Many ethnic groups live in Chiapas who keep their traditions, languages and folklore alive. Their economy is based on cultivation - corn, beans, squash, potatoes, vegetables, pears, tomatoes and other plants - and raising animals such as pigs and poultry. In adition, many natives in the Soconusco region work on the coffee plantations.

The ethnic groups now living in the region are the Tzootzils and Tzeltals in the center of the state, an area known as the Chiapas Highlands; the Chujes, Choles and Zoques in the north; Tojolabals in the southeast; the Mames, Cakchiquels and Mochos in the south of the state and also part of Guatemala, and the Lacandons, who live in the eastern rain forest. All these tribes speak languages derived from Maya language tree. All these tribes speak languages derived from Maya except for the Zoqies, whose language is related to that of the Mixes in the state of Oaxaca and of the Popolucas of Veracruz. The largest of these groups is that of the Tzeltals, which ranks eighth in size among the country's indigenous peoples.

Broadly speaking, the natives of Chiapas hold various beliefs that are repeated from group to group. For example the idea that every human being has a spiritual animal double is common to almost all of them. This animal, which shares a person's destiny, may be an eagle, margay or showy bird. Until a few years ago the Choles used the name of a plant or animal as their second surname. Ancestor worship is practiced, and legends are perpetuated about supernatural beings, demons and animal doubles that live in rivers, forests and mountains. The Choles for example take care of certain sacred caves as they believe that they are the homes of the spirits which control rain, wind, storms and other natural phenomena. The Lacandons still practice a rite in honor of the old man Nojoch-yum chac, the god of Rain.

Another characteristic is the religious syncretism of ancient beliefs and Catholicism. The Tzeltals venerate "talking crosses", sculptures associated with pre-Hispanic idols, which according to tradition talk to the faithful. Of all the fiestas organized by the different groups of the state, the Chamula Carnival, also called Kin Tajimultic, is the most famous. This is the most important fiesta of the Totzils and includes cavalcades, ritual dances, a procession of flags and the spectacular fire running. These ceremonial activities serve to reaffirm the group's identity and to revive an ancestral religion based largely on agriculture.

Other groups show syncretism in their beliefs; the Choles worship a Black Christ in the town of Tila. The Tojolabals organize pilgrimages to visit different saints but at the same time venerate the sun, which they regard as a creator and protector deity, as well as the moon, the steerer of life.

The Lacondons still hold to their ancient beliefs and put them into practice regularly. For example, the head of a family line feeds the gods with pozol, a drink made of corn. This rite is accompanied by a chant reasserting the group's respect for its environment, its own history and the continuity of life.

The natives of Chiapas practice both sorcery and traditional medicine, along with their magic and religious activities. They have their ilol, who is the folk healer with knowledge that he uses to heal both bodies and souls. These special people believe that sickness is caused by an imbalance between man and his social or supernatural environment.

The colorful costumes of the ethnic groups in Chiapas are as varied as the countryside that surrounds them. A large number of their mythological figures are woven into their clothes. Tzotzil women wear shifts [huipiles] incorporating sun symbols, geometric butterflies, flowers, cornfields and toads.

The brightly embroidered shifts of Tenejapa in the Tzeltal stand out against the green backdrop of vegetation. The climate of each region also influences dress. The Lacandon, living in the heat and humidity of the rain forest, wear long white tunics, while the Tzeltas in the mountains have to protect themselves from the cold with thick woolen jackets and the Chujes wear capisayos, capes made of palm leaves which are very useful against the rainy climate of the region where they live. Among some groups, such as the Tzotzils, costume is not simply clothing, it is a mark distinguishing group from group. A change of costume signifies a change of personality, culture and home.

Chiapas is also famous for its handcrafts. The Tojolabals make various articles in wood and clay; the Lacandons produce reed flutes, hammocks, nets, leather bags, polished and decorated gourds, clay dolls and necklaces of seeds. The Zoques are masters at weaving baskets and making toys. All groups in general are excellent weavers.

Dances are always a feature of native festivities. The Choles perform dramatic ones symbolizing fights between bulls and jaguars, or between them and the Spanish. In Holy Week, instead of dancing they go on pilgrimages headed by the tatuches or elders. The Zoques have different dances; the "Women's Dance" [Yomo etze], the Corn Dance [Mote xu], and the dance of Malinche or Malintzin, because this woman who helped Cortes in the Conquest was originally from Copainla.

CHIAPAS History - Archaeology - Traditions
© 1997 Monclem Ediciones, S.A. de C.V.