Spanish dialect unique to portions of Colorado and New Mexico is fading away

Jeremy Jojola explores the history of the unique Spanish spoken in the region for hundreds of years as younger generations try to save it.
More local videos here: bit.ly/2Pa0d1l
Subscribe to NEXT: bit.ly/2eP1GwI
Stay connected: 9NEWS Website: www.9news.com/
Facebook: / ilike9news
Twitter: / 9news
Instagram: / 9newsdenver

Download the 9NEWS App: www.9news.com/appredirect/
Sign up for the 9NEWSLETTER: www.9news.com/email

9NEWS (KUSA) is located in Denver, Colorado.

[@BettyofOOO]

So thankful to have a member of our local media who is so proud of his heritage. You’re doing good, kid. Keep it up, your ancestors can see you. ❤

[@fatjeezussouthtexasoutdoor5244]

This sounds so much like the Spanish we speak here in Corpus Christi, Tx....my family has been here since the early to mid 1800's and we never lost our Spanish language ❤️❤️❤️

[@mixtecjaguar9824]

European language.

[@FANSpiele]

@@mixtecjaguar9824 ??? yea spanish is european language.

[@Halcon_Sierreno]

Go back to Spain, colonizer.

[@MIND9988T]

👍🏼

[@gardeniagorgeous4232]

Same, sounds like all my family from Corpitos!

[@mjg239]

There is so much heart in this story. The reporter did a great job. I knew nothing about this topic and he informed me well. He should win an award for this report. Great job.

[@Kekinho07]

I am a Mexican living in Northern New Mexico, listening to the hispanic elders from here speaking their spanish makes me feel nostalgic, their accent is so melodic and make you feel like you are talking to a long time friend, it is very welcoming. I feel sad this variant of spanish is loosing its strength, I feel honored to at least witness the beauty of this spanish before it disappears.

[@user-bu5rm8ik6m]

It sounds similar to the Northern Mexican Spanish of Sonora and Sinaloa where they also omit the “s” sound. Also the use of the word plebes.

[@danieldelrancho5749]

Yes it is in fact northern Mexican Spanish. And let me tell you guys that it will never die in the south west

[@mixtecjaguar9824]

European language.

[@pasofino9583]

@@mixtecjaguar9824there a hundreads of Nahuatl words in Mexican Spanish.

[@rattlesnake63]

@@danieldelrancho5749 In battle we all bleed the same “coco”

[@maxwill6408]

There was an article in the National Geographic back in the mid 1970s on how the Spanish spoken in Northern New Mexico and Southern Colorado is so much different from the way it is spoken in the other areas in the USA settled by the Spanish. The research showed that language spoken in this area was the Spanish spoken by the first Spanish settlers of the 1600 thru the 1800. Because of the areas isolation the Spanish spoken by these people has not changed much.

[@ElRecopilador-wz9dn]

is not that different, it's just a little archaic, that's it

[@thekingofmoney2000]

Can’t forget about Texas! Our Spanish is also quite similar.

[@mdc3148]

It’s interesting though, because almost all of the settler families of the 16-1700’s were from old Mexico (New Spain), specifically Zacatecas. My family is from there and there are many archaic terms that are used there and not in modern Spain. Is it really that different?

[@Kat-fq4ei]

The first Spanish Colonial settlements were in northern NM since 1598. Settlers did not go back and forth from New Spain territories into New Mexico which was the northern most post in New Spain. Very distant, raiding Indians at every turn so it was dangerous survival. And difficult to attract settlers. Same with Texas and California. Spains government system was iron clad and very strict, travel was annual from Mexico City, taking months by military escourt. So the Spanish heritage/language brought from Spain to NM was preserved without much outside influence. This was early New World, some NMs just off the ships headed to different locaties from Vera Cruz. Others had lived in other territories of New Spain, as Territory of Nuevo Leon, Territory of Mexico, Territory of Nuevo Leon, Territory of Yucatan, Territory of Estramadura etc , but for a few years before making NM their home. So many times there was more connection to Spain than to distant territories in New Spain which were young colonies of Spain born after 1525. Additionally unlike territories such as Mexico City, (Kingdom of Mexico Territory) most Indians were unconquered and in the far north settlements, there was little contact with the Indians, each ethnicity retaining their heritage, religion and culture. So mestizo was not the culture. Once in NM, an isolated colonial society was the way of life until 1821. Americans mountain fur traders settled and commerce via Old Santa Fe Trail from Missouri, more so after 1846. Mexico brought few Mexicans after 1821, generally Mexican officials. New Mexico has two cultures, 424 years Spanish in the north and 140 years Mexican in the south, as those from Chihuahua, Sonora, Sinaloa began migration approx 1880 after the Mexican War, establishing villages in Mexico/US border areas. These have direct ties to Mexico culturally as well as family. And don't have a connection to northern New Mexico historically. Old Mexico is not historically correct. New Mexico got its name and territorial identity approx 1560, two and a half centuries before Mexico got its name as a nation in 1821. So the Territory of New Mexico predates the nation of Mexico.. Additionally New Mexico got its name from Spain, for new gold treasures and riches as possessed by the Aztec in Mexico City, which Spain hoped to discover, a new Mexico. Which obviously was a misnomer...

[@mdc3148]

@@Kat-fq4ei You seem to be conveniently forgetting that most of the founding families were Novohispanics (people from the wealthy Kingdom of New Spain, with Mexico City as capital, essentially modern Mexico) and most were Mestizos as well as Criollos who were NOT Peninsulares. Obviously they did go back and forth because I’m standing here as witness that my ancestors founded New Mexico, but my family is from Zacatecas!! It’s actually so hilarious to read your statement because very little of it is true. Modern Mexico was the heart of it all, and Oñate (the FOUNDER of New Mexico) was born in Zacatecas, and his wife was most definitely Mestiza because she was the granddaughter of the Aztec emperor 🤣 ALL of those families were essentially the Mexicans of today, no genetic difference at all, stop erroneous propaganda that says they were “straight from Spain to NM” and “NM is older”😆 that’s obviously wrong. Besides, most Mexican’s family lines are “straight from Spain” as well, but it doesn’t make them not Mexican. Even in the 17th century, the families that were recruited in the founding of Santa Cruz de la Cañada (the second Villa in NM after Santa Fe) gave testimony that they were enlisted in Fresnillo in Nueva Galicia (modern Zacatecas) as settlers when Vargas was recruiting colonists. That is not old Spain! Further, the Kingdom of Mexico (Reino de México) was founded in the 1520’s, NM was about three quarters of a century newer. The name comes from the Mexica, which were rulers of Tenochtitlan, also commonly referred to as the Aztecs!! Their capital was MEXICO CITY, not in New Mexico😆 You’re essentially saying NM gots it’s name from the Spanish, but then saying a name which is from the Aztecs😂, so it’s not “named by or from Spain”, it’s named after actual Mexico!Read some actual history.

