First online dictionary of the wixarika native language of México
Jesús Cardeñosa
Anyone who speaks Spanish or English can learn the indigenous language Wixárika from everywhere in the world, assisted by those who speak this language, thanks to an online dictionary that has been created in Mexico.
Anyone who speaks Spanish or English can learn the indigenous language Wixárika from everywhere in the world, assisted by those who speak this language, thanks to an online dictionary that has been created in Mexico.
The interactive dictionary contains 600 words that has been translated into English and Spanish, and in a few months it will have up to 800 recorded words. The dictionary also contains recordings of everyday words used by this ethnic group, formed by around 44,000 people, according the National Commission for the Development of Indigenous People.
With the voices of the members of this indigenous community, this phonotheque not only allows interaction and a deeper knowledge of this language, but also of the Wixaritari culture, commonly known as Huicholes.
In addition to the recordings that contains the original pronunciation, there is a bilingual explanation of the phonetics and the grammar of this language, which is still alive at Jalisco State communities, Nayarit, Aguascalientes, Durango, and at a part of Zacatecas.
As a request of the the Wixatari along with the multimedia version, the experts will produce a CD with some of the words of the dictionary with the idea of spreading it to schools and to places where they travel to sale their craftworks.
According to the National Commission for the Development of Indigenous People, Mexico had 62 indigenous people with their own culture and language until 2010, although some of them are in danger of disappearing. Around 15 million of Mexicans belong to a certain ethnic group, distributed in 64,172 different towns, according to this public institution.
Más información
The interactive dictionary contains 600 words that has been translated into English and Spanish, and in a few months it will have up to 800 recorded words. The dictionary also contains recordings of everyday words used by this ethnic group, formed by around 44,000 people, according the National Commission for the Development of Indigenous People.
With the voices of the members of this indigenous community, this phonotheque not only allows interaction and a deeper knowledge of this language, but also of the Wixaritari culture, commonly known as Huicholes.
In addition to the recordings that contains the original pronunciation, there is a bilingual explanation of the phonetics and the grammar of this language, which is still alive at Jalisco State communities, Nayarit, Aguascalientes, Durango, and at a part of Zacatecas.
As a request of the the Wixatari along with the multimedia version, the experts will produce a CD with some of the words of the dictionary with the idea of spreading it to schools and to places where they travel to sale their craftworks.
According to the National Commission for the Development of Indigenous People, Mexico had 62 indigenous people with their own culture and language until 2010, although some of them are in danger of disappearing. Around 15 million of Mexicans belong to a certain ethnic group, distributed in 64,172 different towns, according to this public institution.
Más información
Cátedra UNESCO de Tecnologías Lingüísticas