What language did native Americans speak?

Thanks to old Hollywood movies, the image we often have of Native Americans is deeply distorted. In these films, the cowboys are depicted as noble, fair, and educated, while Native Americans are portrayed as savage and inarticulate.

Typically, these “Indians” are shown speaking in broken sentences, lacking prepositions or articles, and often starting conversations with the stereotypical “how.” Unfortunately, this Hollywood portrayal isn’t the only one riddled with inaccuracies. Spanish and English depictions have also reinforced the idea of Native Americans as loincloth-wearing savages incapable of coherent speech.

But is this true?
Were Native Americans truly a people without language, merely mimicking the conquerors in a crude manner? Today, we’ll debunk several myths and explore a fascinating linguistic world you might not know about.

Let’s uncover the languages of Native Americans!

The most repeated myth in history: Native Americans were not one single people

One of the most persistent misconceptions is that Native Americans were a single, unified group. For centuries, many Europeans—and even Americans from North, Central, and South America—viewed them as one homogenous group, lumped together under terms like “aborigines,” “Indians,” or “indigenous peoples.”

This is a gross oversimplification. The truth is that, from Alaska to Patagonia, pre-European America was home to hundreds of distinct peoples. Historians estimate that between 40 and 60 million people lived in the Americas before Columbus arrived. These individuals belonged to approximately 570 well-structured social groups.

Even more astonishing is the fact that pre-Columbian America boasted around 120 linguistic families. Sadly, today most of these linguistic families have disappeared, or only a handful of speakers remain. Tragically, many Native American languages are now extinct, meaning there are no living speakers and little to no records of them.

Another surprising fact is that Native American peoples didn’t tie their languages to their systems of governance. Furthermore, there were significant linguistic differences between the languages spoken by Native Americans in the north, center, and south of the continent. To understand these differences and analyze Native American languages, it’s crucial to first understand how these societies lived.

Tribes, Nation, and Empires: Three Key Distinctions

The Native Americans portrayed as “savages” in films had actually achieved remarkable levels of development long before Columbus set foot in the Americas. For instance, the city of Teotihuacán boasted urban planning and architecture that surpassed many European capitals of the time. This metropolis was home to nearly 200,000 people and had a thriving commercial and social life.

In South America, the Inca Empire stretched from northern Chile to southern Colombia—a territory spanning approximately 2.5 million square kilometers. These examples highlight the diversity and sophistication of pre-Columbian societies, which is essential for understanding the development of Native American languages.

Pre-Columbian America was populated by societies organized into distinct political and social structures, typically divided into tribes, nations, and empires. Why does this distinction matter? Because the type of organization influenced how languages spread and evolved.

• Tribal languages: These were often confined to small regions and spoken exclusively by members of a single tribe, ranging from a dozen to a few thousand individuals.
• Nation languages: Unlike tribal languages, these were not restricted to a specific territory. Neighboring nations, even those in conflict, often shared a common language.
• Imperial languages: Empires such as the Inca, Maya, and Aztec expanded their languages by making them the official means of communication across their territories. These imperial languages became widespread as they unified diverse populations under one linguistic system.

Understanding these distinctions provides insight into the diverse linguistic landscape of Native Americans. Now, let’s delve deeper into how these languages developed.

Native American languages still spoken today

As we’ve seen, Native Americans were not a single people, nor did they speak a common language. We’ve also observed that languages developed in relation to the size and reach of the social group using them. It stands to reason that larger societies would have languages with broader usage. However, it’s essential to note that even in vast empires like the Inca or Maya, the languages of their subjects were not erased.

In many pre-European empires, the official language served primarily as a medium for commerce, religion, or military operations. As a result, numerous languages coexisted within the same empire. For instance, while Quechua was the official language of the Inca Empire, over twenty other languages were spoken across its expansive territory. Similarly, groups like the Taíno and Hopi did not have imperial political structures, yet their territorial influence allowed their languages to flourish.

Because of this diversity, discussing Native American languages as a unified subject is incredibly complex. To simplify, let’s set aside the dozens of pre-Columbian languages that have gone extinct. Instead, we’ll focus on the languages that are still spoken today. Unfortunately, this brings us to a sobering linguistic reality: fewer than 1% of the current American population speaks an Indigenous language as their primary tongue.

Let’s explore the most significant Native American languages based on their current number of speakers.

Quechua

Quechua, the language of the Inca Empire, remains the most widely spoken Native American language on the continent. Approximately 8 million people speak Quechua, primarily in present-day Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, and northern Argentina.

Guaraní

Guarani is one of the most vibrant Native American languages globally. It is a co-official language of Paraguay and is spoken by over 8 million people. While most speakers are in Paraguay, the language is also used in northern Argentina, western Uruguay, and southern Brazil.

