San Juan Achiutla

San Juan Achiutla
—  Municipality and town  —
San Juan Achiutla
Location in Mexico
Coordinates:
Country  Mexico
State Oaxaca
Area
 • Total 49.76 km2 (19.2 sq mi)
Population (2005)
 • Total 401
Time zone Central Standard Time (UTC-6)
 • Summer (DST) Central Daylight Time (UTC-5)

San Juan Achiutla is a town and municipality in Oaxaca in south-western Mexico. The municipality covers an area of 49.76 km². It is part of the Tlaxiaco District in the south of the Mixteca Region. It’s located in a mountain range, between the hills Negro to the East, Yucuquise to the Northwest, Cuate to the North and Totolote to the South. It’s crossed by the river Los Sabinos and has a dam called Cahuayande. Its climate is temperate. It’s in the Mixteca Alta, one of the three parties that make up the Mixteca region, and in the Mixteca Alta, is part of what was Achiutla, the important Prehispanic place.

As of 2005, the municipality had a total population of 401.[1]

Contents

The Mixteca

In 1906 the French scientist Leon Diguet published in Paris the following about La Mixteca:

The mountainous and hilly region which is the country of the Mixtec Indians and formed, after the establishment of the Spaniards, the province of the Mixteca, was designated by the nahuas with the name of Mixtecapan, a word derived from the Nahuatl word Mixtlan (cloudy or foggy land), made up term by Mixtli (cloud) and the suffix tlan, locative, place. This name would have been given to the country because of the cold weather that frequently prevails over the elevated regions of the mountains of the High Mixteca.
This territory includes, in the current geographical division, an important part of the State of Oaxaca and a fraction of the States of Puebla and Guerrero.
The name Mixtec gave to his country before the conquest is unknown, we only know by Father Antonio de los Reyes, missionary who settled in Teposcolula around 1593 and author of a grammar of the Mixtec, the Mixtec were named by their neighbors the Zapotec Mixtoquijxi (wild cats), designation probably ironic and coming of the roughness of the places that these Indians had chosen to settle.

Achiutla

Leon Diguet also made historiography on Achiutla:

Two locations are identified as being the focal point of the colonization of the Mixtec country: Apoala and Achiutla. These settlements have grown and flourished as urban centres which, although now reduced to simple towns, before the European conquest were flourishing cities.
Achiutla or Achutla (Achioztlan) is represented today - wrote Diguet 1906-by two villages located a short distance one from another, San Juan Achiutla and San Miguel Achiutla, in that the total population barely reaches 1,800 individuals. The average altitude taken between the two populations is 1,800 metres.2 The ancient city of Achiutla was north of the town of San Miguel, on the plateau where today stands the Church.3
Before the conquest, the population likely reached 14,000 inhabitants, but it found significantly reduced following an epidemic of "mazahuatl".4
Established in the center of the Mixteca Alta, Achiutla was the residence of the Chief who ruled the Mixtécapan. After the schism that divided the country into three principalities, this city was as a spiritual centre or residence of the Taysacca or religious leader. The temple was famous, they came from everywhere to worship a deity considered to be a personification of Quetzalcoatl. It was represented by an emerald5 large dimension on which were carved a bird and a snake. These jewels excited the admiration of the Spaniards by the perfection of the job. It was destroyed by the missionaries as described below.
On the edge of the old city opens a cave, the entrance suggest a subway that connects with the town of San Juan and for which, in times of war, it could go from one to another.
The Achiutla Nahuatl name seems to come from this cave. Deconstructing it is in effect: achio means frequent, oztli, cave, tlan, locality or place: place of the cave frequented. Another possible etymology is as follows: Atl water, chipimi dripping, otli road, tlan locality or place: site of the roads where water oozing.6
For the Mixtec name, Sundecu or Sundico Mixtec, nunu village, dico pulverized, made dust. This name would have been given to the people, because the revered Emerald would have been reduced to dust by the missionaries.
Geographical location, the splendor and the religious importance of Achiutla are probably the causes that have done so to consider as the place of origin of the Mixtec nation. Although nowadays doesn’t exist information that can prove their priority over Apoala.

Jansen and Pérez Jiménez refer to Achiutla in their Paisajes Sagrados: codices y arqueología de Ñuu Dzaui as follows:

In the Codex Añute (Selden), p. 6-III, we see how the 6 monkey Princess embarks on a journey underground. Apparently starts from an opening in the rock wall on a river, which is venerated the jewel that was the El Corazón del Pueblo de la lluvia (The rain people’s heart, Ñuu Dzaui the Mixtec people); probably it's the cave Ñuu Ndecu (Achiutla) where the packaging of El Corazón del Pueblo (1934 Burgoa, I: 319, 332-333) was preserved. The Princess began with asking for permission a Ñuhu, probably the guardian of the entrance to the underground Hall: named Hueso-Coa, Yeque Yata, can decipher as "bone (yeque) before (yata)".

