Indigenous languages of the Americas languages are among those used today. Mayan languages are spoken by at least 6 million indigenous Maya, primarily in Guatemala, Mexico, Belize and Honduras. In 1996, Guatemala formally recognized 21 Mayan languages by name, and Mexico recognizes eight more. The Mayan language family is one of the best documented and most studied in the Americas. Modern Mayan languages descend from Proto-Mayan, a language thought to have been spoken at least 4,000 years ago; it has been partially reconstructed using the comparative method. Although both North and Central America are very diverse areas, South America has a linguistic diversity rivalled by
Mayan Renaissance Guatemalan and foreign contributors. It was awarded the "Best Colorado Filmmaker Documentary Award" at The Film Festival of Colorado in July 2012. The documentary is the first of a planned ten-part "Nobel Legacy Film Series". Mayan Renaissance Mayan Renaissance is a 2012 American documentary film by director Dawn Engle about the Maya peoples of Guatemala and Central America. It describes the ancient Maya civilization, the conquest by Spain during the 1520s, hundreds of years of oppression, and the modern struggle by Mayans for self-determination and a Mayan renaissance. Its première screening at the United Nations Headquarters was on 16 May