Mayan language on peninsula ‘normalized’

Mayan women converse near the city plaza in Chetumal, Quintana Roo. Photo: Getty
Mayan women converse near the city plaza in Chetumal, Quintana Roo. Photo: Getty

The National Institute of Indigenous Languages ​​(Inali) has declared a “normalized” Mayan language five years’ work by specialists representing the peninsula’s three states.

Scholars and linguists have come to an accord with educators and native speakers across Campeche, Quintana Roo and Yucatán, reports Notimex.

“The idea at first was to identify common features of the language that is still spoken in these three states, and thereafter began to agree on spelling rules and the creation of an alphabet,” said Yucatán Education Secretary Raul Godoy Montañez.

Previously there were significant differences between groups and between states, especially in the standard of writing and also in various aspects of spelling.

The state official said that after five years of constant meetings and joint work in the three peninsular states, Inali has declare a “normalized” Mayan set of rules for grammar, spelling and usage.

“Now this is an achievement we are very proud, because already having an alphabet and a recognition that it is a Mayan language spoken in the three peninsular states, has taken a big step towards preservation and strengthening of this linguistic expression,” said Godoy Montañez.

Everyone writing or speaking Mayan will now have a common reference book, just as anyone using Spanish or English, he said.

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