefixes!

Here's a comparison of how numbers sound in some Totonacan languages:

Sound Symbolism

A cool feature of Totonacan languages is "sound symbolism." This means that changing a sound in a word can change its meaning. For example, a slight change in a sound might show that an action is more forceful or that an object is bigger.

For example, in Upper Necaxa Totonac:

Notice how the 's', 'š', and 'ɬ' sounds change the meaning from small to medium to large, or from less force to more force.

Totonacan Words

Here are some words from Proto-Totonacan (the ancient language that Totonacan languages came from) and how they sound in different Totonacan languages today:

Media and Totonacan Languages

You can hear Totonacan-language programs on the radio! The CDI has a radio station called XECTZ-AM. It broadcasts from Cuetzalan, Puebla, helping to keep these languages alive.

See also

In Spanish: Lenguas totonaco-tepehuas para niños