Solteco has consistently been identified as a relative of the Chatino and Zapotec language families, but there is some debate as to where it belongs in the subclassification of Zapotecan: whether Solteco is an independent third branch of Zapotecan, or part of the Zapotec branch, which is the current consensus. Based on some traits shared, including positional restrictions on the historical development affecting
labialized velars and the presence of a lateral-initial animacy prefix, Solteco can be considered a member of the Western Zapotec group of languages, which also includes the Zapotec languages of
Totomachapan,
Lachixío,
Mixtepec, and
Los Altos. == Features of Solteco ==