As I have described, the children of Amatlán speak Nahuatl less often because they no longer see it as relevant in the modern world. Centuries of discrimination and historical stigma has linked the language of their ancestors with poverty and ignorance. In these modern days of mass media and migration, the lifestyle of the poor farmer associated with Nahuatl is not the life that many young Nahua want for themselves. The solution is to ignite young peoples’ interest in Nahuatl and make it relevant once again. This is more difficult than it sounds. There are centuries of stigma and inequality against indigenous culture that remain to be erased. Revitalizing Nahuatl is an extremely difficult undertaking. Long standing deep-set inequality and racial, cultural, and socioeconomic prejudice must be reversed. Still, on a national and local level, many are fighting to keep Nahuatl alive in the mouths and hearts of the Nahua people.
La Universidad Veracruzana Intercultural, an offshoot of La Universidad Veracruzana, makes an effort to provide higher education to indigenous students and honor their cultures and languages. This includes encouraging students to carry out projects investigating and preserving the culture of their homes. Some of these projects involve teaching Nahuatl to young students or engaging students in traditional food, clothing, or dance.
Natalio Hernández is an intellectual and writer from the municipality of Ixhuatlán de Madero, Veracruz who is trying to help written Nahuatl make a comeback. Nahuatl is largely an oral language, and very few people know how to read the handful of Aztec glyphs that survived the purge of the conquistadores (Adler 2012). Today, Nahuatl has been romanized, and it is taught using the Latin alphabet. Hernández’s projects include the Asociación de los Escritores en Lenguas Indígenas (AELI, Association of Writers in Indigenous Languages), the Casa de los Escritores en Lenguas Indígenas (CELI, House of Writers in Indigenous Languages), and the Alianza Naciona de Profesionales Indígenas Bilingues (or ANPIBAC, National Alliance of Indigenous Bilingual Professionals). Other writers and intellectuals, like a teacher I met while in Amatlán, participate in groups that promote Nahuatl. The Fundación Machuilxochitl/Cinco Flores aims to extend interest in learning Nahuatl to non-native speakers. Their projects include Nahuatl/English bilingual classes in an attempt to make learning Nahuatl more relevant and Coro Xochicuicanih, or “flores que cantan”, a children’s choir that sings in Nahuatl and Spanish with members from rural Ixhuatlán de Madero as well as from Mexico City.
I wondered at times if I was part of the problem that was making Nahuatl disappear. I spent a large part of my summer teaching English, and I left Amatlán speaking very little Nahuatl myself. Still, I think in the end I made a positive impression on the children of Amatlán by engaging them in conversation and asking them to reflect upon their language choices, their experiences, their plans for the future, and their own identities. I also raised awareness of the problem through my final project, and I hope to return to Amatlán and continue working there.
At times the struggle to preserve Nahuatl seems to consist of a few people on a tiny boat against rushing waves of globalization, oppression, and stigma. Still, it is important to keep fighting to keep this language alive. Every language holds something untranslatable, and losing Nahuatl means losing an important part of Nahua culture and history. The shift away from native language and cultures creates what Sandstrom calls a crisis in indigenous identity (1991:347). It is natural for peoples’ identities to change as patterns of migration, economy, culture, and lifestyle change. Still, Nahuatl is such a vital part of how Nahua relate to each other and understand who they are, the world, and their place in it.
Natalio Hernández is an intellectual and writer from the municipality of Ixhuatlán de Madero, Veracruz who is trying to help written Nahuatl make a comeback. Nahuatl is largely an oral language, and very few people know how to read the handful of Aztec glyphs that survived the purge of the conquistadores (Adler 2012). Today, Nahuatl has been romanized, and it is taught using the Latin alphabet. Hernández’s projects include the Asociación de los Escritores en Lenguas Indígenas (AELI, Association of Writers in Indigenous Languages), the Casa de los Escritores en Lenguas Indígenas (CELI, House of Writers in Indigenous Languages), and the Alianza Naciona de Profesionales Indígenas Bilingues (or ANPIBAC, National Alliance of Indigenous Bilingual Professionals). Other writers and intellectuals, like a teacher I met while in Amatlán, participate in groups that promote Nahuatl. The Fundación Machuilxochitl/Cinco Flores aims to extend interest in learning Nahuatl to non-native speakers. Their projects include Nahuatl/English bilingual classes in an attempt to make learning Nahuatl more relevant and Coro Xochicuicanih, or “flores que cantan”, a children’s choir that sings in Nahuatl and Spanish with members from rural Ixhuatlán de Madero as well as from Mexico City.
I wondered at times if I was part of the problem that was making Nahuatl disappear. I spent a large part of my summer teaching English, and I left Amatlán speaking very little Nahuatl myself. Still, I think in the end I made a positive impression on the children of Amatlán by engaging them in conversation and asking them to reflect upon their language choices, their experiences, their plans for the future, and their own identities. I also raised awareness of the problem through my final project, and I hope to return to Amatlán and continue working there.
At times the struggle to preserve Nahuatl seems to consist of a few people on a tiny boat against rushing waves of globalization, oppression, and stigma. Still, it is important to keep fighting to keep this language alive. Every language holds something untranslatable, and losing Nahuatl means losing an important part of Nahua culture and history. The shift away from native language and cultures creates what Sandstrom calls a crisis in indigenous identity (1991:347). It is natural for peoples’ identities to change as patterns of migration, economy, culture, and lifestyle change. Still, Nahuatl is such a vital part of how Nahua relate to each other and understand who they are, the world, and their place in it.