From: rjsalvad@iastate.edu (Ricardo J Salvador)
Subject: FAQ (Monthly Update) PART 1
Summary: Frequently Asked Questions in soc.culture.mexican
Organization: Iowa State University, Ames, IA
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1992 01:49:36 GMT

Newsgroup SOC.CULTURE.MEXICAN
Index to Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Updated:  5 October 1992
====================================================

Frequently asked questions in soc.culture.mexican are available
via anonymous FTP to:

                       ISUMVS.IASTATE.EDU

in the subdirectory:

                       A1$RJS.MEXICO

------------------------------------------------------------------
NOTE CHANGES IN ACCESS PROCEDURES FOR SOC.CULTURE.MEXICAN ARCHIVES!
------------------------------------------------------------------

---------------------------
INSTRUCTIONS FOR FTP ACCESS:
---------------------------

The host system runs a primitive version of FTP supporting only a
limited number of commands.  After opening a connection to this
site, move to the subdirectory a1$rjs.mexico, scan the contents of
the subdirectory, and retrieve desired files using the get command.

-------
EXAMPLE:
-------

ftp isumvs.iastate.edu
User: anonymous
Password: {enter valid e-mail address}
cd a1$rjs.mexico
ls
get mexstat

This instruction will retrieve file mexstat on the remote directory
a1$rjs.mexico and place the file on your local machine's current
directory.

--------
CONTENTS:
--------

FAQs are heavily edited for brevity and clarity.  Each item is
quoted in the language in which it was originally discussed.  Even
though an effort was made to abbreviate items as much as possible,
certain questions cannot be answered in just a few lines!  For ease
of retrieval of specific FAQs, following is an index of the items
included at this site:

1.  Statistical overview of the country of Mexico
    (From the 1991 CIA World Fact Book)
    Includes:  People, government, Economy, Communications,
    Defense Forces
     (Rese~a informativa del pai's de Me'xico)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  MEXSTAT

2.  How is S.C.M.'s electronic almanac generated?
     (Co'mo se genera el almanaque electro'nico de S.C.M?)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  ALMANAC

3.  How are the prehispanic calendars interpreted?
     (Co'mo se interpretan los calendarios prehispa'nicos?)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  CALENDAR

4.  How can I get travel information about Mexico?
     (Co'mo puedo obtener informacio'n turi'stica mexicana?)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  TRAVEL

5.  What is the electronic address of ...?
     (Direcciones electro'nicas mexicanas)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  MEXEMAIL

6.  What is origin of the term "gringo?"
     (Cua'l es el ori'gen de la palabra "gringo?"
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  GRINGO

7.  Cua'l es  el significado del nombre de Me'xico?
     (Meaning of the name Mexico)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  MEXNAME

8.  Cua'l es la pronunciacio'n del nombre de Me'xico?
     (Pronunciation of the name Mexico
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  MEXICO

9.  Que' libros hay para aprender el nahuatl?
     (What books are available to learn Nahuatl?)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  NAHUATL

10. What is the Indian population of Mexico?
     (Cua'l es la poblacio'n indi'gena de Me'xico?)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  INDPOP

11. Que quiere decir "chingar?"
     (Meaning of the word "chingar")
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  CHINGAR

12.  What is the recipe for the tortilla?
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  TORTILLA

13. Son mexicanos los burritos?
     (Are burritos authentically Mexican?)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  BURRITOS

14. Co'mo me puedo suscribir a SOC.CULTURE.MEXICAN?
     (How do I subscribe to SOC.CULTURE.MEXICAN?)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  SUBINFO

15. Cua'l es el significado del nombre de tal lugar?
     (Mexican place name information)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  PLACENAM

16. Cua'les son los reglamentos aduanales con respecto al menaje de casa?
     (Customs regulations for menage of returning citizens?)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  MENAJE

17. Co'mo puedo obtener informacio'n acerca del CONACYT?
     (How can I get information about CONACYT?)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  CONACYT

18. Cua'l es el estado de las redes electronicas en Me'xico?
     (What is the current status of Mexican networks?)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  MEXNET

19. Co'mo se puede acceder a la Internet en Me'xico?
     (How can I access the Internet in Mexico?)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  NETACCES

20. Which books can I read to understand Aztec history?
     (Cua'les libros se recomiendan para la historia azteca?)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  AZTECBIB

21. Table of contents of journal "Estudios de Cultura Nahuatl"
     (Indice de la revista "Estudios de Cultura Nahuatl")
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  ECNINDEX

22. Item # 21 binary encoded Mac MS-WORD 5.0 file.
     (Partida # 21 en clave binaria)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  ECNBINHX

23. Cua'les libros se recomiendan para la historia mesoamericana?
     (Which books can I read to understand Mesoamerican history?)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  MESOBIB

24. Which books can I read to learn about the Spanish conquest?
     (Cua'les libros se recomiendan sobre la conquista espa~ola?)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  CONQUEST

25. Que' nombres auto'ctonos me recomiendan?
     (Suggestions for names in native languages)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  NOMBRES

