Chapter XII: Miscellaneous Tribes of Central America

Scarcity of Historical Data -- The Tribes of Chiapas -- The
Founders and Heroes of the Chiapanec Nation -- Wars with the Aztecs
-- The People of the Southern Coast -- They are vanquished by the
Olmecs -- Their Exodus and Journey -- They settle and separate --
Juarros' Account of the Origin and later History of the Pipiles --
Pipile Traditions -- The Founding of Mictlan -- Queen Comizahual
-- Acxitl's Empire of the East -- The Cholutecs -- Various Tribes
of Nicaragua -- Settlements on the Isthmus.

It is my purpose to relate in this chapter all that is known of the scattered tribes of Central America, exclusive of the Quiché-Cakchiquels. The historical information that has been preserved respecting these tribes is, however, so meagre and of such a vague and unsatisfactory character that the reader must expect nothing more than a very disconnected and incomplete account of them.

Chiapas, which is geographically the most northerly portion of Central America, though politically it belongs to Mexico, was inhabited in its northern part by the Tzendales and Zoques, in its central and southern region by the Chiapanecs, Zotziles, and Quelenes.[XII-1] The Tzendales lived in the vicinity of Palenque, and are said to have been directly descended from the builders of that city. Of the Zotziles and Quelenes nothing is known, save that they, together with the Tzendales and the Zoques, were at a late date subjugated by the Chiapanecs.[XII-2]

[Sidenote: THE CHIAPANECS.]

The Chiapanecs, according to some authorities, came originally from Nicaragua. After a long and painful journey they arrived at the river Chiapa. Finding the region to their taste they resolved to settle, and founded a strong city upon the neighboring heights.[XII-3] Fuentes asserts that they were descended from the Toltecs, and that their kingdom was founded by a brother of Nima Quiché, one of the chiefs who led the Toltecs to Guatemala.[XII-4] There can be no doubt that the Chiapanecs were a very ancient people; indeed their traditions refer us back to the time of Votan.[XII-5] Boturini, on the authority of Bishop Nuñez de la Vega, speaks of an original record in which Votan is represented as the third figure in the Chiapanec calendar. The record also enumerates the places where Votan tarried, and states that ever since his visit there has been in Teopixca a family bearing his name. Vega believes that the original population of Chiapas and Soconusco were of the race of Cham.[XII-6] The twenty heroes whose names are immortalized in the calendar of the Chiapanecs are commonly said to have been the founders or first rulers of that nation. We are told that they all distinguished themselves, and that some died in their beds, some on the battle-field, others at the hands of their rivals, but beyond this scarcely any record of their lives or deeds has survived. One of them named Chinax, a military leader represented with a flag in his hand, was hanged and burned by an enemy; of another named Been, it is stated that he traveled through Chiapas, leaving special marks of his visits in the places through which he passed. It appears by the calendar that Imox, sometimes called Mox, and occasionally Ninus, was the first settler in Chiapas. According to the worthy prelate above mentioned, this Ninus was the son of Belo, who was the son of Nimrod, who was the son of Chus, who was the grandson of Cham. He was represented by or with the ceiba tree,[XII-7] from whose roots, it is said, the Chiapanec race sprang.[XII-8] It is Orozco y Berra's opinion that the Chiapanecs should be placed before the better known tribes[XII-9] and after the builders of Palenque and Copan. Their language has not been classified, but is said to resemble that of the Nicoya region.[XII-10]

The spot on which the pioneer settlers of the Chiapan region established their first stronghold was so difficult of access as to be almost unassailable, and was fortified so strongly both by nature and art, that it was practically impregnable. From here the inhabitants kept up a constant warfare with the Aztec garrisons at Tzinacatla, Soconusco and elsewhere.[XII-11] They cordially hated the Mexicans, and persistently refused to intermarry with them. Their enemies seem to have been stronger than they, but by their valor they not only maintained their independence until the time of the Conquest, but, as we have seen, they subjugated the surrounding nations. They incurred the bitter enmity of the Chinantecs, because they forced the Zoques to pay tribute.[XII-12]

[Sidenote: THE PIPILES.]

