Nahuatl, Michoacán
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A language of Mexico
ISO 639-3
Alternate Names
Gente natural, Mexicano, Michoacan Aztec, Nahual de Michoacán
Population
3,000 (1990 census).
Location
Michoacán state: Maruata Pómaro on Pacific ocean coast.
Language Maps
Language Status
6b (Threatened).
Typology
SVO, VSO; long words, affixes, agglutinative, 4 possible prefixes for verbs, 7 possible suffixes, 2 causatives, 1 having 2 forms; little-used passive, plural forms for nouns, depending on the noun class, adjectives follow nouns, some adjectives are verb forms, device for making Spanish infinitives into Aztec third person present indicative.
Language Use
All ages. Mixed attitudes. Also use Spanish [spa].
Language Development
Literacy rate in L1: 5%–10% (mainly children). Literacy rate in L2: 35%. Not preferred for written communication. Secondary school, teachers encourage the reading of Nahuatl. NT: 1998.
Language Resources
Writing
Latin script [Latn].