26. Cua'les han sido los resultados de los sondeos anteriores?
     (Results of electronic surveys of SCM readership)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  SONDEOS

27. What is the charter of soc.culture.mexican?
     (Cua'l es la constitucio'n de soc.culture.mexican?)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  CHARTER

28. Cua'l es la correlacio'n entre los calendarios prehispa'nicos
    y el gregoriano?
     (What is the correlation between the prehispanic calendars
      and the Gregorian?)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  CORRELAC

29. Cua'ntos tipos de pendejos existen?
     (How many types of pendejos are there?)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  PENDEJOS

30. Cua'les libros hay para aprender el Maya?
     (Which books can I use to learn Mayan?)
    NAME ON SUBDIRECTORY:  MAYA

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Following are items that are new or have been modified since the
last updating of the FAQ:


?Co'mo se puede acceder a la Internet en Me'xico?

1.  Revista EMMS de mayo 15,1992 pag 11. titulado "Infonet helps
    Mexican PTT add x.400 e-mail"  "... the companies will by this
    summer add an x.400 gateway to the recently opened TelMEx public
    e-mail service, called Telemensaje. ....  [Telemensaje] will
    interconnect with Infonet's  Notice service , as well as w/ AT&T
    Mail, ATT easylink , MCI mail and SprintMail.."

    Suena interesante;  abre posibilidades de comunicacio'n pues
    entiendo que ATT , MCI & SprintMail tienen enlace con Internet.
    Sin embargo no se' si Telemensaje este' ya en funcionamiento y
    co'mo este' el rollo para conseguir acceso.  Recibi' hace unos
    dias un paquete informativo sobre MCIMail con costos y un
    disco de demonstracio'n.

2.  Compuserve (CIS) tiene ya un costo base de $7.95 USD por servicios
    ba'sicos incluyendo e-mail por lo que no se paga tiempo de
    coneccio'n. CIS tiene enlace con Internet , sin embargo, no te
    cobran extra si tu como usario de CIS mandas email a alguien en
    Internet, pero si recibes correo de alguien en Internet entonces
    te cobran , creo 0.25 USD por mensaje.  En Me'xico, no estoy enterado
    muy bien pero segu'n me mencionaron hay que entrar por Telepac ,
    y desconozco totalmente  el costo , si te cobran por mes, por
    minuto, etc., ademas del tiempo que tarden en darte accesso .

3.  Otra posibilidad es que encuentres una BBS que este' enlazada a
    FidoNet y tenga 'EchoMail' , que te permita enlazarte con alguna
    BBS en Me'xico que tambien este en FidoNet. Entiendo que hay una
    en Guadalajara.  En Boardwatch de Octubre/92 salio un
    desplegado donde aparecen todos los nodos de FidoNet en el
    mundo.  De Internet puedes mandar a FidoNet sin ningun
    problema siempre y cuando la red de FidoNet tenga un area "EchoMail".

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Which books can I read to learn about Aztec history?

George Vaillant published "Aztecs of Mexico" (Doubleday & Co.) in 1944,
and in it he attempted to present a comprehensive history that included
cultural, economic, religious and social aspects. As can be expected,
this work and many of its interpretations have been superceded by
much subsequent scholarship, but it is still useful for its very "broad
view" of the subject.

A useful and relatively recent trilogy that culminates with an analysis
of the Aztecs as successors to a Toltec cultural heritage is Nigel
Davies' series:

1. The Toltecs Until the Fall of Tula      (1977)
2. The Toltec Heritage: From the Fall
     of Tula to the rise of Tenochtitlan   (1980)
3. The Aztec Empire: The Toltec Resurgence (1987)

The series is published by the University of Oklahoma Press (Norman, OK).

A similar analysis in scope, though more terse in presentation, is
Brian Fagan's "The Aztecs" (1984, Freeman, NY).  In the same category
as a useful general overview of the subject is Frances Berdan's "The
Aztecs of Central Mexico: An Imperial Society" (1982, Holt, Rinehart &
Winston, NY), a college textbook.

These modern syntheses draw heavily on Spanish and Aztec sources dating
to the period of the conquest.  The number of such sources is truly
huge and its examination is giving a large body of scholars a full life's
work.  Even though such sources are voluminous and ponderous, and their study
requires specialized knowledge in such fields as archaic Spanish, classical
Nahuatl, colonial law, etc., there are at least a few that are 'de rigeur'
for persons attempting to understand Aztec history.  Foremost among these
would be Fray Bernardino de Sahagun's "Co'dice Florentino, Historia
General de las Cosas de la Nueva Espa~a."  Sahagun was a Franciscan
friar who set about collecting as much of the culture of the vanquished
Aztecs as possible.  He worked with fellow friars versed in Nahuatl and
with "informants" who were from the learned echelons of Aztec society,
most of whom lived in and understood the period immediately preceding
the conquest.  The breadth of the work is numbing (ethnology, theology,
history, plant and animal systematics, cosmology, philosophy, natural
healing, mythology, etc.) and the original is liberally sprinkled with
much commentary expressing a strict catholic judgement of the culture
described.  Abridged and sanitized versions abound in Spanish, but for
English readers the recommended way to approach this work is via
Charles E. Dibble and Arthur J. O. Anderson's translation "Florentine
Codex: General History of the Things of New Spain (1950-75, Univ. of
Utah Press, Salt Lake City, 12 vols.)

