Zapotec (Spanish: zapoteco) is an extinct, unclassified Mesoamerican language formerly spoken in Ciudad Guzmán, Jalisco, Mexico.
| Zapotec | |
|---|---|
| Region | Ciudad Guzmán, Jalisco, Mexico |
| Extinct | (date missing) |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | None (mis) |
  Ciudad Guzmán Location of Ciudad Guzmán in Jalisco | |
| Coordinates: 19°42′N 103°28′W / 19.700°N 103.467°W | |
Name edit
The name "Zapotec" is derived from Zapotlán, the former name of Ciudad Guzmán, where the language was spoken. Zapotlán was renamed Ciudad Guzmán in 1857.[1]
Despite sharing the same name, Zapotec has no known relationship to the Zapotec languages of Oaxaca.[2]
Evidence edit
The existence of Zapotec is known from a relación geográfica made in 1580 by Gerónimo Flores, alcalde mayor of the province of Tuspa, Tamatzula and Zapotlán (now Tuxpan, Tamazula de Gordiano and Ciudad Guzmán, respectively). According to Flores:
[In Zapotlán] they have four languages which they formerly used and use, which are called Mechoacan [Purépecha], Zayulteca, Zapoteca, and Naguas, which is Mexican [Nahuatl], which they all generally speak.[a]
Extinction edit
Zapotec became extinct due to the community shifting from using Zapotec to using Nahuatl as their primary language.[4] Nahuatl had become a lingua franca in the pre-Columbian era, being used as the administrative language of the Aztec Empire and as a trade language beyond the empire's borders, and was subsequently also promoted by the Spaniards after the Spanish conquest.[5] Nearby languages that went extinct in similar circumstances include Sayultec (which was also spoken in Ciudad Guzmán alongside Zapotec), Cochin, Otomi, Tiam, and Tamazultec.
Notes edit
Citations edit
- ^ González Castolo n.d.
- ^ Harvey 1972, p. 312.
- ^ Flores 1958, p. 93.
- ^ Harvey 1972, p. 313.
- ^ Harvey 1972, p. 299.
References edit
- Flores, Gerónimo (1958) [1580]. "Relación de Tuspa. Tamazula y Zapotlan". In Corona Núñez, José (ed.). Relaciones geográficas de la diócesis de Michoacán, 1579–1580 [Relaciones Geográficas of the Diocese of Michoacán, 1579–1580] (in Spanish). Vol. 2. Guadalajara.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - González Castolo, Fernando (n.d.). "Monografía Municipal de Zapotlán el Grande, Jalisco" [Municipal Monograph of Zapotlán el Grande, Jalisco] (in Spanish). Gobierno Municipal de Zapotlán El Grande, Jalisco.
- Harvey, H. R. (1972). "The Relaciones Geográficas, 1579–1586: Native Languages". Handbook of Middle American Indians. Vol. 12: Guide to Ethnohistorical Sources, Part One. Austin: University of Texas Press. pp. 279–323. ISBN 0-292-70152-7.