Zuni language
| Zuni | |
|---|---|
| Shiwi'ma | |
| Native to | U.S. |
| Region | Western New Mexico |
| Ethnicity | Zuni |
|
Native speakers
|
9,700 and increasing (2006–2010) |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-2 | |
| ISO 639-3 | |
| Glottolog | zuni1245 |
Pre-European contact distribution of Zuni
|
|
Zuni /ˈzuːni/ (also formerly Zuñi) is a language of the Zuni people, indigenous to western New Mexico and eastern Arizona in the United States. It is spoken by around 9,500 people worldwide, especially in the vicinity of Zuni Pueblo, New Mexico, and much smaller numbers in parts of Arizona.
Unlike most indigenous languages in the US, Zuni is still spoken by a significant number of children and, thus, is comparatively less threatened with language endangerment. Edmund Ladd reported in 1994 that Zuni is still the main language of communication in the pueblo and is used in the home (Newman 1996).
Within the language, the language itself is called Shiwi'ma (shiwi "Zuni" + -’ma "vernacular", trans. as "Zuni way") and its speakers are collectively A:shiwi (’a:(w)- "plural" + shiwi "Zuni").
Zuni is considered a language isolate (i.e., unrelated to any other known language). Zuni may have become a distinct language at least 7,000 years ago. The Zuni have, however, borrowed a number of words from Keresan, Hopi, and Pima pertaining to religion and religious observances.
A number of possible relationships of Zuni to other languages have been proposed by various researchers, although none of these has gained general acceptance. The main hypothetical proposals have been connections with Penutian (and Penutioid and Macro-Penutian), Tanoan, and Hokan phyla, and also the Keresan languages.
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