Other sources that are indispensible to understand Aztec history, but
which must be read with a discerning eye are Chimalpain's "Diferentes
Historias Originales de los Reinos de Culhuacan y Mexico y de Otras
Provincias," Hernando Cortez' "Cartas de Relacio'n" (a series of five
letters written by the conqueror to king Charles V, published in Spanish
by Porru'a Hermanos and in English by Norton & Co. as translated by
J. Bayard Morris), Diego Duran's Book of the Gods and Rites and
the Ancient Calendar (translated by Doris Heyden and Fernando Horcasitas
in a 1971 edition by the Univ. of Oklahoma Press), and Fernando Alvarado
Tezozomoc's "Cro'nica Mexicayotl" (1975, UNAM, Mexico City).

A classic analysis of the Aztec mind is Miguel Leon-Portilla's "Aztec
Thought and Culture" (Univ. Oklahoma Press, 1963; several printings), a
translation of the author's 1956 Spanish original: "La Filosofi'a
Nahuatl" (UNAM, Mexico City).

An equally classic work examining existance in the time of the Aztecs
is Jacques Soustelle's "La Vida Cotidiana de los Aztecas en Visperas
de la Conquista" (1956, Fondo de Cultura Econo'mica, Mexico City, many
printings), a translation from the original French work published in
1955.

Given the importance of art forms as expression of the Aztec mind and
worldview, a useful, recent, and very powerful presentation of this
aspect of Aztec culture is Esther Pasztory's "Aztec Art" (1983, Abrams,
NY), published after, and incorporating much of the knowledge derived
from, the 1978 discovery and excavation of the foundations of the
Aztec Templo Mayor in downtown Mexico City.

There is also an abundance of work on Aztec literature as a source of
insight into Aztec thought and history, and much scholarship has equally
been devoted to various aspects of Aztec history postconquest (just one
example is an analysis of Zapata's agrarian uprising during the 20th
century Mexican revolution as linked to Aztec views and customs of land
tenancy; q.v. Jesus' Sotelo Incla'n's "Rai'z y Razo'n de Zapata," 1979).
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Table of Contents for the journal "Estudios de Cultura Nahuatl."

The Instituto de Investigaciones Historicas in UNAM publishes both Estudios
de Cultura Nahuatl and Estudios de Cultura Maya on an occasional basis.
There have been 21 volumes in the series ECN (1959 to present), and the IIH
sells them on the basis of availability.  Since the journal is not
published on a regular schedule they prefer not to sell subscriptions to
individuals.  Currently, vols. 17 - 21 are available directly from IIH.
To obtain any of these send $26.67 plus $5 S/H _per volume_ to:

Sra. Ma. Rosa Marti'nez Olmos
Instituto de Investigaciones Histo'ricas
Ciudad de la Investigacio'n en Humanidades
Circuito Dr. Mario de la Cueva, Zona Cultural
Ciudad Universitaria, Deleg. Coyoacan
04510 Me'xico D. F.

My experience is that IIH personnel handle correspondence and orders
expediently, but you do need to allow about 3 weeks in each direction
for air mule.

There are additional sources for this and other UNAM publications in
the US, and you may wish to check with your institution's bookstore
to see if you have direct access through some existing arrangement.

The following clearing house handles requests from many US universities
for Mexican academic materials:

    MACH, Apartado Postal 13-319, Del. Benito Juarez, 03500
    Mexico, DF.  I can only vouch that they are in the business and
    seem to be quite thorough. FAX (52+5) 673-62-09 [the 52 is the
    Mexico code, 5 is for the DF.]

UNAM has the following US office:

    Permanent Extension School, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico,
    600 Hemisfair Plaza, P.O. Box 830426, San Antonio, TX 78283-0426,
    FAX 512-225-1772.

    UNAM publishes a bulletin listing recent publications, called
    Fomento Editorial.  To get it, try this address: Direccion
    General de Fomento Editorial - UNAM, Av. del Iman 5, Ciudad
    Universitaria, 04510 Mexico, DF.

Following is a listing, sorted by author,  of articles published in
"Estudios de Cultura Na'huatl" from 1959 (Vol. 1) to the present (Vol. 21).
Be warned that the listing includes 299 citations, is 1000 lines long,
and occupies 39 Kb.

The listing does not include the prefatory article of each issue (unless
we considered that the scholarly content justified its listing), the
necrology items, nor the book reviews that are printed intermittently
in the series.  Spelling, case and citation information are listed exactly
as they appear in the table of contents of ECN unless there were obvious
errors.  If you spot errors that persist, please notify us at:
mendoza-grado@att.com or rjsalvad.iastate.edu.