For its part explains Manuel A. Hermann Lejarazu in his work on the Codex Yucunama:

Focus on the high Mixteca area, the most mountainous and elevated Ñuu Dzaui part. In the pre-colonial era flourished here the kingdoms of Ñuu Tnoo (Tilantongo), Chiyo Cahnu (Teozacualco), Ñuu Ndaya (Chalcatongo), Ndisi Nuu (Tlaxiaco) and Ñuu Ndecu (Achiutla), among others.
The Sun and Venus gods threw darts from the sky with which drilled the big hill precious the place of sand. One of his darts fertilized the Earth and thus was born the first ancestor of the lineage. The granddaughter of this Primordial Lord, married a Prince, who was born from a big tree in the City on Flames, Ñuu Ndecu, the current Achiutla.
Achiutla, as is at the present known Ñuu Ndecu ("Burning City"), was in ancient times the spiritual center of the Mixteca Alta, the "Templo Mayor of this nation [Mixtec], where all its resolutions for peace and wars had the Oracle of his consultations [...];" "they came from other distant provinces to ask favour and ask him in his works, and doubt what must be done". The pre-Hispanic settlement was largest and most important: more than four thousand families lived in their beautiful valleys next to rivers, occupying in the work of the field, "and so they are not neglect, had indicated as criers, official elected for the year, so that every morning at the first light, uploaded on top of the House of his Republic""with great voices, they rang and excitasen all, saying: come out, come out to work, to work" (Burgoa, 1934b I: chaps. 23-26).
With qualifying Ñuu Ndecu as the Templo Mayor in Ñuu Dzaui - Mixtec nation-, chroniclers makes an implicit comparison to the famous largest temple of the Aztecs in their capital, Mexico-Tenochtitlan. Even today stands the silhouette of the old pyramid, a kind of Acropolis, which tradition referred to as the Temple of the Sun. All this is, as we said, on a hill with promontory, entre Rios (which run north to South). On the Western side, it passes the river Los Sabinos; on the eastern side pass the Yute Uha, "Salt River", and Yute Ita, "River of flowers". At the foot of the promontory of the convent these streams come together and form the Yute Ndaa, "River extended" or "Blue River".
The oral tradition of the place holds that Ñuu Ndecu Valley was formerly a large lagoon, which barely lifted the promontory and the hill of Siki Tinduu. It is the concept of the primordial Lake, which like the darkness, is a metaphor for the area which saw the creation of today's world.
The two priests led stones of power - stone of the rain God and lizard stone--to the sanctuary of Yuta Tnoho (Apoala), where they received blessings and instructions of the Lady 9 Lizard, who reigned there (Codex Añute, p. 1-III). We note in passing the conceptual overlap between this lizard stone and the relief of a lizard in a building early Huamelulpan. Ñuu Ndecu (Achiutla), the priests placed these stones next to the primary lagoon, at the foot of the great Ceiba, made their prayers, spread her blood on paper and offered ground “piciete”. It was then opened the tree and gave birth to the ancestor founder, Lord 2 Grass "Deceased which manifests as a Feathered Serpent". Six brothers, probably ancestors of six noble families of Añute (Jaltepec) followed him. I.e., this origin story tells of a group of seven men who were born from the tree of Ñuu Ndecu, the principal of which was the founder of the dynasty ruler (yaa tnuhu iya toniñe).

In this regard, Jansen and Pérez Jiménez, also depict:

By this act of magic and religious respect grew in that place the Great Tree of Origin, which lifted and holds the sky. It was the “Tree of the Eye”, Yutnu Nuu, a ceiba or a pochote, surrounded by snakes of fog and darkness, that is to say by mysterious and impressive superhuman powers. To him they were offered - placed in basket and jícara (a space of natural bowl) - jade and gold, wealth in abundance-the eagle and the serpent of fire - power to transform and fly into trance, as a ball of fire - as well as the hand with the knife and the rope - civilian authority.
With him were born: the Lord 1 Eagle, Water; the Lord 3 Water, Maguey; the Lord 5 Deer, Turkey; the Lord 5 Movement, Quail; the Lord 5 Lizard, Rain, and the Lord 5 Eagle, Rain. They were the primary founders and owners, which gave life to the region. They were the first Nuuddzahui (Mixtec).

Hermann Lejarazu continues:

The important position of Ñuu Ndecu as the spiritual center of Ñuu Dzaui and kernel of his liturgical and political life in the pre-colonial era is also expressed in the name of the main deity worshipped here. The main sanctuary was at the summit highest mountain, where the high priest surrendered worship to the Sacred Wrapper called the People's Heart. Wrapped in precious fabrics was an ancient stone of jade in the size of a large chili pepper, sculpted in the form of a bird and a coiled snake, in other worlds, a picture of the Feathered Serpent, the divine power of Mesoamerica, known as Quetzalcoatl in Nahuatl.

