Western Apache language
| Western Apache | |
|---|---|
| Ndee biyáti' / Nṉee biyáti' | |
| Native to | Mexico and United States |
| Region | Sonora, Chihuahua and south-east Arizona |
| Ethnicity | Western Apache |
Native speakers | 13,445, 65% of population (2013) |
Dené–Yeniseian?
| |
| Latin | |
| Official status | |
Official language in | Mexico |
Recognised minority language in | San Carlos Apache Nation, Arizona |
| Regulated by | Instituto Nacional de Lenguas Indígenas |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | apw |
| Glottolog | west2615 |
| ELP | Western Apache |
Western Apache is classified as Definitely Endangered by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger | |
The Western Apache language is a Southern Athabaskan language spoken among the 14,000 Western Apaches in Mexico in the states of Sonora and Chihuahua and in east-central Arizona. There are approximately 6,000 speakers living on the San Carlos Reservation and 7,000 living on the Fort Apache Reservation. In Mexico, they mainly live in Hermosillo, Sonora, and other native communities in Chihuahua.