Tequistlatec language
Extinct Chontal language
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Classification
Tequistlatec is related to the other Chontal languages of Oaxaca to the south of it, which are sometimes erroneously called "Tequistlatec" also. Tequistlatec proper, as described by Angulo and Freeland (1925), appears to have been closer to the lowland variety than the the highland variety, even though the Tequistlatecs lived farther away from the coast than from the mountains.
Oltrogge and Campbell have proposed that the Chontal languages are related to the Jicaquean languages of Honduras and offered comparative lexical evidence to support their hypothesis.[1][2]
Phonology
The phonological inventory includes glottalization contrasts:[3]
Tequistlatec has six phonemic vowels: /i, e, a, ã, o, u/.
Vocabulary
Tequistlatec was briefly described by Angula and Freeland (1925). Of the 200 words listed by these authors, more than half have cognates in Highland Oaxaca Chontal and Huamelultec, and in some cases the words are identical across all three languages. Of the remaining words, about 25 are cognate only with Huamelultec, and 19 are cognate only with Highland Chontal. Another eleven terms are similar in the other two varieties but different in Tequistlatec. Finally, 20 words are different among the three languages.[3]
Word list derived from de Angulo and Freeland (1925):[4]
gloss Chontal of Tequixistlan notes fire ngwa to boil mb’ula to dry hur water xa river pana’ m’am to bathe pos sea maxa (cf. water, river) (Perfect) -pa, -ba (Continuative) -ngu (sg.), -mi (pl.) (Present Future) -ma (sg.), -me (pl.) (Imperative) -ra (sg.), -re (pl.) (temporal suffix of obscure meaning) -li (Andative) -kiç (Causative) -mu (Impending Future) -ga (sg.), -ri big be little taç, tçofi, tyof one nula, nuli two kwesi three fane four malbu yes akya, oy not tçi, tçite dog tsigi chile, pepper kasi plátano, banana owe, labe tomato ngone corn, maize kosa’ bean r’ane flower pipi person sans (sg.), sanu (pl.) man, adult kwe (sg.), gurbe (pl.) woman tee (sg.), deya (pl.) girl bata child (either sex), daughter, son ’wa (sg.), naske (pl.) I ya thou ma he gge we yã ye mã they re it i (sg.), n (pl.) an indefinite demonstrative pronoun equivalent to "he", "the", "that", etc. the al, dal, gal, la stranger gwaya Chontal fale Zapotec nye Yalalag xoço Tehuantepec uçia Oaxaca pampala Tequixistlan al riya "the village" word, language taygi
