Compendio del Arte de la Lengua Mexicana de P. Horacio Carochi de la Compania de Jesus: Dispuesto Con Brevedad, Claridad, Y Propriedad
Author: Horacio Carochi (1586-1666) and Ignacio de Paredes
Year: 1759
Publisher: Imprenta de la Biblioteca Mexicana
Place: Mexico City
Description:
[24]+202 pages with frontispiece. Octavo (8" x 6") bound in original velum with hand written title to spine and ties. First published in 1645.
Carochi was born in Florence as Horazio Carocci. He went to Rome where he entered the Society of Jesus. From Rome he went to the New World, arriving in New Spain (now Mexico). There he dedicated himself to the study of the indigenous languages and became proficient in Otomi and then in Nahuatl. He was a friend of the Bishop and later Viceroy of New Spain, Juan de Palafox y Mendoza, as is documented by surviving letters written by Carochi to the bishop.
Carochi's masterpiece, Arte de la lengua mexicana con la declaración de los adverbios della, was published in Mexico City in 1645. Unlike contemporary European grammarians who struggled with Mesoamerican phonology, Carochi brought unprecedented scientific precision to his work: He was the first to implement a highly consistent transcription system for the saltillo (the glottal stop character native to Nahuatl). He marked non-final glottal stops with a grave accent (`) and final glottal stops with a circumflex accent (^). He recognized that short and long vowels changed word meanings in Nahuatl and meticulously marked vowel lengths using macron diacritics. Carochi included an exhaustive collection of conversational examples and focused heavily on complex adverbs. This kept his grammar grounded in real-world use rather than rigid, Latinized formulas
Carochi also drafted a comprehensive grammar and vocabulary of the Otomi language, which is now considered lost. In 1759, a heavily condensed and rewritten version of his Nahuatl grammar called the Compendio was published by Ignacio Paredes, though it stripped away much of Carochi's original linguistic genius.
Condition:
Spine cracked, name in old in to title, edge wear, some light internal soiling else good to very good.
