THE 8 MAIN ARIDOAMERICAN CULTURES - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2024

The cultures of Aridoamérica are made up of more than twenty peoples such as the Acaxee, Caxcán, Cochimí, Cucapá (Cocopah), Guachichil, Guachimontones, Guamare, Guaicura, Guarijio, Huichol, Kiliwa, Kumiai (Kumeyaay), Pueblo Mayo, Cultura Mogollón, Mongui, Opata, Ojocam, Paipai or Pai Pai, Pame, Pericú, Pima Bajo, Seri people, Tarahumara, Tecuexe, Tepecanos, Tepehuán, Yaqui, Zacateco people.

In particular, the cultures of Aridoamerica were never as popular as that of their neighboring region: Mesoamerica. In the latter, Spanish explorers encountered different indigenous civilizations (including the Aztec empire).

Typical terrain of Aridoamérica

Further north, in Aridoamérica, the most important finds by the Europeans recorded ruins of ancient civilizations, such as the ruins of Paquime.

This fact makes a lot of sense, since the arid climate (lack of water and humidity in the air) of Aridoamérica was a problem for the tribes of the Mexican north; therefore, they had to adopt a nomadic style in search of resources for their subsistence.

Despite adversity, some of the tribes adopted a sedentary lifestyle thanks to contact with their Mesoamerican peers, thus being able to trade / exchange valuable products (mainly food), in addition to learning farming techniques and incorporating part of the rich culture southern Mexico.

Outstanding cultures of Aridoamérica

Chichimecas

Distribution of the Chichimecas Tribes - By Grin20 (Own work), via Wikimedia Commons

The Chichimecas, an umbrella term for various Nahua tribes, were hunter-gatherers in the grasslands of Aridoamerica.

Originally from Aridoamerica, the Chichimecas did not develop a culture worthy of admiration due to their nomadism and their constant confrontations with other tribes (especially Mesoamerican).

Paintings in the caves that they used as a refuge and symbolic pieces of their religion is practically all the material that these natives left as a legacy.

Although the word Chichimeca has Nahuatl origin, its meaning is uncertain, since the Spanish gave a derogatory meaning to the word due to the aggressive behavior that these Indians had (they were looters of towns) and not a literal translation.

The word "Chichimeca" takes the derogatory sense of "dogs without a leash" or "lineage of dogs", and was thus called the Indians of northern Mexico, that is, those who came from Aridoamerica.

Now, although the word was used to refer to the wild Indians on the other side of the Mesoamerican border, the Chichimecas were only tribes from central Mexico.

They advanced south until they invaded the city of Tollan Xicocotitlan, substituting the nomadic lifestyle for the sedentary one to become part of the Alcohua group and absorbing the developed Mesoamerican culture.

The Mayo town

Flag Mayo (Yoreme) - By Marrovi (Own work), via Wikimedia Commons

The Mayos are a tribe that has its own language, as well as its customs and traditions. They live in the areas of Sonora and Sinaloa and call themselves "Yoremes" (those they respect).

The Mayo people is a confederation of indigenous peoples, who once formed alliances to defend themselves against other tribes and the unstoppable advance of the Spanish empire. The confederation consisted of the following tribes:

• The Apaches
• The Yaquis
• The Pápagos
• The Pimas

The Mays have existed since 180 BC, and were dedicated to gathering fruits, hunting and fishing. At present, fishing is still practiced along with agriculture, added to the manufacture of handicrafts.

The «Yoreme» flag is the symbol of the Mayos and its design consists of a deer surrounded by stars and an orange background.

Tarahumara

Tarahumara crafts in Chihuahua - By Czajko (Own work), via Wikimedia Commons

The Rrámuri or Tarahumaras are an indigenous people of northwestern Mexico who are famous for their ability to run long distances.

The term rarámuri refers specifically to men, women are called mukí (individually) and omugí or igómale (collectively).

The Tarahumara tribe is one of those that has been preserved over the years. They are a native town of northern Mexico located in the Sierra Madre (Chihuahua, southwest of Durango and Sonora).

On the women's side, they work more with pottery, producing products related to the home: utensils and ornaments. Some of these clay products are:

• Jugs and pots
• Glasses and cups
• Plates and bowls

Men, on the other hand, work more with wood, also making household products (spoons) as well as musical instruments (for example, violins).

A product with great demand is the basket, which is woven with insole and is usually labor for both women and men.

Huichol

Huichol folk art. Juan Carlos Fonseca Mata / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)

The Huichol or Wixáritari are Native Americans, living in the range of the Sierra Madre Occidental in the Mexican states of Nayarit, Jalisco, Zacatecas, and Durango.

