Language of the Month October 2021: Pipil/Náhuat

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El Salvador, bordering Honduras and Guatemala, has a population of just over six million. It has a rich culture, beautiful and diverse landscapes, a fusion of cuisines, and amazing people. While Spanish is the official language of the country, there are also other languages actively used in the country. One of these languages is Pipil (also known as Nahuat, Nawat, Nahuate, Náwat, Náhuat), spoken by indigenous populations in the country. While Pipil is a member of the Uto-Aztecan language family, and has a historical relationship and possibly originated from Nahuatl, Pipil is considered a distinct language.

The Nahua or Pipiles settled in what is known as western El Salvador around 900 AD, and Pipil is one of the few indigenous languages spoken in El Salvador alongside Lencan and Q’eqchi’ (Kiprop, 2017). Pipil is classified as critically endangered by UNESCO, which means that “the youngest speakers are grandparents and older, and they speak the language partially and infrequently” (UNESCO, 2017). According to the Endangered Languages Project, there were less than 100 speakers known worldwide in 2014. There has been little intergenerational transmission of the language to children, which contributes to its status as an endangered language.

While it was a thriving language over 100 years ago, it has shifted to a critically endangered language largely due to persecution and ethnic cleansing within the country. It was even outlawed in the 1930s (Ward, 2004). Over time, the Pipiles began to hide their linguistic and cultural representations, leading it to its current state. With few speakers, and little use outside of the communities and groups who still speak the language, Pipil is not currently used in government or other official communications. None of the current speakers of Pipil are considered monolingual, as these speakers would have a necessity to use Spanish because of its official status in government and general societal use (Lemus, 2018).

Efforts have been underway to revitalize the language to keep it from extinction. One such effort has been led by the Cuna Nahuat, an immersive bilingual program, which began in 2003 in partnership with Don Bosco University. Teachers were trained on intercultural education and how to teach Pipil (Linguistic immersion project to save the native Nahuat-Pipil language, n.d.). This work has largely been unsupported by the government and has relied on volunteerism by teachers and individuals intending to preserve language (Lemus, 2018). In addition to the Cuna Nahuat, the IRIN (Iniciativa para la Recuperación del Idioma Náhuat) has sought to ensure that the language recovers by collecting resources and advocating for the language and its speakers. The IRIN launched a pilot project in 2004 to teach Pipil to 300 students in four different schools. Overall, efforts are aimed at preserving the language and promoting revitalization. 

Pipil Language Resources

INTERESTING FACTS: Did you know that some words in English might have originated from Pipil? For example, tumat in Pipil came into the current English vernacular as tomato. Also, cukulut in Pipil came into English as chocolate. (See IRIN/Ward 2004: https://www.computing.dcu.ie/~mward/mthesis/chapter5.pdf).

Learn some Pipil with lessons from the IRIN: https://www.computing.dcu.ie/~mward/nawat/general/html/intro_eng.html

Explore a Spanish language history of the culture of the Pipiles and efforts to revitalize the language and culture: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htjd23u0Zq8

Explore revitalization efforts: https://www.elsalvadorelkartasuna.eus/zertan-ari-gara-que-hacemos/cuna-nahuat/

References

Endangered Languages Project (n.d.). Pipil. Retrieved from https://www.endangeredlanguages.com/lang/481.

Kiprop, J. (2017). What Languages are spoken in El Salvador? Retrieved from https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/what-languages-are-spoken-in-el-salvador.html 

Lemus, J. E. (2018). Revitalizing Pipil: The Cuna Nahuat experience, In L. Hinton, L/ Huss, and G/ ROche (eds). The Routledge Handbook of Language Revitalization. Routledge: New York, NY. 

Nahuat Cradle (n.d.). Linguistic immersion project to save the native Nahuat-Pipil language (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.elsalvadorelkartasuna.eus/zertan-ari-gara-que-hacemos/cuna-nahuat/

National Geographic (n.d.). El Salvador. Retrieved from https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/geography/countries/article/el-salvador

Ward, M. (2004). Nawat. Retrieved from https://www.computing.dcu.ie/~mward/mthesis/chapter5.pdf.

Photo Credit: Cam Ventoza, used in the Creative Common License.

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