ORGULLO CULTURAL Y AMBIVALENCIA: ACTITUDES ANTE LA LENGUA ORIGINARIA EN LA SOCIEDAD MAPUCHE CONTEMPORÁNEA

Abstract

Mapuche's linguistic perceptions, attitudes and practices can only be understood in the context of minorization of mapuzugun, as it occurs with the progressive loss of linguistic vitality of the native language, who affects the great majority of its objective indicators (speakers, competence levels, functions, use realms, etc.). At the same time, the dynamic cultural activism we observe by the Mapuche today has some positive impact on the reconsideration of language's and culture's value, reinforcing favorable perceptions about own culture and one of its main institutions: the language. These perceptions existed from long ago but occupied a secondary place. They contribute to generate a new image of their language, changing the extended conception that associated it exclusively to its rural origins and Mapuche social spaces. At the same time, the strengthening of cultural pride and linguistic prestige coexists with a declinant linguistic vitality, so, linguistic loyalty tends to become discursive than practical.