Extinct Indigenous Language Manuscripts Join UNESCO Memory of the World Program

Two manuscripts in extinct indigenous languages, crucial for preserving Mexico's linguistic and cultural legacy, have been included in UNESCO's Memory of the World Program. These are a confessional in the Barberena language and an Ópata vocabulary, considered the only colonial dictionary of that language. Martha Romero, Mexico's representative to UNESCO's Regional Committee for Latin America and the Caribbean, stated that these items are held at the National Library of Mexico, part of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). "The fact that this record of languages that are now extinct exists helps us to know how the evolution of this language was, how it was used, how it was written, how it was spoken, etcetera," Romero explained. The first text, a Confesionario created by Juan Cortés in 1798, contains Christian doctrine prayers and a method for confessing in the Barberena language. Romero noted, "These books were in continuous use and were used for evangelization and understanding between both cultures," referring to the indigenous and Spanish cultures during Mexico's colonial era. The manuscript was created within indigenous communities, reflecting the cultural and religious exchange between the European and Native American worlds. The second document, "Arte de la lengua teguima y vocabulario de la lengua ore", was created by Natal Lombardo between 1685 and 1698. It contains writings in Ópata, an extinct language spoken in the Mexican state of Sonora (northwest). This linguistic and anthropological material, once thought lost, is now the only colonial dictionary of this language. The National Library of Mexico maintains a storage facility with constant temperature and humidity monitoring to preserve these works. "We maintain the environmental conditions as stable as possible so that the materials are not affected," said the Mexican representative. UNESCO's Memory of the World Program, established in 1992, aims to preserve and ensure access to humanity's documentary heritage.