Tag Archive

Mixtecs, Zapotecs, and Chatinos: Ancient Peoples of Southern Mexico

In his book Mixtecs, Zapotecs, and Chatinos: Ancient Peoples of Southern Mexico, associate professor of anthropology Arthur Joyce examines the history of the rich and complex societies that arose and flourished in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca. Between 500 B.C. and A.D. 800, many powerful urban polities developed in the geographic regions surrounding the Valley of Oaxaca, including in the highland valleys of the Mixteca and lower Río Verde Valley along the Pacific Coast. The book draws upon the most recent archaeological, ethnographic, epigraphic, linguistic, and iconographic evidence, to reveal the lengthy, complex strands of historical and cultural interactions woven among the diverse pre–Hispanic societies of Oaxaca.