[@shaggyDchris]

My grandma is from costilla and is 82 years old, she is one of the last in my family that speaks this language....I want to learn it before its to late

[@pedroviriato9356]

Desde España te apoyamos que lo hagas y que tú abuela viva muchos años .

[@DUARD9896]

No digas "this language". Es el IDIOMA ESPAÑOL, que fue el primero en ser GLOBAL desde 1492, que fue el primero que llegó a gran parte de ESTADOS UNIDOS, y hablado hoy por 600 millones de personas en todo el mundo (500 millones son nativos y 100 millones lo aprendieron)

[@chesvilgonzalezvilches8309]

🇪🇸¡Castilla!

[@rattlesnake63]

To late ⏰ about all you can do by now is eat costilla

[@jonesjen2419]

Love this ❤ makes me angry when “others” come and tell us we are speaking Spanish wrong. It’s literally our heritage to speak in this dialect.

[@adrianabotello9911]

pense que hablaban español antiguo, pero no usan "ansina" ni pronuncian las f parecido a una j baja. Es mas una mezcla de inlges y español, como el que usan en la frontera.

[@contactolequotidien8492]

Well it is not old Spanish it is not proper Spanish in the sense that there’s a lot of grammatical errors and anglicisms, it is a dialect because now it’s part of the heritage of the area, but these dialects do come from not so pleasant circumstances such as poverty and bad educational systems.

[@JF80001]

​​@@contactolequotidien8492 se llama vivir en la frontera, el Ingles se permeo a muchos terminos comunes. Y el ansina si se usa pero más por viejitos del lado sur de la frontera sobretodo en Sonora Baja California y Sinaloa que ya no sería fronterizo

[@LewisC-iu3hh]

Spanish has many accents and dialects! It’s a beautiful thing! Be proud of your Hispanic heritage! Viva la Hispanidad!

[@maureen9115]

My girlfriend got a doctorate in 17th century Spanish Literature, upon moving to the states from Spain. She discovered that the Spanish spoken in Northern New Mexico/ lower Colorado was more closely related to Old Spanish of that same period. This area was isolated due to the uprisings from native peoples, cutting off communication with lower Nuevo Espania. They had little influence from the outside world for a long time. Spain’s language evolved also with immigration & media. Native tongues & English had an influence in these northern parts, but their Spanish was closer to old Spanish than anywhere else, including Mexico. She wrote papers on this & was asked to escort the Prince of Spain to this area several years back.

[@gilbertmartinez9073]

I was born and raised in Los Angeles, California and we used a lot of those words like Troca, Lonche, and Quequi. My family is originally from Durango, Mexico.

[@misssilencedogood5968]

Yeah cause it is SPANGLISH. This broadcaster has no idea that Spanglish is not unique. It is an incorporation of American English words that crept into the language not that long ago.

[@thekingofmoney2000]

It’s Spanglish and it’s similar to varieties of Spanglish spoken in places like Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California.

[@thekingofmoney2000]

@@misssilencedogood5968 it’s been spoken for longer than just a few years. Spanglish is well over 100 years old.

[@mdc3148]

@@misssilencedogood5968 Spanglish has been a thing for a couple hundred years, probably 18th century but definitely 19th century. The first Mexican American author to write in English was Maria Ruiz de Burton who was born in 1832. This doesn’t even account for those in Gibraltar who also have mixed the two languages since the 1700’s.

[@el_equidistante]

People seem to be misunderstanding, this is not Spanglish those words are Anglicisms, it's not the same

[@Gus4r4po]

Greetings from Madrid, Spain!! It is amazing to see how after so many centuries the spanish culture from the first north american settlers keeps living in these people. It feels like watching distant relatives that we thought did not exist anymore.

[@Halcon_Sierreno]

Yeah it "lives" because you colonizer a-holes genocided our native culture. You're worse than natcees.

[@serbkebab2763]

They are not your “relatives”. They are mutts produced when a horny Spanish conquistador raped a village of native women. Their existence is the result of a crime.

[@stevenotero2627]

I guess you're right because Spain conquered Mexico. The natives didn't speak Spanish, they spoke their native dialect. Aztec,Yauqui, Myan and so on. Its real deep. CALIFORNIA LOVE 😎🎭✌️

[@Zoolama34709]

Is NOT Spanish culture is Latino/Mexican culture 🤦🏽‍♀️

[@Zoolama34709]

@@stevenotero2627Hay ya cállate con tus mamadas

[@diabla973]

Hearing the Viejitos speak Spanish or Spanglish brings me sooooo much comfort. It reminds me of my great grandparents and even my grandmas and grandpas and tios and tias. My grandma chose not to teach her children Spanish because she and her siblings were hit for speaking Spanish in school and she was made to feel ashamed and did not want her children to go through the same thing. She always regretted this later in life. Most of my friends and family feel like English should always be spoken but I personally am ashamed that I do not speak Spanish and cannot communicate with other Spanish speakers. I am ashamed that I did not teach my children. I have even lost some of the words we grew up with for everyday things that I have started to incorporate back into my lingo so my kids use these words too. Estrabajo=washcloth, tadima= bench cuartitio=shed

[@psalm91.777]

Same here

[@e.g.1218]

Same this, also happened to my dad.

[@psalm91.777]

@@e.g.1218 my poor mom was traumatized by this

[@Olsjaz]

Nunca es demasiado tarde. Tus hijos, ahora que están pequeño, pueden aprender más rápido a hablar español. Inscríbelos en una escuela o programas para aprender español. Todavía hay tiempo y claro que si se puede.

