Tepehuán
Encyclopedia
The Tepehuán are a Native American
ethnic group in northwest Mexico, whose villages at the time of Spanish conquest spanned a large territory along the Sierra Madre Occidental
from Chihuahua and Durango
in the north to Jalisco
in the south. The southern Tepehuán community included an isolated settlement (Azqueltán
) in the middle of Huichol territory in the Bolaños River canyon. The southern Tepehuán were historically referred to as Tepecanos. See Also: Tepehuán Revolt
The Tepehuán language
s are part of the Uto-Aztecan
language family, within which it is grouped with O'odham
to form the Piman
family.
The name is pronounced tepeˈwan in Spanish, and is often spelled Tepehuan without the accent in English-language publications. This can cause confusion with the languages called Tepehua
([teˈpewa] in Spanish) and collectively referred to as Tepehuan in English. These are spoken on the other side of Mexico, and are closely related to Totonac
and not at all to Tepehuán. The names of both groups come from Nahuatl
and mean 'mountain dwellers' or 'mountain people'.
The Tepehuán Revolt
from 1616 to 1620 was a bloody and ultimately futile attempt by the Tepehuán, inspired by a messianic leader named Quautlatas
, to rid their territory of the Spanish.
Northern Tepehuán (Odami - “People”, lived and live north of the Rio Verde in Chihuahua and in northern Durango and Sinaloa
)
Southern Tepehuán (Dami - “People”, lived in the Sierra Madre Occidental in southern Durango
and northern Nayarit and Jalisco
)
They still retain some of their old customs. The northern Tepehuán numbered 6,200 in 2005; the southeastern, 10,600, and the southwestern, 8,700.
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
ethnic group in northwest Mexico, whose villages at the time of Spanish conquest spanned a large territory along the Sierra Madre Occidental
Sierra Madre Occidental
The Sierra Madre Occidental is a mountain range in western Mexico.-Setting:The range runs north to south, from just south of the Sonora–Arizona border southeast through eastern Sonora, western Chihuahua, Sinaloa, Durango, Zacatecas, Nayarit, Jalisco, Aguascalientes to Guanajuato, where it joins...
from Chihuahua and Durango
Durango
Durango officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Durango is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is located in Northwest Mexico. With a population of 1,632,934, it has Mexico's second-lowest population density, after Baja...
in the north to Jalisco
Jalisco
Jalisco officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Jalisco is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is located in Western Mexico and divided in 125 municipalities and its capital city is Guadalajara.It is one of the more important states...
in the south. The southern Tepehuán community included an isolated settlement (Azqueltán
Azqueltán
Azqueltán is a small settlement located on the banks of the Bolaños River in the municipality of Villa Guerrero, Jalisco, Mexico. "Azqueltán" means "place of the ants" in the Tepehuán language....
) in the middle of Huichol territory in the Bolaños River canyon. The southern Tepehuán were historically referred to as Tepecanos. See Also: Tepehuán Revolt
Tepehuán Revolt
The Tepehuán Revolt broke out in Mexico in 1616. The Tepehuán Indians attempted to break free from Spanish rule. The revolt was crushed by 1620 after a large loss of life on both sides.-The Tepehuán People:...
The Tepehuán language
Tepehuán language
Tepehuán is the name of two closely related languages of the Piman branch of the Uto-Aztecan language family, both spoken in northern Mexico...
s are part of the Uto-Aztecan
Uto-Aztecan languages
Uto-Aztecan or Uto-Aztekan is a Native American language family consisting of over 30 languages. Uto-Aztecan languages are found from the Great Basin of the Western United States , through western, central and southern Mexico Uto-Aztecan or Uto-Aztekan is a Native American language family...
language family, within which it is grouped with O'odham
O'odham language
O'odham is an Uto-Aztecan language of southern Arizona and northern Sonora where the Tohono O'odham and Pima reside. As of the year 2000, there were estimated to be approximately 9750 speakers in the United States and Mexico combined, although there may be more due to underreporting...
to form the Piman
Piman languages
Piman refers a group of languages within the Uto-Aztecan family that are spoken by ethnic groups spanning from Arizona in the north to Durango, Mexico in the south.The Piman languages are as follows :...
family.
The name is pronounced tepeˈwan in Spanish, and is often spelled Tepehuan without the accent in English-language publications. This can cause confusion with the languages called Tepehua
Totonacan languages
The Totonacan languages are a family of closely related languages spoken by approximately 200,000 Totonac and Tepehua people in the states of Veracruz, Puebla, and Hidalgo in Mexico...
([teˈpewa] in Spanish) and collectively referred to as Tepehuan in English. These are spoken on the other side of Mexico, and are closely related to Totonac
Totonacan languages
The Totonacan languages are a family of closely related languages spoken by approximately 200,000 Totonac and Tepehua people in the states of Veracruz, Puebla, and Hidalgo in Mexico...
and not at all to Tepehuán. The names of both groups come from Nahuatl
Nahuatl
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...
and mean 'mountain dwellers' or 'mountain people'.
The Tepehuán Revolt
Tepehuán Revolt
The Tepehuán Revolt broke out in Mexico in 1616. The Tepehuán Indians attempted to break free from Spanish rule. The revolt was crushed by 1620 after a large loss of life on both sides.-The Tepehuán People:...
from 1616 to 1620 was a bloody and ultimately futile attempt by the Tepehuán, inspired by a messianic leader named Quautlatas
Quautlatas
Quautlatas was a shaman who inspired the bloody Tepehuán Revolt against the Spanish in Mexico in 1616.-The Tepehuán and the Spanish:The Tepehuán were an agricultural people who lived primarily in the future Mexican state of Durango on the eastern slopes of the Sierra Madre Occidental...
, to rid their territory of the Spanish.
Tepehuán groups
Three groups of Tepehuán survive:Northern Tepehuán (Odami - “People”, lived and live north of the Rio Verde in Chihuahua and in northern Durango and Sinaloa
Sinaloa
Sinaloa officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sinaloa is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 18 municipalities and its capital city is Culiacán Rosales....
)
- Baborigame (about 6.200 speaker, some use a dialect variant similar to the Tarahumara)
- Nabogame (about 1.800 speaker)
Southern Tepehuán (Dami - “People”, lived in the Sierra Madre Occidental in southern Durango
Durango
Durango officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Durango is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is located in Northwest Mexico. With a population of 1,632,934, it has Mexico's second-lowest population density, after Baja...
and northern Nayarit and Jalisco
Jalisco
Jalisco officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Jalisco is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is located in Western Mexico and divided in 125 municipalities and its capital city is Guadalajara.It is one of the more important states...
)
- Southeastern Tepehuán (about 10.600 speaker, lived in southeast Durango and adjacent areas, their cultural and religious center was Santa Maria Ocotán)
- Southwestern Tepehuán (about 8.700 speaker, lived in southwest Durango and adjacent areas)
They still retain some of their old customs. The northern Tepehuán numbered 6,200 in 2005; the southeastern, 10,600, and the southwestern, 8,700.