The southern coast region of Chiapas, between Tehuantepec and Soconusco, was occupied by a people whose origin is involved in some mystery. Brasseur relates that they came from Cholula; probably in the ninth century, at the time when Huemac took that city and persecuted the followers of Quetzalcoatl. Torquemada identifies them with the Pipiles of Guatemala and Salvador,[XII-13] of whom I shall speak presently. These coast people were an industrious, frugal race, and for a long time they held peaceable possession of their territory, and prospered exceedingly. But their happy life was destined to be rudely and suddenly changed to one of bondage and oppression. A horde of fierce Olmecs invaded and conquered their country, and immediately reduced the vanquished to a state of miserable slavery. Not only were they forced to pay excessive and ruinous tribute, but they were compelled to yield up their children of both sexes to gratify the unnatural lusts of their masters. They were, besides, made amenable to a most rigorous system of laws, the least infraction of which was punished with death. For a time they groaned passively under this cruel yoke, but at length it grew unbearable. Then in their deep trouble they appealed to their priests for help and advice. The priests consulted the oracles and at the end of eight days announced to the people that the only way in which they could escape from their persecutors was to leave the country in a body, and go in search of another home. At first the people seemed disposed to question the prudence and feasibility of this step, but they were speedily re-assured by the priests, who declared that the gods would aid and protect them in their flight. A day was then set for their departure, and they were instructed in the meantime to provide themselves with everything necessary for a long journey. At the appointed time they assembled secretly, and set out at once. It would be difficult to believe that an entire nation of slaves could have made such an exodus unknown to and against the will of their masters, even though we read of a parallel case in Holy Writ; but, however this might be, they seem to have taken the road towards Guatemala without hindrance, and to have been pursued by no Olmec Pharaoh.[XII-14]

According to the tradition, they continued their march down the coast for twenty days, until they came to the banks of the river Michatoyatl. Here their chief priest fell sick, and the country being very pleasant, they halted for a time. Before long the priest died, and they then proceeded on their journey, leaving, however, some families behind, who settled here and founded a city, afterwards known in Guatemalan history by the name of Itzcuintlan. After this there is some confusion in the different accounts. Following the plainest version, similar circumstances caused them to make another halt twenty leagues lower down, in the neighborhood of the volcano Cuzcatlan.[XII-15] Here they found a lovely climate, and a productive soil, and that part of them that has since borne the name of Pipiles resolved to settle. The others went farther south, towards the Conchagua Gulf;[XII-16] but of these I shall speak again presently.

The authorities do not all assign this origin to the Pipiles, however. Juarros says that Ahuitzotl, king of Mexico, sent to Guatemala, in the garb of traders, a large number of Mexicans of the lowest class, under the command of four captains and one general. These were instructed to settle in the country. Ahuitzotl did this in order to have auxiliaries so situated as to facilitate his intended military operations against the chiefs of Guatemala. He died, however, before he could carry out this policy. The new settlers spoke the Mexican language very poorly, much as children might speak it; for this reason they were called Pipiles, which in Mexican signifies children.[XII-17] They prospered and multiplied wonderfully in their new home, and extended their settlements to Sonsonate and Salvador. But after a time they incurred the enmity of the Quichés and Cakchiquels, by whom they were so sorely oppressed that there was danger of their being speedily exterminated. In this emergency the Pipiles formed a military organization, much as Ahuitzotl had originally intended. But some time later the chiefs began to abuse the power with which they had been invested by imposing heavy taxes and otherwise robbing the people. Moreover, the principal lord, named Cuaucmichin, introduced human sacrifice, and made victims of some of the most highly esteemed persons in the community. A riot broke out, during which Cuaucmichin was put to death by the people of his palace. The other chiefs were also deprived of their authority, and left with the inferior rank of Alahuaes, or heads of calpullis. A nobleman named Tutecotzemit, a man of mild disposition, kind heart, and good ability to govern was then invested with the supreme authority. It appears that he was not free from ambition, however. His first step was to form a council, or senate, of eight nobles, connected with himself by blood or marriage, to whom he granted a certain amount of authority. He then appointed a number of subordinate officers, chosen from among the nobility, who were subject to the orders of the senate. He next proceeded to reduce the imposts and to remedy the evils that had arisen from previous misgovernment. Having thus gained the confidence and affection of the people, he caused himself to be formally proclaimed king of the Pipiles with the right of transmitting the crown to his children and their descendants. It is recorded that the Pipiles played a very prominent part in the numerous wars that took place between the several kingdoms of Guatemala. In later years they were engaged in a very long and bitter conflict with the Cakchiquels, in which they were finally worsted by Nimahuinac, king of that people, who forced Tonaltut, lord of the Pipiles, to sue for peace, and only granted it on the condition that the Pipiles should bind themselves to a perpetual alliance with the Cakchiquel kings.[XII-18]

