Ka’ux: Mixe language and biodiversity loss in Oaxaca, Mexico

Abstract

The community of Tlahuitoltepec, in the Sierra Mixe of Oaxaca, is losing Traditional Ecological Knowledge due to socially driven changes in its natural environment. Mixe is one of the 69 indigenous languages spoken in Oaxaca, and is spoken almost exclusively in Tlahuitoltepec. Using an ethnographic approach, with loosely structured interviews among key members of the community, we analyzed the theory that biodiversity loss is linked to the loss of indigenous languages and traditional ecological knowledge. Our findings show that certain words in Mixe, used to refer to animals that are no longer observed in the community or its surroundings, are not well known by young people. The case of Ka'ux reflects what happens to traditional ecological knowledge and to an indigenous language when biodiversity is lost.