| Languages | |
|---|---|
| Classical Nahuatl, among others | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Nahuas, Chontal Maya, Chʼol people |
The Olmeca-Xicallanca, also known as the Historic Olmecs, were a people that dominated parts of central Mexico during the epiclassic period (after the seventh century), originating from the south of Veracruz and the west of Tabasco. They should not be confused with the preclassic Olmec culture, although it is possible that they originate from the same geographic area. [1]
They are one of the most poorly understood cultures of Mesoamerica, despite having founded one of the first empires. They are considered to have dominated areas of central Mexico around the 5th century from their capital in Cacaxtla, near Cholula. They are known from the Historia Tolteca-Chichimeca of Fernando de Alva Ixtlixóchitl; the Historia de Tlaxcala by Diego Muñoz Camargo, and from the work of Chimalpahin.
There is more information about their resurgence at the end of the classic period, between the fall of Teotihuacán and the rise of the Toltecs, in the late eight and early ninth centuries. There is little concrete information on their origins or original language. The British Mayanist John Eric Thompson associated them with the putun itzaer, Maya traders from the Usumacinta basin and especially the Candelaria basin in Campeche. The putun might have taken advantage of the instability following the decline of Teotihuacan to make inroads into central Mexico and settle in the Puebla-Tlaxcala valley where they dominated Cacaxtla and Cholula. The twelfth century, when Cholula was their capital, was the height of their culture. In this period, Toltec groups settled in the region and accepted their government. In the thirteenth century they were finally conquered by Chichimecs. The last Olmeca-Xicallancas then migrated to Zacatlan and the gulf coast.
According to legend, the Olmeca-Xicallanca came from Chicomoztoc and are descended from Iztac Mixcoatl who had six sons with his wife Ilancueitl. Each son settled a region of Mexico. The third and fourth, Ulmecatl and Xicalancatl, were the ancestors of the Olmeca-Xicallanca. They crossed mountains and volcanos to settle in Cuernavaca, Chalco and Cholula. However, a northern origin of the Olmeca-Xicallanca has been doubted, and it was perhaps invented on the basis of them speaking the Nahuatl language. [2]
Like other Mesoamerican peoples, the Olmeca-Xicallanca were a federation of allied peoples, each one having their own province. Cholula is believed to have been governed by a pair of priest-kings who resided in the temple of Quetzalcoatl. One of them, the Tlalchiach, held the emblem of the jaguar and the earth, while the other, the Aquiach, was associated with the eagle and the sky. Having come from a land with many rivers in Tabasco and Campeche, they worshipped all that was related to water.
The Olmeca-Xicallanca are believed to be the builders of Cacaxtla in what is now the state of Tlaxcala. [3] Cacaxtla is an archaeological complex composed of five superimposed structures which have not all yet been studied, located on a hill overlooking a valley in the municipality of Natívitas, 19 kilometers southwest of Tlaxcala City.
Cacaxtla is known for its impressive murals, some of the most extensive and well-preserved in Mesoamerica. [4] [5] The name Cacaxtla is derived from the Nahuatl cacaxtli, referring to type of basket woven from roots and branches which merchants and tamemes (porters) used to carry goods on their backs. This is clearly depicted in the mural of the Red Temple, where a small man with a turtle shell and his cargo called cacaxtli can be seen; hence the name of this archaeological site.