All that has been preserved of their earlier history is contained in two traditions, which are half if not wholly mythical. The first of these refers to the period immediately following the settlement of the Pipiles at their last halting-place in Salvador, and especially to the founding of Mictlan, a city which subsequently corresponded in its sacred character to Cholula on the eastern plateau of Mexico, and Mitla in Oajaca. The story goes that there issued one day from Lake Huixa a mysterious old man of venerable aspect, clad in long blue robes, and wearing upon his head a pontificial mitre. He was followed by a young girl of peerless beauty, dressed in a similar manner, excepting the mitre. Soon after his appearance the old man betook himself to the summit of a neighboring hill. There under his directions the people at once set about building a splendid temple, which received the name of Mictlan. Round about the sacred edifice the palaces of the chiefs rose in rapid succession, and in an incredibly short space of time a thriving and populous city had grown out of the desert. The same mysterious personage gave them laws and a system of government, under which they continued to prosper until the end.[XII-19]

The other tradition to which I have alluded was preserved at the time of the Conquest by the inhabitants of Cerquin, a province in the mountainous region of northern Honduras. There is reason to believe that the people to whom it relates were Pipiles, as they extended their possessions in this direction, but their name is not given in connection with the story, which attributes to a woman the honor of having first introduced culture into this part of the country, two hundred years before the advent of the Spaniards. She is described as having been very beautiful, of a fair complexion, and well versed in the art of magic. She appeared suddenly, as if dropped from the sky, for which reason, and because of the great respect which she inspired, she was named Comizahual, or 'flying tigress,' the tiger being an animal held sacred by the natives. She took up her abode at Cealcoquin, and erected there many temples which she ornamented with monstrous figures of men and animals. In the principal temple she placed a stone having three sides, on each of which were three faces of hideous aspect. By means of the magic virtues which lay within this stone she overthrew her enemies and added to her dominions. She reigned gloriously for a number of years, and had three sons, though she was unmarried and had never known a man. When she felt her end drawing near, she summoned these princes to her presence, and after giving them the best of advice regarding the way in which they should govern, she divided her kingdom equally between them. She then caused herself to be carried on her bed to the highest terrace of the palace, and suddenly vanished, amid thunder and lightning. It is recorded that her three sons governed well and wisely, but no particulars of their reigns are given.[XII-20]

[Sidenote: EMPIRE OF THE EAST.]