[@psalm91.777]

@@mmecharlotte much love, 💕💕💕💕

[@elsomnoliento]

Same thing is happening to the Spanish dialect of the Philippines. Only a very few aging native speakers are still alive. Although a lot of younger people are learning Spanish nowadays, it is not the Spanish that our grandparents and great-grand parents spoke.

[@Maria-sj7dz]

Because USA erased all spanish heritage by force in Phillipines

[@rollout1984]

I'm a fake pinoy (I'm mostly Mexican and white) but I've always loved and appreciated the centuries long links between Mexico and Philippines. I've read all of Dr. José Rizal's books in the original Spanish and it's a crime so few people now can enjoy them as they were written.

[@Maria-sj7dz]

@@rollout1984 that ‘s because you all were spanish, Galeón de Manila was the trade rute Phillipines to Acapulco then Veracruz/Habana/Cartagena to Spain

[@manuellubian5709]

The reason why there's very few people still left in the Philippines that are speaking Spanish is because geopolitically the Spaniards were only in your country for a relatively short amount of time politically speaking so basically once they packed up and left your country or left the territory there was really no other reason for people to continue being educated and or speaking the Spanish language because the oppressors / conquerors had already left. So at that point you then had a mixture of people that were either speaking the Spanish that was brought to them in your country and or the other people who never completely learned the infiltrated Spanish those were the ones that were still left with the original Filipino language.

[@Kat-fq4ei]

To hear a group of seniors in their eighties and nineties speak the local dialect is truly music to the ears..... Evan though they go from Spanish to English is remindful of bygone years.

[@tenuck67]

That's spanglish, spoken all over the southwest. The corruption of english words into spanglish is not music to the ears. The old settlers would be appalled that they are using a lot the spanglish, and not proper Spanish. It just shows the lack of formal education, and why New Mexico ranks at the bottom of the education ladder.

[@kitrod]

@@tenuck67 This is just how languages naturally evolve to their surroundings and there's nothing wrong with that.

[@letshuman8985]

@@tenuck67Languages always influence each other, and this happens all around the world. Spanish speakers in the USA are constantly influenced by American English. You’re just too jaded and prejudiced to understand otherwise.

[@francisdec1615]

English itself is full of French (originally mostly Latin) loanwords, between 80 and 85%.

[@jennybenjamin6103]

This is the Spanish of my father and grandmother and great Aunts in New Mexico. Such a heartwarming memory. Thank you for covering this historical gem of our culture.

[@matthewpadilla1985]

When I hear this type of Spanglish/Spanish I know I’m home. Las Vegas, New Mexico! My great grandmother used to talk like this and my grandmother still does.

[@carlosacta8726]

"Ancient Spanish dialect"??? This sounds pretty standard and is simply a regional variety. Lonche for lunch is widely used everywhere there's a Spanish speaking community in the US!!

[@Lex_Lugar]

That’s not true as there’s tons of Spanish speaking communities in the USA from South America and Spain who say “almuerzo.” There’s more than 50 million speakers of spanish in the USA. Impossible for you to know them and say “everywhere.” A dialect is much more than 1 word. LOL.

[@carlosacta8726]

@@Lex_Lugar LOL! LOL! LOL! "A dialect is much more than 1 word. LOL." NY, MIAMI, LA, DALLAS, tons of people say "lonche" it's terrible Spanish but English is very catchy and pervasive! Where are you holed up???

[@Dan-ol7ed]

@@Lex_Lugar Because almuerzo is Spanish, and lonche is NOT.

[@carlosgaramendi]

​​@@Dan-ol7edDiccionario Real Academia de la Lengua: Lonche: comida ligera del medio día

[@alexstrasser1]

YOU'RE RIGHT. IT'S PATHETIC THE WAY THE MEDIA MUST LIE IN ORDER TO "CREATE" NEWS THAT ARE SUPPOSED TO BE "NEW". THEY ARE NOT SPEAKING A "FADING DIALECT" THEY ARE SPEAKING QUITE STANDARD SPANISH THAT CAN BE UNDERSTOOD ANYWHERE IN SPANISH SPEAKING COUNTRIES.

[@sethhack899]

Mi padre nació en Del Norte, Colorado. Es triste decir, pero ahora pocos de mi familia hablan español todavía.

[@robertomartinez9834]

I am dominican and I understood everything, in the DR we call jején to other insects, too bad that many americans don't know that Spanish has been spoken in some american states before they became part of the USA, Spanish is not an inmigrant's language in the USA

[@betsychavez2914]

Amazing how people are ignorant regarding American history, especially history of southwestern USA.

[@sky-pv7ff]

​@betsychavez2914 Those mexicans are long gone. The ones today are just a the same poor indigenous that rather enter the USA illegally. Because their country is shitty for the indigenous ones. Foreigners started coming in larger numbers because of the anglo Europeans, Americans.

[@KuttyJoe]

@@betsychavez2914 Isn't Spanish from Spain?

[@DavidFarreGil]

@@KuttyJoe Isn’t English from England?

[@KuttyJoe]

@@DavidFarreGil Exactly.

[@Ana-Maria-Sierra]

I studied the Spanish of Northern NM 50 years ago in college. I don’t recall the name of the UNM professor that dedicated his life to studying and preserving the Old Spanish of his land, but among his publications was a bilingual book of the stories he grew up listening to. I recall the title of one was “The Fart Sisters”, a hilarious tale of a sister who shamed her family for life for having cut loose a huge fart during a Holy Week vigil. I’m surprised that no mention was made of this important professor. We really owe him a lot as he was the first to bring academic attention to this old Spanish dialect.

[@SpinsterSister]

Oh this makes me so happy so see my mother's people being recognized. Yes, we are different but not less nor ashamed for not being the same as the others...

[@JF80001]

I mean most of the words I heard here are typical border town NorthwestMexico word's, my grandma speaks that way, I learned to speak Spanish that way, I'm sure there is some differences but it is very similar, that said it would sound weird in central or southern Mexico

[@donnahilton471]

My sons' great grandparents were from New Mexico and spoke no English. They passed away over 20 years ago both in their 90s.

[@samueljaramillo4221]

I grew up in Adelino New Mexico and my parents and grandparents spoke like this. People around the area still speak like this.

