Zapotec languages in the context of Guerrero

Coatzacoalcos (Spanish: [koatsakoˈalkos]; formerly known as Puerto México; Nahuatl languages: Koatzakwalko; Zapotec: Niniashi; Popoluca: Puertu) is a major port city in the southern part of the Mexican state of Veracruz, mostly on the western side of the Coatzacoalcos River estuary, on the Bay of Campeche, on the southern Gulf of Mexico coast. The city serves as the municipal seat of the municipality of the same name. The city had a 2020 census population of 212,540, making it the third-largest city in the state after Veracruz and Xalapa. The municipality covers a surface area of 471.16 km (181.916 sq mi) and reported a population of 310,698 persons. The municipality population in 2015 was 319,187 a decrease of 9% over 2020.

The Zapotec (Valley Zapotec: Bën za) are an Indigenous people of Mexico. Their population is primarily concentrated in the southern state of Oaxaca, but Zapotec communities also exist in neighboring states. The present-day population is estimated at 400,000 to 650,000, many of whom are monolingual in one of the Native Zapotec languages and dialects.

In pre-Columbian times, the Zapotec civilization was one of the highly developed cultures of Mesoamerica that had a Zapotec writing system.

Oaxaca de Juárez (Spanish pronunciation: [waˈxaka ðe ˈxwaɾes]), or simply Oaxaca (Valley Zapotec: Ndua), is the capital and largest city of the eponymous Mexican state of Oaxaca. It is the municipal seat for the surrounding municipality of Oaxaca, the most populous municipality in Oaxaca, and the fourth most densely populated municipality in Oaxaca, only being less densely populated than San Jacinto Amilpas, Santa Lucía del Camino, and Santa Cruz Amilpas. It is in the Centro District in the Central Valleys region of the state, in the foothills of the Sierra Madre at the base of the Cerro del Fortín, extending to the banks of the Atoyac River.

Heritage tourism is an important part of the city's economy, and it includes numerous colonial-era structures, significant archeological sites, and elements of the continuing native Zapotec and Mixtec cultures. The city, together with the nearby archeological site of Monte Albán, was designated in 1987 as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is the site of the month-long cultural festival called the "Guelaguetza", which features Oaxacan dance from the seven regions, music, and a beauty pageant for indigenous women.

The Nahuatl language in the United States is spoken primarily by Mexican immigrants from Indigenous communities and Chicanos who study and speak Nahuatl as L2. Despite the fact that there is no official census of the language in the North American country, it is estimated that there are around 140,800 Nahuatl speakers. During the last decades, the United States has carried out many educational initiatives aimed at teaching Nahuatl as a language of cultural heritage.

Thanks to first-hand sources collected over several decades, it is known that there are Nahua communities in the cities of Los Angeles, Houston, Chicago, Atlanta and Riverside, with the first two (known as the "Nahua migratory capital cities" since they were established as international referents of the Nahua region since the 1980s) where community networks have been consolidated. In California, Nahuatl is the fourth Indigenous language of Mexico that is most present in the state's agriculture, behind Mixtec, Zapotec and Triqui.

Mitla is the second-most important archeological site in the state of Oaxaca in Mexico, after Monte Albán, and the most important of the Zapotec culture. The site is located 44 km from the city of Oaxaca, in the upper end of the Tlacolula Valley, one of the three cold, high valleys that form the Central Valleys Region of the state. At an elevation of 4,855 ft (1,480 m), surrounded by the mountains of the Sierra Madre del Sur, the archeological site is within the modern municipality of San Pablo Villa de Mitla. It is 24 mi (38 km) southeast of Oaxaca city. While Monte Albán was the most important politically of the Zapotec centers, Mitla became the main religious one in a later period as the area became dominated by the Mixtec.

The name Mitla is derived from the Nahuatl name Mictlán, meaning the "place of the dead" or "underworld." Its Zapotec name is Lyobaa, which means “place of rest”. The name Mictlán was transliterated to Mitla. It was established as a sacred burial site by the Zapotec, but the architecture and designs also show the influence of the Mixtec, who had become prominent in the area during the peak of Mitla settlement.

The Zapotecan languages are a group of related Oto-Manguean languages which descend from the common Proto-Zapotecan language spoken by the Zapotec people during the era of the dominance of Monte Albán.

The Zapotecan language group contains the Zapotec languages and the Chatino languages.