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Hi maglatinavi, again I enjoyed your post. Below is some history which leads up to my use of identifying myself with my culture.
In the Great Lakes region of North America was a disperse civilized group of mound builders who worked in metals since BC8000. The family of languages they spoke is referred to as Otomi. Native American Nations often call themselves after the name of the common language they speak. Thus, we can assume this name was related to what this large but certainly not culturally homogenous group called themselves. Over several millennia in many successive waves this group's expansion took them south and east along the Mississippi corridor and branched along the Gulf coast eastward into Florida and southwestward into Meso-America.
In what is now called the southwest of the U.S., a civilization sprawled out over the Great Basin steppe areas. The Nations of this area spoke a common language family called Nahuatl, pronounced Knaw-what-oll which translates, "Four Waters." This may reference the four waters birthplace of Nahuatl, believed to be the Chaco Canyon area of the southwestern U.S.
This language was and continues to be the ancestral root language of the Aztec, Apache, Toltec, Navajo, Shoshone, and Hopi Nations, to name but a few. As the language of commerce, the area of North America that communicated in Nahuatlac derivatives stretched from modern Canada to Panama. The base language can be compared to Latin in that it gave rise to many modern dialects of the same language family. The language itself gave the peoples of its nations a common bond.
Southward in waves, these people were driven by population growth and changing climatic conditions. In what is now called the Monterey coast of California can be found the linguistic beginnings of the Mayan language families. This group moved south down the coast to the Chiapas area and Soconusco river delta then fanned out from there.
The word Mayan may actually be a Nahuatl reference meaning "to be hungry" or "hungry ones." When the Tenochas were at their zenith, the nonolac (non nahuatl speakers) of the Yucatan peninsula were in serious decline after a series of natural disasters. Nobody knows exactly what these native groups called themselves. From the writings found on their momuments, historians have concluded that this was the language spoken by portions of the Quiche, Chiapas Maya, Olmecs, Huastecs, Peten and the Toltec Nations.
Many archaeologists believe that ingrained in these cultures are many customs found among the islands and people of the Pacific rim. The California Mayans traded in jade and were accomplished long-distant seafarers of a maritime tradition. This points to an explanation for what some archeologists see as the Asian, Polynesian, Samoan and New Guinea influence witnessed in "Olmec" artifacts.
From these centers of population density is witnessed an ebb and flow of environmental conditions which periodically imploded and exploded, causing large groups of peoples and nations to move on in search of better circumstances. Often this worsening or bettering of climatic conditions led to either an agonizing, steady decline of the original centers of knowledge and technology. As the demographic cycles of ebb and flow continued in North America, a space was often deserted and re-occupied by different groups or waves from several different native peoples over the course of the last ten thousand years. Only the continuity of language is left to trace the history of their long trek from desperation to success and possible arrogation and then back to desperation.
In this context the stage was set for the emergence of several dominant groups that established the life styles and cultures of the Americas. Before attempting to summarize the 'factual chronology' of the emergence of one of those dominant groups in North America, it is important to examine the meaning behind the name Mexica-Chichimec." Academic research documents, the maintenance and culture use of this name is a reality that has driven the creation of the current portrayal of history. The contemporary term, Chicano, claims its etymological roots in the antiquity of this term.
Mexican words often were contractions of several words. Thus, historically, there are several interpretations of the "me" part of Mexica. One literal translation means "Met'l" (cactus) eater. An explanation for this interpretation comes from the social pecking order of the Nahuatl speaking peoples, wherein the peoples that survived in the northern deserts had to eat cactus in order to stay alive. Life was exceptionally harsh. They were only allowed to participate in the life of the "civilized nations" as mercenaries that fought their ritualistic wars or tip the balance of power between rival dynasties.
The currency of the Mexica was the skill of fighting and expert archery. They became Meso-America's professional killers and pillagers. When prosperity blossomed or the time of war ended, the Mexica-Chichimec were only welcomed as non-resident workers to fill the labor gap in the great metropolitan areas of Teotihuacan, Tula, or Monte Alban. Some things seem to never change, huh?
Other linguists believe that the cactus connection came from the reality that one of the most important plants of Meso-America was the Century Plant, Agave, or Maguey (the cactus from which Tequila is derived). This cactus was the source of nutritious nectar, paper, soap, rope, woven goods, and mescal. This bread and butter was what Mexica called met'l. The met'l bloomed every five years. When it did, the main flower stalk was carved out of the plant center leaving an "olla" or basin in which the sweet, white nectar of the plant collected. To the Native American this "Bowl from the Gods" resembled a full moon.
The "Me" as in "Me-xica" is also the same word for "Me-tzli" which translates "moon" but also means "navel" (i.e. belly button). This meaning put the Mexica in the center or "Heart" of the universe in addition to justifying them as the central focus of their sphere of influence. The believed that Tenochtitlan was the navel of the Valle de Anahuac, the present day Distrito Federal of Mexico. Anahuac or Anahuak is also the ancient Mexican word for what is now referred to as America.
