Tlapanec language

Tlapanec
Me̱ꞌpha̱a̱
Pronunciation[meʔpʰaː]
Native toMexico
RegionGuerrero, Morelos
EthnicityTlapanec
Native speakers
150,000 (2020 census)[1]
Language codes
ISO 639-3Variously:
tcf – Malinaltepec (east)
tpc – Azoyú (south)
tpl – Tlacoapa (central)
tpx – Acatepec (west)
Glottologsubt1249  Tlapanec + Subtiaba
ELPTlapanec
Tlapanec (Ochre, number 13) and the rest of the modern Oto-Manguean languages

Tlapanec /ˈtlæpənɛk/, or Meꞌphaa, is an indigenous Mexican language spoken by more than 98,000 Tlapanec people in the state of Guerrero.[2] Like other Oto-Manguean languages, it is tonal and has complex inflectional morphology. The ethnic group themselves refer to their ethnic identity and language as Me̱ꞌpha̱a̱ [meʔpʰaː].[3]

Before much information was known about it, Tlapanec (sometimes written "Tlappanec" in earlier publications) was either considered unclassified or linked to the controversial Hokan language family. It is now definitively considered part of the Oto-Manguean language family, of which it forms its own branch along with the extinct and very closely related Subtiaba language of Nicaragua.[4]

Meꞌphaa people temporarily move to other locations, including Mexico City, Morelos and various locations in the United States, for reasons of work.

Varieties

Ethnologue distinguishes four Tlapanec languages:[5]

  • Acatepec (dialects Acatepec proper, Huitzapula, Nanzintla, Teocuitlapa, Zapotitlán Tablas)
  • Azoyú
  • Malinaltepec (dialect Huehuetepec/Zilacayotitlán)
  • Tlacoapa (dialects Tlacoapa proper, Tenamazapa)

Other sources of information, including native speakers and the Instituto Nacional de Lenguas Indígenas of the Mexican government, identify eight or nine varieties, which have been given official status: Acatepec, Azoyú, Malinaltepec, Tlacoapa, Nancintla, Teocuitlapa, Zapotitlán Tablas (with Huitzapula sometimes considered distinct), Zilacayotitlán.[6] These share mutual intelligibility of 50% between Malinaltepec and Tlacoapa, though Acatepec has an 80% intelligibility of both.

The Azoyú variety is the only natural language reported to have used the pegative case, though it is verbal case like other 'case' markers in Tlapanec.[7]

Grammar

Tlapanec is an ergative–absolutive language. However, while most languages of this type have an overt ergative case, Tlapanec is one of the rare examples of a marked absolutive language, that is, an ergative language that overtly marks the absolutive and leaves the ergative unmarked.[8]

Phonology

There is wide variation in the reported phonology of Tlapanec, including from the following sources:

  • Weathers (1984)[9] on the Malinaltepec variety
  • Carrasco Zúñiga & Weathers (1988)[10] and Black (2004)[11] on the Malinaltepec variety
  • Marlett & Weathers (2018)[12] on multiple varieties
  • Marlett & Neri Remigio (2020)[13] on the Acatepec variety

Vowels

Vowels of the Malinaltepec variety (Weathers 1984)
Front Central Back
short long short long short long
Close oral i iː u uː
nasal ĩ ĩː ũ ũː
Mid oral e eː o oː
nasal ẽ ẽː õ õː
Open oral a aː
nasal ã ãː

According to Carrasco Zúñiga & Weathers (1988) and Black (2004), in addition to lengthening and nasalization, vowels may also be glottalized; they can be any combination of the three (lengthened, nasalized, glottalized).

Consonants

Consonants of the Malinaltepec variety (Weathers 1984)
Bilabial Alveolar Post-alveolar Palatal Velar Glottal
Plosive voiceless p t k ʔ
aspirated pʰ tʰ kʰ
voiced b d ɡ
Affricate voiceless t͡s t͡ʃ
voiced d͡ʒ
Fricative s ʂ ~ ʃ h
Nasal m n
Rhotic r
Approximant l j w
Consonants of the Malinaltepec variety (Carrasco Zúñiga & Weathers 1988 / Black 2004)
Labial Dental Palatal Velar Glottal
Plosive or
Affricate 		voiceless p ⟨p⟩ t ⟨t⟩ t͡ʃ ⟨ch⟩ k ⟨k⟩ ʔ ⟨ꞌ⟩
aspirated pʰ ⟨ph⟩ tʰ ⟨th⟩ kʰ ⟨kh⟩
voiced b ⟨b⟩ d ⟨d⟩ d͡ʒ ⟨dx⟩ ɡ ⟨g⟩
Continuant ɸ ⟨f⟩ s (t͡s) ⟨s⟩ ʃ ⟨x⟩ x ⟨j⟩
Nasal m ⟨m⟩ n ⟨n⟩ ɲ ⟨ñ⟩ (ŋ) ⟨ŋ⟩
Sonorant w ⟨w⟩ l ⟨l⟩ j ⟨y⟩
Vibrant r ⟨r⟩

