In Historia de la Literature Nahuatl (Mexico, D.F. 1971), the late Mexican scholar A. Garibay included a chapter entitled “Poesía Épica” (Epic Poetry) in which he gave a list of texts in Nahuatl (Classical Aztec) that he believed represented authentic Mesoamerican epic poetry and saga. Garibay was attacked on the grounds that he attempted to make the […]
Continue Reading
Our knowledge of ancient Aztec civilization comes from many different sources: archaeology, codices or painted books, comparative ethnological studies and the like. But it is not until the advent of writing that a clear picture of past history begins to emerge. That is not to say that historical accounts did not exist before the Conquest. […]
Continue Reading
The Conquest of Mexico by the Spaniards under Cortes in the sixteenth century brought to an abrupt end the developing civilization of the ancient Aztecs. With the destruction of their capital of Tenochtitlan (now modern Mexico City) much of Aztec religion and culture was destroyed in a catastrophic cultural holocaust. However, within a few decades […]
Continue Reading
Several Mesoamerican researchers have recently cast doubt on the current interpretation of certain features of pre-Columbian cultures and their world outlook — in particular that of the Classical Aztecs and their literature. Revisionist history can represent an attempt to change an historical account for political or personal reasons. Or it can be a response to new […]
Continue Reading
To Part One Mesoamerican epic poetry and saga: What is epic? To Part One Mesoamerican epic poetry and saga: A survey * * * * * In previous articles we looked at the remnants of texts in Nahuatl (Classical Aztec), which, according to the Mexican scholars A. Garibay and Leon-Portilla, have all the characteristics of the epic […]
Continue Reading
Stories about the creation of the universe are found in many places in the world throughout history. We have our own creation stories: Creationism, Intelligent Design, and Darwinian Evolution. Whichever one and for whatever reason you choose, all are attempts to explain who we are, why we are here, and is there any real purpose […]
Continue Reading
The Nahuatl language and culture of the Aztecs of central Mexico are among the best-documented sources of information we have for understanding the indigenous peoples of the Americas. Aztec society was abruptly interrupted and brought to an untimely end by the Spanish invasion and conquest of Mexico-Tenochtitlan in 1521. Nevertheless, it is from this very […]
Continue Reading
How do we really know what happened in ancient Mexico before the arrival of the Spaniards and the introduction of writing? Many articles and books have been written on the history of ancient Mexico from Prescott’s popular but biased Conquest of Mexico in 1521, to innumerable studies of the Aztecs, the Maya, and other indigenous folk in scholarly […]
Continue Reading
I began reading about Indians when I was a boy and my sympathies were always with the underdog, so I warn you that what follows is not a scholarly objective study of the Huichol Indians (probably one of the most studied and least understood peoples on earth) but simply my personal opinions based on my […]
Continue Reading
The Huichol Indians of Jalisco and Nayarit have accomplished the almost incredible feat of maintaining their independence and most of their traditional values well into the 21st century. Thanks to the rugged terrain of the Sierra Madre mountains the Huichols were able to escape the brunt of the Spanish invasion. They continue to celebrate their […]
Continue Reading