Abstract

DELGADILLO-GALINDO, Sergio. The New Spain north reconsidered from the categories ‘Chichimeca’ and ‘Mesoamerica’. Anu.hist.reg.front. [online]. 2023, vol.28, n.2, pp.461-484.  Epub July 21, 2023. ISSN 0122-2066.  https://doi.org/10.18273/revanu.v28n2-2023017.

The purpose of this paper is to review and critique, from the historiographical perspective, the way in which the concepts of Chichimeca and Mesoamerica have influenced the creation of the history of Mexico’s northern groups, not only in the New Spain period, but also today in academia. To this end, the first section will examine the vision that the Nahuas had about the Chichimeca, a conception that changed radically and to the detriment of the socio-political categories: barbarian, savage, brought by the Spanish. Later, we will see that the categories used by academics: Mesoamerican-sedentary-farmer, versus non-Mesoamerican-nomad-hunter-gatherer, face the same problems as those of the European vision. Thus, it will be evident that knowledge about indigenous societies in northern Mexico has been generated based on an invention, a construct and a myth.

Keywords : Chichimeca; Mesoamerica; northern New Spain; myth of alterity..

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