Lenca language
Encyclopedia
The Lenca language is one of the indigenous Mesoamerican languages
. At the time of the Spanish conquest of Central America in the early 16th century, it was spoken by the Lenca people in a region that incorporates northwestern and southwestern Honduras, and neighboring eastern El Salvador
, east of the Lempa river
. Today is still spoken mostly by Lenca Indigenous People in the mountains of the central state of Yoro, and Francisco Morazan (particularly in the Montana de la Flor region). While the Lenca people continue to live in the same region today, Lyle Campbell
reported in the 1970s that he found only 1 speaker of the language in Chilanga, El Salvador
, and none in Honduras
; the language though reportedly extinct, is used by the Lenca People of central Honduras, who due to persecution by the Honduran army in the 1980s and 1990s, who violently repressed them due to their fighting for a more equitable distribution of land and a fair agrarian reform, chose not to speak it for a long time to avoid being easily identified by their persecutors. Campbell concluded however, that Salvadoran Lenca was a distinct dialect from Honduran Lenca.
Indigenous movements in both countries are attempting to revive the language, and recent press reports from Honduras indicate that elementary school textbooks in some form of Lenca have been distributed to public schools in the region.
The linguistic classification of the language is disputed, with several authors arguing for Lenca being a Macro-Chibchan
language while others prefer to leave it as unclassified. See the References section for the most current work on Lenca by linguists.
Mesoamerican languages
Mesoamerican languages are the languages indigenous to the Mesoamerican cultural area, which covers southern Mexico, all of Guatemala and Belize and parts of Honduras and El Salvador. The area is characterized by extensive linguistic diversity containing several hundred different languages and...
. At the time of the Spanish conquest of Central America in the early 16th century, it was spoken by the Lenca people in a region that incorporates northwestern and southwestern Honduras, and neighboring eastern El Salvador
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
, east of the Lempa river
Lempa River
The Lempa River is a 422 km long river in Central America. Its sources are located in between the Sierra Madre and the Sierra del Merendón in southern Guatemala, near the town of Olopa. In Guatemala the river is called Río Olopa and flows southwards for 30.4 km before entering Honduras and...
. Today is still spoken mostly by Lenca Indigenous People in the mountains of the central state of Yoro, and Francisco Morazan (particularly in the Montana de la Flor region). While the Lenca people continue to live in the same region today, Lyle Campbell
Lyle Campbell
Lyle Richard Campbell is a linguist and leading expert on indigenous American languages—especially those of Mesoamerica—and on historical linguistics in general. He also has expertise in Uralic languages. He is presently Professor of Linguistics at the University of Hawaii at Manoa.-Life and...
reported in the 1970s that he found only 1 speaker of the language in Chilanga, El Salvador
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
, and none in Honduras
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
; the language though reportedly extinct, is used by the Lenca People of central Honduras, who due to persecution by the Honduran army in the 1980s and 1990s, who violently repressed them due to their fighting for a more equitable distribution of land and a fair agrarian reform, chose not to speak it for a long time to avoid being easily identified by their persecutors. Campbell concluded however, that Salvadoran Lenca was a distinct dialect from Honduran Lenca.
Indigenous movements in both countries are attempting to revive the language, and recent press reports from Honduras indicate that elementary school textbooks in some form of Lenca have been distributed to public schools in the region.
The linguistic classification of the language is disputed, with several authors arguing for Lenca being a Macro-Chibchan
Macro-Chibchan
Macro-Chibchan is a proposal linking languages of Colombia and Nicaragua. These languages were once included in the Chibchan family itself, but were excluded pending further evidence as that family became well established...
language while others prefer to leave it as unclassified. See the References section for the most current work on Lenca by linguists.