I've recently written an opinion article on The Free Voluntarist that discusses the impact of Spanish colonization on indigenous languages in Latinoamérica during and after the colonial era.
Here are some of the main arguments of the article:
- Oral Societies and Documentation: Most pre-Columbian societies in Latin America were oral, which created challenges in preserving their linguistic and cultural heritage, especially without written systems. This issue was compounded by colonization.
- Role of Spanish Record-Keeping: Spanish colonization, while violent and harmful, played an unintended positive role in preserving indigenous languages and cultures through their documentation efforts, which now serve as a crucial resource for modern scholarship.
- The Complexities of Colonization: It is an oversimplification to blame the Spanish entirely for the destruction of indigenous cultures, as many oral societies lacked the means to document their traditions. Acknowledging both the harm and the survival of certain cultures is important for a balanced understanding of history.