[@dominicherrera4610]

This has me in tears, So miss my parents cause that's exactly how they were.❤❤❤❤

[@cameronmower847]

I'm about as white as they come, but I was raised in NM. Hearing the old folks use Spanish, makes me miss the old days. We had so many old Spanish ladies that took care of us and reprimanded us at church, I love hearing them speak. It's not really my culture, but it's representative of my formative experiences growing up where I did. I miss it!

[@Duquedecastro]

I think perhaps you mean as “Anglo” as they come. White Hispanics can also be as white as they come!

[@cameronmower847]

@@Duquedecastro this is very true! My mistake. I remember having to ask my mom what Anglo meant as a kid, because in Northern NM, white means pretty much nothing!

[@chesvilgonzalezvilches8309]

🇪🇸Soy español ¿realmente esta gente son descendientes de españoles, o son mejicanos?

[@FireRupee]

Well, will you learn this language then? There's quite a lot of language-learning resources online now.

[@FireRupee]

​@@chesvilgonzalezvilches8309 Si.

[@srodevodka]

Honestly guys, you should save your Spanish inheritance. This dignifies your unique culture.

[@Danielx_505]

My grandpa is from Chimayo and he has always used jején. I always wondered how it is spelled

[@retirementbootcampoff-grid237]

It has a name? Jejen.

[@xolotlmexihcah4671]

_"Queque, lonche, troca, tíquet/tiquete"_ are also part of the informal Mexican Spanish vocabulary. Those words aren't exclusive to New Mexico and Colorado; their usage is active from the North of Mexico all the way to Mexico City, Guadalajara, Michoacan, etc.

[@adrianabotello9911]

Es mas spanglish que español antiguo.

[@tenuck67]

totally agreed , it definitely not archaic spanish, it's modern spanglish. Hopefully, nobody learns to speak like that nowadays.

[@danzbutrfly]

Hopefully que si porque it is our dialect y es history tambien....@@tenuck67

[@aservantinbabylon]

Exactly.......it's just Americanized Spanish ....or Spanglish. I speak it all day long in rural TN.

[@danzbutrfly]

Aca in South Texas hablamos like that todo el tiempo of the day. I like hablando like that pero.... other people .....como el new generation .......are taught que it is a low mentality, possibly lower IQ los que hacen talk como we do. Pero it is not....es un dialect de nosotros. @@aservantinbabylon

[@simonsuarez5314]

Beautiful video. You can tell the reporter is very proud of his heritage. I hope this dialect of Spanish never dies. It is up to the younger generation to keep it alive. Love from Texas. Amor de Tejas.

[@scintillam_dei]

Gringos ruined Texas, California, Florida ET AL. Creationist Spain didn't have drug addicts everywhere, nor sodomites parading their perversion, nor confusion about genders.

[@agapitacordova3850]

I come to listen to these elders speak when I miss my grandparents. To me it’s a love language. I wish we had been raised speaking New Mexican. I really miss my grandparents 💕

[@quotidian5077]

My Grandmother and Grandpa spoke in the dialect. My Grandma and her sisters would always speak it with eachother. I miss them.

[@nenaj1]

💙💕💜

[@shine-on-tv8082]

I'm from Albuquerque NM and my ancestry has people from southern Colorado In it

[@lifeaszahara3282]

God bless these gorgeous people ❤❤

[@nog7933]

Okay, this actually hits hard for me. Growing up, my grandpa tried to teach me Spanish. The kids in school made fun of me because it wasn't Mexican Spanish, it was actually a mix of Galician and English. I later found this out from a customer at work that I could understand. I didn't want to learn anymore because I got bullied. I really wish I could have learned more from him.

[@adelinod.5568]

Typical Galician being ashamed of our roots and bow down to Spaniards....

[@klblea]

My grandparents lived in Las Vegas, New Mexico. They were precious and so was their language. ❤

[@vedeliatrujillo-hoey8253]

I was born and raised in NM, and moved to CO as an adult. As a nurse I can tell immediately if the person is from NM or the San Luis valley. Along with the words there is a distinct rhythm to the flow of the language. So sad we are losing a huge part of our culture.

[@genxx2724]

It’s the same with all regional accents and colloquialisms in the United States. Regional flavor is being lost. It’s sad. I think it’s due to television and movies. Everyone hears and models the California accent, or possible lack thereof. I’m not objective about the sound, because I live in CA.

[@psalm91.777]

Thank you ❤️❤️❤️❤️

[@Lacteagalaxia]

Spain was presented in 18 states of usa that covered most of usa until 1.821 the large number of spanish named scattered throughout the usa IS notorius ; spanish presence in usa 1513-to1821

[@scintillam_dei]

Louis & Clark weren't pioneers. The Spanish were in Luisiana even before the French.

[@Kat-fq4ei]

@@scintillam_dei The Pacific Coast to Canada, California to Texas, Florida to Louisiana were all part of New Spain. Not to mention today's Mexico, Central America, Philippines, Cuba, Caribbeans, plus; all were different parts of la Nueva España. New Mexico predates Mexico as New Mexico got its name about 1550, over two centuries before Mexico became a nation 1821, getting its name Estados Unidos Mexicanos as the Republic of Mexico, under its Constitution at that time. Old Mexico is not historically correct.

[@Kat-fq4ei]

@@bigal2362 named New Mexico for new golden treasures they hoped to find as with the wealthy mexica Aztec in Mexico City... a misnomer, the Spanish were fooled. They should have stuck to Nueva Andalucia ...

[@xolotlmexihcah4671]

@@Kat-fq4ei You are tripping very hard. _New Mexico_ (state) and _Mexico_ (country) got their names thanks to _Tenochtitlán_ (Mexico City) and the _Mēxihcah_ (Aztecs) people, which are way older than New Mexico, Mexico or New Spain. Furthermore, _Mexico City_ administered _New Mexico_ for approximately 350 years, and that's because New Mexico was part of both New Spain and Mexico, with Mexico City as the capital of both entities. New Mexico wasn't administered directly from Madrid or Spain but via Mexico City! Mexico City is way closer to Albuquerque or Santa Fe than Washington or Madrid ever were, not only in geographical terms but also culturally, ethnically and historically.

