Nahuatl, Michoacán

NCL

threatened

Alternate Names: Mexicano, Michoacan Aztec, Nahual de Michoacán

Genealogy:

Uto-Aztecan
Southern Uto-Aztecan
Corachol-Aztecan
Core Nahua
Nahuatl

Demographics: 3,000 (1990 census).

Language Use: All ages. Mixed attitudes. Also use Spanish [spa].

Language Development: Literacy rate in L1: 5%–10% (mainly children). Literacy rate in L2: 35%. Not preferred for written communication. Secondary school, teachers encourage the reading of Nahuatl. Dictionary. Grammar. NT: 1998.

Typology: SVO, VSO; long words, affixes, agglutinative, 4 possible prefixes for verbs, 7 possible suffixes, 2 causatives, 1 having 2 forms; little-used passive, plural forms for nouns, depending on the noun class, adjectives follow nouns, some adjectives are verb forms, device for making Spanish infinitives into Aztec 3rd person present indicative.

Writing System: Latin

Nation of Origin: Mexico