Brasseur implies that the Pipiles were in some way connected with or subject to the empire which he believes Topiltzin Acxitl, the last Toltec king of Anáhuac, to have founded in Central America, since he speaks of Mictlan being the seat of the spiritual power of that realm. I have already expressed my opinion that this empire of the East is the offspring of the Abbé's inventive imagination; but at the same time, notwithstanding the two or three allusions upon which he must found his theory are so vague as to be practically meaningless, he manages to give a tolerably definite description of the condition in which the Cakchiquels found it when they came after a long and arduous pilgrimage from Anáhuac to do homage to Acxitl. He confesses his ignorance of the particulars of the Toltec monarch's journey, and of the means by which he attained universal dominion in the east, but adds that it is certain that with the aid of the Toltec emigrants, like himself, and the Chichimecs of all languages, who followed in his footsteps, he had succeeded in establishing a kingdom larger, perhaps, than that which he had lost, and in conferring upon his subjects the benefits of civilization as well as the cult of Quetzalcoatl, of whom he was the supreme representative. Taught by experience the benefits of such a policy, he united under his authority the bands of emigrants that were constantly arriving, and with their assistance conquered by force of arms such of the surrounding provinces as would not peaceably acknowledge his supremacy. It was his custom to leave those princes who offered no resistance to his encroachments in possession of their titles and dignities, merely making them nominal vassals of the empire. By pursuing this policy Acxitl became so powerful that none of the numerous Quiché and Cakchiquel chiefs who afterwards founded states in these regions dared to assume the royal authority until they had been formally instated in their possessions by him. Thus it was that at the time when the Cakchiquels descended from the mountains to the plateau of Vera Paz, they found Acxitl occupied in conferring the sovereignty of that region upon one of the most renowned of the warriors who had followed him from Tollan, named Cempoal Taxuch before his coronation, and Orbaltzam afterwards.[XII-21]

[Sidenote: NICARAGUAN TRIBES.]

Let us now follow the fortunes of the Xuchiltepecs, or that part of the tribes of the coast of Chiapas which separated from the Pipiles at Cuzcatlan. Following the coast southward they arrived at the Gulf of Conchagua. Here they were forced to halt, by the illness and subsequent death of the priest who had hitherto been their guide. Before expiring, the old man, who seems in some way to have gained a knowledge of that region, gave them full information as to what they might expect of the surrounding nations, exhorted them to settle and live in peace, and predicted that their ancient enemies, the Olmecs, would eventually become their slaves. The Xuchiltepecs accordingly stayed permanently where they were, on the borders of Honduras, Salvador, and Nicaragua, and bore henceforward the name of Cholutecs, from the country from which they originally came.[XII-22]

Of the other tribes of Nicaragua nothing is known, except the names and localities of those that inhabited the strip of country between the Pacific coast and the lakes. Of these, the Orotiñans occupied the country about the Gulf of Nicoya and south of the Lake of Nicaragua. Their principal towns were Orotiña, Cantren, and Choroté.[XII-23] North of these were the Dirians, whose chief cities were settled at the foot of the volcano of Mombacho, and at Managua on the lake of that name.[XII-24] North of the Dirians were the Nagrandans, or Mangnés, whose territory lay between Lake Managua and the ocean.[XII-25] The Chontales inhabited the mountainous region north-east of Lake Nicaragua.[XII-26] Immediately south of the Cholutecs were the Chorotegans. These two nations are often regarded as identical. According to Squier the Chorotegans included the Orotiñans, Dirians, and Nagrandans.[XII-27] The Niquirans, or Nicaraguans, were one of the most prominent tribes in Nicaragua.[XII-28] There is some confusion about their origin. Torquemada implies that they were part of the tribes that were driven from their home on the coast of Chiapas by the Olmecs, who, after the death of their priest at the Gulf of Conchagua, continued their journey to the Atlantic coast, along which they traveled as far as Nombre de Dios, founding several towns on the way. Thence they returned, in search of a fresh-water sea, to Nicoya, where they were informed that a few leagues farther on was a fine lake. They accordingly proceeded to the spot upon which Leon now stands, and there formed settlements. But growing dissatisfied with this site, they afterwards went to Nicaragua, where, by a treacherous ruse, they killed the inhabitants and took possession of the land.[XII-29] Brasseur tells much the same story of their travels and ultimate settlement in Nicaragua, but asserts that they were Toltecs.[XII-30]

FOOTNOTES:

[XII-1] See for location of these tribes, vol. i., pp. 681-2.

[XII-2] _Herrera_, dec. iv., lib. x., cap. xi.; _Remesal_, _Hist. Chyapa_, p. 264; _Brasseur_, _Hist._, tom. iii., p. 16.

