Endangered

Quechua

📍 Andes Mountains, South America

The largest indigenous language family in South America, comprising multiple mutually unintelligible varieties spoken across Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, and Colombia.

Revitalized

Diné bizaad (Navajo)

📍 Southwest United States

A Southern Athabaskan language with a complex tonal system and verb morphology. Known for its critical role in WWII code talkers and modern immersion schools.

Living

Māori (Te Reo)

📍 Aotearoa / New Zealand

A Polynesian language that has undergone one of the world's most successful revitalization movements, now recognized as an official language of New Zealand.

Endangered

Sámi Languages

📍 Sápmi (Scandinavia/Russia)

A group of Uralic languages spoken across northern Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia. Features complex consonant gradation and rich reindeer-herding vocabulary.

Living

Guaraní

📍 Paraguay & Northeast Argentina

One of the few indigenous languages in the Americas to achieve widespread daily use alongside a colonial language, with over 90% of Paraguay's population fluent.

Endangered

Ainu

📍 Hokkaido, Japan & Sakhalin

A language isolate with a rich oral tradition of yukar epics. Recently recognized officially in Japan, undergoing active documentation and community-led revival.