Tuesday, August 19, 2003
Yucatan Before and After the Conquest
This is a translation of a report made by Fr. Landa in the mid 16th Century concerning the native people of the Yucatan peninsula. Apparently he had got in some hot water with the authorities back in Spain, and had written the piece as part of his defense. Ironically, this is (or was, back in 1937) one of the only historical records we have regarding the native cultures in that area. It's ironic, because Fr. Landa was very keen on westernizing the natives and at one point destroyed a number of native writings. Anyway, it was somewhat interesting primary source material, but not having any special interest in Mayan culture (this book happened to be one of my wife's many textbooks) the best I can rate this is waiting room material.
Labels: WaitingRoomMaterial
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