TAY NAJA NITAJTAKETZKI ACHTU TIK NAWAT / ‌MIS PRIMERAS PALABRAS EN NAHUAT / MY FIRST WORDS IN NAHUAT‌

A side-by-side-by-side trilingual collection of 20 poems acknowledges and commemorates Indigenous Nahuat language and culture.

Argueta, Poet Laureate Emeritus of San Mateo County, California, draws on his childhood in his native town of Witzapan, El Salvador, where his beloved grandmother taught him his first Nahuat words. “Despite all the injustices that the Nahua people have been subjected to and continue to experience, the Nahuat language still lives.” In the titular, opening poem, Argueta highlights how those first Nahuat words reflected his surroundings—including water, wind, fire, clay, stars, flowers, and Mother Earth herself. His verses recall his home village, with its Nahuat name meaning “river of thorns,” the Tepechapa River, which “can sing…can dream,” the welcomed rain, the growing corn, and the morning sun. He memorializes his grandmother with her rainbow skirt and traditional huipil (“so pretty”). To capture the “magical pathways” of Witzapan long past, Argueta writes in short bursts, often with repeated phrases, as if underscoring the simple power of nature and the indelible bonds of family. He composes in Spanish, Ramírez García translates into Nahuat, and Bell translates into English. Sánchez illuminates images inspired by “this marvelous language,” from vignettes depicting quiet moments between generations and glimpses of daily life to vibrant double-page spreads of enchanting memories. A trilingual glossary appears at book’s end.

A poet’s Nahua childhood engenders a halcyon homage through concise verses and inviting visuals.