Mitla Zapotec

Mitla Zapotec, or Didxsaj, is an Oto-Manguean language of Oaxaca, Mexico.

Guelavia Zapotec is reported to be 75% intelligible, but the reverse is apparently not the case.

Phonetics, phonology, and orthography
Mitla Zapotec has the following consonants:


 * Fortis: p, t, k, kw, s, ʃ, m:, n:, l:
 * Lenis: b, d, g, gw, z, ʒ, m, n, l
 * Neutral: ɾ [flap r], r [trill r], f, x, ʔ, h, w, y.

/f/ is rare in native words.


 * Mitla Zapotec has six vowels: /a, æ, e, i, o, u/. The vowel /æ/ is written $⟨ä⟩$ in the practical orthography.

Vowels contrast in phonation, with a difference between modal phonation, breathy phonation, and creaky phonation. For example
 * gihts [gi̤ts] 'paper'
 * be'ts [bḛts] 'louse'

Noun morphology
Mitla Zapotec has little noun morphology. Pluralization is indicated by a plural proclitic /re=/, as in the following example

[re=ge̤dʒ]

'villages'

Alienably possessed nouns have a prefix ʃ- (spelled $⟨x⟩$ in the popular orthography), as in the following examples (cited first in practical orthography, then in IPA).

x-cojb Maria

[ʃ-ko̤b maria]

POSS-dough Maria

'Maria's dough'

[ʃ-kuʔn=ɾeni]

'their tortillas'

Aspectual morphology
Briggs analyses Mitla Zapotec as having six aspects, each of which has an ablative ('go and V') and non-ablative variant. They are


 * 1) continuative, e.g., ka' 'to take' ka-ká'-ni 'he continually takes'
 * 2) habitual, e.g., wi 'to see' r-wi-ni 'he habitually sees'
 * 3) completive, e.g., sloh 'to begin' gu-sloh-ni 'he began'
 * 4) potential, e.g., sæu 'to close' gu-su-ni-ni 'he is going to close it'
 * 5) unfulfilled, e.g., llux 'to finish' nu-llûx-ni 'he didn't finish'
 * 6) incomplete, e.g., re 'to invite' zu-re-ni 'he will invite'

The following example shows the aspectual inflection of three verbs in Mitla Zapotec.

Person marking
Person marking is shown with a set of post-verbal clitics, which are used for both subjects and objects

The following examples show examples of verbs with aspect and person marking

'I am going to hide you.'

'I left you (pl).'

Syntax
The most basic word order is VSO. However, SVO also occurs, especially with a topicalized subject.

'This man went away'

'I see you (pl).'

R-ahp byûz llîbr

HAB-have child book

'The child has a book'