Abstract

KOHLER, Ulrich. Los dioses de los cerros entre los tzotziles en su contexto interétnico. Estud. cult. maya [online]. 2007, vol.30, pp.139-152. ISSN 0185-2574.

Among the deities of the Tzotzil the mountain gods form a particular ethnic group. In their appearance and dressing they are all ladinos. Nevertheless they are the principal deities for indigenous agriculture and hunting, because they guard the soul of the principal crops, send the rain and are owners of the animals which are hunted for their meat. Research was directed toward the question whether these gods mix with another ethnic group of deities, the santo whose names are derived from catholic saints. It became evident that such a fusion occurred only partially and only in counties close to the town of San Cristóbal. Limited to Zinacantán is another type of mountain gods who are conceived as elderly Zinacantec. To all probability these were local veterans in the army of Juárez who fled into the mountains when their enemies arrived, and subsequently they were deified some time after 1863.

        · abstract in Spanish     · text in Spanish     · Spanish ( pdf )