Mochoʼ language

Mochoʼ (known as Motozintleco in older sources) is a Mayan language spoken by the Mocho' people of Chiapas, Mexico. A source stated that it was known as Qatok’[2] (from Qa-our and Took’-language: our language), although this name has not received wide acceptance among the native speakers and the language, which is known as Mocho’ by both the Mocho’ people and the Mexican government.[3] Mochoʼ has a dialect called Tuzantec (Muchu') spoken in Tuzantan, Chiapas. Alongside Jakaltek, Q’anjob’al, Chuj and Tojol-Ab’al, the Mocho’ language is part of the Q’anjobalan group from the western branch of Mayan languages.

Not to be confused with the Mocha language.
Mochoʼ
Motozintleco
Qatoʼk
Native toMexico
RegionEastern Chiapas (villages of Tuzatlán and Motozintla), Southern Mexico
Native speakers
124 (2022)[1]
Mayan
Latin
Official status
Official language in
 Mexico
Regulated byInstituto Nacional de Lenguas Indígenas
Language codes
ISO 639-3mhc
Glottologmoch1257
ELPMocho'

With about 124 speakers as of 2020,[4] Mocho’ is considered an endangered language, educational programs in Mocho' are helping to preserve the language among youth and the process of teaching and learning the language in indigenous schools.[5]

Distrubution

The two dialects of Mochoʼ are spoken in two different villages: the Tuzantec dialect in Tuzantán (a town near Huixtla, Chiapas), and the Mocho' dialect in Motozintla. Historically, the two groups descend from a single population living in the region of Belisario Dominguez about 500 years ago. According to local legend, the split and migration was caused by a plague of bats. Speakers have also been reported in the nearby towns of Tolimán, Buenos Aires, and Campana. Palosaari (2011) describes the Motozintlec dialect.[2]

Writing Norm of the Mocho' Language

The official Writing Norm of the Mocho’ Language (In Mocho’: Na'obal chu ts'iba we took’ Mocho', Spanish: Norma de Escritura de la Lengua Mocho’) was published in 2011 by the Instituto Nacional de Lenguas Indígenas, it is mainly used for indigenous education. It established an official alphabet, grammar rules and other linguistic aspects.[6]

Alphabet

According to the established in the Writing Norm, the Mocho' alphabet consists of 30 letters, 25 consonants and 5 vowels that represent all the phonemes of the language. The official name of the Mocho' alphabet is Ts'ibtook' Mocho’.[7]

Q'an'xwitii (vowel)
Mantits'ib

(Majuscule)

 Lustits'ib

(Minuscule)

 Bij

(Name)

A a A
E e E
I i I
O o O
U u U
Q'anxwitook' (consonant)
Mantits'ib

(Majuscule)

 Lustits'ib

(Minuscule)

 Bij

(Name)

B b Ba
CH ch CHa
CH' ch' CH'a
G g Ga
J j Ja
K k Ka
K' k' K'a
L l La
M m Ma
N n Na
Ñ ñ Ña
N' n' N'a
P p Pa
Q q Qa
Q' q' Q'a
R r Ra
S s Sa
T t Ta
T' t' T'a
TS ts TSa
TS' ts' TS'a
W w Wa
X x Xa
Y y Ya
' ' Xlok'-aq

Phonology

Unlike most Mayan languages, Mochoʼ is tonal. Stress is regular and at the last syllable.

  • Short vowels have level or rising pitch.

In Mochoʼ, Proto-Mayan *j [x] and *h [h] have merged to /j/ in Motozintleco, while Tuzanteco preserves this distinction.

It is worth noting that pronunciation rules change compared to modern Spanish, as ñ becomes an "ng" sound like in sing, and glottalization becomes important for many consonants.

References
  1. Lenguas indígenas y hablantes de 3 años y más, 2020 INEGI. Censo de Población y Vivienda 2020.
  2. Palosaari, N. E. (2011). Topics in mochoʼ phonology and morphology (Doctoral dissertation). The University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT.
  3. "Na'obal chu ts'iba we took' Mocho' (Norma de Escritura de la Lengua Mocho'). NOMBRE DE LA LENGUA" (PDF).
  4. "Población de 3 años y más hablante de lengua indígena 2020".
  5. "Entrega de Gramáticas Didácticas elaboradas en ocho lenguas indígenas nacionales de Chiapas".
  6. "NA'OBAL CHU TS'IBA WE TOOK' MOCHO'. NORMA DE ESCRITURA DE LA LENGUA MOCHO'".
  7. "Na'obal chu ts'iba we took' Mocho' (Norma de Escritura de la Lengua Mocho'). TS'IBTOOK" (PDF).

Further reading
  • Kaufman, T. (1969). Preliminary Mochoʼ vocabulary (Working Paper 5). Berkeley, CA: University of California.
  • Campbell, L. (1988). The linguistics of southeast Chiapas, Mexico (Vol. 50). Provo, UT: Brigham Young University Press.
  • Martin, L. (1998). Irrealis constructions in Mochoʼ (Mayan). Anthropological Linguistics (2), 198-213.
  • Martin, L. (1987). The interdependence of language and culture in the bear story in Spanish and Mocho. Anthropological Linguistics (4), 533-548.
  • England, N. C., & Maldonado, R. Z. (2013). Mayan languages. Oxford University Press.
  • Schuman, Otto. 1969. "El tuzanteco y su posición dentro de la familia mayense" en Anales del Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia. México. pp. 139–148.


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