Counting in Totontepec Mixe
Language overview
Totontepec Mixe (Ayöök), or North Highland Mixe, belongs to the Mixe branch of the Mixe–Zoque language family. It is spoken in the municipalities of Totontepec, Mixistlán (Chichicaxtepec) and Tlahuitoltepec (Yacochi), Oaxaca, Mexico, and counts about 5,500 native speakers.
Due to lack of data, we can only count accurately up to 999 in Totontepec Mixe. Please contact me if you can help me counting up from that limit.
Totontepec Mixe numbers list
- 1 – to’c
- 2 – me̲jtsc
- 3 – toojc
- 4 – mactaaxc
- 5 – mugo̲o̲xc
- 6 – tojtu̲c
- 7 – vuxtojtu̲c
- 8 – todojtu̲c
- 9 – taxtojtu̲c
- 10 – majc
- 11 – macto’c
- 12 – macme̲jtsc
- 13 – mactoojc
- 14 – macmajcts
- 15 – macmó̲cx
- 16 – mactojt
- 17 – macvuxtojt
- 18 – mactodojt
- 19 – mactaxtojt
- 20 – ii’px
- 30 – ii’pxmajc
- 40 – vu̲jxtcupx
- 50 – vu̲jxtcupxu̲cmajc
- 60 – toogupx
- 70 – toogupxu̲cmajc
- 80 – majctupx
- 90 – majctupxu̲cmajc
- 100 – mó̲cupx
Totontepec Mixe numbering rules
Now that you’ve had a gist of the most useful numbers, let’s move to the writing rules for the tens, the compound numbers, and why not the hundreds, the thousands and beyond (if possible).
- Digits from one to nine are rendered by specific words, namely to’c [1], me̲jtsc [2], toojc [3], mactaaxc [4], mugo̲o̲xc [5] (mó̲cx when compound), tojtu̲c [6], vuxtojtu̲c [7], taxtojtu̲c [8], and taxtojtu̲c [9].
- Tens are following a vigesimal system (of base 20), alternating between multiples of twenty and multiples of twenty plus ten: majc [10], ii’px [20], ii’pxmajc [30] (20+10), vu̲jxtcupx [40], vu̲jxtcupxu̲cmajc [50] (40+10), toogupx [60], toogupxu̲cmajc [70] (60+10), majctupx [80], and majctupxu̲cmajc [90] (80+10).
- Numbers from eleven to nineteen are formed starting with a form of the word for ten (mac), directly followed by the unit with no space: macto’c [11], macme̲jtsc [12], mactoojc [13], macmajcts [14], macmó̲cx [15], mactojt [16], macvuxtojt [17], mactodojt [18], and mactaxtojt [19].
- Compound numbers are formed starting with the ten directly followed with the unit when the ten is a multiple of twenty (e.g.: ii’pxto’c [21], toogupxme̲jtsc [62]), and starting with the ten where the word for ten (majc) is replaced by the number from eleven to nineteen when the ten is not a multiple of ten (e.g.: ii’pxmacmó̲cx [35], majctupxu̲cmactojt [96]).
- Hundreds are formed starting with the multiplier digit, followed by the word for hundred (mó̲cupx) separated with a space, except for one hundred: mó̲cupx [100], me̲jtsc mó̲cupx [200], toojc mó̲cupx [300], mactaaxc mó̲cupx [400], mugo̲o̲xc mó̲cupx [500], tojtu̲c mó̲cupx [600], vuxtojtu̲c mó̲cupx [700], taxtojtu̲c mó̲cupx [800], and taxtojtu̲c mó̲cupx [900].
Write a number in full in Totontepec Mixe
Let’s move now to the practice of the numbering rules in Totontepec Mixe. Will you guess how to write a number in full? Enter a number and try to write it down in your head, or maybe on a piece of paper, before displaying the result.
Books
Vocabulario Mixe de Totontepec
by Alvin & Louise C. Schoenhals, editors Instituto Lingüístico de Verano (1965)
[ Amazon.com]
Source
- Vocabulario Mixe de Totontepec (in Spanish), compiled by Alvin and Louise C. Schoenhals, Summer Institute of Linguistics (1965)
Mixe-Zoque languages
Quetzaltepec Mixe, and Totontepec Mixe.
Other supported languages
As the other currently supported languages are too numerous to list extensively here, please select a language from the full list of supported languages.