Zacateco 4740700 192161753 2008-02-17T22:49:44Z Fabrictramp 1997572 Fixing [[Wikipedia:Disambiguation pages with links|links to disambiguation pages]] using [[Project:AutoWikiBrowser|AWB]] {{ethnic group| |group=Zacateco |poptime=Unknown |popplace=[[Mexico]] ([[Zacatecas]], [[Durango]]), [[United States]] ([[California]], [[Texas]], [[Illinois]]) |rels=[[Christianity]] especially [[Roman Catholic]] |langs=[[Spanish language|Spanish]], [[English language|English]] |related=[[Caxcan]], [[Guachichil]], [[Guamare]], [[Pame]], [[Tecuexe]] }} The '''Zacatecos''' (or '''Zacatecas''') were an indigenous people inhabiting part of northern [[Mexico]], one of the peoples called [[Chichimeca]]s by the [[Aztecs]]. They lived in most of what is now the state of [[Zacatecas]] and the northeastern part of [[Durango]]. They have many direct descendants, but most of their culture and traditions have disappeared with time. Large concentrations of direct descendants currently reside in Zacatecas and Durango, as well as large cities of the [[United States]], most notably; [[Los Angeles]], [[Dallas]], and [[Chicago]]. == Name == "Zacateco" is a [[Mexican Spanish]] derivation from the original [[Nahuatl]] ''Zacatec'', pluralized in early Mexican Spanish as ''Zacatecas'', the name given to the state and city. The name was given by the Aztecs to the people inhabiting a region in which a grass they called the ''zacatl'' was abundant. The region was thus called ''Zacatlan'' by the Aztecs. == History == Before the arrival of the Spanish, the Zacatec and Guachichil nations were great enemies in constant war with each other over food and boundaries. They later set aside their differences and became friends to wage war against the [[Spaniards]].{{Fact|date=March 2007}} === The Mixtón Rebellion === :''Main article: [[The Mixtón Rebellion]]'' === The Chichimeca War === :''Main article: [[The Chichimeca War]]'' == Geography == To the east and north they overlapped lands with the [[Guachichil]]es. They extended to border the [[Tepehuán|Tepehuanes]] to the west near Durango. To the north their land bordered that of the [[Irritilas]] or [[Laguna Pueblo|Laguna]] tribes, up to were [[Cuencamé]] and [[Parras]] are located. Their principal population centers were in Malpaís, around [[Peñol Blanco]], and around [[El Cerro de la Bufa]]. == Culture == === Way of Life === Most Zacatecos were nomadic, although a few groups were essentially sedentary. Both men and women wore their hair down to their waist. Some Chichimeca tribes wore their head braided, but it is unspecified if any Zacatec tribes did so. Earrings and collars were occasionally used. They used body markings by paint and tattooing to distinguish themselves from other tribes. Zacatecos were known to wear skin coverings below their knees and skin headbands on their foreheads. Occasionally they wore leather-soled sandals. They were "graceful, strong, robust and beardless". [[Juan Bautista de Pomar]] once said "''In the opinion of men experienced in foreign lands, the Zacatecos are the best archers in the world''" === Religion === The Zacatecos are not known to have built temples. Their only known deities were the sun, moon and certain stars. They rendered them tribute with flowers, weeds, aromatic herbs and dancing. Although they were a nomadic tribe, they did not sacrifice human lives. == Conclusion == The Zacatecos as a culture have vanished or faded, due to assimilation and [[mestizaje]] of the Mexican people. Another factor being the emigration of their descendants from Mexico unto the United States and the assimilation they take there. However many of their direct descendants still live in large concentrations in central Mexico. Taking all this into account, it is extremely difficult to even approximate the population of their descendants. It is equally hard to elaborate on their culture, language, art, and traditions. == References == *Powell, Philip Wayne. ''Soldiers, Indians, & Silver: The Northward Advance of New Spain, 1550-1600''.Berkely, California: University of California Press, 1969. [[Category:Indigenous peoples in Mexico]] [[Category:Indigenous peoples of the Americas]] [[es:Zacateco]] [[hr:Zacateco]] [[nl:Zacateken]]