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 of the Faculty of Arts & Science’s  has received an award from the  for his project, Revitalization of Itzaj: An Endangered Mayan Language in Guatemala. 

Mateo Pedro is one of four researchers at the University of Toronto to receive the award this year. The others are Beverly Essue and Angela Mashford-Pringle of the Dalla Lana School of Public Health and Andrea Charise of the University of Toronto Scarborough.

A native speaker of Q’anjob’al, a Mayan language of Guatemala, Mateo Pedro focuses on the documentation, description, and revitalization of Mayan languages, with special research interest in the acquisition of Mayan languages. He has also worked on the production of educational materials in Mayan languages in coordination with different institutions in Guatemala.  

“In this collaborative project with the Comunidad Lingüística Itzaj of the Academia de las Lenguas Mayas de Guatemala, we are implementing the Oxlajuj Aj immersion program, which includes a teaching method and a pedagogical grammar,” Mateo Pedro says. “Furthermore, the award will support my collaborative research with Mayan communities, and will provide an opportunity for U of T students to conduct research in Mayan languages and language revitalization in Guatemala.” 

The Connaught Community Partnership Research Program creates new collaborative research partnerships, or nurtures early-stage partnerships, between U of T and community partners, fostering access to each other’s unique knowledge, expertise and capabilities on issues of shared interest that, over time, may evolve into more established relationships that will attract external funding.