Taos language

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Taos is a Tiwa language spoken mainly in Taos Pueblo and the nearby city of Taos in New Mexico. It belongs to the Northern Tiwa group within the Tiwa branch of the Tanoan language family. In 2007 there were about 800 native Taos speakers out of a 1,600-strong Taos community, and UNESCO lists Taos as Definitely Endangered.

Taos has long been kept relatively private by its speakers, with outsiders rarely given access to language data. In the mid-20th century many Taos people spoke Spanish or English in addition to Taos; older adults tended to know more Spanish, while children increasingly used English. By the 2000s, Taos remained most viable among older people, though some younger Taos speakers were beginning to learn it again through community programs.

Historically, Taos is closely related to Picurís Tiwa and more distantly related to Southern Tiwa. The language is being kept alive through cultural programs and school efforts. In 1994 Taos High School stopped teaching Taos after objections from Pueblo leadership, but in 2012 a Tiwa Language Festival was held to promote the language among tribal members. In 2019, Taos Tiwa was being taught at Enos Garcia Elementary as part of efforts to keep the language in use.

Phonology at a glance: Taos has about 18 consonants and six vowels, with five vowels having a nasal contrast. It uses three levels of stress (primary, secondary, and unstressed) and three tones (high, mid, and low). Some researchers used older and newer notations, but the basic idea is that tone and stress help distinguish words.

Nouns in Taos change form to show number and possession. There are four noun classes, and nouns can take suffixes to mark singular, duoplural (a special plural form), or inverse number. For example, some nouns add -na for singular or -ne for duoplural, while other forms use inverse suffixes like -ną or -nemą to indicate opposite number. Demonstratives and some numerals also show number in a way that agrees with the noun they modify. In many cases, a small vowel appears between the stem and the suffix, and some stems show reduplication patterns before the suffixes.

Taos is an interesting and heritage-rich language with a strong cultural role in Taos Pueblo. Ongoing community efforts aim to keep Taos alive for future generations.