THE 4 MAIN ETHNIC GROUPS OF SAN LUIS POTOSÍ - HISTORY - 2025

The ethnic groups of San Luis Potosí are the Nahuatl, Huasteco, Pame and Otomí peoples. In prehistoric times, this region was home to the Huasteca, Chichimec and Guachichil tribes. Many of his descendants still live there.

According to the data collected in the population and housing census, 10% of the population of this entity speaks an indigenous language.

This census was conducted in 2010 in the United Mexican States, the official name of the Mexican nation.

The four main ethnic groups of San Luis de Potosí

1- Nahuatl ethnic group

The Nahuatl are one of the most numerous ethnic groups in San Luis Potosí. Indigenous peoples who speak this language originated in northern Mexico and the southwestern United States.

During the 13th and 14th centuries, these peoples migrated south, in successive waves, to the central highlands of Mexico. This culture flourished in the 14th and 16th centuries before 1521, the official year of the Spanish conquest.

The Nahuatl language belongs to the Uto-Aztec language family. At the time of the conquest, its speakers included the Mexica, Acolhuas, Texcocanos, Tlacopac, Chalcas, among others.

Nahuatl remains the most widely spoken indigenous language in Mexico today. All of them are collectively known as Nahua and are one of the most representative ethnic groups of San Luis Potosí.

2- Huasteca ethnic group

The Huastecos speak a variant of the Mayan language. They currently occupy 55 municipalities in the territories of San Luis Potosí, Veracruz and Hidalgo.

Members of this ethnic group refer to themselves as "teenek." This tribe comes from an early Mayan expansion north of the Veracruz coast.

Between 750 and 800 AD, the Huasteca was a dominant culture. However, they were not distinguished by the construction of large structures, as it did in other parts of Mesoamerica.

3- Pame ethnic group

The Pame were traditionally merchants. They established relationships with other indigenous populations, even speaking other dialects.

The Spanish, after the conquest of this region in the 16th century, called the area Pamería, and pame all the towns in the area. The Pame were nomads, known for their excellent gifts as hunters and warriors.

Today many Pame live in poverty, although many practice agriculture with some success.

A significant number of them cannot read or write in Spanish, and the Pame language has no written tradition.

4- Otomí ethnic group

The indigenous group of the Otomi is one of the largest and oldest in the Mexican Republic.

There are several linguistic groups in this family. Among them are the Otomí, Mazahua, Matlatzinca, Occupailteco, Pame Sur and Norte, and Chichimeco Jonaz.

The members of this ethnic group have been shaped by their diverse relationships with other nations in central Mexico, and by their own dispersal and migration to other settlements.

This people, who call themselves "hñänñu" (those who speak Otomí), are associated with the Olmecs and, additionally, with the oldest settlers of the High Altiplano. The Otomí inhabited the Tula Valley, even before the Toltecs.

References

1. INEGI. Population and Housing Census 2010. (2011). Retrieved on September 26, 2017, from beta.inegi.org.mx
2. San Luis Potosi. (2012, November 21). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved on September 26, 2017, from britannica.com
3. Maffie, J. (2013). To Walk in Balance: An Encounter between Contemporary Western Science and Conquest-era Nahua Philosophy. In S. Harding and R. Figueroa (editors), Science and Other Cultures: Issues in Philosophies of Science and Technology, pp. 70-90. New York: Routledge.
4. Schmal, JP (2014, July 10). Indigenous San Luis Potosí. In LatinoLA. Retrieved on September 26, 2017, from latinola.com
5. Lara Valdéz, JL (2015). Pame. In SL Danver (editor), Native Peoples of the World: An Encyclopedia of Groups, Cultures and Contemporary Issues, p 152. New York: Routledge.
6. State Council for the Integral Development of Indigenous Peoples of the State of Mexico (2015). Otomí Indigenous People. Retrieved on September 26, 2017, from cedipiem.edomex.gob.mx