Mayan Languages

The term “Mayan languages” encompasses nearly a dozen distinct languages, including:

• Huastecan
• Yucatecan
• Cholan
• Kanjobal-Chujean
• Mam
• Quichean
• Poqom

You might wonder why they’re grouped together, especially given the emphasis on linguistic identity. While this is a subject of significant debate, these languages are classified as “Mayan” because they share a common linguistic root. They diverged from this shared origin through secondary linguistic elements, allowing linguists to group them as one family.

Today, Mayan languages are spoken by nearly 5 million people across Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, and Honduras. They cover most of the Yucatán Peninsula and the area between the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean.

Aymara

Aymara, along with Quechua, is one of the co-official languages of Bolivia. Around 2.2 million people speak Aymara, and its influence extends beyond Bolivia to Peru, Argentina, and Chile.

Aymara remains one of the most prominent languages in central South America. Notably, it played a key role in history—one of the versions of Argentina’s declaration of independence was written in Aymara.

Nahuatl

Despite its rich historical and cultural significance, only about 3 million people speak Nahuatl today. During the colonial era, it served as a lingua franca and was recognized as a co-official language by Spanish authorities in regions that now include Mexico, southern United States, and parts of Central America.

Nahuatl was the primary language of influential empires like the Aztecs, Olmecs, and Maya. It was spoken in Teotihuacan and is linked to the Uto-Aztecan language family, originating south of the Sonoran Desert. You can find in Talkao’s Dictionary words we use today, such as chocolate, avocado, and tomato, come from Nahuatl.

Wayuu

The Wayuu or Guajiro language is one of the most spoken Native American languages today. It is used in the Guajira region shared by Colombia and Venezuela by more than 600,000 people.

The Wayuu language is part of the Arawakan language family, related to the languages of the Taíno people from Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. In Guajira schools, Wayuu is a co-official language and holds a strong cultural presence in the region.

Navajo

From this point onward, Native American languages show a notable decline in speakers. Navajo is the most widely spoken language in the southwestern United States, with around 160,000 speakers spread across New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and Colorado.

Although the Navajo Nation comprises approximately 400,000 people, less than half actively speak the language. Navajo belongs to the Athabaskan linguistic family, which traces its origins to present-day Canada.

Mapuche

The Mapuche, also known as Mapuzungun or Araucanians, are one of the most prominent Indigenous groups in the southern cone of South America. They primarily reside in Chile, though some live in western Argentina. Approximately 150,000 people currently speak Mapuche.

In Chile, the Mapuche community has advocated for the preservation of their language, pushing for its recognition as a vehicular language in official settings. In regions like Temuco and Galvarino, Mapuche is commonly used and holds co-official status.

Sioux (Dakota)

The Sioux language, also called Dakota, faces challenges similar to those of the Mayan languages. Although it is considered one language, Sioux includes over 20 dialects. The Sioux Nation comprises three main groups: Santee, Yankton-Yanktonai, and Lakota.

Famous Sioux figures like Crazy Horse, Sitting Bull, and Red Cloud have been widely depicted in movies and TV. Today, around 30,000 people speak Sioux as a second language, with fewer than 100 native speakers remaining. Sioux is a co-official language in South Dakota, with usage spanning from Canada to the southern United States.

Apache

Apache is part of the same linguistic family as Navajo. Currently, 20,000 people speak the language. Despite its relatively small number of speakers, Apache’s historical significance is undeniable. The Apache people once dominated territories across Mexico and the United States, including areas in Arizona, Chihuahua, Texas, Sonora, and New Mexico.

Spanish expeditions led to a significant decline in Apache language use, as many Apaches adopted Spanish. Legendary figures like Geronimo highlight the cultural relevance of the Apache people in both Mexican and American history.

Native American languages today

The United Nations estimates that over 350 million people worldwide speak Indigenous languages. Specifically, Native American languages boast over 30 million speakers today. Across North, Central, and South America, these ancestral languages remain deeply rooted in local populations.

The cultural richness of these communities is largely built upon their efforts to preserve their languages and heritage. This highlights the immense importance of understanding and appreciating these languages, which hold such significant value for humanity.

Translation apps like Talkao Translate feature many of these Native American languages, as well as regional languages spoken across Europe, Africa, and Asia. With tools like Talkao’s translation apps, you can learn to translate millions of words across more than 125 languages worldwide. Even if the text is written in another alphabet or uses unfamiliar symbols, the Talkao Camera Translator enables you to decipher its meaning directly from your smartphone.

Without a doubt, learning a Native American language is a fascinating and enriching experience—one we highly recommend.

Published Thu, 30 January 2025