In order to transmit electronically we've removed all diacritical marks.
If you'd like a file including diacritical marks you may anonymously
FTP the file ECNBINHX on this same directory.  The file is a binary
encoded self-dissolving Macintosh file in MS-WORD 5.0 format. Use BINHEX 4.0
or later to decode.  [For those of you using Macintoshes or MS-DOS plus
Windows, the file is stored in 'EndNote Plus' and you are welcome to the
data file if you also use EndNote, or if the file in this format is useful
to you].

For searching purposes, be aware that contributions in ECN can be in Nahuatl,
Spanish, English, French and German, though the bulk of them are in Spanish.

============================================================================
Actual listing has been omitted due to length.  Refer to file ECNINDEX.
============================================================================

Cua'les libros se recomiendan para aprender sobre historia mesoamericana?

Se recomiendan aqui' fuentes de literatura e historia sobre los pueblos:

MAYA
OLMECA
ZAPOTECA
MIXTECA
PUREPECHA

Para datos similares con respecto al pueblo Mexica o Azteca, refierase
al archivo AZTECBIB en este mismo directorio.

=========================================================================
MAYA

Para reconstruir nuestra comprensio'n contempora'nea de la cultura Maya
precolombina, tal vez lo mejor seri'a remontarse a la e'poca en la cual
se redescubren sus ruinas arqueolo'gicas.  Para esto lo mejor son los
relatos de los primeros exploradores contempora'neos por descubrir las
mismas, estos relatos son fascinantes (en dos volu'menes):

   "Incidents of Travel in Yucatan" de John Lloyd Stephens, con
   ilustraciones de F. Catherwood. (Dover Publications, New York).

(Entre los relatos recientes sobre el mismo tema sobresale:

   Wright, Ronald, "Time Among the Maya," New York
   Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1989)

Debido a estos y otros descubrimentos, y a las excavaciones consiguientes,
hay todo un auge cienti'fico a principios del siglo concentrado sobre
los Mayas.  Los escritores mas destacados en esta ola fueron Sylvannus
Griswold Morley y John Eric S. Thompson.  Sucede que estas
personas descubren e interpretan muchos aspectos de la cultura Maya
y con bastante acierto, pero que tambie'n se dejan guiar por
ciertos mitos fantasiosos, los cuales los llevan a cometer ciertos
errores importantes, por ejemplo aquello de que hubieron "dos
imperios" (muy ense~ado en las escuelas mexicanas), y de que los
Mayas hallan sido paci'ficos.  Al parecer, estos primeros
investigadores se dejaron guiar demasiado por una analogi'a de los
Mayas con los Griegos. Sobre esto u'ltimo se puede leer en:

   Michael Coe, "Breaking the Maya Code," New York: Thames and Hudson, 1992.

Sin embargo, esta obra es demasiado importante como para ignorarla, pero se
recomienda que se lea alguna obra contempora'nea primero, para que se
adquiera criterio para valorar posteriormente a los trabajos mas antiguos.
De modo que se recomienda el libro:

   Jeremy Sabloff, "Archaeology and the Maya," Sci. Amer. Library, Freeman
   Press, 1990.

y muy especialmente los libros:

   Linda Schele y David Freidel "A Forest of Kings: The Untold Story of the
   Ancient Maya," Morrow; 1990.

   Linda Schele y Mary Ellen Miller. "The Blood of Kings: Dynasty and Ritual
   in Maya Art," George Braziller, 1986.

Schele es una de las autoridades contempora'neas en cuanto a la epigrafi'a
Maya.  Ya equipado con estas lecturas, se pasa a leer la obra cla'sica:

   Thompson, J. E. S. "The Rise and Fall of Maya Civilization." Univ. of
   Oklahoma Press, 1966. ("Grandeza y decadencia de los mayas," FCE, 1959.)

Y la de Morley:

   Morley, Sylvanus G., and George W.  Brainerd;  rev.  by  Robert
   Sharer, "The Ancient Maya," Stanford, Stanford University Press, 1983.

Las siguientes lecturas sobre el calendario maya (asi como su relacion a otros
de mesoamerica y del mundo), y su preocupacion con el tiempo se recomiendan:

   Aveni, Anthony  F., "Skywatchers of Ancient Mexico," Austin,
   University of Texas Press, 1980. (tambien en espa~ol, FCE)

   Aveni, Anthony F., "Empires  of  Time:  Calendars,  Clocks  and
   Cultures," New York, Basic Books, 1989.

   Leo'n-Portilla, Miguel, "Tiempo y Realidad en el pensamiento maya", UNAM,
   Instituto de Investigaciones Historicas, 1968 ("Time and Reality in the
   Thought of the Maya," Boston, Beacon Press, 1973.)

   Edmonson, Munro S., "The Book of the Year:  Middle American Calendrical
   Systems," Salt Lake City, University of Utah Press, 1988.
   La cual es una monografia muy completa sobre el calendario mesoamericano.

