Publication Date
3-1-2007
Abstract
Indigenous languages of the Americas are spoken by millions of people 500 years after the initial period of European conquest. The people who speak these languages and the customs they continue to practice form a rich cultural texture in many parts of Spanish America and can be important components of an instructor’s Standards-based teaching. This article discusses the influence of Maya and Nahuatl languages and cultures on the language, literature, and history of Mexico and Central America. Examples of this influence range from lexical and phonological traits of Mexican Spanish to the indigenous cultures and worldviews conveyed in texts as varied as the Mexican soap opera “Barrera de Amor” and the stories by Rosario Castellanos of Mexico and Miguel Angel Asturias of Guatemala. The examples given here relate to classroom teaching at multiple levels, particularly as they apply to the Standards of Communication and Cultures. The appendices provide lists of selected resources for Spanish teachers.
Recommended Citation
Fountain, Anne and Fountain, Catherine
(2007)
"Maya and Nahuatl in the Teaching of Spanish: Expanding the Professional Perspective,"
Dimensions: Vol. 42, Article 7.
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/dimensions/vol42/iss1/7