Qʼanjobʼal

Q’anjob’al or Kanjobal is a Mayan language spoken in Guatemala and Mexico. It is spoken mainly in the Huehuetenango department of Guatemala in the municipalities of Santa Eulalia (Jolom Konob), San Juan Ixcoy (Yich K’ox), San Pedro Soloma (Tz’uluma’) and Santa Cruz Barillas (Yal Motx), and in the south of Chiapas in Mexico. According to the 2003 census, there were about 140,000 speakers of Q’anjob’al in Guatemala, and another 8,340 speakers in Mexico

Classification

Qʼanjobʼal is a member of the Qʼanjobʼalan branch of the Mayan language family. The Mayan language family includes 31 languages, two of which are now extinct. The Qʼanjobʼalan branch includes not only Qʼanjobʼal itself but also Chuj, Akatek, and Jakaltek, also spoken in Guatemala. The Qʼanjobʼalan languages are noted for being among the most conservative of the Mayan language family, although they do include some interesting innovations. Q’anjob’al is also known as Conob, Eastern Kanjobal, Eastern Qanjobal, K’anjobal, Kanhobal, Kanjobal, Qanjobal or Santa Eulalia Kanjobal. It closely related to Chuj, Akatek and Jakaltek, which are also spoken in Guatemala.

Vocabulary

Qʼanjobʼal consists of groups of roots that can take affixes. Words are traditionally classified as nouns, adjectives, adverbs, intransitive and transitive verbs, particles, and positionals. Positionals are a group of roots which cannot function as words on their own; in combination with affixes they are used to describe relationships of position and location. Particles are words that do not take affixes; they mostly function in adverbial roles, and include such things as interrogative particles, affirmative/negative words, markers of time and location, conjunctions, prepositions and demonstratives.

 

At Trápaga Asociados – Interpretation & Translation Agency, we work with all Mayan languages including Qʼanjobʼal .

Please contact us with any job or project inquiries.

www.asociadostrapaga.com

+502 55717516

 

 

 

 Mam

 

Mam is a Mayan language spoken by about half a million people in Guatemala, mainly in the departments of Quetzaltenango, Huehuetenango and San Marcos. It is also spoken in the Mexican state of Chiapas along the border with Guatemala.

 

There are three main varieties of Mam: Northern Mam, which is spoken in Huehuetenango; Southern Mam, which is spoken in Quetzaltenango, and Central Mam, which is spoken in San Marcos. Each of these has many sub-dialects and there is considerable variation in the language from village to village, however Mam speakers are able to understand one another reasonably well.

           

Classification

Mam is closely related to the Tektitek language, and the two languages together form the Mamean sub-branch of the Mayan language family. Along with the Ixilan languages, Awakatek and Ixil, these make up the Greater Mamean sub-branch, one of the two branches of the Eastern Mayan languages (the other being the Greater Quichean sub-branch, which consists of 10 Mayan languages, including Kʼicheʼ).

 

Dialects

Because contact between members of different Mam communities is somewhat limited, the language varies considerably even from village to village. Nevertheless, mutual intelligibility, though difficult, is possible through practice.

 

 

Mam varieties within Guatemala are divided into four dialect groups:

Northern Mam in southern Huehuetenango Department. Northern Mam is the least conservative group according to Terrence Kaufman.

Southern Mam in Quetzaltenango Department, San Marcos Department, and Retalhuleu Department.

Central Mam in San Marcos Department.

Western Mam in northwestern San Marcos Department. The Tektitek language may be mutually intelligible with Western Mam dialects.

In addition to these, the dialects of Chiapas, Mexico may form a fifth dialect group, characterized by significant grammatical as well as lexical differences from the Guatemalan varieties.

 

At Trápaga Asociados – Interpretation & Translation Agency, we work with all Mayan languages including Mam.

Please contact us with any job or project inquiries.

www.asociadostrapaga.com

+502 55717516