[@Kat-fq4ei]

@@xolotlmexihcah4671 New Spain, which was many territories including California to Florida, Cuba, Caribbeans, Phillipines, Central America plus, was administered in Mexico City by Spains viceroy, representative of Spains king. Cortez made it to Vera Cruz in 1519, Spain did not explore California and SW till about 1540, while simultaneously other explorations from Florida to Louisiana, claimed as territories for Spain as part of New Spain. In fact New Mexico Territory predates Mexico as New Mexico got its name approx 1560, over two centuries before Mexico got its name 1821. You can refer to a New Spain map, prior to 1821, there is no Mexico... Tenochtitlan the Aztec capitol, was renamed Mexico City by Spain for the "mexica" Aztec tribes in that vicinity , sometimes referred to as valley of Mexico, home to the mexica, which was rich in gold. Spains tales of rich cities yet to be discovered were prevalent, with tales of a golden city by the De Niza expedition, promoted the extensive Coronado expedition to the far north tierras nuevas and a new "Mexico" for treasures to be found. Had Spain not named the capital Mexico City it would likely still be Tenochtitlan, Montezumas reigning city. So credit goes to Spain for naming the Aztec capitol, "Mexico City" and who knows what todays Mexico would be named if not for Spain. The country or nation of Mexico, 300 years later is a whole different story and different era from Spains era of governing New Spain. During Spains era, the different territories, far and wide, were known as New Spain and ruled by Spains iron clad monarchy. New Mexico, in fact all of New Spain territories had different Indian tribes, different cultures , different ethnicities, different politics, different geographies and different histories. Same language--Spanish. Same religion--Catholic. Except for the thousands of unconquered Indians. New Mexico was a province of the young Mexico after independence for 25 years, not by default, but by Mexicos claim. In fact, New Mexico which included Arizona, Texas and California did not fight for independence from Spain, or were part of Hidalgos or Guerillas politics or rebellions against Spain. And in Mexicos attempt to independence, its first Constitution 1814, Apatzingan these far north provinces were not listed as Mexico, they did not support independence. In fact, there were northern NM folks in the 1800s who actually lived under three flags. Born under Spains flag as subjects if Spain, lived under the Mexican flag as Mexican citizens ( including Anglo settlers), died under the USA flag as American citizens.

[@leifsprout]

Spanish is my second language and I've gotten to a point in learning the language where I have to decide which dialect I'll speak. I've had many different types of teachers speaking different types of Spanish throughout my learning of the language, so I never had a solid jumping off point on what regional grammar and definitions I should use, just standard Spanish. I'm from the US and I'm looking to move to Colorado in the future. Even though it isn't what I grew up speaking, it'll be the Spanish of those around me. I am glad that they showed the dictionary because that is going to be my next purchase. I can't wait to see how much is similar to what I've learned as Mexican Spanish (words from Nahuatl) and which words come from English, and which ones come from the tribes who live(d) there (such as Navajo, Comanche, Apache, Ute, Pueblo, etc...). I may even start learning Navajo depending on how much that language influenced the Spanish dialect.

[@francisdec1615]

We Europeans have a similar problem when learning English. It's supposed to be British English in most schools in Europe, but thanks to all influence from the US, most Europeans now speak a kind of hybrid English.

[@renerincon1]

A lot of communities in Texas and even California and other southwest states have traditionally spoken Spanish like them. Old archaic, Spanish words like haiga, asina, lo mesmo , naiden ,muncho ,trastero , vites etc are still used in pockets of the southwest , Mexico and Latin America. Not to speak of the old grammar style. A lot of other words they used are Spanglish corruption of English words such as lonche for lunch,troka for truck , queque for cake are all words that we would use in California much to the shock of properly educated Spanish speakers😅

[@Lee-jh6cr]

Thank you for noting the old grammar and words. In WWII my parents lived in Hobbs and Roswell as my father was an Army Air Force officer and pilot. He was half Irish with black hair, brown eyes, a mustache, and tan like a nut. He was constantly taken to be Mexican. With a 'blonde' wife AND an officer - you can imagine. But they rolled with it. They loved the cultures of the SW. Mom formally studied Spanish becoming quite fluent. The Spanish she learned was old school grammar, wording, and writing. Very formal and strictly structured. I still have her texts. When studying Spanish in HS and college in the 70s, I noticed considerable difference, and in travelling the SW in the 60s/70s on our way to my aunt's in Camarillo CA and later Yuma, regional differences were obvious. It's no different from any other language. I've met people from Louisiana that I could barely understand and they spoke English, not even Creole, Cajun. And it wasn't just the accent. A distinct dialect of English. Language is constantly evolving at different rates in different areas. Thousands are on the verge of extinction, which is a loss. Language is a window, a door into a culture, a way of life. When it closes, not just the language, but knowledge unique to the culture is lost with the words describing it.

[@mariamoreno6342]

Orgullosa de sentir hablar en español a esas venerables personas. Orgullosa de saber que antes de que se oyera una sola palabra en inglés en esas tierras ya se hablaba español.

[@billbirkett7166]

There are so many unique dialects of various languages that are threatened with extinction now in the U.S. It reminds me of the English equivalents of these things on the east coast--the Smith Island and Tangier Island dialects of the Chesapeake Bay, and the unique dialects of the Outer Banks in North Carolina. You listen to some of these dialects, and it's like you are stepping into a time machine, they are completely unique dialects from hundreds of years ago that did not get eroded--when the old timers are talking together, your first impression is that these people must be from Britain. I think a lot of the linguistic landscape in the U.S. is actually like that--far, far more diverse than people are willing to understand. Not only with hundreds of unique Native American languages, but also unique dialects of many European languages that aren't English. Did you know that up until the early 1900's the dominant language of Northern New Jersey and the Catskills in New York was something called Jersey Dutch, spoken by a million people? In 1960, 1.5 million people in Louisiana still spoke Cajun French. People in northern New England still speak French dialects similar to Quebec. At one point at the turn of the 20th century, 10 million people across the heartland spoke German as their primary language.

