Mayan Languages in Danger of Extinction
According to the Academy of Mayan Languages of Guatemala (ALMG), there are about 5 Mayan Languages in danger of extinction. The first of these languages, ITZA’, is the one with the most danger because according to the experts, there only 123 people that speak it. Terrence Kaufman, wrote the book “Idiomas de Mesoamerica”, where he says that the ITZA language had only 100 speakers when he wrote his book in 1990. The etnographic information indicates that most people that speak the language are over 50 years old and therefore if there is no new blood this language will not survive.
Other languages in danger are Mopan, chorti, sipakapense and tektiteko. Other language experts say that most of the Guatemalan Mayan languages are in danger. Languages that have less than 3,000 speakers have less possibilities of survival. According to the experts, one of the things that is affecting Mayan languages de most, is the restricted space where they are spoken. Most languages are limited to family, village or markets. Another aspect affecting the Mayan languages is the fact that the languages are not being pass on to children. As an example of this trend is KAKCHIKEL, that despite of being in the central area of Guatemala , it has not being passed to children and therefore will be lost for the next generation.
There are several factor affecting the Mayan Languages. Some of these factor are social, political and economic. The economical factor is seeing from the workplace, where all communication is in spanish. The biggest threat against the languages is an environment of racism and discrimination. People tend to leave behind their languages because they do not want to suffer from these attitudes.
Even though, there is a law that protects Mayan Languages, in practice it is very ineffective. This law says that “the Mayan Languages, Garifuna and Xinco could be utilized in all the linguistic communities, in every form and without restrictions in public or private and in all kind of activities whether they are educational, academic, social, economical, political and cultural activities.
The five Mayan languages in most danger are:
ITZA: Soken inSan Jose, Peten and it is considered that there are only 123 speakers.
MOPAN: Spoken in San Luis Peten, approximately 463 speakers.
CHORTI: Spoken in Jocotan, Camotan, and Olopa in Chiquimula and La Union, Zacapa. Approximately 1,105 speakers.
SIPAKAPENSE: Spoken in Sipacapa. Approximately 6344 speakers.
TEKTITEKO: Spoken in Tectitan, Cuilco in Huehuetenango and Chiapas, Mexico. Approximately 1,241 speakers.