The Heart of the People - say Burgoa - represented the founder of the lineage of the Mixtec people:

Making sacrifices and worshiped its first founder said he was the People´s Heart and kept it in a safe place and sacrificed to it valuables things as gold and precious stones. Front of the Heart always burned wood, where they burned too copal or incense.
This People's Heart also appears in the pictorial manuscripts of Ñuu Dzaui, specifically in the Codex Añute (Selden), page 6-III, where it is painted as a precious stone with the name of " The People of the Rain Heart" (Ini Ñuu Dzavui), in other words, "The Mixtec People’s Heart”. It is situated in a large cave on top of a river.

Pérez Ortiz quotes the description than historian and dominican Francisco de Burgoa made about this piece in 1674, more than one hundred years after its destruction:

:…and between their infamous altars, they had one devoted to an idol, called The People´s Heart, that was object of great veneration, and the matter called for greatly appreciated, because it was an emerald as large as big chili pepper from this earth, had carved above a little bird, with great gracefulness, and top to bottom coiled a little snake did with the same art, the stone was transparent. It shined from the bottom, where it seemed like the flame of a candle burning; it was a very ancient jewel, that there was no memory of the commencement of its worship and adoration.:
These historical references--continues Lejarazu - they are not sufficient to identify the exact place of worship to The People’s Heart, nor their accurate relationship with the Achiutla’s Oracle. It is clear that the river represents the deep valley of Ñuu Ndecu.

It appears that in the 15th century, Achiutla was conquered by the Aztecs, who destroyed and burned their main temple, the temple and the city suffered the fire in 1462, to this fact is due to carry the Mixtec name of Ñuu Nducu in one of their etymologies meaning burned town or city in flames. Achiutla, Ñuu Ndecu is waiting for its historical and archaeological recovery, relevant to the Mixtec culture, the State of Oaxaca and Mexico; as well as claim linguistic and ethnic indigenous, of the Mixtec indian, object sometimes of denial, rejection and destruction of the maternal ethnic, language and culture, effects of colonialism and racism, to supplant the dignity and wealth that involve to belong to this ancient culture.

Traces of colonial San Juan Achiutla period

When in the Aztec capital, Tenochtitlan, took news of Hernán Cortés and his troops arrival to Veracruz - concerns Alfonso Pérez Ortiz citing to José Antonio Gay – Moctecuhzoma (Moctezuma) sent an Embassy with some gifts for the deity "The People’s Heart" and consult the Oracle "to know the fate that was reserved for the people", the Ñuu Ndecu "Pontiff" came to the shrine and "The people that had been left to the party from outside"", he heard between confusing noise of voices" the fateful announcement that "the lordship of Moctezuma is over...¨." The Lord 2 Vulture, Snake of Fire-Sun and Mrs. 13 House, Flower of Bat, ruled Ñuu Ndecu when in the Land of rain, were known these dire first news concerning the Spaniards.

From 1522 to 1528 Achiutla, what would be San Miguel and San Juan, was subjected unduly by the conquer Martín Vázquez who would be prosecuted for mistreating and threatening death to the chiefs of the people by not delivering extraordinary tributes and pretended to be the legitimate encomendero. In 1528 Achiutla became part of the encomienda of Francisco Maldonado its real owner, Ñuu Ndecu contributed to him 48 tejuelos of gold dust. In 1550 his encomienda and "Achiotla" (Achutla) passed to doña Isabel Roxas his wife.

In 1555 the viceroy don Luis de Velasco ordered to allow entering the religious of the order of Santo Domingo to Achiutla, since the cleric by the encomendero of the place prevented. The Dominicans settled finally in 1557 in Ñuu Ndecu founded their community, at the time they would build the convent.

Among the Dominican religious who came to Achiutla was Fray Benito Hernández who wrote its Christian catechism written in Mixtec,7 and to whom is attributed the evangelization of the Mixtecs of Ñuu Ndecu; people that continued practicing their ancient religious customs in a hidden form in the caves and hills close to the place making worship of the deity "The People’s Heart". Fray Benito heard of the existence of this image and rose to the Summit in question, where it destroyed the ceremonial center.

:…an immensity of several figures of idols, which were in niches, on stones stained foolishly of human blood and smoke of incense which sacrificed them. (Burgoa)

And he got done in The People’s Heart” deity.

:…and have a solemn day prevented, and together many towns, pulled the stone and he broke it with great difficulty, through instruments, because of its hardness, sent grind it into powder there […] and mixed with ground, he threw and stepped on, in front of the eyes of a huge crowd that attended the event, and then made them a big sermon…(Burgoa)

So the pulverizing of this jewel, would be a little after 1557 (Pérez Ortiz, 2009).

