Ixtenco Otomí

Ixtenco is a small town in the State of Tlaxcala where Otomí is still spoken by people over 60 years old. It is surrounded by formerly Nahuatl-speaking towns. The Ixtenco dialect can be grouped with Estern Otomí, but it differs from the Sierra dialects in several important respects, for instance the absence of the dual number and the contrast between close-mid and open-mid rounded back vowels.

The sketch will contain chapters on phonology, morphology and syntax as well as a text with interlinear translation. Emphasis will be given to morphology which is quite complex. There are, for instance, 10 tense aspects not counting the imperative. These are signalled by prefixes one for each of the three persons; number of the first and second persons is marked by suffixes. Distinction is made between exclusive and inclusive. The favorite word order seems to be SVO at the present time.