The number of Mayan languages currently spoken in Guatemala is 22, not dialects in the narrow sense — these are distinct, recognized Mayan languages, each with its own grammar and vocabulary, though some do have internal dialects.

How many Mayan languages in Guatemala?

Guatemala officially recognizes 22 Mayan languages, alongside Spanish (the official language), plus the non‑Mayan Indigenous languages Garífuna and Xinca, making 25 national languages in total.

These 22 Mayan languages belong to five of the six major branches of the Mayan language family and are spoken mainly in the western, central, and northern highlands and lowlands of the country.

Why not “dialects”?

Linguists and Guatemalan institutions (like MINEDUC and the National Institute of Statistics) treat these as separate languages, not just dialects of one “Mayan” tongue.

For example:

  • K’iche’ is one language, with several regional varieties (sometimes called dialects).
  • Q’eqchi’, Kaqchikel, Mam, Tz’utujil, and others are each distinct languages, not dialects of each other.

So, while each of these 22 languages may have local dialects, the count of distinct Mayan languages currently spoken in Guatemala is 22.

The 22 Mayan languages (list)

The 22 recognized Mayan languages in Guatemala are:

  1. Achi
  2. Akateko
  3. Awakateko (also called Ixil)
  4. Ch’orti’
  5. Chuj
  6. Eastern Tzeltal
  7. Eastern Tzotzil
  8. Huasteco
  9. Jakaltek (Popti’)
  10. K’iche’
  11. Kaqchikel
  12. Mam
  13. Mopan
  14. Poqomam
  15. Poqomchi’
  16. Q’anjob’al
  17. Q’eqchi’
  18. Sakapulteko
  19. Sipakapense
  20. Tektiteko
  21. Tz’utujil
  22. Uspanteko

Among the options: 12, 23, 37, 42

Given the choices in the question:

  • 12 — too low (only a subset of the major languages).
  • 23 — close, but the standard count is 22 Mayan languages.
  • 37 — higher than the total number of languages in the country.
  • 42 — matches the approximate number of municipalities where Mayan languages are spoken, not the number of languages.

So the correct answer is 22 Mayan languages currently spoken in Guatemala.

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