Ocuiltec language

Ocuiltec is a moribund language of Central Mexico closely related to Matlatzinca and Pirinda. Ocuiltec is also known as Tlahuica, Atzinca, and Atzingo Matlatzinca. "Ocuiltec" is commonly used in English, while Tlahuica is the preferred name in Spanish. The autonym pjyɇkakjó or pjiekakjoo is also used. Ocuiltec and Matlatzinca are both endangered with less than 2,000 speakers, while Prinida went extinct in 1936. There are revitalization efforts.

Nomenclature

The names Ocuiltec and Ocuilteco are synonymous with Tlahuica, though more common in English, appearing in several English language dissertations, books, and other academic material. The name may derive from Nahuatl ocuiltecah which means "places of worms." Ocuilteco was used in colonial documents to refer to the Ocuilan region which later extended to the inhabitants, despite their differences.

In Spanish, Tlahuica is more common and preferred. Tlahuica also derives from Nahuatl and means "people who work the land" and were called so because their highly productive agricultural society. Linguist Aileen Martínez writes that the term Ocuilteco is offensive to the natives, who prefer that they be called Tlahuica or by their autonym, Pjyɇkakjó. Pjyɇkakjó [pjəkakhó] and Pjiekakjoo [phiekakhoː] are both variants of the same word and mean "what we are" or "what we speak."

Aztinca, Atzinteco, and Atzingo Matlatzinca are older regional terms that referred to the same language as spoken in San Juan Atzingo and San José el Totoc.

Distribution

Ocuiltec was centered around San Juan Atzingo within the municipality of Ocuilan, and is spoken in the nearby communities of Cinco Caminos, Colonia Doctor Gustavo Baz, El Capulín, El Totoc (San José Totoc), Lomas de Teocaltzingo (Loma de Tecalzingo), Ocuilán de Artéaga, Santa Lucía, Santa Martha, and Santa María Nativitas. Historically, it may have been spoken in the adjacent area of Morelos, though Matlatzinca could have also been spoken.

The language is morbid with a conflicting numbers of speakers that has been declining since 1970. In 1970 only 400 speakers were recorded in the census; in 1987 there was 1,432 speakers, 804 recorded in 1990, 412 in 2000, and 719 in 2010. It was reported in 2000 that were between 400 to 515 speakers whose ages ranged from 60 to 85. The 2020 census recorded 2,238 speakers throughout Mexico, but this may just be indicator of those who identify as Ocuilteco or have some knowledge of the language. The Secretariat of Economy recorded only 159 speakers in the Ocuilan municipality in 2020. In 2025, only 50 fluent speakers, whom are all elderly, were identified, a majority of them in the community of Lomas de Teocaltzingo.

Alphabet

The practical Ocuiltec alphabet was first designed in 1982 and notably consists of vowel letters with strokes. Some of these vowel letters can't be displayed and instead their closest equivalents are used for this article. The alphabet is as follows:

a e i o u ø ɨ b k ch d f g j l m n ñ p r s t w x y ts ds ? by dy ly py ty ky xy

The letters a e i o u are all pronounced the same as in Spanish with vowels particular to Ocuiltec being ɇ ɨ ø ʉ. These letters respectively represent the sounds /ə ɨ ʌ ʉ/. Outside of academic material, modern writing does not use the vowels with strokes, except for ɇ and ø.

The alphabet were revised in 1998 and another was drafted by community members and linguists in 2019, which consists of 42 consonants and 9 vowels.

Phonology

Consonants

• /n/ is heard as velar [ŋ] when before velar stops.
• Sounds /m, n, (ɲ), l, j, w/ all become voiceless [m̥, n̥, (ɲ̊), l̥, j̊, w̥] when in groups with /h/.
• Stop sounds /p, t, t͡s, t͡ʃ, k, kʷ/ are voiced as [b, d, d͡z, d͡ʒ, ɡ, ɡʷ] when following nasals.
• /l/ may be heard as voiceless [l̥] in word-final or syllable-final positions.
• /w/ may be heard as a labialized fricative [ɣʷ] in intervocalic positions.
• Sounds /p, (b), m/ may also be heard as labialized [pʷ, (bʷ), mʷ] when preceding /ɨ/.
• Sounds /t, (d), l, n/ may tend to palatalize as [tʲ, (dʲ), lʲ, nʲ~ɲ] when before high vowels /i, ɨ, u/.
• Other sounds such as /f, r/, are heard from Spanish loanwords.

Vowels

• /i/ is heard as [ɪ] in closed syllables.
• Vowels may also be heard as nasalized [Ṽ] when preceding nasal consonants.

Sample Text

Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights:

Ocuiltec (Tlahuica) translation: Ndumø 1: Ndyetso ñebet’a milndañe nlibre jo miplañe benye pa mulo pima jo ñelderechu jo, ligt’eñe ndityefbiñe nrazon mbi pima jo nkonciencia, legt’eñe ndujɇñe ñeluju pima benye ndyetso ñebet’a.

English translation: Article 1: All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

Notes