They are known as the Huichol, yet they refer to themselves as Wixáritari ("the people") in their native Huichol language.

The Huichols say they originated in the state of San Luis Potosí. Once a year, some Huichols travel back to San Luis, their ancestral homeland, to perform the Peyote "Mitote" ceremonies (Hikuri, in Wixarika).

And here

Representation of a Yaqui warrior at the end of the 19th century. Frederic Remington / Public domain

The Yaqui or Yoeme are Native Americans who inhabit the Yaqui River Valley in the Mexican state of Sonora and in the southwestern United States.

They also have small settlements in Chihuahua, Durango, and Sinaloa. The Pascua Yaqui Tribe is based in Tucson, Arizona. They also live in other places in the United States, especially California and Nevada.

Zacateco town

Current Zacatecas Indians. AndresXXV / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)

The Zacatecos are an indigenous group, one of the peoples called Chichimecas by the Aztecs. They lived in most of what is now the state of Zacatecas and the northeast part of Durango.

They currently have many direct descendants, but most of their culture and traditions have disappeared over time.

Large concentrations of modern descendants may reside in Zacatecas and Durango, as well as in other large cities in Mexico.

The Zacatecos joined militarily with other Chichimeca nations to form the Chichimeca Confederation to defeat the Spanish during the Chichimeca War (1550-90).

Caxcanes

Momunento to Tenamaztle, Lord of Nochistlán and Caxcan hero. Sgarbozza / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)

Mostly sedentary group that had its most important settlements in Durango and Zacatecas, in Mexico. They also inhabited other areas such as Aguascalientes, a place where they were mostly at the arrival of the Spanish in the 16th century.

Although at first they were generically classified by the colonists as chimichecas, which was the term used for the peoples who faced them during the conquest, later they obtained their recognition as a unique people.

Although they were a brave and relatively violent people, these sun worshipers (God called Theotl) were also among the most developed by the arrival of colonial times.

The most significant proof was the pre-Hispanic furnace found in El Teul, giving indications to archaeologists that they were skilled in the matter of smelting copper. In addition, they had advances in the area of ​​medicine, since they used pine resin (and other plants) and snake broths to cure themselves of diseases.

It had a system of government based on the lordships and a series of customs, rites, religion or very particular traditions with respect to the rest of the tribes.

Seri people

Seri shaman. Tomás Castelazo / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)

Self-styled comcaac, there are still populations of this arido-American culture in Sonora and Baja California, with special importance in the Tiburon and San Esteban islands.

In pre-Hispanic times, their groups were more numerous and widely distributed throughout Baja California. In fact, it is estimated that they are divided into up to six bands and, in turn, these in several clans.

Its government structure was almost non-existent, showing only a certain organization when there were war conflicts or other extraordinary events. They lived by harvesting, women having a very important part in this aspect.

This was because, living in desert areas, their knowledge of agriculture was scarce, which made it an unattractive town for the Spanish conquerors.

They were good craftsmen, especially in wood carving. Currently they continue to maintain this activity and it is frequent that they sell baskets, figures and dolls to tourists or foreigners.

They have their own language, Seri, which is currently only spoken by less than 800 people.

Aridoamérica today

Currently, Aridoamérica comprises regions of both Mexico and the United States.

On the Mexican side, to a greater extent, it includes Nuevo León, Tamaulipas, Baja California and California Sur, followed by a part of Durango, San Luis de Potosí and Zacatecas and finally to a lesser scale by a part of Aguascalientes, Jalisco, Sinaloa, Querétaro, Hidalgo and Guanajuato.

In the American South, almost the entire territory of the states of California, Nevada and New Mexico and parts of Arizona, Utah and Texas.

References

1. Gepts, P. (1988). Genetic Resources of Phaseolus Beans: Their maintenance, domestication, evolution and utilization. Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands.
2. Cordell, L. & Fowler, D. (2005). Southwest archeology in the twentieth century. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press.
3. Olague, J. (1996). Brief history of Zacatecas. Mexico: The College of Mexico History of the Americas Trust Fund for Economic Culture.
4. Noriega, S. (1999). Brief history of Sinaloa. Mexico: Colegio de México, Trust History of the Americas Fund for Economic Culture.
5. Powell, P. (1996). The Chichimeca War 1550-1600. Mexico: Fondo De Cultura Economica USA.
6. Carrasco, D. & Sessions, S. (2007). Cave, city, and eagle's nest: an interpretive journey through the Map of Cuauhtinchan no. two. Albuquerque Cambridge, MA: University of New Mexico Press Published in collaboration with the David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies and the Peabody Museum of Archeology and Ethnology, Harvard University.