whistling

Whistling system used by the Mixtec people of La Mixteca region in Mexico, described by Gerfen & Baker (2005). According to the authors, the language is tonal, with two lexical tones (H and L), and "speakers often whistle the tone patterns of words to communicate with each other" (330). Additionally, intervocalic consonants are marked by breaks in the whistled signal.

Gerfen, C., & Baker, K. (2005). The production and perception of laryngealized vowels in Coatzospan Mixtec. Journal of Phonetics, 33(3), 311–334. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wocn.2004.11.002