Ixil (Ixhil) is a Mayan language spoken in Mexico and Guatemala.[2] It is the primary language of the Ixil people, which mainly comprises the three towns of San Juan Cotzal, Santa María Nebaj, and San Gaspar Chajul in the Guatemalan highlands and numerous towns in the states of Campeche and Quintana Roo in southeast México.[3] There is also an Ixil speaking migrant population in Guatemala City, Mexico City and the United States. Although there are slight differences in vocabulary in the dialects spoken by people in the three main Guatemalan Ixil towns, they are all mutually intelligible and should be considered dialects of a single language. According to historical linguistic studies Ixil emerged as a separate language sometime around the year 500AD.
| Ixil | |
|---|---|
| Pronunciation | [iʂil] |
| Native to | Guatemala, Mexico |
| Region | Quiché Department Campeche, Quintana Roo |
| Ethnicity | 133,329 Ixil (2019 census) |
Native speakers | 120,000 (2019 census)[1] |
Mayan
| |
| Dialects |
|
| Latin | |
| Official status | |
Recognised minority language in | |
| Regulated by | Instituto Nacional de Lenguas Indígenas Academia de Lenguas Mayas de Guatemala |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | ixl |
| Glottolog | ixil1251 |
| ELP | Ixil |
Distribution
editIxil language is spoken in Mexico in some municipalities of the states of Campeche and Quintana Roo. In the state of Campeche is spoken in the communities of Los Laureles and Quetzal-Edzná from the Campeche municipality and in Maya Tecún in Champotón municipality, while in Quintana Roo is spoken in the towns of Maya Balam and Kuchumatán, Bacalar municipality.
In Guatemala, the municipalities where Ixil is spoken the most are San Gaspar Chajul, San Juan Cotzal and Santa María Nebaj, Quiché department.
Phonology
edit| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High | i iː | u uː | |
| Close-mid | e eː | o oː | |
| Open | a aː |
| Labial | Alveolar | Post- alveolar |
Retroflex | Palatal | Velar | Uvular | Glottal | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m ⟨m⟩ | n ⟨n⟩ | ||||||||
| Plosive/ Affricate |
plain | p ⟨p⟩ | t ⟨t⟩ | t͡s ⟨tz⟩ | t͡ɕ ⟨ch⟩ | ʈ͡ʂ ⟨tx⟩ | k ⟨k⟩ | q ⟨q⟩ | ʔ ⟨'⟩ | |
| glottalized | ɓ ⟨bʼ⟩ | tʼ ⟨tʼ⟩ | t͡sʼ ⟨tzʼ⟩ | t͡ɕʼ ⟨chʼ⟩ | ʈ͡ʂʼ ⟨txʼ⟩ | kʼ ⟨kʼ⟩ | qʼ ⟨qʼ⟩ | |||
| Fricative | β ~ v ⟨v⟩ | s ⟨s⟩ | ɕ ⟨xh⟩ | ʂ ⟨x⟩ | χ ⟨j⟩ | |||||
| Flap | ɾ ⟨r⟩ | |||||||||
| Approximant | (w ⟨v⟩) | l ⟨l⟩ | j ⟨y⟩ | |||||||
Sample Words
editSource:[6]
| One | Wa'l |
| Two | Ka'wa'l |
| Three | Oxhwal |
| Man | Winaq |
| Woman | Ixoq |
| Dog | Tx'i' |
| Sun | Q'ij |
| Moon | Ich' |
| Water | Ja |
| Deer | Che |
| Jaguar | B'alam |
| Monkey | K'oy |
| Rabbit | Umul |
| Mouse | Ch'o |
| Bird | Tz'ikyin |
| Fish | Txay |
| Bee | Uskab |
| Black | Q'eq |
| White | Saq |
| Red | Kaq |
| Yellow | Q'an |
| Green | Cha'x |
| Blue | Cha'x |
Grammar
editThis section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (December 2008) |
Ixil pronominals are discerned between ergative ones and absolutive ones.[7] A notable feature of the language's grammar is its ambiguity in discerning reflexive from reciprocal pronouns.[8]
See also
editNotes
edit- ^ Ixil at Ethnologue (24th ed., 2021)
- ^ Colby, Benjamin N., Pierre L. van den Berghe. 1977. Ixiles y Ladinos: El Pluralism Social en el Altiplano de Guatemala. Guatemala: Editorial "Jose de Pineda Ibarra". p. 57.
- ^ "Catálogo de las lenguas indígenas nacionales: Ixil".
- ^ Ayres (1991), p. 1.
- ^ Ayres (1991), p. 2–7.
- ^ "Ixil Words". www.native-languages.org. Retrieved 2023-11-23.
- ^ "Toward a Dialectology of Ixil Maya: Variation across Communities and Individuals" Thomas E. Lengyel
- ^ "Reflexive and Reciprocal Elements in Ixil", ERIC: ED353802, Glenn Ayres, 1990.
Bibliography
edit- Asicona Ramírez, Lucas, Domingo Méndez Rivera, Rodrigo Domingo Xinic Bop. 1998. Diccionario Ixil de San Gaspar Chajul. La Antigua Guatemala: Proyecto Linguistico Francisco Marroquín.
- Ayres, Glenn Thompson (1991). La Gramática Ixil. La Antigua Guatemala: CIRMA.
- Cedillo Chel, Antonio, Juan Ramírez. 1999. Diccionario del idioma ixil de Santa María Nebaj. La Antigua Guatemala: Proyecto Linguistico Francisco Marroquín.
- England, Nora C. 1994. Ukutaʼmiil Ramaqʼiil Utzijobʼaal ri Mayaʼ Amaaqʼ: Autonomia de los Idiomas Mayas: Historia e identidad. (2nd ed.). Guatemala City: Cholsamaj.
- Maximiliano Poma S., Tabita J.T. de la Cruz, Manuel Caba Caba et al. 1996. Gramática del Idioma Ixil. La Antigua Guatemala: Proyecto Linguistico Francisco Marroquín.
- Oxlajuuj Keej Mayaʼ Ajtzʼiibʼ (OKMA). 1993. Mayaʼ chiiʼ. Los idiomas Mayas de Guatemala. Guatemala City: Cholsamaj.
- Programa de Rescate Cultural Maya-Ixil. 1995. Aqʼbʼal Eluʼl Yol Vatzsaj: Diccionario Ixil. Guatemala City: Cholsamaj.
External links
edit- Doctrina y Confesionario en lengua Ixil
- OLAC resources in and about the Ixil language
- ELAR archive of Ixil Maya language documentation materials
- Ixil Maya Conversation / Narrative Collection Archived 2015-04-27 at the Wayback Machine at the Archive of the Indigenous Languages of Latin America, containing audio recordings and digital texts.