Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta. Image: Taggen. Source: Wikipedia.
The anthropologist Juan Camilo Niño has recovered, in a dictionary of 732 pages, the language of the Ettes, a community of the north of Colombia in danger of disappearing.
12 are the languages in danger of disappearing according to the Ministry of Culture of Colombia, including Chimila or Ette. Niño, after expending long periods of time visiting the 1,500 indigenous people of this community during more than 12 years, speaks with them in Ette, informs El Espectador.
His dictionary contains around 5,000 words and more than 15,000 meanings. “People who speak the language do not write it because they never did it”, explains the researcher. The language has been kept in secret, and when Niño arrived, there were a little resistance to speak with him. Phonology is not similar to Spanish and its structure is not defined by elements such as verbs, substantives or phrases.
The Ettes “do not pay attention to the material, and that changed my life”, says the anthropologist, who does not use the mobile phone.
12 are the languages in danger of disappearing according to the Ministry of Culture of Colombia, including Chimila or Ette. Niño, after expending long periods of time visiting the 1,500 indigenous people of this community during more than 12 years, speaks with them in Ette, informs El Espectador.
His dictionary contains around 5,000 words and more than 15,000 meanings. “People who speak the language do not write it because they never did it”, explains the researcher. The language has been kept in secret, and when Niño arrived, there were a little resistance to speak with him. Phonology is not similar to Spanish and its structure is not defined by elements such as verbs, substantives or phrases.
The Ettes “do not pay attention to the material, and that changed my life”, says the anthropologist, who does not use the mobile phone.
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