Nahuatl
Western Huasteca Nahuatl
Uto-Aztecan
Western Huasteca Nahuatl is the largest of the three main Huasteca Nahuatl varieties (Eastern nhe, Central nch, Western nhw), spoken by ~450,000 people in San Luis Potosí state. The Western Huasteca region around Tamazunchale is one of the most populous indigenous-speaking areas in modern Mexico. Linguistically, Western Huasteca Nahuatl shares the Huasteca Nahuatl typological features and is mutually intelligible with its sister varieties.
Where it is spoken
31 core words in Western Huasteca Nahuatl
Water
atl
/atɬ/
Fire
tlitl
/tɬitɬ/
Sun
tonati
/tonati/
Moon
metztli
/metstɬi/
Star
sitlalij
/siˈtlalih/
Mother
nana
/nana/
Father
tata
/tata/
I
na
/na/
You
ta
/ta/
Name
tocaxtli
/toˈkaʃtli/
Eye
ixtli
/iʃtli/
Hand
maitl
/maitl/
Heart
yollotl
/jolːotɬ/
Love
tlazohtla
/tɬasoʔtɬa/
Tree
cuahuitl
/kʷawitl/
House
calli
/kalːi/
Dog
itzcuintli
/itskʷintli/
Cat
mizton
/miston/
Eat
tlacua
/tɬakʷa/
Drink
atli
/atɬi/
One
ce
/se/
Two
ome
/ˈome/
Hello
niltze
/niltse/
Thank you
tlazohcamati
/tɬasoʔkamati/
Good
cualli
/kʷalːi/
Sources
Words compared
Compared with related Uto-Aztecan languages
| Meaning | Western Huasteca Nahuatl | Central Huasteca Nahuatl | Eastern Huasteca Nahuatl | Guerrero Nahuatl | Isthmus Nahuatl | Classical Nahuatl | Nawat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | atl /atɬ/ | atl /atɬ/ | atl /atɬ/ | atl /atɬ/ | ahtli /aʔtli/ | ātl /aːtɬ/ | at /at/ |
| Fire | tlitl /tɬitɬ/ | tlitl /tɬitɬ/ | tlitl /tɬitɬ/ | tletl /tɬetɬ/ | tit /tit/ | tlētl /tɬeːtɬ/ | tit /tit/ |
| Sun | tonati /tonati/ | tonati /tonati/ | tonatih /tonatih/ | tonatih /tonatih/ | tonal /tonal/ | tōnatiuh /toːnatiw/ | tunal /tunal/ |
| Moon | metztli /metstɬi/ | metztli /metstɬi/ | metztli /metstɬi/ | metztli /metstɬi/ | metz /mets/ | mētztli /meːtstɬi/ | metsti /metsti/ |
| Star | sitlalij /siˈtlalih/ | sitlalij /siˈtlalih/ | sitlalij /siˈtlalih/ | sitlalin /siˈtlalin/ | sitlalin /siˈtlalin/ | cītlālin /siːˈtlaːlin/ | sital /ˈsital/ |
| Mother | nana /nana/ | nana /nana/ | mama /mama/ | nanan /nanan/ | nan /nan/ | nāntli /naːntɬi/ | nan /nan/ |
| Father | tata /tata/ | tata /tata/ | tata /tata/ | tatah /tatah/ | tat /tat/ | tahtli /tahtɬi/ | tat /tat/ |
| I | na /na/ | na /na/ | na /na/ | nejua /neˈwa/ | naja /ˈnaha/ | nehhuātl /neʔˈwaːtɬ/ | naja /ˈnaha/ |
| You | ta /ta/ | ta /ta/ | ta /ta/ | tejua /teˈwa/ | taja /ˈtaha/ | tehhuātl /teʔˈwaːtɬ/ | taja /ˈtaha/ |
| Name | tocaxtli /toˈkaʃtli/ | tocaxtli /toˈkaʃtli/ | tocaxtli /toˈkaʃtli/ | tocaitl /toˈkaitɬ/ | tocayotl /tokaˈjotɬ/ | tōcāitl /toːˈkaːitɬ/ | tukay /ˈtukaj/ |
| Eye | ixtli /iʃtli/ | ixtli /iʃtli/ | ixtli /iʃtli/ | ixtli /iʃtli/ | ix /iʃ/ | īxtli /iːʃtɬi/ | ish /iʃ/ |
| Hand | maitl /maitl/ | maitl /maitl/ | maitl /maitl/ | maitl /maitɬ/ | mahuit /mawit/ | māitl /maːitɬ/ | mey /mei/ |
| Heart | yollotl /jolːotɬ/ | yollotl /jolːotɬ/ | yollotl /jolːotɬ/ | yolotl /jolotɬ/ | yolio /jolio/ | yōllōtl /joːlːoːtɬ/ | yulu /julu/ |
| Love | tlazohtla /tɬasoʔtɬa/ | tlazohtla /tɬasoʔtɬa/ | tlazohtla /tɬasoʔtɬa/ | tlazohtla /tɬasoʔtɬa/ | nequi /neki/ | tlazōhtla /tɬasoːhtɬa/ | tasujta /tasuhta/ |
| Tree | cuahuitl /kʷawitl/ | cuahuitl /kʷawitl/ | cuahuitl /kʷawitɬ/ | kuauitl /kʷawitl/ | cuahuit /kʷawit/ | cuahuitl /kʷawitɬ/ | kwawit /kʷawit/ |
| House | calli /kalːi/ | calli /kalːi/ | calli /kalːi/ | kalli /kalːi/ | cali /kali/ | calli /kalːi/ | kal /kal/ |
| Dog | itzcuintli /itskʷintli/ | itzcuintli /itskʷintli/ | itzcuintli /itskʷintli/ | itzcuintli /itskʷintli/ | itzcuintli /itskʷintli/ | itzcuīntli /itskʷiːntɬi/ | chichi /tʃitʃi/ |
| Cat | mizton /miston/ | mizton /miston/ | mizton /miston/ | miston /miston/ | miston /miston/ | mīztōn /miːstoːn/ | mishin /miʃin/ |
| Eat | tlacua /tɬakʷa/ | tlacua /tɬakʷa/ | tlacua /tɬakʷa/ | tlakua /tɬakʷa/ | tacua /takʷa/ | tlacua /tɬakʷa/ | takwa /takwa/ |
| Drink | atli /atɬi/ | atli /atɬi/ | atli /atɬi/ | atli /atɬi/ | ati /ati/ | ātli /aːtɬi/ | ati /ati/ |
| One | ce /se/ | ce /se/ | ce /se/ | ce /se/ | ce /se/ | cē /seː/ | se /se/ |
| Two | ome /ˈome/ | ome /ˈome/ | ome /ˈome/ | ome /ˈome/ | ome /ˈome/ | ōme /ˈoːme/ | ume /ˈume/ |
| 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/ | tlazohcamati /tlasoʔkamati/ | tlazōhcāmati /tɬasoːhkaːmati/ | padiush /padjuʃ/ |
| Good | cualli /kʷalːi/ | cualli /kʷalːi/ | cualli /kʷalːi/ | kuajli /kʷahli/ | cualli /kʷalːi/ | cualli /kʷalːi/ | kwahli /kʷahli/ |
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