Adrian Recinos
Encyclopedia
Adrián Recinos was a Guatemala
n historian, essayist, Mayanist
scholar and translator, and diplomat. Recinos was a great student of national history, mainly of the Maya civilization
and the ancient history of the K'iche' and Kaqchikel people.
It was he who made the first edition in Spanish
of the Popol Vuh
, based on his translation of the manuscript found in the Newberry Library
, Chicago
, the United States
. He also published his translations of other ancient Mayan manuscripts, including the Anales de los Cakchiqueles.
, as the son of Teodoro M. Recinos and Rafaela Ávila de Recinos. He married María Palomo and had five children, Beatrice, Isabel, Mary, Adrian Jr., and Laura. All four of his daughters would remain in Guatemala for the majority of their lives, and Adrian Jr. would attend Harvard University
, and later became an M.D.
in the U.S. He still resides just outside of Washington D.C..
Recinos obtained his bachelors degree of Sciences and Letters in 1902, and graduated from the School of Law in Guatemala in 1907. He pursued a public career as a diplomat and was Secretary of Legation in El Salvador (1908), Under-Secretary of State (1910–1920), Minister of Foreign Affairs (1922–1923), Ambassador to France, Spain, and Italy (1923–1925), President of the Legislative Assembly (1926), and Ambassador to the USA (1928–1943). In 1944 he ran as a candidate to the Presidency of the Republic, but lost the elections to Juan José Arévalo
.
Recinos had a passion for Guatemalan history and was a founding member of the Sociedad de Geografía e Historia de Guatemala, currently known as Academia de Geografía e Historia de Guatemala. He was also a member of the Sociedad de Geografía y Estadística (Mexico), Sociedad Histórica Americana (Buenos Aires), Instituto Iberico-Americano de Derecho Comparado (Madrid), amongst others.
Adrián Recinos received national and international recognition for his publications on Guatemala's history and his translations of ancient Mayan manuscripts.
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
n historian, essayist, Mayanist
Mayanist
A Mayanist is a scholar specialising in research and study of the Central American pre-Columbian Maya civilization. This discipline should not be confused with Mayanism, a collection of New Age beliefs about the ancient Maya....
scholar and translator, and diplomat. Recinos was a great student of national history, mainly of the Maya civilization
Maya civilization
The Maya is a Mesoamerican civilization, noted for the only known fully developed written language of the pre-Columbian Americas, as well as for its art, architecture, and mathematical and astronomical systems. Initially established during the Pre-Classic period The Maya is a Mesoamerican...
and the ancient history of the K'iche' and Kaqchikel people.
It was he who made the first edition in Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
of the Popol Vuh
Popol Vuh
Popol Vuh is a corpus of mytho-historical narratives of the Post Classic Quiché kingdom in Guatemala's western highlands. The title translates as "Book of the Community," "Book of Counsel," or more literally as "Book of the People."...
, based on his translation of the manuscript found in the Newberry Library
Newberry Library
The Newberry Library is a privately endowed, independent research library for the humanities and social sciences in Chicago, Illinois. Although it is private, non-circulating library, the Newberry Library is free and open to the public...
, Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. He also published his translations of other ancient Mayan manuscripts, including the Anales de los Cakchiqueles.
Biography
Adrián Recinos was born on July 5, 1886 in Antigua GuatemalaAntigua Guatemala
Antigua Guatemala is a city in the central highlands of Guatemala famous for its well-preserved Spanish Mudéjar-influenced Baroque architecture as well as a number of spectacular ruins of colonial churches...
, as the son of Teodoro M. Recinos and Rafaela Ávila de Recinos. He married María Palomo and had five children, Beatrice, Isabel, Mary, Adrian Jr., and Laura. All four of his daughters would remain in Guatemala for the majority of their lives, and Adrian Jr. would attend Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, and later became an M.D.
Doctor of Medicine
Doctor of Medicine is a doctoral degree for physicians. The degree is granted by medical schools...
in the U.S. He still resides just outside of Washington D.C..
Recinos obtained his bachelors degree of Sciences and Letters in 1902, and graduated from the School of Law in Guatemala in 1907. He pursued a public career as a diplomat and was Secretary of Legation in El Salvador (1908), Under-Secretary of State (1910–1920), Minister of Foreign Affairs (1922–1923), Ambassador to France, Spain, and Italy (1923–1925), President of the Legislative Assembly (1926), and Ambassador to the USA (1928–1943). In 1944 he ran as a candidate to the Presidency of the Republic, but lost the elections to Juan José Arévalo
Juan José Arévalo
Juan José Arévalo Bermejo was the first of the reformist presidents of Guatemala. Preceded by military junta interregnum after a definitive pro-democracy revolt in 1944...
.
Recinos had a passion for Guatemalan history and was a founding member of the Sociedad de Geografía e Historia de Guatemala, currently known as Academia de Geografía e Historia de Guatemala. He was also a member of the Sociedad de Geografía y Estadística (Mexico), Sociedad Histórica Americana (Buenos Aires), Instituto Iberico-Americano de Derecho Comparado (Madrid), amongst others.
Adrián Recinos received national and international recognition for his publications on Guatemala's history and his translations of ancient Mayan manuscripts.
Published works
- Indigenous chronicles of Guatemala
- The City of Guatemala (historical description from its foundation to 1917-1918 earthquakes)
- Monographs of the Department of Huehuetenango