[@psalm91.777]

I love languages, I am a native New Mexican

[@marcuscole1994]

Why are ppl in America losing their language

[@psalm91.777]

@@marcuscole1994 because we were discriminated against in our own land , by many . My own mother back in the sixties was punished for speaking Spanish and shamed from it.because of this my generation and many others were not taught our form of Spanish or we may have heard it spoken but didn't understand because they would not teach us , I got to grow up with hearing the old people speak but I didn't know Spanish and I learned Spanish from others not my New Mexican Spanish

[@nicedoppy2077]

@@psalm91.777 are u navajo ?

[@psalm91.777]

@@nicedoppy2077 part

[@weekendminitoystruckcarclu4632]

WOW what a great story to air for everyone to see. You hit the nail right on the head. Priceless just priceless.

[@sh0eh0rn4]

this is how the elders in my family speak. I learned Spanish later on, and sometimes I have trouble communicating with them. 😥😥

[@Sam-df9rs]

My mom's side of the family is from Santa Rosa, NM. When I heard the older couple speaking, it sounded exactly like my grandparents!

[@SRone45]

As a Texas German I feel this because our language is disappearing.

[@simonsuarez5314]

Keep it alive! Revive it!

[@scintillam_dei]

I met a racist Texan Austrian in Cambodia who knows only English yet wishes Hitler won. He belittled the Spanish, so I put him in his place.

[@misssilencedogood5968]

Yeah, parents are no longer teaching Spanish and instead English has taken over the language and formed this abomination of Spanglish. No one in my family speaks this way and it would be laughed at as "omg they don't know the correct Spanish word"??

[@rh81454]

Ja genau. I speak German but from modern day Germany when I lived there for a few years. Make sure to never lose it, and right down a journal (diary) of how you became a Texas Deutsch speaker so your family can have that journal later on after you pass. So many of us try to look for our ancestral past when its facing us right in the face atm. There's a small island off the coast of North Carolina that still has Americans speaking with an English accent. Best of luck.

[@LewisC-iu3hh]

We Hispanics created Tejas! We were there before any of you!

[@jaycalif8240]

Southern California Chicano here. Thank you for this documentary. I didn't know about this history in Colorado👍🏼

[@pallexa]

I’m a white woman transplant living in penasco nm in Taos county. This is a very special place with a very distinct culture and language. I’d hate to see it go.❤

[@gavindoyle692]

Qué triste que estos niños pequeños estén perdiendo el idioma de sus abuelos. Soy irlandés ☘️ y me mudé a México hace cinco años y ahora hablo con total fluidez el español, mi quinto idioma después del inglés, francés, alemán e italiano. ¡Aprender idiomas es divertido y hace la vida más interesante!

[@Boyridge]

Puerto Rican from New York. Many of my relatives who have now passed spoke this Spanish\Spanglish. For years I thought Lonche was Spanish for Lunch and Quequi was for Cake. It’s amazing how this version of Spanglish has even been absorbed back into Puerto Rico itself due to constant migration. I think this language is probably very common amongst many U.S. Latino communities.

[@andycockrum1212]

Language preservation projects need so much more attention and funding than they get. We need them for these unique Spanish dialects, as well as many native languages. Language is such a cornerstone of culture and we can’t let these things die

[@vysheslavuzumati1269]

I’m predominantly of Miwok(a California indigenous people) ancestry but my grandma on my moms side is of Tejano descent, she can speak Spanish but it’s a out dated version I remember an ex girlfriend who was mexican and spoke Mexican Spanish saying she can understand her but she uses very old words for things. There are a lot of dialects of different languages like this for example Texas German and Texas Czech which I had the pleasure of hearing from very old people in the community.

[@CASHVideosTX]

This is done so very well. Great pkg. An example for all journalists on how to do a pkg correctly especially given the time.

[@josevarela5579]

My family is from Cimarrón New Mexico and that's how they speak. I love it.

[@BenjaminMartinez-em6ed]

I know some varelas de cima

[@Peshkatari]

Please don't give up the fight -- as long as there are still people speaking this dialect, there's still hope! To put the words of the great Cajun musician and cultural activist Jourdan Thibodeaux into Spanish, "Vives tu cultura o matas tu cultura, no hay término medio" -- "You live your culture or you kill your culture, there is no middle ground".

[@qualqui]

This video reminds me of our landlady, Doña Rosalía García viuda de Robertson, qepd, the stories she told us of her siblings and her growing up in Abiquiu, NM. Her first boyfriend would take her to buy pollo asado and eat it in the city park in Abiquiu, but alas, due to better opportunities her mother took her siblings and her to Cisco, UT where she grew up and later became a teacher, always teaching first the mexican american children that ol' mexican song 'Alla en el rancho grande". Then she met Alonso Robertson, they married and made Moab, UT their home, she never forgot her spanish, and upon meeting my parents, mexican immigrants from central Mexico, had somebody to practice her northern NM spanish, but what we call dinner rolls she called 'galletas'(cookies), what we call cilantro, she called culantro (I only recently discovered that these two herbs are totally different, so she may be referring to the latter which comes from Puerto Rico). But yeah, when my mom made chocolate chip cookies and gave her some, she would call those 'cuques'! 😂😊✌

[@billherbert4961]

Watching this from New Zealand, my home for decades now. Pero soy Nuevo Mexicano. I worked at Ski Rio in it's last season and lived in Amalia, NM, just south of San Luis. My heart aches watching this. Gracias.

[@TunahTak]

People, Colorado Spanish is the son of northern Mexican Spanish, so that Colorado language doesn't die out, it would be very good for Colorado schools to teach Interlingua, which is the language that bridges the gap between English and Spanish and is based on both and through Interlingua This Spanish from Colorado does not die and English is also enriched by rediscovering its Neo-Hellenic and Neo-Latin roots too, Interlingua values both Spanish and English and everyone wins without friction.

[@lawrenceelisalde5942]

My grandma is from Las Cruces/Mesilla and spoke like this 🥹🥹🥹

[@sergiom3097]

Juan Sandoval was a friend natural from these parts of southern Colorado, RIP. He'd tell people that his town of Alamosa changed hands when the US stole a big part of these lands from Mexico and for years they didn't know about it so it was like an island of Spanish in the English-speaking US. Juan later moved to El Paso Texas to work as a university librarian until his death around 2020. He was an art collector too and loved traveling to Oaxaca at least once a year to reconnect with his origins and Mexican culture which he loved.