Y por u'ltimo, si se desea comparar el sistema calenda'rico maya con otros
a escala mundial:

   Richmond, Broughton, "Time Measurement and Calendar Construction,"
   Leiden, E. J. Brill, 1956.

Sobre los mayas en la epoca colonial, se recomienda:

   Jones, Grant D., "Maya Resistance to Spanish Rule," Univ of New Mexico
   Press, 1989.

   Farriss, Nancy M., "Maya Society Under Colonial Rule," Princeton,
   Princeton University Press, 1984.

Se recomienda tambie'n el libro de Demetrio Sodi, "La Literatura
de los Mayas" (UNAM). Es parte de una serie (El Legado de la Ame'rica
Indi'gena) que dirigieron conjuntamente Sodi y Miguel Leo'n-Portilla.
Una recomendacio'n general es que primero se leyera sobre la historia de
estos pueblos, para poder entender mejor a la literatura posteriormente.

Finalmente, es interesante que tal vez una de las mas famosas etnologi'as
(a escala mundial), trata sobre la cultura y creencias de un pueblo
Maya de la actualidad: "Los Elegidos de Dios, Etnografi'a de los Mayas
de Quintana Roo," de Alfonso Villa Rojas.

OLMECAS

   Soustelle, J. "The Olmecs:  The Oldest Civilization in Mexico,"
   (quien tambie'n escribio' sobre los Mayas Lacandones, los Otomi'es y
   sobre los Incas). Univ. of Oklahoma Press, 1985.

   Karl W. Luckert.  "Olmec Religion: A Key to Middle America and Beyond."
   Univ. of Oklahoma Press.

ZAPOTECAS

   Joseph Whitecotton "The Zapotecs: Princes, Priests and Peasants," Univ.
   Univ. of Oklahoma Press, 1977.

   John K. Chance "Conquest of the Sierra, Spaniards and Indians in
   Colonial Oaxaca." Univ. of Oklahoma Press, 1989.

   Julio de la Fuente "Yalalag, Una Villa Zapoteca Serrana."  Museo
   Nacional de Antropologi'a, 1949 (reedicio'n: Instituto Nacional
   Indigenista, Cla'sicos de la Antropologi'a Mexicana No. 2, 1977).

   Laura Nader "The Zapotec of Oaxaca" IN Handbook of Middle American
   Indians, Vol. 7, Robert Wauchope Ed., Univ. of Texas Press, 1969.

   Elsie C. Parsons "Mitla: Town of the Souls and Other Zapoteco-
   Speaking Pueblos of Oaxaca." University of Chicago Press, 1936.

   Kent V. Flannery and Joyce Marcus, Eds. "The Cloud People. Divergent
   Evolution of the Zapotec and Mixtec Civilizations." Academic Press,
   1983.

MIXTECAS

   Ronald Spores "The Mixtec Kings and Their People."  Univ. of Oklahoma
   Press, 1967.

   Alfonso Caso "The Mixtec and Zapotec Cultures: The Mixtecs." Boleti'n
   de Estudios Oaxaque~os, No. 22, 1962.

PUREPECHAS

   J. Benedict Warren "The Conquest of Michoaca'n. The Spanish Domination
   of the Tarascan Kingdom in Western Mexico, 1521-1530." Univ. of
   Oklahoma Press
==================================================================
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Which books can I read to learn about the Spanish Conquest?

When reading material on the conquest it is always well to remember and
understand the context and purpose of the writer.  An often cited source
is Francisco Lopez de Gomara's "Cortes, La vida del conquistador." Gomara's
objectivity is seriously hampered by his explicit effort to rehabilitate
the popular image of Cortes, which even during his own lifetime was in
serious disrepute.  Therefore, there are often quite adorned justifications
or outright falsifications of critical events of the conquest in his book.
However, the book is useful because Gomara was Cortes' personal secretary
and as such had intimate knowledge of the conqueror's personality that
shows through in his writing.  The book is also good for comparative
analysis, particularly when contrasted with Bernal Diaz del Castillo's
"Breve Historia Verdadera de la Conquista de la Nueva Espa~a."  Diaz del
Castillo was a member of the expeditionary force that conquered
Tenochtitlan.  Thought Diaz strains to show the necessary deference to
his former captain, he had a few scores to settle with both Cortes and
Gomara, and it is to our benefit.  Gomara, whose only knowledge of the
conquest was transmitted to him by Cortes and other secondary sources
(i.e., he was not in the conquest party), wrote his book first, and
Diaz wrote his book later, in part as rebuttal to Gomara's book.

