Kʼicheʼ
Qatzijobʼal
Kʼicheʼ is a Mayan language spoken in Guatemala and Mexico, by about 2 million people. Glottolog rates it threatened.
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Did you know
The Popol Vuh, the great Maya story of creation, was written down in K’iche’ in Latin letters in the 16th century. K’iche’ is still spoken by over a million people, mostly in the Guatemalan highlands.
Kʼicheʼ ( kee-CHAY; natively [kʼiˈtʃʰeʔ], also known as Qatzijobʼal lit. 'our language' among its speakers), or Quiché, is a Mayan language spoken by the Kʼicheʼ people of the central highlands in Guatemala and Mexico. With over a million speakers (some 7% of Guatemala's population), Kʼicheʼ is the second most widely-spoken language in the country, after Spanish. It is one of the most widely-spoken indigenous American languages in Mesoamerica.
The Central dialect is the most commonly used in media and education. Despite a low literacy rate, Kʼicheʼ is increasingly taught in schools and used on the radio. The most famous work in the Classical Kʼicheʼ language is the Popol Vuh (Popol Wuʼuj in modern spelling). The second most important work is The Title of Totonicapán.
From Wikipedia · Kʼicheʼ language · CC BY-SA 4.0
Written down
Konojel ri winaq are taq ke'alaxik pa junaman ya'tal chkech kakechab'ej ronojel ri utzil; utz kakib'ano, kakichomaj, kakib'ij jasa je' ri k'o pa kanima, rumal che ri junam kib'antajik. Rajawaxik xuqe' kakimulij kib' che utzukuxuk ri loq'ob'al pa we uwachulew.
Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR in Unicode).
Words in Kʼicheʼ
| Meaning | Word | Romanization |
|---|---|---|
| mother | chuch | |
| father | qajaw | |
| woman | ixoq | |
| person | winaq | |
| ear | xikin | |
| tongue | aaq' | |
| heart | anima’ | |
| head | jolom | |
| liver | seseb’ | |
| water | jaʼ | |
| fire | q’aq’ | |
| sun | qʼij | |
| moon | ikʼ | |
| sky | kaj | |
| tree | cheʼ | |
| cat | me's | |
| fish | kar | |
| snake | kumatz | |
| one | jun | |
| two | kieb | |
| three | ox | |
| four | kajïb | |
| five | job | |
| ten | lajuj | |
| what | jas | |
| coffee | kapeh | |
| egg | saqmoʼl | |
| tomato | pix | |
| thank you | maltiox | |
| yes | je' |
Most similar languages
Vocabulary
- AchiMayan66% alike
- SipacapenseMayan62% alike
- SacapultecoMayan62% alike
- UspantecoMayan62% alike
- KaqchikelMayan54% alike
- Poqomchi'Mayan52% alike
Grammar
- KaqchikelMayan88% alike
- Temascaltepec NahuatlUto-Aztecan85% alike
- ArikapúNuclear-Macro-Je82% alike
- MansimHatam-Mansim82% alike
- Xinka-JumaytepequeXincan81% alike
- Xinca-YupiltepequeXincan81% alike
Vocabulary compares 40 basic words (ASJP); grammar compares 195 features (Grambank). Similar is not always related.
Nearby languages
Elsewhere
Glottolog · kich1262 · Wikipedia (English) · Ethnologue · quc