[@elpencil]

I’ve met some New Mexico natives, especially older folk and they do have a unique accent and utilize words that are uniquely found in that region of the U.S.

[@RicardoRMedina]

We Puerto Ricans in the north part of the US also have our own version of "Spanglish" very similar to the one in Colorado.

[@surrelljr]

I know that the Spanish that used to be spoken in southern Wyoming sounded different and in the past when I heard it I could tell that they were from there. It seemed to be similar to what my uncle’s family from Colorado Springs spoke. The family was there when it was still Mexico. In the last few decades I’ve only heard it once in Rock Springs Wyoming about 3 years ago. I don’t know how much of it survives.

[@danieldelrancho5749]

This type of Spanish will never die in the SouthWest

[@andreshernandez2876]

I am Puertorican and most of my family is bilingual. When we talk we constantly mix both languages. We call it Spanglish. Besides using words in English and Spanish together when speaking, we use many of the same words I heard in this video. Here a couple of an examples of English words changed to Spanglish; weekend - wiken, yard - yarda, sneakers - tenis (like tennis) or champios like the sneaker brand.

[@crazymangoz9583]

It warms my heart in a bittersweet way learning about these people. I can relate as a Cajun in South Louisiana. There's so many unique cultures in America under threat of extinction

[@pomona7907]

I always wondered!!!! Thank you for this!

[@freelyroaming]

That's very cool. Loncheria is commonly used in Baja California and many parts of Mexico

[@Violet-du9bk]

Thank you for this segment! It’s hard to explain to others Americans.

[@spaniardmartinez6896]

In Capulin Colorado,we are pure Spanglish speakers!

[@hiramcrespo734]

Another argument against Puerto Rico statehood. Spanish in the US is older than English, but people think of it as foreign.

[@carlosgonzalez7199]

It's Spanglish. We speak it in Miami. Very easy to speak if you are fully bilingual.

[@kyliestory1451]

This reminds me of my grandma so much! She was so ashamed to speak Spanish; she grew up when schools were English only. I wish she taught my father and me. Growing up I remember telling people about my heritage and people wouldn't believe me because my grandparents were "American."

[@stevenotero2627]

That's how it was and too many people don't know that these white supremacist didn't allow kids to speak their native tounge in school. It's why my grandparents didn't teach their kids and they didn't teach their kids. It's a cold game. Divide and conquer is their game. 😎🎭✌️

[@matiasromero328]

I grew up in a tiny farming community named Embúdo in north-central New Mexico. I learned =to speak Spanish at the same time I learned to speak English. My parents made sure my sister and I knew both languages fluently so we could converse with our elderly grandparents, great-tíos & tías as they spoke very little, to no English. I can still speak, read and write fluently in Spanish. Northeño Spanish truly is a dialect of it's own. Example --> "¿que vas hacer este weekend?". It's a beautiful dialect.

[@jorgecervantes3725]

That’s Spanglish my friend. For someone that properly speaks the Spanish language, speaking in that form is embarrassing.

[@mrs.force-kihn118]

Yeah I’m like totally confused as to what every in the comments is talking about. I’m like waiting to hear what this language/dialect sounds like. It’s dying out! We have to save it!… okay? There’s nothing to save ! It’s just people who didn’t learn Spanish all the way that feel inadequate they need some corny “idioma”. Don’t make it your personality jeez you sound like you got hired as the diversity character in a movie as a Latina and you gotta say chica or hermana when you talk to your friend

[@AbdonPhirathon]

This is called code switching, not a dialect. Just like any other form of Spanglish, you need to know the two languages in order to be able to code switch.

[@nathangale7702]

It doesn't have to disappear. Louisiana is working to preserve Cajun and Creole French. You don't need a lot of speakers to preserve a dialect, just enough to pass to the next generation. Don't give up.

[@psalm91.777]

This made me cry I thought of my grandma, we are from Albuquerque

[@HispanicCausingPanic..........]

505

[@elcidsolorzano]

El Castellano will never die! Viva la Hispanidad!!!

[@simonsuarez5314]

Viva!

[@scintillam_dei]

All languages will die when the new earth comes. DEVS VVLT

[@trashcantacos]

​@@scintillam_dei fuck no

[@guille224]

VIVA!!!

[@manuelsanchezdeinigo3959]

¡Qué Viva!

[@OliviaMadera]

It is not a dialect of Spanish, it is old Spanish, which is still spoken in those places as in some rural areas of Mexico.

[@felipemontoya2558]

You know what's sadder? That the reporter who's doing the documentary admits at the end he doesn't even speak it, in spite of the fact her grandma is the only in her family who still speaks it. That's the sad part, it'll fade quicker than 50 years for sure. Not even the local are speaking it anymore. Such a shame!

[@user-ei8go8og5g]

It’s so sad:/ I speak and understand Spanish but exactly like this video says, it’s not even Spanish from my own culture, it’s words from Mexico or Spain that I learned in school or through other people. All my great grandparents who spoke this specific dialect fluently are gone and I only have two grandparents who speak it but who’ve lost a lot of their Spanish even though it was their first language due to being punished for speaking Spanish in school

[@antoniogutierrezjr7471]

What bout trying to learn. The native language ? I speak flunet Spanish but feal bad I don’t know the native language why focus on the colonizers language ??

[@felipemontoya2558]

@@antoniogutierrezjr7471 the Pueblo language is spoken by a fewer portion of the population. It will not have effect on the economy, so people is not incentivized to speak it. Same in my country Colombia there are at least 1,000 native languages but the majority of them are just spoken by few hundreds. Is a lost battle unfortunately. At least Spanish is Lingua Franca in The Americas.

[@letshuman8985]

Why is it a shame that the reporter doesnt speak Spanish? Is it a shame that Americans of German or Italian descent no longer speak their ancestral languages? Is it a shame that Black-Americans dont speak the languages of whatever African tribes their ancestors came from? As many generations pass, the children lose their connection to their ancestral cultures and languages because they are fully assimilated to the society around them-this most likely happens by the third generation or so. You are Colombian, right? I know that there are Colombians of German descent. Is it a shame that they no longer speak German? Why dont they speak German anymore? I think you know the answer to that…

[@letshuman8985]

@@antoniogutierrezjr7471So my curious question to you is: what are you going to do about it? Learn the local native language then. You cannot, however, force people to stop speaking Spanish just because you think that it’s a “colonizer” language. Whether you like it or not, the Spanish language is now a part of your culture and identity. To purge Spanish influence from your culture is as much as a colonizer tactic and you would be no different. Lo siento mucho.