Two other useful primary sources are Cortes' "Cartas de Relacio'n,"
written to Emperor Carlos V in very self-serving fashion by the
conqueror (you must remember Cortes had a great deal to account for
before the crown, having disobeyed the orders of Governor Vela'zquez in
leaving Cuba for Mexico, taking prisoner and possibly even executing
the sovereign monarch of a newly discovered people, then having
exterminated a company that Vela'zquez--the official representative
of the court in the new world-- sent to fetch him back to face
trial for earlier slights committed in Cuba, and then perpetually
attempting to usurp court authority in matters pertaining to the
execution of the king's will with reference to land and power distribution
in New Spain).  The second useful source to contrast to Spanish
accounts in general is a collection of native writings assembled
and edited by Miguel Leo'n-Portilla as "Historia de los Vencidos."
The eloquence and poignance of these brief writings is their most
powerful contribution, but to the discerning eye there is useful
historical information that can be used to correlate with Spanish
accounts of the events surrounding the conquest.  The book is
available in English as "The Broken Spears."  Beacon Press has
issued a new edition that contains an introduction by Jorge Klor
de Alva which "discusses the book's reception and influence since
its original appearance...."

    To order the book contact:

    Text Department             FAX: 617-723-3097
    Beacon Press
    25 Beacon Street
    Boston, MA  02108

    List price $13

There have been many more contemporary analyses of the conquest, and
for these the list is almost endless.  An interesting one from the last
century is Prescott's "The Conquest of Mexico."

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Me pueden sugerir nombres personales en lengua auto'ctona mexicana?

      "Acabadas todas estas ceremonias ponen nombre al ni~o,
       de alguno de sus antepasados, para que levante la
       fortuna y suerte de aquel cuyo nombre le dan: este
       nombre le pone la partera o sacerdotisa que le bautizo'.
       Pongo por caso que le pone por nombre Yaotl; comienza a
       dar voces, y habla como varo'n con el ni~o y di'cele de
       esta manera:  "Yaotl, que quiere decir hombre valiente,
       recibe, toma tu rodela, toma el dardo que e'stas son tus
       recreaciones, y recocijos del sol.""

       Verso 16, Cap. 37, Libro VI, Historia General de Sahagu'n

Para los Aztecas, como para muchos de los pueblos mesoamericanos pre-
colombinos, era muy comu'n dar por nombre la fecha del di'a en que
naci'a la persona.  Por ejemplo, pongamos que nace un varo'n en fecha
"ce-mazatl" (uno-venado), entonces podri'asele nombrar Mazatzin. Si
naciera una mujer en fecha "yei-malinalli" (tres-hierba), entonces
podri'asele nombrar Malintzin.  Para mayores datos sobre los nombres
de cada fecha, refierase al archivo CALENDAR en este mismo directorio.

En seguida, se enlistan varios nombres provinientes de tres lenguas
mesoamericanas:

NAHUATL (MEXICA o AZTECA)
=========================

NOMBRES FEMENINOS:

NAHUATL               CASTELLANO
--------------------  -------------------------------------------------
XOCHIKETZAL (Femen.)  FLOR HERMOSA
YOLOXOCHITL           FLOR DEL CORAZON (*)
TONALNAN              MADRE LUZ
XIUHTONAL             LUZ PRECIOSA
YOLTZIN               CORAZONCITO
IZEL                  LA UNICA
ZELTZIN               DELICADITA
XOCHIYOTL             ESENCIA DE LA FLOR
IXCATZIN              SUAVE COMO EL ALGODON (*)
UEMAN (Masculinos)    TIEMPO VENERABLE
TLAKAELEL             PERSONA DILIGENTE
EHEKOATL              SERPIENTE VIENTO
TLANEXTIK             LUZ DEL AMANECER
TONAUAK               EL QUE POEE LA LUZ
UETZKAYOTL            ESENCIA DE LA RISA
ZIPAKTONAL            LUZ ARMONICA


(*) TRADUCCION APROXIMADA
REFERENCIA:
LUCIO CARPANTA BARON, 1986.
LECCIONES Y EJERCICIOS DEL IDIOMA AZTECA.  KALMEKAK. EL AGUILA Y EL CONDOR.
A.C.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Nahuatl                         Castellano
------------------------------  -------------------------------------------
Citlalmina    (femenino)        Flecha estrella (un meteorito)
Moyolehuani   (neutro)          Enamorado
Tlanextli     (neutro)          Resplandor
Xihuitl       (masculino)       Cometa
Mahuizoh      (neutro)          Persona gloriosa, exaltada (la h es aspirada,
                                como "j" suave)
Nelli         (neutro)          Verdad
Tepiltzin     (neutro)          Hijo bien nacido, privilegiado
Noxochicoztli (femenino)        Mi collar de flores
Xochicotzin   (femenino)        Collarsito de flores
Yolihuani     (femenino)        Fuente de vida
Tlazohtzin    (femenino)        Amada, preciada
Tlazohtlaloni (femenino)          "      "
Huitzilihuitl (masculino)       Pluma de colibri' (significando algo
                                precioso, delicado, bello, exquisito)
Teoxihuitl    (neutro)          Turquesa ("preciosidad divina")
Yolyamanitzin (neutro)          Persona justa, tierna, considerada
Xicohtencatl  (masculino)       Abejorro encolerizado

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

   Es mas difi'cil que algu'n nombre Zapoteco se pueda adaptar para
   uso entre los hispanoparlantes por la dificultad de la pronunciacio'n
   de este idioma por los u'ltimos, pero aqui' van algunos:


