ABSTRACT
This chapter proposes some thoughts based on which one can reflect on the conflicts that are obscured behind the policies of patrimonialization of languages. It gives different moments in the policies of linguistics from the conquest to the present day. The chapter concerns a critique of the notion of heritage and its uses in the building of the state-nation. It highlights the problems and contradictions that underlie the policies that consider languages, Spanish and other native languages, as intangible cultural heritage of the Mexican nation. The chapter analyzes the ideological-political position of Alfonso Reyes in relation with Latino culture as well as Spanish in the texts that comprise the anthology Nuestra Lengua y otros cuatro papeles by Adolfo Castañón. In Discurso for Virgilio, Reyes highlights the importance of the lecture of the classics as a fundamental factor in the conformation of the modern and civilized Mexican nation.
