Mayan languages

Mayan languages are a family of Indigenous languages spoken chiefly in Guatemala, Mexico, Belize, and Honduras. They descend from Proto-Mayan and include Yucatec Maya, K’iche’, and Kaqchikel.

Proto-Mayan language: The reconstructed ancestor from which the Mayan languages descended. Comparative evidence connects the family’s branches to this shared ancestor.
Yucatec Maya: A Mayan language spoken mainly in Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula and neighboring areas. It is one of the family’s largest languages and a major language of the peninsula.
Mayan migration: The movement of Maya-speaking populations across Mesoamerica over time. Population movements help explain the family’s present geographic distribution.
Maya peoples: Indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica with diverse communities, histories, and languages. Mayan languages are rooted in the varied identities and histories of their speakers.
Uto-Aztecan languages: A language family extending across western and central North America, including Nahuatl. Its languages share Mesoamerican contact history but do not descend from Proto-Mayan.
Mayan language family: A genealogical group of languages descended from a common ancestral language. This broader linguistic category describes how Mayan languages are related.
K’iche’ language: A Mayan language spoken chiefly in Guatemala’s central highlands. Its substantial speaker community and literary tradition exemplify contemporary Mayan language use.
Historical linguistics: The study of language change and relationships through time. Its comparative methods establish the family’s ancestry and branch histories.
Mayan language activism: Organized efforts to defend the rights and public presence of Mayan-language communities. Activists challenge discrimination and press for language access in public institutions.
Mixtec languages: A group of Oto-Manguean languages spoken in southern Mexico. They are geographically adjacent to Mayan languages but belong to another family.

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