ZAPTECO (Serrano)      CASTELLANO
---------------------  ----------------------------------------------------

Ve'eni                 Resplandor
Binech                 Primero
Pwuix Dao              Peque~o sol (solesito) Este es un nombre belli'simo
                       en zapoteco, y esta traduccio'n noma's no le hace
                       justicia--la "x" se pronuncia como "sh" en ingle's.
Djoraxa                Me agrada
Vzia'                  Aguila
Gyazob                 Aguila que se lanza (a captar su presa, muy similar
                       al "Cuauhtemoc" mexica
Jzio'                  Potencia, fuerza
Pijje Jsio'            Fuerza de dios (la doble j es gutural, como 'ch' en
                       aleman'n
Zne Yel                So~ador
Cha'alaxa              Estoy orgulloso
Ji Jzio'               Rela'mpago (significa mas bien el estallido o potencia
                       su'bita, es un nombre muy elegante, y hasta nombre
                       de la ma'xima deidad zapoteca, conocida por el
                       nombre corrupto en castellano de "Cocijo.")
Jit@                   Arco iris (la @ se pronuncia como "uh" en ingle's.
Gyejj                  Flor
Bibejw                 Ni~o de las nubes, del cielo, divino, etereo
Znia'                  Fuerte (muy idioma'tico, se refiere a un valiente
                       o guerrero quien asusta con sus muecas faciales,
                       se refiere a esto u'ltimo y literalmente es
                       "que hace feo," y es tambie'n nombre muy elegante en
                       zapoteco que al traducirse pierde mucha de su carga
                       y significancia cultural
Na Yel                 Te quiero (muy usado en Oaxaca, casi "quemado," casi
                       al mismo nivel del famoso "Donaji" = "bien amada")
Zyrx                   Dulce (aqui' nuestra objecio'n, a pesar de lo
                       bello, es que en EU fueran a comparar el nombre de la
                       persona con la cadena mercantil "Sears.")
Coqui                  Pri'ncipe
Beljjw                 Estrella
Mbalaz                 Feli'z
Ngolbex an             Paloma
Lyebe                  Promesa
La'axda'oxo            Nuestro corazo'n
Gwpeibo'one'           Nos hara' sentir gozo
Bzojj chsa'axcejj      Abejorro encolerizado (traduccio'n del "Xicohtencatl"
                       nahuatl)
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

   En seguida vendra'n los nombres mas comu'nes entre los Mayas
   Lacandones (no hispanizados ni cristianizados; los Mayas Yucatecos y
   dema's "conquistados" han tomado por costumbre darse un nombre
   propio castellano, pero conservando el apellido Maya, por ejemplo:
   Juan Cocom):

   Ki'in       = sol
   Kayom       = cantador
   Bor         = cazador
   Naj Bor     = mujer del cazador

   A todos estos nombres se les puede preceder con "Chan," significando
   "peque~o," por ejemplo Chan Ki'in (Solesito).  Aunque no se hace en
   el uso casual, podri'an seguirse los nombres propios con el nombre
   del espiritu guardia'n del clan ("nahual" o "totem"), por ejemplo
   "Yuc" para los del venado, "K'ek'en" para los del jabali', y etc.

   Por u'ltimo, para decir un nombre equivalente al "Xicohte'ncatl"
   Mexica (abejorro encolerizado, por no decir otra cosa ;), se diri'a
   en Maya (Yucateco):

   Balam Kab Chi'iknak

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?Cua'les han sido los resultados de los sondeos anteriores en S.C.M.?

PREGUNTA:
=============

ESTOY DE ACUERDO CON LA ENMIENDA CONSTITUCIONAL QUE RECONOCE LA
IDENTIDAD POLITICA DE LA IGLESIA CATOLICA EN MEXICO.

=============

PERIODO DE VOTACION:  6 A 12 AGOSTO 1992

NUMERO DE VOTOS RECIBIDOS: 28

AFIRMATIVOS: 11 [39%]
NEGATIVOS  : 17 [61%]

=============


PREGUNTA:
=============

OPINO QUE LA PRIORIDAD DE MEXICO DEBE SER EL FOMENTO DE LA INVESTIGACION
APLICADA MAS QUE LA "PURA" O TEORETICA.

=============

PERIODO DE VOTACION:  9 a 17 de septiembre 1992

NUMERO DE VOTOS RECIBIDOS: 19

AFIRMATIVOS: 14 [73.7%]
NEGATIVOS  :  5 [26.3%]

=============

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What is the charter of soc.culture.mexican?

NAME:
        soc.culture.mexican

MODERATION:
        none

CHARTER:
       A forum to discuss all aspects of Mexican culture, such as:

                 - Food and crafts
                 - Cultural events (theatre, museums, movies, tv)
                 - News from Mexico (including sports)
                 - Travel information
                 - Indigenous issues
                 - Mexican-American culture
                 - Politics related to Mexico, such as:
                        + Free Trade agreement
                        + Technology transfer
                        + USA foreign policy towards Mexico
                        + Central America issues
                        + Mexico's role in international affairs
                 - and much more . . .

