Mapuche language Mapuche language Mapuche or Mapudungun (from ' 'land' and ' 'speak, speech') is a language isolate spoken in south-central Chile and west central Argentina by the Mapuche people (from "mapu" 'land' and "che" 'people'). It is also spelled Mapuzugun and Mapudungu. It was formerly known as Araucanian, the name given to the Mapuche by the Spaniards; the Mapuche avoid it as a remnant of Spanish colonialism, and it is considered offensive. Mapudungun is not an official language of Chile or Argentina and has received virtually no government support throughout its history. It is not used as a language of instruction
History of Chile descended partly from the most ancient settlers). No elaborate, centralized, sedentary civilization reigned supreme. The Araucanians, a fragmented society of hunters, gatherers, and farmers, constituted the largest Native American group in Chile. A mobile people who engaged in trade and warfare with other indigenous groups, they lived in scattered family clusters and small villages. Although the Araucanians had no written language, they did use a common tongue. Those in what became central Chile were more settled and more likely to use irrigation. Those in the south combined slash-and-burn agriculture with hunting. Of the three Araucanian groups, the one that mounted