According to Weathers (1984), the retroflexion (subapical articulation) of the voiceless postalveolar fricative varies, being [ʃ] before /i/, fluctuating between [ʃ] ~ [ʂ] before /u/, retaining slight retroflexion before consonants, and fully retroflexed elsewhere.

Also according to Weathers (1984), Allophones of the sounds /v b ɡ n r/ include [f β ɣ ŋ ɾ~ʐ]. In the existence of the cluster /hw/, an allophone [ɸ] may be heard.

Tones

Tones differ based on variety.[14][15][16]

Orthography

Tlapanec alphabet[17]
Uppercase A B Ch D Dx E F G I J K Kh L M N Ñ Ŋ O P Ph R S T Th U W X Y Ꞌ
Lowercase a b ch d dx e f g i j k kh l m n ñ ŋ o p ph r s t th u w x y ꞌ

The glottal stop is written with a saltillo ⟨Ꞌ ꞌ⟩.

Media

Tlapanec-language programming is carried by the CDI's radio station XEZV-AM, broadcasting from Tlapa de Comonfort, Guerrero.

Notes

  1. ^ Lenguas indígenas y hablantes de 3 años y más, 2020 INEGI. Censo de Población y Vivienda 2020.
  2. ^ INEGI 2005
  3. ^ Instituto Nacional de Lenguas Indígenas. 2008. Catálogo de las lenguas indígenas nacionales: Variantes lingüísticas de México con sus autodenominaciones y referencias geoestadísticas. Diario Oficial 14 enero, Primera Sección: 31–78, Segunda Sección: 1–96, Tercera Sección: 1–112.
  4. ^ See Suárez (1977; 1986).
  5. ^ Computer-generated list of Tlapanec languages at Ethnologue (2013)
  6. ^ A 2008 proposal to divide the ISO code for Acatepec into Acatepec proper, Teocuitlapa, Zapotitlan Tablas, and Huitsapula was rejected.[1]
  7. ^ Wichmann (2005).
  8. ^ Donohue, Mark (2008).
  9. ^ Weathers, Esther L. & Mark L. (1984). A Sketch of Malinaltepec Tlapanec Phonology (PDF). SIL Global.
  10. ^ Carrasco Zúñiga, Abad; Weathers, Mark L. (1988), Xó- nitháán me̱ꞌpha̱a̱: Cómo se escribe el tlapaneco, Asociación para la Promoción de Lecto-Escritura Tlapaneca, pp. 1–147
  11. ^ Black, Cheryl A. (2004), An Autosegmental Analysis of Me'phaa (Tlapanec) Noun Inflection (PDF), SIL Global, pp. 1–13
  12. ^ Marlett, Stephen A.; Weathers, Mark L. (2018), The sounds of Me'phaa: A new assessment, SIL-Mexico Electronic Working Papers, vol. 25, SIL Global, pp. 1–31
  13. ^ Marlett, Stephen A.; Neri Remigio, Plácido (2020), The sounds of Acatepec Meꞌpaa (Tlapanec), SIL-Mexico Electronic Working Papers, vol. 29, SIL Global, pp. 1–11
  14. ^ Cline, Kevin (2013). The tone system of Acatepec Me'paa (Thesis). pp. 1–199.
  15. ^ Wichmann (2005), pp. 133–136.
  16. ^ Suárez, Jorge A. (1988). Tlapaneco de Malinaltepec (PDF). Archivo de Lenguas Indígenas de México. pp. 1–155.
  17. ^ Tsinuu me̱ꞌpha̱a̱, Zacarías M., Próspero (Illustrator) (1ª ed.), Instituto Lingüístico de Verano, A.C. & SIL Global, 2000{{citation}}: CS1 maint: others (link)

References

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