Mayan languages: Difference between revisions

The word "Maya" was likely derived from the postclassical Yucatán city of [[Mayapan]]; its more restricted meaning in pre-colonial and colonial times points to an origin in a particular region of the Yucatán Peninsula. The broader meaning of "Maya" now current, while defined by linguistic relationships, is also used to refer to ethnic or cultural traits. Most Maya identify first and foremost with a particular ethnic group, e.g. as "Yucatec" or "Kʼicheʼ"; but they also recognize a shared Maya kinship.{{sfn|Choi|2002}} Language has been fundamental in defining the boundaries of that kinship. Fabri writes: "The term Maya is problematic because Maya peoples do not constitute a homogenoushomogeneous identity. Maya, rather, has become a strategy of self-representation for the Maya movements and its followers. The Academia de Lenguas Mayas de Guatemala (ALMG) finds twenty-one distinct Mayan languages."{{sfn|Fabri|2003|page=61. n1}} This pride in unity has led to an insistence on the distinctions of different Mayan languages, some of which are so closely related that they could easily be referred to as [[dialects]] of a single language. But, given that the term "dialect" has been used by some with [[Racism|racialist]] overtones in the past, as scholars made a spurious distinction between Amerindian "dialects" and European "languages", the preferred usage in Mesoamerica in recent years has been to designate the linguistic varieties spoken by different ethnic group as separate languages.<ref group=notes>See {{harvtxt|Suárez|1983}} chapter 2 for a thorough discussion of the usage and meanings of the words "dialect" and "language" in Mesoamerica.</ref>