Nāhuatl
Classical Nahuatl
Uto-Aztecan (Nahuan) · historical / hidden variety
Also known as: Classical Nahuatl, Aztec
Classical Nahuatl (mācēhuallahtōlli) was the language of the Aztec Empire and the lingua franca of Mesoamerican high culture from c. 1300 to the Spanish conquest of 1521. Recorded extensively in colonial-era manuscripts (the Florentine Codex compiled by Sahagún 1577, the Codex Mendoza, the Cantares Mexicanos), it preserves a rich tradition of poetry (xōchitl in cuīcatl, "flower and song"), philosophy, and administration. Classical Nahuatl gave world languages many words: chocolate (xocolātl), tomato (tomatl), avocado (āhuacatl), coyote (coyōtl), chili (chīlli). Modern Nahuatl varieties (~1.5M speakers) descend directly from Classical.
Where it is spoken
31 core words in Classical Nahuatl
Water
ātl
/aːtɬ/
Fire
tlētl
/tɬeːtɬ/
Sun
tōnatiuh
/toːnatiw/
Moon
mētztli
/meːtstɬi/
Star
cītlālin
/siːˈtlaːlin/
Mother
nāntli
/naːntɬi/
Father
tahtli
/tahtɬi/
I
nehhuātl
/neʔˈwaːtɬ/
You
tehhuātl
/teʔˈwaːtɬ/
Name
tōcāitl
/toːˈkaːitɬ/
Eye
īxtli
/iːʃtɬi/
Hand
māitl
/maːitɬ/
Heart
yōllōtl
/joːlːoːtɬ/
Love
tlazōhtla
/tɬasoːhtɬa/
Tree
cuahuitl
/kʷawitɬ/
House
calli
/kalːi/
Dog
itzcuīntli
/itskʷiːntɬi/
Cat
mīztōn
/miːstoːn/
Eat
tlacua
/tɬakʷa/
Drink
ātli
/aːtɬi/
One
cē
/seː/
Two
ōme
/ˈoːme/
Hello
niltze
/niltse/
Thank you
tlazōhcāmati
/tɬasoːhkaːmati/
Good
cualli
/kʷalːi/
Cuckoo
metlapīltetzotzontzin
/metɬapiːltetsotsoˈtsontsin/
Computer
nepōhualtzintzin
/nepoːwalˈtsintsin/
Sources
Words compared
Compared with related Uto-Aztecan (Nahuan) languages
| Meaning | Classical Nahuatl | Guerrero Nahuatl | Central Huasteca Nahuatl | Western Huasteca Nahuatl | Eastern Huasteca Nahuatl | Isthmus Nahuatl | Nawat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | ātl /aːtɬ/ | atl /atɬ/ | atl /atɬ/ | atl /atɬ/ | atl /atɬ/ | ahtli /aʔtli/ | at /at/ |
| Fire | tlētl /tɬeːtɬ/ | tletl /tɬetɬ/ | tlitl /tɬitɬ/ | tlitl /tɬitɬ/ | tlitl /tɬitɬ/ | tit /tit/ | tit /tit/ |
| Sun | tōnatiuh /toːnatiw/ | tonatih /tonatih/ | tonati /tonati/ | tonati /tonati/ | tonatih /tonatih/ | tonal /tonal/ | tunal /tunal/ |
| Moon | mētztli /meːtstɬi/ | metztli /metstɬi/ | metztli /metstɬi/ | metztli /metstɬi/ | metztli /metstɬi/ | metz /mets/ | metsti /metsti/ |
| Star | cītlālin /siːˈtlaːlin/ | sitlalin /siˈtlalin/ | sitlalij /siˈtlalih/ | sitlalij /siˈtlalih/ | sitlalij /siˈtlalih/ | sitlalin /siˈtlalin/ | sital /ˈsital/ |
| Mother | nāntli /naːntɬi/ | nanan /nanan/ | nana /nana/ | nana /nana/ | mama /mama/ | nan /nan/ | nan /nan/ |
| Father | tahtli /tahtɬi/ | tatah /tatah/ | tata /tata/ | tata /tata/ | tata /tata/ | tat /tat/ | tat /tat/ |
