JUNP'IIT MAYA -

A LITTLE BIT OF MAYA

This audio and accompanying written text for beginners of the Yucatec Maya language was produced, copyrighted and made available (with funds provided by the United States Department of Education) by

PREFACE

Jun P'it Maaya – A little bit of Maya has been an ongoing project of the Outreach office of the Duke-University of North Carolina Program in Latin American Studies for over two years. It was created because of an actual demand on the part of that large public engaged in all things Mayan. Many students, and community members, who are not able to take the Duke-UNC Program's Summer Intensive Introductory Course in Yucatec Maya nor able to enroll in a Mayan language course in a nearby college or university, call our offices asking for a beginner's language tape. These people travel to the Yucatán peninsula, entertain Maya visitors in their US communities, or just want to know what Maya sounds like. This tape is for those and others who may find that 'a little bit of Maya' takes them a long way or who, perhaps fascinated by the language, decide to pursue it further.

I would like to thank everyone who worked hard at various stages of this project. First of all my thanks to the four 'voices' - Barbara MacLeod, Refugio Vermont Salas, Gretchen Whalen and Robert Howrenwho spent hours helping to write the material used and more hours inside a studio recording it. Thanks to Miguel Güémez for editing the material and checking and rechecking the Maya, to Todd Marshall for typing the text, to Silvia González for her layout and design and to Jerry Markatos for his endless hours of recording, editing, and looking for the perfect nuances to make this educational cassette the best we could collectively produce.

Sharon S. Mújica
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
September, 1995

1. Maya Alphabet

The alphabet used in this text is as follows:

(d,f, g and r are borrowed from Spanish, in other words, we use these consonants to write Spanish words introduced into Maya).

2. Useful Expressions

The following are some expressions and words which will be useful to students and travellers to the Yucatan Peninsula and Belize. (The Maya expression will be given first, then the English, then the Maya again.)

3. More Vocabulary

*This is the correct Mayan equivalent of 1 – 20. However, today the Maya use Spanish numbers beginning with four.

4. Inventions

These prophecies are part of the Maya oral tradition and have been passed down through many generations.

7. Dialogue

8. Here are some useful words:

*boox is the modern word for black. éek'is archaic for black, but its modern meaning is dark or dirty.

9. Here is a sample of 'I am'phrases:

Here are some more phrases:

10. Conversation

11. Towns

The names of the towns in Yucatán are related with the history of each place, and they are very descriptive. Here we have some of them:

12. Songs

Mayabil Ajxíimbal- El Caminante del Mayab

These lyrics are the inspiration of Antonio Mediz Bolio and the music of one of the greatest guitar players of the Trova Yucateca, Guty Cardenas (Augusto Cardenas Pinelo).

Kin wa'alik ti'tech - Te vengo a decir

This song is a translation in Maya of the song 'Te vengo a Decir', 'I'm coming to Tell You' in Spanish. It is sung in the evangelical churches of Spanish speaking countries.

Ootsil chichan ch'íich'- The Poor Little Bird

This song speaks about a little bird ho wants to get married but he was very poor and when he said this, different kinds of animals came to help him. The little fish that was at the edge of the ocean answered that he would give him money for the wedding. The cow that was in the field said he would give the bread or the cake. The caterpillar of the leaf of the plant would make a dress. The cardinal that was in a branch of the ramón tree answered that he would give the ornament for the bride's hair. The armadillo, who was under the ground, told him that e would give the music.