Tz'utujil language

Infobox Language
name=Tz'utujil (Tz'utujiil)
states=Guatemala
region=Western Highlands
speakers=approx. 50,000
familycolor=American
fam1=Mayan
fam2=Quichean-Mamean
fam3=Greater Quichean
fam4=Quichean
iso2=myn
lc1=tzj|ld1=Eastern|ll1=none
lc2=tzt|ld2=Western|ll1=none

Tz'utujil (or Tz'utujiil) is a Mayan language spoken in the region to the south of Lake Atitlán in Guatemala. Tz'utujil is closely related to its larger neighbors, Kaqchikel and K'iche'.

Today approximately 50,000 speak Tz'utujil as their mother tongue. The majority of the Tz'utujil people have Spanish as their second language, although many of the older people, or those in more remote locations do not. Many children also do not learn Spanish until they go to school around the age of five although more importance is now being placed upon it due to the influx of tourism into the region. Spanish is used in written communication.

Phonology

In the charts below each of the Tz'utujil phonemes is represented by the character or set of characters that denote it in the standard orthography developed by the Guatemalan Academy of Mayan Languages (ALMG) and sanctioned by the Guatemalan government.Where different, the corresponding symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet appears in brackets.

Vowels

Tz'utujil has five short and five long vowels.

Consonants

Like other Mayan languages, Tz'utujil does not distinguish voiced and voiceless stops and affricates but instead distinguishes plain and glottalized stops and affricates.The plain stops and affricates (technically "pulmonic egressive") are usually voiceless and are aspirated at the ends of words and unaspirated elsewhere.The glottalized stops and affricates are usually ejective in the case of "k' ", "ch' ", and "tz' " and implosive in the case of "b' ", "t' ", and "q' ".

Sample words and phrases

*"maltyoox" - 'thank-you'
*"saqari" - 'good morning'
*"xqa'j q'iij" - "good afternoon"
*"xok aaq'a' " - 'good night'
*"na'an" - 'good-bye'
*"jo' " - 'let's go!'
*"utz aawach" - 'how are you?'
*"jee' " - 'yes'
*"mani' " - 'no'

References

cite book
last = Dayley
first = Jon P.
title = Tzutujil Grammar
publisher = University of California Press
location = Berkeley, California
date = 1985
id = ISBN 0-520-09962-1

cite book
last = García Ixmatá
first = Pablo
title = Rukeemiik ja Tz'utujiil Chii': Gramática tz'utujiil
publisher = Cholsamaj
location = Guatemala City, Guatemala
date = 1997
id = ISBN 99922-53-13-4

cite book
last = Pérez Mendoza
first = Francisco
coauthors = Miguel Hernández Mendoza
title = Diccionario Tz'utujil
publisher = Proyecto Lingüístico Francisco Marroquín/Cholsamaj
location = Antigua Guatemala, Guatemala
date = 1996