S. Ashley Kistler
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- April 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780252038358
- eISBN:
- 9780252096228
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of Illinois Press
- DOI:
- 10.5406/illinois/9780252038358.001.0001
- Subject:
- Anthropology, Latin American Cultural Anthropology
As cultural mediators, Chamelco's market women offer a model of contemporary Q'eqchi' identity grounded in the strength of the Maya historical legacy. Guatemala's Maya communities have faced nearly ...
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As cultural mediators, Chamelco's market women offer a model of contemporary Q'eqchi' identity grounded in the strength of the Maya historical legacy. Guatemala's Maya communities have faced nearly five hundred years of constant challenges to their culture, from colonial oppression to the instability of violent military dictatorships and the advent of new global technologies. In spite of this history, the people of San Juan Chamelco, Guatemala, have effectively resisted significant changes to their cultural identities. Chamelco residents embrace new technologies, ideas, and resources to strengthen their indigenous identities and maintain Maya practice in the 21st century, a resilience that sets Chamelco apart from other Maya towns. Unlike the region's other indigenous women, Chamelco's Q'eqchi' market women achieve both prominence and visibility as vendors, dominating social domains from religion to local politics. These women honor their families' legacies through continuation of the inherited, high-status marketing trade. This book describes how market women gain social standing as mediators of sometimes conflicting realities, harnessing the forces of global capitalism to revitalize Chamelco's indigenous identity. Working at the intersections of globalization, kinship, gender, and memory, the book presents a firsthand look at Maya markets as a domain in which the values of capitalism and indigenous communities meet.Less
As cultural mediators, Chamelco's market women offer a model of contemporary Q'eqchi' identity grounded in the strength of the Maya historical legacy. Guatemala's Maya communities have faced nearly five hundred years of constant challenges to their culture, from colonial oppression to the instability of violent military dictatorships and the advent of new global technologies. In spite of this history, the people of San Juan Chamelco, Guatemala, have effectively resisted significant changes to their cultural identities. Chamelco residents embrace new technologies, ideas, and resources to strengthen their indigenous identities and maintain Maya practice in the 21st century, a resilience that sets Chamelco apart from other Maya towns. Unlike the region's other indigenous women, Chamelco's Q'eqchi' market women achieve both prominence and visibility as vendors, dominating social domains from religion to local politics. These women honor their families' legacies through continuation of the inherited, high-status marketing trade. This book describes how market women gain social standing as mediators of sometimes conflicting realities, harnessing the forces of global capitalism to revitalize Chamelco's indigenous identity. Working at the intersections of globalization, kinship, gender, and memory, the book presents a firsthand look at Maya markets as a domain in which the values of capitalism and indigenous communities meet.
Eleanor M. King
- Published in print:
- 2020
- Published Online:
- January 2021
- ISBN:
- 9780813066295
- eISBN:
- 9780813058436
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Florida
- DOI:
- 10.5744/florida/9780813066295.003.0002
- Subject:
- Archaeology, Prehistoric Archaeology
An abundance of data now supports the existence—long doubted—of markets in the Maya area in the Classic period (C.E. 250–900) and their economic importance. Why, however, did it take so long for Maya ...
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An abundance of data now supports the existence—long doubted—of markets in the Maya area in the Classic period (C.E. 250–900) and their economic importance. Why, however, did it take so long for Maya markets to be recognized? And how are they best conceptualized? After briefly reviewing the assumptions that hindered archaeological research on markets, especially among the Maya, this article uses ethnohistorical and ethnographic information to suggest an agent-centered model for how Maya markets worked. The intent is not to create a single, overarching template, because Maya economy varied over time and space, but rather to infuse more of a Maya perspective into current views and inspire others to continue doing so in the future.Less
An abundance of data now supports the existence—long doubted—of markets in the Maya area in the Classic period (C.E. 250–900) and their economic importance. Why, however, did it take so long for Maya markets to be recognized? And how are they best conceptualized? After briefly reviewing the assumptions that hindered archaeological research on markets, especially among the Maya, this article uses ethnohistorical and ethnographic information to suggest an agent-centered model for how Maya markets worked. The intent is not to create a single, overarching template, because Maya economy varied over time and space, but rather to infuse more of a Maya perspective into current views and inspire others to continue doing so in the future.
