Identifying the Dialects of Mexico

GRN Mexico has developed a diagnostic system to identify local languages.

Many different languages are spoken in the Migrant Labor camps in Mexico. The speakers might say their language is Zapoteco but they will not know which of the 73 dialects of Zapotec they speak. Or they might say their languages is Mixteco which has 77 dialects. They do, however know the name of the district they are from.

The maps in this diagnostic system help identify the appropriate dialect, by showing which dialects are spoken in each district. Each dialect has a code which is tied to one of the diagnostic recordings. These recordings have 30 second segments of each of the Zapotec or Mixtec dialects.

Diagnostic Recordings and Maps

There are four diagnostic recordings, with associated maps and dialect lists. The alphanumeric codes on each item on these recordings are indexes into the maps.

Mixtec	C38329 Diagnostic	Map	List
Zapotec	C38330 Diagnostic	Map	List
Otros	C38331 Diagnostic	Map	List
Norte-Sur	C38332 Diagnostic	Map	List

Click on each recording link above to see a list of the dialects each contain. Within those lists, click on the individual dialect names to see a full list of recordings in that dialect.

Example

Select the appriate map, and find the general area the speaker is from. Identify the code, and use this code to identify the dialect name.

For example "M33" on the Mixteco map is at Costa Chica. This represents the sample with code "M33" on the Mixteco diagnostic recording. Play this sample, and some of the nearby ones as well, until the speaker identifies their own dialect.