Nahuatl (nāhuatl/nawatlahtolli)

Nahuatl is an Uto-Aztecan language spoken by about 1.5 million
people in Mexico. The majority of speakers live in central
Mexico, particularly in Puebla, Veracruz, Hildago, San Luis Potosi,
Guerrero, Mexico (state), El Distrito Federal, Tlaxcala, Morelos
and Oaxaca, and also in El Salvador. There are smaller numbers of
Nahuatl speakers throughout the rest of Mexico, and in parts of the
USA.

There are numerous dialects of Nahuatl, some of which are mutually
unintelligible. Most Nahuatl speakers also speak Spanish, with the exception
of some of most elderly.

Classical Nahuatl was the language of the Aztec empire and was used
as a lingua franca in much of Mesoamerica from the 7th century AD until
the Spanish conquest in the 16th century. The modern dialects of
Nahuatl spoken in the Valley of Mexico are closest to Classical Nahuatl.

Nahuatl was originally written with a pictographic script which was
not a full writing system but instead served as a mnemonic to remind readers
of texts they had learnt orally. The script appeared in inscriptions carved
in stone and in picture books, many of which the Spanish destroyed.

The Spanish introduced the Latin alphabet to write Nahuatl, and a large
amount of prose and poetry was subsequently written. Every since there has
been considerable debate about how to spell Nahuatl.

Nahuatl alphabet (Nāwatla’tōlli)

Nahuatl pronunciation

Information about the Nahuatl alphabet and pronunciation compiled for Wolfram Siegel

Sample text

Nochi tlakamej uan siuamej kipiaj manoj kuali tlakatisej, nochi san
se totlatechpouiltilis uan titlatepanitalojkej, yeka moneki kuali ma
timouikakaj, ma timoiknelikaj, ma timotlasojtlakaj uan ma timotlepanitakaj.

Translation

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They
are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another
in a spirit of brotherhood.
(Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)

 
Nahuatl language learning material

Links

Online Nahuatl lessons
http://mexica.ohui.net/
http://weber.ucsd.edu/~dkjordan/nahuatl/nahuatllessons/INL-00.html

Online Nahuatl dictionaries
http://aulex.org/es-nah/
http://es.freelang.net/diccionario/nahuatl.php

Nahuatl Tlahtolkalli (Nahuatl Academy of Language)
http://www.nahuatl.info/nahuatl.htm

Nahuatl Culture
http://www.azteca.net/aztec/nahuatl/

Enigméxico – una librería virtual en donde ofrezco toda clase
de documentos históricos en Náhuatl y para aprender el Náhuatl
así como también la historia antigua de México y del Perú:
http://www.enigmexico.com/

Photos of and information about the Aztec, Maya and Inca peoples
http://mayaincaaztec.com