Further delving into the origin of the name Mexica another version exists. In this version the Mexica tag was dropped for the label "Tenocha" after their seer and wise man. According to the Codex Chimalpopoca, the name Mexica was given to Tenoch in a dream. In this dream Tenoch was told by his deity, Huitzilopochtli, pronounced "whit-zi-lo-poch-tli," that he and his people must put their trust in him. With this, the tamimes (bowmen) departed their homeland (Aztlán) and headed south leaving the "peaceful ones" behind.
It was revealed to Tenoch how his people would find the navel of the universe on an island with a large nopal cactus growing from a rock. Sitting on the highest point of the nopal would be a Golden Eagle. On this land he and his people were to establish a new nation and he was to name this place "Mexitli" after one of Huitzilopochtli's earth bound alter egos.
Tenoch found his sign on a small island two miles off the western shore of the great lake in the Valle de Anahuac called Lake Tetzcoco. The icon of Tenoch's vision is the central focus of Mexico's national flag. The legendary site is today called the Zocalo and is the central plaza of Mexico's city. The founding of this capitol in 1318 AD makes this city, called Tenochtitlan (the land of Tenoch) and renamed by Cortez, Mexico, the oldest living, continually occupied city in the Americas. Since roughly two hundred years passed between these two versions, there was probably more than one Tenoch, unless the word "tenoch" was more a religious title.
The second part of Mexica's name "Chichimec" has also undergone several interpretations. Several of the codices state that all nations of the poverty stricken, hungry and desperate people that survived in the North American deserts, regardless of language family, were know as "Chichimec." Depending on who has used the term over the past three thousands years, it has described the full range of ethnic pride, disgust, patriotism, prejudice, love and hate.
At differing times in the cultural development of a people, it has become a broad label for many indigenous peoples and cultures of North America. Neighboring groups have used it simultaneously to mean the "People of the Dirt" and "Children of Mother Earth." The folks labeled "Dirt People" would scrounge a living in the desert.
The Chichimec term has also been used in the context of invader, new arrival, violent, linguistically uncultured and rude, much the way the terms wetbacks, oakies, cholos or hill-billies are used today. It was a term integral to the Nahautl language family. In the Yucatec-Mayan language family, the term was pronounced, "Chichen."
This is how "Chichen-Itza" originated. When the Toltec created the Mayapan confederation in 987 AD, and restored its capital called Itza, the place was then called Chichen-Itza. The builders created a replica in the Yucatan of the Toltec's capitol city Tula (Tolla) in central Mexico.
In Yucatec Mayan, chichen is synonymous with snake. Quetzalcoatl, the serpent with the cloak of iridescent, flowing feathers. This literal translation does not do justice to the strength, enduring gravity of the concept behind this god. Quetzalcoatl was a god of Nahuatl nations. Chichimec also translates to "snake man." The Hopi tribes to this day still do the Snake Dance, in which they invoke prayers into a parcel of captured snakes, then set the snakes free, back into their holes in the ground, to carry their message to the Mother Earth. Hopefully the prayers are heard and the rains will come on schedule.
In turn, when the Mexica pushed into the Toltec Empire, they were the Chichimecs. At this point in their historical development the Mexica were proud of the term and made groups who spat on it pay for the indignity with severe consequences. But like so many groups, who had relocated southward before them, the Mexica tried to discount their lean moments and exalt their noble character by casting off the term and labeling their detractors in kind.
The poor fortunes of the Mexica's ancestors were due to major climate changes in North America (Aztlán). Some historians have demonstrated that they were probably the last to leave Pueblo Bonito (Beautiful Town) in modern day New Mexico. This proposes that they were the first to arrive in the Colorado area. Only the Hopi (peaceful people) stayed behind, protected from the danger and heat, on their elevated mesas.
In this context, Chichimec alludes to the concept of "survivor." The competition for survival was fierce since the south was already populated with Olmec and Otomi speakers. The northern big game and plains hunters brought the long bow and arrow along in their bag of cultural artifacts. While the southern areas of North America also had those tools, they had not developed them to the degree that the Chichimec had.
From the enemies of the Tenochas, the Spaniards picked up the "Son of a Female Dog" context for the term, forgetting that to the Nahua speaking peoples this concept also meant that one was a child of Xochichilintz. Mother Earth or Xochichilintz, was often portrayed in the iconic form of a pregnant Chihuahua dog with many milk-laden breasts. In this form, the Mexica intended "Chichimec" to mean "Children of this Earth" or "Lineage of Xochichilintz."
As the Spaniards applied Chichimec the term came to represent, in the European context, "dirty, low down, lying, cheating, deceitful, stupid Indian." The acts of a person, labeled in this manner by the Spaniards in America, committed a "chicaneria." This word maintains its derogatory connotation in the English translation: chicanery. Thus, the term went from one of native pride and origin, to a racist slight to be avoided. Recently, those of us with long native roots on this continent have adopted the modern word: "Chicano" (Xicano), from the indigenous traditions.
There's lots more I can get into with pre-colonial American history, but, my fingers are sore from typing.. :)
I hope you all enjoy or find it interesting...
Peace,
Xicano
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