Week 4: Present Day Communities
John H -
As I plan a trip to Mexico to further explore Nahuatl and Nahua culture, I thought it would be helpful to contextualize the locales in which Nahuatl is still found. In this week’s blog, I’ll dive into three regions in which Nahuatl still has significance. Keep in mind that there are many more areas that still speak the language, such as in Puebla and Michoacan, I’ve just chosen to focus on these three as they are most relevant to my studies. Additionally, this will tie into my next blog post on how Nahuatl has survived in these areas.


Let’s start with the region that has the most lively Nahua community, the Huasteca region. If you’ve been paying close attention, this may sound familiar. The Huasteca region is an eastern region of Mexico along the Gulf that houses states like Veracruz and San Luis Potosi. It’s also home to its very own dialect of Nahuatl and the one I’ve chosen to learn – Huasteca Nahuatl. In this regard, Nahuatl is similar to global languages like Spanish and English; there’s a variety of dialects. Across Mexico, you’ll find differing variations of Nahuatl that are largely mutually intelligible just as American English and Australian English are intelligible with slight differences. The Huasteca region is the area with the highest concentration of Nahuatl speakers today accounting for around 30 – 40% of all Nahuatl speakers in Mexico. Rather than specific communities or neighborhoods, towns and villages all throughout this region still use Nahuatl. However, many of the places that still utilize the language are small instead of big cities. I’ll dive more into why in next week’s blog. As of right now, just know that it is still often learned as a first language in this area and is considered the powerhouse of modern-day Nahuatl.


Next, I’ll talk about an area I’ll visit on my trip called Milpa Alta. Milpa Alta is a borough in Mexico City, the capital of Mexico and the former capital of the Aztec empire. Milpa Alta is a mountainous and fairly secluded agricultural region of Mexico City. Specifically, it is well known for its nopal (cactus) farms. This borough is the least occupied, second largest, and most rural borough of the entire city hinting at why Nahuatl may be so well preserved here. The area also prides itself on its continued use and appreciation of Nahuatl. However, Nahuatl usage has still sharply declined over the years with younger generations losing fluency. While the youth may still speak a limited amount of Nahuatl, elders in the area often maintain their fluency. Despite this pattern, the region has seen a shift towards Nahuatl preservation in recent years. Younger generations which had leaned away from Nahuatl are beginning to learn it as a second language, and local festivals and activities have increasingly incorporated Nahuatl into their events. Overall, Milpa Alta is the largest Nahuatl speaking area in the capital with a strong indigenous population.
Lastly, I’d like to talk about Xochimilco. Xochimilco is another area of Mexico City and is well known for its chinampas. The chinampas are the floating gardens we’ve all learned about when studying the Aztecs in our world history classes. Through these marvels, the area has remained a haven for cultural preservation. However, spoken Nahuatl has died off significantly in this region. There aren’t many native speakers. However, Xochimilco is an incredibly important area even serving as a UNESCO world heritage site. It is considered a crucial area for preserving indigenous and pre-colonial culture in Mexico> therefore, Nahuatl still holds roots in the area. While everyday usage declines, the growing importance of Xochimilco as a place of cultural heritage has led to Nahuatl preservation especially in ceremonies and events.

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