Second edition of a work in the Purépecha or Tarascan language spoken in the Mexican state of Michoacán, first published in 1558.

Purépecha was the main language of the pre-Columbian Tarascan State and became widespread in northwestern Mexico during its heyday in the late post-Classic period. The small town of Purepero, got its name from the indigenous people who lived there. Other groups that existed then were the Aztec and the Maya (ca. 1400–1521).

Even though it is spoken within the boundaries of Mesoamerica, Purépecha does not share many of the traits defining the Mesoamerican language area. Through Spanish friars, the Purépecha learned to write in the Latin script, and Purépecha became a literary language in the early colonial period. There is a body of written sources in Purépecha from the period, including several dictionaries, confessionaries, and land titles. Among the most important colonial works are the grammar (1558) and dictionary (1559) of Fray Maturino Gilberti, and the grammar and dictionary (1574) by Juan Baptista de Lagunas.