Nahuatl
Central Huasteca Nahuatl
Uto-Aztecan
Central Huasteca Nahuatl is one of the three main Huasteca Nahuatl varieties (Eastern nhe, Central nch, Western nhw), spoken by ~210,000 people in the central Huasteca region centered on Hidalgo state. Linguistically, Central Huasteca Nahuatl shares classical Nahuatl features with its sister varieties, with minor phonological differences that reflect the dialect continuum across the Huasteca region.
Where it is spoken
20 core words in Central Huasteca Nahuatl
Water
atl
/atɬ/
Fire
tlitl
/tɬitɬ/
Sun
tonati
/tonati/
Moon
metztli
/metstɬi/
Mother
nana
/nana/
Father
tata
/tata/
Eat
tlacua
/tɬakʷa/
Drink
atli
/atɬi/
Love
tlazohtla
/tɬasoʔtɬa/
Heart
yollotl
/jolːotɬ/
Tree
cuahuitl
/kʷawitl/
House
calli
/kalːi/
Dog
itzcuintli
/itskʷintli/
Cat
mizton
/miston/
Hand
maitl
/maitl/
Eye
ixtli
/iʃtli/
Hello
niltze
/niltse/
Thank you
tlazohcamati
/tɬasoʔkamati/
One
ce
/se/
Good
cualli
/kʷalːi/
Sources
Words compared
Compared with related Uto-Aztecan languages
| Meaning | Central Huasteca Nahuatl | Western Huasteca Nahuatl | Eastern Huasteca Nahuatl | Guerrero Nahuatl | Classical Nahuatl | Isthmus Nahuatl | Nawat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | atl /atɬ/ | atl /atɬ/ | atl /atɬ/ | atl /atɬ/ | ātl /aːtɬ/ | ahtli /aʔtli/ | at /at/ |
| Fire | tlitl /tɬitɬ/ | tlitl /tɬitɬ/ | titl /titɬ/ | tletl /tɬetɬ/ | tlētl /tɬeːtɬ/ | tit /tit/ | tit /tit/ |
| Sun | tonati /tonati/ | tonati /tonati/ | tonatih /tonatih/ | tonatih /tonatih/ | tōnatiuh /toːnatiw/ | tonal /tonal/ | tunal /tunal/ |
| Moon | metztli /metstɬi/ | metztli /metstɬi/ | metztli /metstɬi/ | metztli /metstɬi/ | mētztli /meːtstɬi/ | metz /mets/ | metsti /metsti/ |
| Mother | nana /nana/ | nana /nana/ | mama /mama/ | nanan /nanan/ | nāntli /naːntɬi/ | nan /nan/ | nan /nan/ |
| Father | tata /tata/ | tata /tata/ | tata /tata/ | tatah /tatah/ | tāhtli /taːtɬi/ | tat /tat/ | tat /tat/ |
| Eat | tlacua /tɬakʷa/ | tlacua /tɬakʷa/ | tlacua /tɬakʷa/ | tlakua /tɬakʷa/ | tlacua /tɬakʷa/ | tacua /takʷa/ | takwa /takwa/ |
| Drink | atli /atɬi/ | atli /atɬi/ | atli /atɬi/ | atli /atɬi/ | ātli /aːtɬi/ | ati /ati/ | ati /ati/ |
| Love | tlazohtla /tɬasoʔtɬa/ | tlazohtla /tɬasoʔtɬa/ | tlazohtla /tɬasoʔtɬa/ | tlazohtla /tɬasoʔtɬa/ | tlazōhtla /tɬasoːhtɬa/ | nech-nequi /netʃneki/ | nesa /nesa/ |
| Heart | yollotl /jolːotɬ/ | yollotl /jolːotɬ/ | yollotl /jolːotɬ/ | yolotl /jolotɬ/ | yōllōtl /joːlːoːtɬ/ | yolio /jolio/ | yulu /julu/ |
| Tree | cuahuitl /kʷawitl/ | cuahuitl /kʷawitl/ | cuahuitl /kʷawitɬ/ | kuauitl /kʷawitl/ | cuahuitl /kʷawitɬ/ | cuahuit /kʷawit/ | kwawit /kʷawit/ |
| House | calli /kalːi/ | calli /kalːi/ | calli /kalːi/ | kalli /kalːi/ | calli /kalːi/ | cali /kali/ | kal /kal/ |
| Dog | itzcuintli /itskʷintli/ | itzcuintli /itskʷintli/ | itzcuintli /itskʷintli/ | itzcuintli /itskʷintli/ | itzcuīntli /itskʷiːntɬi/ | itzcuintli /itskʷintli/ | chichi /tʃitʃi/ |
| Cat | mizton /miston/ | mizton /miston/ | mizton /miston/ | miston /miston/ | mīztōn /miːstoːn/ | miston /miston/ | mishin /miʃin/ |
| Hand | maitl /maitl/ | maitl /maitl/ | maitl /maitl/ | mahpi /mahpi/ | māitl /maːitɬ/ | mahuit /mawit/ | mey /mei/ |
| Eye | ixtli /iʃtli/ | ixtli /iʃtli/ | ixtli /iʃtli/ | ixtli /iʃtli/ | īxtli /iːʃtɬi/ | ix /iʃ/ | ish /iʃ/ |
| Hello | niltze /niltse/ | niltze /niltse/ | nimitzpaca /nimitspaka/ | niltze /niltse/ | niltze /niltse/ | niltze /niltse/ | ne pakua /ne pakwa/ |
| Thank you | tlazohcamati /tɬasoʔkamati/ | tlazohcamati /tɬasoʔkamati/ | tlazohcamati /tɬasoʔkamati/ | tlazohcamati /tɬasoʔkamati/ | tlazōhcāmati /tɬasoːhkaːmati/ | tlazohcamati /tlasoʔkamati/ | padiush /padjuʃ/ |
| One | ce /se/ | ce /se/ | ce /se/ | ce /se/ | cē /seː/ | ce /se/ | se /se/ |
| Good | cualli /kʷalːi/ | cualli /kʷalːi/ | cualli /kʷalːi/ | kuajli /kʷahli/ | cualli /kʷalːi/ | cualli /kʷalːi/ | kwahli /kʷahli/ |
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