Tewa language

Tewa is a Native American language spoken by Pueblo people, mostly in the Rio Grande valley in New Mexico north of Santa Fe. It belongs to the Tewa-Tiwa branch of the Kiowa-Tanoan family. The 1980 census counted 1,298 speakers, almost all of whom are bilingual in English. Each pueblo or reservation where it is spoken has a dialect:

Related Topics:
Native American - Pueblo people - Rio Grande - New Mexico - Santa Fe - Kiowa-Tanoan

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• Nambe Pueblo: 50 speakers
• Pojoaque Pueblo: 25 speakers
• San Ildefonso Pueblo: 349 speakers
• San Juan Pueblo: 495 speakers
• Santa Clara Pueblo: 207 speakers
• Tesuque Pueblo: 172 speakers

Tewa is also spoken by Tewa people who live at Hano on the Hopi Reservation in Arizona.

Related Topics:
Tewa people - Hopi - Arizona

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In the names "Pojoaque" and "Tesuque", the element spelled "que" (pronounced something like /ge/ in Tewa, or /ki/ in English) is Tewa for "place".

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A system for writing Tewa with the Latin alphabet has been devised. It is occasionally used for such purposes as signs (Be-pu-wa-ve, "Welcome"). Otherwise, unlike such languages as Navajo and Cherokee, Tewa is not normally written by its speakers.

Related Topics:
Latin alphabet - Navajo - Cherokee

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Tewa language: External link ►