| I | nehhuātl /neʔˈwaːtɬ/ | nejua /neˈwa/ | na /na/ | na /na/ | na /na/ | naja /ˈnaha/ | naja /ˈnaha/ |
| You | tehhuātl /teʔˈwaːtɬ/ | tejua /teˈwa/ | ta /ta/ | ta /ta/ | ta /ta/ | taja /ˈtaha/ | taja /ˈtaha/ |
| Name | tōcāitl /toːˈkaːitɬ/ | tocaitl /toˈkaitɬ/ | tocaxtli /toˈkaʃtli/ | tocaxtli /toˈkaʃtli/ | tocaxtli /toˈkaʃtli/ | tocayotl /tokaˈjotɬ/ | tukay /ˈtukaj/ |
| Eye | īxtli /iːʃtɬi/ | ixtli /iʃtli/ | ixtli /iʃtli/ | ixtli /iʃtli/ | ixtli /iʃtli/ | ix /iʃ/ | ish /iʃ/ |
| Hand | māitl /maːitɬ/ | maitl /maitɬ/ | maitl /maitl/ | maitl /maitl/ | maitl /maitl/ | mahuit /mawit/ | mey /mei/ |
| Heart | yōllōtl /joːlːoːtɬ/ | yolotl /jolotɬ/ | yollotl /jolːotɬ/ | yollotl /jolːotɬ/ | yollotl /jolːotɬ/ | yolio /jolio/ | yulu /julu/ |
| Love | tlazōhtla /tɬasoːhtɬa/ | tlazohtla /tɬasoʔtɬa/ | tlazohtla /tɬasoʔtɬa/ | tlazohtla /tɬasoʔtɬa/ | tlazohtla /tɬasoʔtɬa/ | nequi /neki/ | tasujta /tasuhta/ |
| Tree | cuahuitl /kʷawitɬ/ | kuauitl /kʷawitl/ | cuahuitl /kʷawitl/ | cuahuitl /kʷawitl/ | cuahuitl /kʷawitɬ/ | cuahuit /kʷawit/ | kwawit /kʷawit/ |
| House | calli /kalːi/ | kalli /kalːi/ | calli /kalːi/ | calli /kalːi/ | calli /kalːi/ | cali /kali/ | kal /kal/ |
| Dog | itzcuīntli /itskʷiːntɬi/ | itzcuintli /itskʷintli/ | itzcuintli /itskʷintli/ | itzcuintli /itskʷintli/ | itzcuintli /itskʷintli/ | itzcuintli /itskʷintli/ | chichi /tʃitʃi/ |
| Cat | mīztōn /miːstoːn/ | miston /miston/ | mizton /miston/ | mizton /miston/ | mizton /miston/ | miston /miston/ | mishin /miʃin/ |
| Eat | tlacua /tɬakʷa/ | tlakua /tɬakʷa/ | tlacua /tɬakʷa/ | tlacua /tɬakʷa/ | tlacua /tɬakʷa/ | tacua /takʷa/ | takwa /takwa/ |
| Drink | ātli /aːtɬi/ | atli /atɬi/ | atli /atɬi/ | atli /atɬi/ | atli /atɬi/ | ati /ati/ | ati /ati/ |
| One | cē /seː/ | ce /se/ | ce /se/ | ce /se/ | ce /se/ | ce /se/ | se /se/ |
| Two | ōme /ˈoːme/ | ome /ˈome/ | ome /ˈome/ | ome /ˈome/ | ome /ˈome/ | ome /ˈome/ | ume /ˈume/ |
| Hello | niltze /niltse/ | niltze /niltse/ | niltze /niltse/ | niltze /niltse/ | nimitzpaca /nimitspaka/ | niltze /niltse/ | ne pakua /ne pakwa/ |
| Thank you | tlazōhcāmati /tɬasoːhkaːmati/ | tlazohcamati /tɬasoʔkamati/ | tlazohcamati /tɬasoʔkamati/ | tlazohcamati /tɬasoʔkamati/ | tlazohcamati /tɬasoʔkamati/ | tlazohcamati /tlasoʔkamati/ | padiush /padjuʃ/ |
| Good | cualli /kʷalːi/ | kuajli /kʷahli/ | cualli /kʷalːi/ | cualli /kʷalːi/ | cualli /kʷalːi/ | cualli /kʷalːi/ | kwahli /kʷahli/ |
| Cuckoo | metlapīltetzotzontzin /metɬapiːltetsotsoˈtsontsin/ | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Computer | nepōhualtzintzin /nepoːwalˈtsintsin/ | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Word order compared
Compare with major world languages
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