Kicking Mexican Linguistics

Here's an interview that I did at Originalthoughtmag.com. You know I like language so this is an interview of the Nahuatl language. As a writer language is my tool so the more I learn the more I rock it. Check it out.

Our guest Metztli Tekpatl graduated from UCD wth a BA in International Relations-Social Sciences and another BA in Native American Studies with a minor in Spanish. She has a Masters from Scaramento State in Spnish/Foreign Languges and is currently working on a second Masters in Management at Scaramento State. She is fluent in various languages, Spanish and Nahuatl amongst them.

What is Nahuatl?
Nahuatl is a group of related languages and dialects of the Aztecan, or Nahuan, branch of the Uto-Aztecan language family. All Nahuan branch languages are indigenous to Mesoamerica and are spoken by an estimated 1.5 million Nahua people, most of whom live in Central Mexico. It is the Indigneous language of modern day Mexico.

Uto-Aztecan (also Uto-Aztekan) is a Native American language family. It is one of the largest (both in geographical extension and number of languages) and most well-established linguistic families of the Americas. Uto-Aztecan languages are found from the Great Basin of the Western United States (Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Utah, California, Nevada, Arizona), through western, central and southern Mexico (incl. Sonora, Chihuahua, Nayarit, Durango, Zacatecas, Jalisco, Michoacán, Guerrero, San Luis Potosí, Hidalgo, Puebla, Veracruz, Morelos, Estado de México, and the Federal District), and into parts of Central America (Pipil in El Salvador; extinct varieties in Guatemala and Honduras). Utah is named after the indigenous Uto-Aztecan Ute people. Classical Nahuatl, the language of the Aztecs, and its modern relatives are part of the Uto-Aztecan family.



Metztli Takpatl will be sharing with us her insight int the Nahuatl language dealing with such topics as




*It being the lingua franca of the Aztec Empire
*Its place in modern day Mexico
*How is it distinct amongst word languages
*The relationship of language to a people's liberation


Listen to the interview here.