The Four Tezcatlipocas: An Aztec Tradition That Never Was
You’ve probably heard of the Four Tezcatlipocas. Maybe you learned about them in an Ethnic Studies or Chicano Studies classroom. Maybe you encountered them in a Danza Azteca círculo or […]
A Critical Review of Tales from Aztlantis Episode 102: Aztec Philosophy w/ Sebastian Purcell
“Aztec Philosophy” with Sebastian Purcell The purpose of this article is to examine several claims made by Sebastian Purcell during Tales from Aztlantis Episode 102, “Aztec Philosophy,” and to evaluate […]
The Infamous “Hunab Ku/Ometeotl” Symbol
The Infamous “Hunab Ku/Ometeotl” Symbol I see a lot of confusion around this symbol. So let’s clarify the situation. What the symbol is not: Hunab KuThe symbol does not represent […]
The Legendary Mesoamerican City of Tollan (Tula) Fell Because of its Ruler’s Insatiable Desire for Big Butts
Tollan or Tula was a famous Mesoamerican city because it was considered to be the place of origin of many groups of people. Seemingly every altepetl or city-state proudly traced […]
The 5 Best Post-Conquest Books to Learn About Mesoamerican History and Culture
When it comes to Mesoamerican history and culture there are many secondary sources on the topic. The problem with secondary sources is that there exists much misinformation regarding Mesoamerica that […]
The Cradle Song: A Pre-Columbian Window Into Nahua Sexuality
When it comes to Pre-Columbian sexuality, there is unfortunately very little information available to us. David Bowles, a Chicano writer, recently summed up the situation very well in an excellent […]
The Story of Malinche from an Indigenous Perspective
Malinche is hands down the most hated woman in Mexican history to the point that there is an adjective widely used today, Malinchista, which can be translated to a traitor […]
The Most Important Products in the Mexica/Azteca Economy
IntroductionIn this post I will discuss the most important products in Tenochtitlan at the time of the Spanish Conquest. To determine this list I utilized the Codex Mendoza. After the […]
The Chichimeca: Inhabitants of the Deserts, Caves, Forests, and Plains
Recently, I’ve noticed many people learning about and taking great pride in their Chichimeca heritage. Chichimeca is a great identity that people can use to reclaim their Indigenous heritage because […]
Decolonizing Our Diets: The Power of Pre-Columbian Foods
There is a growing movement among Indigenous cultural practitioners that advocates for the adoption of a vegan diet (or plant-based diet). Often times, the claim is made that our Indigenous […]