        Everyone is welcome.

LANGUAGES:
        English and Spanish. Others (Nahuatl, Maya, etc.) depending upon the
        intended audience.

BACKGROUND:
After a successful round of discussions on news.groups it was established
that a group on Mexican culture was needed. Many of the suggestions to
the RFD: soc.culture.mexico have been incorporated in this charter.

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Cual es la correspondencia entre el calendario mexica y el
calendario gregoriano?

Es un tema complicado y lo mejor es dar una versio'n breve y
recomendar una fuente mas detallada y las citas contenidas en ella:

Vi'ctor Manuel Castillo Farreras.  1971. El bisiesto na'huatl.
  Estudios de Cultura Na'huatl.  9:75-104.

Ahora la versio'n breve (que se extrae del trabajo citado):

La correlacio'n base (a partir de Alfonso Caso. 1967. Los calendarios
prehispa'nicos, UNAM, Me'xico DF) es:

yei (3) calli ce (1) co'atl = 13 agosto 1521

A continuacio'n dos reglas:

1a. Para determinar la correlacio'n indi'gena de cualquier a~o
    occidental, debe dividirse este u'ltimo entre 13 y 4 sucesivamente.
    De la divisio'n entre 13 resulta el numeral del a~o indi'gena que
    es igual al residuo ma's 3.  Si el residuo fuese 11 o' 12, el
    numeral sera' igual a la cifra de las unidades de esas mismas
    cantidades, es decir, 1 o' 2.  Por ejemplo:

    1521 / 13 = 117 +  0   numeral indi'gena:  0 + 3 =  3
    1518 / 13 = 116 + 10   numeral indi'gena: 10 + 3 = 13
    1507 / 13 = 115 + 12   numeral indi'gena: 12 + 3 (12-13-1-2) = 2

    De la divisio'n entre 4 resulta el glifo del a~o azteca, segu'n
    el residuo que se obtenga:

    si el residuo es 0, el a~o es de signo te'cpatl
    si el residuo es 1, el a~o es de signo calli
    si el residuo es 2, el a~o es de signo tochtli
    si el residuo es 3, el a~o es de signo a'catl

    Por ejemplo:

    1524 / 4 = 381 +  0     luego su signo es te'cpatl
    1473 / 4 = 368 +  1     luego su signo es calli
    1590 / 4 = 397 +  2     luego su signo es tochtli
    1507 / 4 = 376 +  3     luego su signo es a'catl

2a. Para determinar el di'a inicial de los a~os indi'genas basta con
    tomar el signo que sigue al del a~o y como numeral, el anterior
    del que lleva el a~o.

    Por ejemplo, los a~os:

     3 calli      principian en ome (2) cuetzpalin
     1 tochtli    principian en mactlactlyei (13) atl
     2 a'catl     principian en ce (1) oce'lotl
    13 te'cpatl   principian en mactlactlome (12) quia'huitl

Para hacer correlaciones precisas hay que tener cuidado con recordar
los ajustes correspondientes al ajuste del calendario Gregoriano y
los correspondientes al ajuste del bisiesto.  Para mayores informaciones
se recomiendan las fuentes supracitadas.  Para mayores informes
sobre el calendario prehispa'nico refierase al archivo CALENDAR en
este mismo directorio.

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?Cua'ntos tipos de pendejos existen?

De las ce'lebres y cano'nicas categorizaciones del pendejo hechas por el
Profesor Hermenegildo Torres, fundador del Partido Unico de los Pendejos:

1.  El Pendejo Convicto y Confirmado.  Es aquel que al tras del transcurso
    de los a~os sigue siendo el mismo pendejo.

2.  El Pendejo Esfe'rico.  Es aquel, que sin obstar el punto de vista,
    sigue siendo un pendejo.

3.  El Pendejo de Referencia.  Es aquel quien tan fa'cil se distingue que
    es de confianza usarlo para dar direcciones a la siguiente manera:
    "Si' como no' se~or, si' se co'mo se llega.  ?Ve Ud. a ese pendejo
    parado alla'?  Pues de ahi', a la derecha.

4.  El equila'tero: (casi como el esfe'rico) vista su pendejez desde tres
    lados, siempre tiene la misma magnitud.

5.  El fosforecente: Su pendejez es tal, que se hace notar en la obscuridad.

6.  El pendejo disfrazado:  es aquel quien es mas pendejo por dentro de lo
    que se le nota por fuera.

7.  El pendejo perife'rico:  es aquel quien tiene muchas salidas pendejas.

8.  El pendejo baboso:  es aquel quien se sienta en la tina y "suelta aires"
    para entretenerse con sus burbujitas.

9.  El pendejo asesorado:  es aquel quien se da cuenta que ha cometido una
    pendejada y la vuelva a considerar.  Despues de larga contemplacio'n
    y consulta, concluye y se convence de la misma pendejada

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