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Indigenous Roots: Myths, Facts and Appropriation The serious investigation of indigenous roots was initiated in 11 th century. As a result Chicano historical scholarship appeared. It paid great attention to the ancient roots among Mexicans. Acknowledge of indigenous roots and geography, including former Mexican territory, have political and interpretive significance.
First of all lets see who ancient Mexicans were. More then 3, 000 years ago there were several Mesoamerican civilizations such as the Aztec, the Olmec, the Toltec, the Maya and some others. Many inventions: pyramid temples, cities, mathematics, astronomy medicine, writing, highly-accurate calendars, fine arts, intensive agriculture and others were due to the former inhabitants of all those tribes. They reached the height of their civilization in the 10 th and the 11 th centuries. The Maya are perhaps the best known civilization of Mesoamerica.
The inhabitants of the Maya occupied the territory of Southern Mexico, Guatemala, northern Belize and western Honduras. The Maya were skilled builders and farmers. They build temple pyramids, palaces and observatories. They cleared large territories of tropical rain forest to build huge underground reservoirs for the storage of rain water. They were skilled weavers, porters. They cleared the way through jungles and swamps to trade with distant people.
The Maya were divided into many subgroups such as Yucatec's, the Tzotzil and the Tzeltal, the Quiche and Cakchiquiel (Maya of Guatemala), the Chontal and Chol (Maya of Mexico), and the Kekchi (Maya of Belize). The subgroups were not friendly with other tribes and were at war with them and even with each other. Each group had their own language and traditions but they had a lot of common. All subtribe's had a hierarchical system of organizing society. Each society had its own independent state. They had a rural farming community in each state.
Around ceremonial centers there were built large urban sites. The subtribe's were united under high ranking chiefs of king. Yucatec were one of the Maya subtribe's. They lived in the Yucatan peninsula in Mexico. They are considered to be a well-educated nation. Their culture was high.
Between AD 300 and 900 there was a peak of their culture. During that time a system of writing and an accurate calendar were invented. Among them there were a lot of brilliant architects, potters and astronomers. Nowadays Yucatec language is often spoken especially in rural areas. The Tzotzil Maya inhabited the territory of the central highlands of the Mexican state. The word "tzotzil" means "people of wool" because they wore wool clothes.
Their culture were associated with the animal bat in the view of the Mayas) thats why their name could also be translated so. The subtribe had no opportunity to produce agricultural goods but they were good at making clothing that they exchanged. By the way, they were good hunters as all Maya of highlands. At present a lot of Tzotzil migrated to other parts of Mexico and the United States seeking for a better life.
The other big subgroup of Maya was The Cakchiquiel. The group of indigenous people lived in the Midwestern highlands of Guatemala. They were a group which grew agricultural products. They had their own language Cakchiquiel.
They were one of the first Mayan kingdoms captured by Spain troops; thats why the culture of the group was developed with Spanish influence. The Cakchiquiel were the enemies of the other Mayan kingdom, Quiche. The Quiche lived in the highland valley of Guatemala. The system of their society was different from the other groups. It was a caste system and it had two forms in organization. The caste system consists of royalty, vassals, merchants, artisans, serfs, and slaves.
According to one form of organization the caste was ruled by a king, a king-elect, and two captains; according to the other - a quadripartite consisting of four chiefs. It goes without saying that Maya tribe made a great contribution to the history and the development of America. Their culture was bright and unique thats why so much has remained and can be found in clothing, music, language and the manner to express your individuality. The best example of the interaction can be seen in the manner of clothing in the late 60 s and the 70 s. It was the origin of Punk culture.
Punks decorate their clothing very thoroughly, taking into account all details. They applied various patches to their clothing. The patches showed the wearers beliefs and points of view, identified persons preferences for the music and ideas. Clothing was very important in Punk culture. It demonstrated a persons status in the eyes of their peers.
Most of all, it was a way to be noted. For Maya clothing played the same role. It identified their status, believes and preferences. If somebody knows a language of clothing he or she can easily say a persons age, marital status and even economic position.
The other important feature that can be noticed in both cultures is that they could decorate their clothing as they want, expressing their individuality. Though there was a common trend in the style there were no any identical features. Clothing was an important part of what it is to be human. The other tribe that left a trace in the history was Aztec. According to the legend they were led to the Valley of Mexico in AD 1111 by Huitzilopochtli who gave a name Mexico. They were latecomers to Mexico's central plateau; and all great inventions were made by the former inhabitants of Tula, the Toltecs (the 10 - 11 th century).
Aztecs always considered themselves the heirs of the brilliant civilizations. They were famous for their brilliant military capacity. One of the well-known Aztecs figures was Cuauhtemoc, the last Mexico emperor. Though Cuauhtemoc died in defeat and disgrace he became a hero for the future generations. He was known as a man of great courage and bravery.
There is no certain date of his birth but it is known for sure that Cuauhtemoc was of royal birth. He was a nephew of the great Moctezuma. The facts witnessed that Cuauhtemoc was a man of great military experience though he was only twenty-five when he became an emperor and the chief of Aztecs. He hated the Spaniards as they were invaders and became famous in struggle against them. First he showed his courage killing Moctezuma (an emperor at that time), saving him from sufferings caused with the shower of stones.
Moctezuma refused to obey the orders of Cortes (Spanish captain) and was sentenced to painful death. Cuitlahuac (the brother of Moctezuma) became an emperor after Moctezuma but his ruling was not very long. After him the council of nobles elected Cuauhtemoc an emperor. Cortes regrouped his troops and decided to make another attack on Tenochtitlan, Aztec city. Cuauhtemoc refused to take Cortes proposal and defended the city of his ancestors bravely, struggling for their culture and beliefs. He showed himself as a master of urban warfare and defeated the Spaniards in the city.
But the Spaniards surrounded the city and made defenders suffer with starvation. Cuauhtemoc decided to cross the lake to gather fresh forces for struggle but was captured. Without him the resistance of Aztec ended. Cuauhtemoc was tortured and, finally, he was found guilty and hung. Today Cuauhtemoc is one of the most honored figures in Mexico. As for Cortes, he became known as the Unknown Conqueror.
The history is always fair for those who gave their lives for their people and their country in the struggle for peace and freedom. Nowadays Cuauhtemoc is a national hero in Mexico. A lot of places are named after him. The history and culture of indigenous tribes became the base of investigation of Chicano scholars. It gave them the opportunity of providing information and interpretive frameworks for Chicano writings.
Academics began to produce works of historical interest and value. The late 1960 s and early 1970 were the birth of a conscious Chicano history. The investigation allows an examination of colonialism. The focus on conquest drew attention to the creation of the United States Mexican border. It further distinguished Mexicans from individuals of European, African and Asian backgrounds. The political border was considered important in the formation of a distinct Chicano identity and history.
Bibliography: Dennis N. , Valdes. Region, Nation, and World-System: Perspectives on Midwestern Chicana / o History. JSRI Occasional Paper 20. The Julian Samoa Research Institute, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, 1999.
Elizabeth, Baquedano. Aztec, Inca, & Maya. DK Eyewitness Books, 2005. Patricia, Altman. Threads of Identity: Mayan Costume of the 1960 's in Highland Guatemala. University of California Press, 1992.
Rodolfo F. , Acura. Anything but Mexican: Chicano's in contemporary. Verso, 1996. web
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Research essay sample on Indigenous Roots Myths Facts And Appropriation
