Antonio Valeriano
Encyclopedia
Antonio Valeriano was a colonial Mexican, Nahua scholar and politician
. He was an assistant to fray Bernardino de Sahagún
in the compilation of the Florentine Codex
, and served as judge-governor
both of his home, Azcapotzalco
, and of Tenochtitlan.
text known as Nican Mopohua has become a point of contention in the long-running dispute over the historicity of the tradition that the Virgin Mary (under the title Our Lady of Guadalupe
) appeared to Juan Diego in 1531. The Nican Mopohua was published in 1649 by Luis Lasso de la Vega as part of a composite text known from its opening words as the Huei tlamahuiçoltica
, and de la Vega's claims of authorship in the preface to that work notwithstanding, the Nican Mopohua has long been attributed to Valeriano. This attribution is based on a tradition dating back to the Informaciones Jurídicas de 1666
and the assertions of Luis Becerra Tanco and, subsequently, Carlos Sigüenza y Gongora as to Valeriano's authorship and as to their acquaintance with the relative manuscripts in his hand-writing. Suggestions have been made that its content is incompatible with someone (such as Valeriano) who had close bonds with the Franciscans, and others have suggested that the Huei tlamahuiçoltica is a unitary work which – despite the considerable objections against such a possibility – de la Vega wrote, with the assistance of a collaborator. Nevertheless, the general consensus among Mexican scholars (ecclesiastical and secular) remains that Valeriano is indeed the author of the Nican Mopohua.
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
. He was an assistant to fray Bernardino de Sahagún
Bernardino de Sahagún
Bernardino de Sahagún was a Franciscan friar, missionary priest and pioneering ethnographer who participated in the Catholic evangelization of colonial New Spain . Born in Sahagún, Spain, in 1499, he journeyed to New Spain in 1529, and spent more than 50 years conducting interviews regarding Aztec...
in the compilation of the Florentine Codex
Florentine Codex
The Florentine Codex is the common name given to a 16th century ethnographic research project in Mesoamerica by Franciscan friar Bernardino de Sahagún. Bernardino originally titled it: La Historia General de las Cosas de Nueva Espana...
, and served as judge-governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
both of his home, Azcapotzalco
Azcapotzalco
Azcapotzalco is one of the 16 delegaciones into which Mexico's Federal District is divided. Azcapotzalco is in the northwestern part of Mexico City...
, and of Tenochtitlan.
Question of authorship of the Nican Mopohua
The question of Valeriano's authorship of the NahuatlNahuatl
Nahuatl is thought to mean "a good, clear sound" This language name has several spellings, among them náhuatl , Naoatl, Nauatl, Nahuatl, Nawatl. In a back formation from the name of the language, the ethnic group of Nahuatl speakers are called Nahua...
text known as Nican Mopohua has become a point of contention in the long-running dispute over the historicity of the tradition that the Virgin Mary (under the title Our Lady of Guadalupe
Our Lady of Guadalupe
Our Lady of Guadalupe , also known as the Virgin of Guadalupe is a celebrated Catholic icon of the Virgin Mary.According to tradition, on December 9, 1531 Juan Diego, a simple indigenous peasant, had a vision of a young woman while he was on a hill in the Tepeyac desert, near Mexico City. The lady...
) appeared to Juan Diego in 1531. The Nican Mopohua was published in 1649 by Luis Lasso de la Vega as part of a composite text known from its opening words as the Huei tlamahuiçoltica
Huei tlamahuiçoltica
Huei tlamahuiçoltica omonexiti in ilhuicac tlatocaçihuapilli Santa Maria totlaçonantzin Guadalupe in nican huei altepenahuac Mexico itocayocan Tepeyacac Huei tlamahuiçoltica omonexiti in ilhuicac tlatocaçihuapilli Santa Maria totlaçonantzin Guadalupe in nican huei altepenahuac Mexico itocayocan...
, and de la Vega's claims of authorship in the preface to that work notwithstanding, the Nican Mopohua has long been attributed to Valeriano. This attribution is based on a tradition dating back to the Informaciones Jurídicas de 1666
Informaciones Jurídicas de 1666
is a Spanish document that helped support the apparition of the Virgin Mary to Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin at the hill of Tepeyac in 1531. The apparition is also known today as the iconic Virgin of Guadalupe...
and the assertions of Luis Becerra Tanco and, subsequently, Carlos Sigüenza y Gongora as to Valeriano's authorship and as to their acquaintance with the relative manuscripts in his hand-writing. Suggestions have been made that its content is incompatible with someone (such as Valeriano) who had close bonds with the Franciscans, and others have suggested that the Huei tlamahuiçoltica is a unitary work which – despite the considerable objections against such a possibility – de la Vega wrote, with the assistance of a collaborator. Nevertheless, the general consensus among Mexican scholars (ecclesiastical and secular) remains that Valeriano is indeed the author of the Nican Mopohua.