Hopi language

Hopi
Hopilàvayi
Native toUnited States
RegionNortheastern Arizona
Ethnicity7,400 Hopis (Golla 2007)[1]
Native speakers
6,100 (2015 census)[1]
40 monolinguals[1]
Latin script
Language codes
ISO 639-3hop
Glottologhopi1249
ELPHopi
Hopi is classified as Vulnerable by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger
This article contains IPA phonetic symbols. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Unicode characters. For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, see Help:IPA.
PeopleHopi
LanguageHopilàvayi,
Hand Talk
CountryHopitutskwa

Hopi (Hopi: Hopílavayi) is a Uto-Aztecan language spoken by the Hopi people (a Puebloan group) of northeastern Arizona, United States.

The use of Hopi has gradually declined over the course of the 20th century. In 1990, it was estimated that more than 5,000 people could speak Hopi as a native language (approximately 75% of the population), but only 40 of them were monolingual in Hopi. The 1998 language survey of 200 Hopi people showed that 100% of Hopi elders (60 years or older) were fluent, but fluency in adults (40–59) was only 84%, 50% in young adults (20–39), and 5% in children (2–19).[2]

Despite the apparent decline, Hopi and Navajo both are supported by bilingual education programs in Arizona, and children acquire the Native American languages as their first language.[3] More recently, Hopi language programs for children on the reservation have been implemented.[4]

  1. ^ a b c Hopi at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022) Closed access icon
  2. ^ "Status of Hopi language". Archived from the original on 2015-12-15. Retrieved 2015-09-08.
  3. ^ "Dual-language programs grow in Arizona public schools". azednews.com. Archived from the original on 2015-07-19. Retrieved 2015-08-17. Tuba City Unified Superintendent Dr. Harold Begay is devoted to seeing the Navajo and Hopi languages and cultures thrive long into the future through district programs.
  4. ^ Sevigny, Melissa (17 August 2019). "Teaching To Protect The Hopi Language". NPR. Archived from the original on 17 August 2019. Retrieved 17 August 2019.