1580 There were few Spaniard settlers in the Mixtec communities in the mountains, because they avoided visit them for fear of its inhabitants.

In 1584 San Juan Achiutla land titles were issued by the colonial government, that in 1748 issued communal titles.

From this last period, the Church of San Juan Evangelista of San Juan Achiutla retains the following historical trail: an oil painting approximately 1.4 for 1.2 m whose lower part said "the devotion of don Juan Ortiz and his wife doña María Daniel year 1749". The work has several levels; the top appears the Holy Trinity, in the central part an Archangel, then Santo Domingo de Guzmán and St. Francis of Assisi. At the next level the purgatory image: a man with the papal tiara, another with the bishop tiara, one cleric, a woman and a man, all burn between the flames; below represents a solemn mass attended by men on the right and women on the left. The deteriorated lower place of the work we can read: "F. García Ruiz and José Isidro Ruiz, José de la Luz", and more illegible words in red. It could be inferred that at that time there was sufficient financial capacity of some people as to send to do oil paintings possibly out of the town, probably in the convent of San Miguel or Teposcolula, and make solemn Eucharistic celebrations, and the existence of sufficient population and economic activity could be inferred to generate at least medium-sized wealth.

The colonial period, the 19th century and the Mexican Revolution at San Juan Achiutla are being investigated and counted. At this point we know that in 1825, San Juan Achutla Nusuñe was part of the constituency of the called Partido8 de Tlaxiaco; in 1844 was a village of the Partido of Achutla, sub-prefecture of Tlaxiaco, Teposcolula district; in 1858 again belonged to the District of Tlaxiaco and in 1891 was municipality in the District of Tlaxiaco.

Contemporary period

San Juan Achiutla has no municipal archive so it is virtually impossible to do a history based on the documentary source. If we compare with people, we could say that the municipality works verbally; it would seem that municipality is in illiteracy in the absence of documentary collections. In 2010, year of the bicentennial and centennial of Mexican Independence and Revolution, appeared the book Camino por la Mixteca. Un testimonio y documentos para la microhistoria de San Juan Achiutla y la Mixteca Alta en el estado de OaxacaRaúl Ruiz Bautista memoirs, by what partially this book without being or pretending to be a history of the site, came to partially remedy the absence of documents about San Juan Achiutla. For it we can retrieve some of the events of the people and the town after the Mexican Revolution until the first decade of the 21st century. The history of San Juan and the construction of the road Ixtapa - Tlacotepec are inseparable, Raúl Ruiz Bautista released his proclamation for their construction and San Juan Achiutla led the project and the construction of this road with Rutilio Ruiz Hernández to the head. The following are the relevant facts from the 20th century.

1920

1930

1940

1950

1960

1970

1980

1990

2000

2010

Cultural and historical heritage

There are as goods of cultural and historical heritage of San Juan Achiutla:

Cultural traditions

The Mixtec culture, to which San Juan Achiutla and the achiutlecos belong, is a living culture, says Ronald Spores on the subject:

After the war of independence the speakers of the language ñu savi (Ñuu Dzaui) retained their ethnic identity, their customs, and managed to adapt to the circumstances of the new country, initially in the Mixteca and eventually beyond: in Puebla, the central valleys, the North and Northwest Mexico; at present, can be found Mixtec everywhere in North America. The tenacity and adaptability of this group for more than 3,000 years deserves everyone's attention.
The Mixtec culture has developed and maintained for more than three millennia in a vast region which covers a territory of 40 000 km2, which extends from South of Puebla to the Pacific coast and the Valley of Oaxaca to the East of Guerrero. The Mixteca region comprises three ecological zones: the High Mixteca ―escenario of the development of the main towns of this culture―, the Low Mixteca ―o Ñuiñe ("Tierra Caliente") — and the Mixteca de la Costa.
We must remember that the Mixtec culture did not disappear with the conquest, during the colonial period, or in the radical national transformations of the 19th and 20th centuries. It exists today in the Mixteca, everywhere in Mexico and anywhere in the world where the Mixtecs have reached in its vast diaspora of adaptation. Many have left the Mixteca, but their hearts, thoughts and feelings remain on their land and their tradition.
As reflected in the Mixtec song (a lyric) among multiple ethnic groups that form the Mexican Republic, perhaps the nation more sentimental, nostalgic and loyal to its roots is the ñu savi, the Mixtec nation.

Following ancient cultural traditions are preserved in San Juan Achiutla:

Bibliography

External links

References

  1. ^ "San Juan Achiutla". Enciclopedia de los Municipios de México. Instituto Nacional para el Federalismo y el Desarrollo Municipal. http://www.e-local.gob.mx/work/templates/enciclo/oaxaca/municipios/20172a.htm. Retrieved June 12, 2009. 
Municipalities of Tlaxiaco District, Oaxaca