How were the Huastec related linguistically to other Maya peoples?

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Map of Mesoamerica showing the geographic distribution of various Indigenous peoples, with regions labeled for groups such as the Maya, Nahua, Zapotec, Mixtec, Otomi, Mazahua, Huastec, Tarasco, and others across present-day Mexico and parts of Central America. Boundaries indicate the approximate areas inhabited by each group. — Mesoamerican Indian Distribution of Meso-American Indians.

The Huastec people are linguistically related to other Maya peoples as members of the Mayan language family. Within this family, the Huastecan branch—which includes the Huastec language and the now-extinct Chicomuceltec language—is classified as the first group to have split off from the rest of the Mayan family tree.12

While they share this common linguistic ancestry, the Huastec are geographically and culturally distinct from other Mayan groups, residing in the Mexican states of Veracruz and San Luis Potosí, far removed from the primary concentrations of other Maya peoples in southern Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize.13