Natalia Toledo Paz | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Born | 1968 (age 56–57) Juchitán de Zaragoza, Oaxaca, Mexico |
Language | Zapotec, Spanish |
Genre | Poetry |
Subject | Women, environment, indigenous cultures |
Notable works | Cuento del Conejo y el Coyote/ Didxaguca' sti' Lexu ne Gueu' (2008), Black Flower and Other Zapotec Poems (2015) |
Spouse | |
Children | 2 |
Natalia Toledo Paz (born 1968) is a Mexican poet who writes in Spanish and Zapotec. Her work helped to revive interest in the Zapotec language. [1] Ida Kozlowska-Day states that Toledo is "one of the most recognized contemporary poets in the native languages of Mexico." [2]
Toledo Paz was born in Juchitán de Zaragoza, Oaxaca. [3] She is daughter of the painter Francisco Toledo [4] and sister of Dr Lakra. Until she was seven and moved to Mexico City, Toledo Paz lived in a community where Zapotec was the main language spoken. [2] Toledo Paz has been writing since she was young. [1] Toledo Paz studied in Casa de la Cultura de Juchitán and Sociedad General de Escritores de México (the General Society of Writers of Mexico, SOGEM). [3]
Toledo Paz's writing has been concerned with women and their relationship to the environment. [5] Her writing, along with other writers' use of the Zapotec language in their work, has helped boost demand in Mexico to make indigenous cultures more visible. [6] Toledo Paz enjoys using the Zapotec language because she feels that it has "a great aesthetic sensibility for creating images and beauty." [2]
Toledo Paz has also collaborated with her father, Francisco, to create children's stories, such as Light Foot/Pies ligeros (2007). [7] Toledo Paz has been a fellow of Fondo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes (the National Fund for Culture and for the Arts, FONCA) (1994–1995; 2001–2002), and Fondo Estatal para la Cultura y las Artes de Oaxaca (the Fund for Culture and for the Arts of Oaxaca, FOESCA) (1995–1996). [3]
She is the president of Patronato de la Casa de la Cultura de Juchitán (Fund of the House of Culture of Juchitán).