ABSTRACT
This chapter offers a global overview of language contact in Colombia. It presents the extent of Colombia's multilingualism by concentrating on the peculiar geolinguistic distribution of its almost 65 ethnic languages, the vast majority of which are spoken by indigenous Amerindian people in remote areas of the country. The chapter examines how geography, language ecology, social upheaval, and attitudes toward linguistic diversity condition the ways in which these languages interact with Spanish. Functionally, Colombia can thus be said to be a mostly monolingual society within a markedly multilingual country. Within Colombia, the public view differs substantially from the global appraisal of Colombia as a monolingual country. In assessing Colombian society's post-1991 appreciation for and interaction with ethnic communities such as Palenque, one must also take care to avoid overinterpreting the contemporary evidence. Irrespective of the foregoing caveat, Palenque's Lengua has unquestionably gained a new lifeline, and Palenquero culture has been elevated to a level of prestige not seen before.
