Chiltepec-Tlacoatzintepec Chinantec Explained

Chiltepec-Tlacoatzintepec Chinantec
States:Mexico
Region:Oaxaca
Ethnicity:Chinantecs
Speakers:1,800?
Date:2000
Ref:e18
Familycolor:American
Fam1:Oto-Mangue
Fam2:Western Oto-Mangue
Fam3:Oto-Pame–Chinantecan
Fam4:Chinantec
Lc1:csa
Ld1:Chiltepec Chinantec
Lc2:ctl
Ld2:Tlacoatzintepec Chinantec
Glotto:tlac1238
Glottorefname:Tlacoatzintepec–Chiltepec
Elp:9850
Elpname:Northwestern Chinantec

Chiltepec-Tlacoatzintepec Chinantec is a Chinantecan language of Mexico, spoken in northern Oaxaca in the towns of San José Chiltepec, San Juan Bautista Tlacoatzintepec, San Pedro Alianza, Santiago Quetzalapa, and San Juan Zapotitlán. The two principal varieties, Chinantec and Tlacoatzintepec, have marginal mutual intelligibility. They are close to Sochiapan Chinantec.

Phonology

The following are sounds of Tlacoatzintepec Chinantec:[1]

Consonants
Bilabial Interdental Alveolar Velar Laryngeal
Stop Voiceless p t k ʔ
Voiced (b) ɡ
Affricate Voiceless ts
Nasal m n ŋ
Fricative Voiceless (ɸ) θ s h
Voiced ð
Lateral l
Flap ɾ

1. Parenthesised sounds are loans, allophones, or free variants

2. /r/ is an alveolar flap in unstressed syllable; a retroflexed alveopalatal grooved affricate in a stressed syllable

3. /t, ts, θ, l, s, n, ŋ, k, ɡ, h/ can be palatalised before the semivowel /j/

4. /p, ŋ, k, ɡ, h/ can be labialised before the semivowel /w/

Vowels
Front Central Back
High i ɨ • u
Mid e ɘ • o
Low a

1. Vowels to the left of the bullet dot are unrounded; to the right rounded

Vowels

Notes and References

  1. Thelin, Anders. (1980). Tlacoatzintepec Chinantec Syllable Structure. Summer Institute of Linguistics Mexico Workpapers, 4, 1-8.