[@VitoVeccia]

Same thing for immigrant Italians. My parents ( like many Italians) came to the NY area in the 60's and 70's. When i talk to my relatives in Italy, i can barely understand them. Same family, but different generation of language.

[@marcocisneros5988]

I don't speak this dialect but I'm from TIjuana, Mexico and I used to say No tengo dinero pal lonche, I never knew that a word from that dialect

[@thekingofmoney2000]

Lonche is common thought pretty much all the border states. A lot of these terms are just Spanglish terms used by many Mexican Americans throughout, Texas and the southwest.

[@Hualapai702]

My ancestors are the ANASAZI PUEBLOS. Now I’m from the HUALAPAI tribe. I also have HUICHOL & YAVAPAI APACHE.

[@SIl_Ae]

The words the kids shared are almost all spoken in the Dominican Republic. I grew up in nyc hearing this from my mom and her side of our family, and my other Dominican friends shared the same experience.

[@kahlilbt]

Beautiful! As a linguist from the area, I'd love to hear more recordings

[@thepalehorse08]

I hope they do a documentary on the tejano spanish. It’s interesting. I have a tejano uncle who married into my fam. He’s had fam in Texas (since before it was Texas) and he sounds Cuban or some shit.

[@genxx2724]

Nice language. How sad that you had to use a vulgar word in this beautiful conversation.

[@rottengal]

he sounds “Cuban” to you because he probably had ancestors from Andalusia (cubans and andalusians have similar accents)

[@robjackson5245]

@@rottengal No they don't. They all sound like generic Spaniards from Castile or Leon. And yes Spaniards are white with Penelope Cruz English accents. Nuyoricans and Italians are non-white, Hispanic, Latin with Latin English accents.

[@catherinebaskettastrology3627]

So much heart. Thanks for telling us this story ❤

[@holasoyalicia]

Queques is used here in the Patagonia, Punta Arenas Chile 🇨🇱 for pastel/ cake

[@soniagalindo7589]

It's the kind of Spanish we use in Baja California I am certain many Northern places in Mexico use it. So if it's used in Baja California it certainly is used in California some of us Mexicanos, Spanglish. At least that is what I heard here.

[@Evyeve6582]

My Grandmother Chavez- Espinosa from Pueblo Colorado and Chama, Tierra Armarilla New Mexico. She was very happy and proud she could speak two languages. ❤

[@betsychavez2914]

My mom's family from TA area in NM.😊

[@spiderpickle3255]

I feel like part of the reason this Español is disappearing has something to do with the stories both our parents told us when growing up. They both said that their teachers would physically punish them if they were caught speaking Spanish at all and told to only speak english. This would have been in the 50's in both Del Norte and Monte Vista. I grew up being taught that english was the only lawfully recognized language in the US and it wasn't until I was in middle school that I learned the US doesn't have an official language. I wish I had been taught this but I only know a handful of words and a couple simple phrases 😔

[@elbarrigueta]

You can learn Spanish on KZbin or another social network. The Anglo-Saxon world has always been supremacist, intolerant, exclusive, racist and xenophobic. You just have to see the native Americans who walk through on the streets of cities in the United States and compare them with the streets of Spanish-American countries like (Guatemala, México, El Salvador, Perú, Colombia, etc., etc.,). Un saludo desde España.

[@spiderpickle3255]

@@elbarrigueta Yes, I know what you are saying. I just have to look at the history of my own blood in New Mexico and Colorado. I need tribal blood quantum be recognized as a member of an Indian nation.

[@scintillam_dei]

English is objectively the stupidest (most inconsistent) language of all. It's also far less romantic than Spanish. See my videos proving Spaniash superiority over the English in many ways except that they eventually had greater technology due to their horizons expanded by the Spanish they followed.

[@Olsjaz]

@@elbarrigueta you’re so right.

[@paulsawczyc5019]

I hear those words on the east coast - it's not fading away.

[@ronanbakker]

My native language Frisian is also fading away, I still try to keep it alive. Easy languages deserve recognition.

[@marco1173]

They’re not immigrants to the U.S., English came to them.

[@theaquariancontrarian3316]

This dialect seems similar to the dialect on the arizona/ sonora, mexico border area except its closer to spanish.

[@frankiesalazar3515]

Lovely viejitos ❤️

[@st67839]

What a beautiful video! It is like Cajun French. My grandparents were discouraged from speaking it when they were young and were made to feel ashamed as were many Cajun French speakers during that time which inhibited its continuity. The language is being revived throughout Cajun country through many grassroots organizations. This needs to be done here to ensure the language survives.

[@jijiji9520]

Many on those words and expressions are just the way we speak Spanish in northern Mexico

[@erickabrady4780]

I still use those words that I learned from my grandparents Urbano and Rosa Carrillo

[@daghul4785]

I’ve heard hundreds of different varieties of Spanish. Some I could barely understand even as a native speaker. It’s crazy how varied it gets.

[@deecee9479]

It sounds to me like Spanglish. As a native English speaker working really hard to learn Spanish, I appreciate the words that are similar to English. It’s like a cheat word for me 😅. In any event, I am always saddened to learn of any dialects fading away. It is wonderful that some of the younger generation is working to keep it alive. What a great story! ❤️👍🏼

[@elimartinez7704]

There are actually a lot of other words not mentioned in the video, some unique to the region but most simply artifacts from older time periods Capulin - chokecherry Ánima - soul (instead of alma) Ánsar - goose (a wild one) Cimarrón - a wild horse Among many others.

[@elfulano5884]

It's very similar to what happened with the French dialects spoken in Louisiana and Maine. They began to die out around mid 50's but those communities are trying hard to revive them.

[@axobros7950]

🫶♥️ So glad you did this piece! Sad to hear it is disappearing. I wish we had a teacher in Wyoming.