[XII-3] _Remesal_, ib.; _Herrera_, ib.; _Murguia_, _Estadist. Guajaca_, in _Soc. Mex. Geog., Boletin_, tom. vii., p. 187.

[XII-4] _Juarros_, _Hist. Guat._, p. 8.

[XII-5] _Clavigero_, tom. iv., p. 52, tom. i., pp. 150-1; _Larrainzar_, in _Soc. Mex. Geog., Boletin_, tom. iii., p. 92; _Bradford's Amer. Antiq._, p. 202.

[XII-6] _Boturini_, _Idea_, pp. 115, 118-19.

[XII-7] Five-leaved silk-cotton tree, _Bombax Ceiba_.

[XII-8] _Piñeda_, in _Soc. Mex. Geog., Boletin_, tom. iii., pp. 344-5. The names of these heroes were: Imox, Igh, Votan, Chanan, Abah, Tox, Moxic, Lambat, Molo or Mulu, Elab, Batz, Evob, Been, Hix, Tziquin, Chabin, Chic, Chinax, Cahogh, Aghual.

[XII-9] Who these 'better known tribes' are is not stated.

[XII-10] _Piñeda_, in _Soc. Mex. Geog., Boletin_, tom. iii., p. 346. The history, position and civilization of the Chiapanecs shows that they preceded, or were at least contemporaries of the first tribes or factions of the Aztec family. They were certainly a very ancient people, and of Toltec origin, while their civilization undoubtedly came from the north and not from the south. _Orozco y Berra_, _Geografía_, pp. 44, 60, 120.

[XII-11] _Clavigero_, tom. iv., pp. 267-8; _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Conq._, fol. 73, 178; _Herrera_, dec. iv., lib. x., cap. xi.; _Larrainzar_, in _Soc. Mex. Geog., Boletin_, tom. iii., p. 92; _Brasseur_, _Esquisses_, p. 17.

[XII-12] _Herrera_, dec. iv., lib. x., cap. xi.; _Remesal_, _Hist. Chyapa_, p. 264.

[XII-13] _Monarq. Ind._, tom. i., p. 333. Brasseur, _Hist._, tom. ii., p. 76, identifies them with the Pipiles and Xuchiltepecs.

[XII-14] _Torquemada_, tom. i., p. 332.

[XII-15] Cuzcatlan was the ancient name of Salvador.

[XII-16] _Brasseur_, _Hist._, tom. ii., pp. 78-9. Torquemada, tom. i., p. 332, relates that twenty days after starting, one of their high-priests died. They then traversed Guatemala, and journeying a hundred leagues farther on, came to a country to which the Spaniards have given the name of Choluteca, or Choroteca. Here another priest died. After this the author goes on to tell the story which, according to the version followed above, applies to the Xuchiltepecs who proceeded to the Gulf of Conchagua, and which will be referred to elsewhere.

[XII-17] _Juarros_, _Hist. Guat._, p. 224. A reduplication of _pilli_, which has two meanings, 'noble,' and 'child,' the latter being generally regarded as its meaning in the tribal name. _Buschmann_, _Ortsnamen_, p. 137. See also _Molina_, _Vocabulario_.

[XII-18] _Juarros_, _Hist. Guat._, pp. 81-4, 17-18, 20, 23, 26.

[XII-19] 'L'époque que les événements paraissent assigner à cette légende coïncide avec la période de la grande émigration toltèque et la fondation des divers royaumes guatémaliens qui en furent la conséquence.' _Brasseur_, _Hist._, tom. ii., p. 81.

[XII-20] _Torquemada_, tom. i., p. 336; _Brasseur_, _Hist._, tom. ii., pp. 106-7; _Herrera_, dec. iv., lib. viii., cap. iv.

[XII-21] _Brasseur_, _Hist._, tom. ii., pp. 101-5.

[XII-22] _Torquemada_, tom. i., p. 332; _Brasseur_, _Hist._, tom. ii., pp. 79, 107-8. See vol. i., of this work, p. 791, for territory of Cholutecs.

[XII-23] _Torquemada_, tom. i., p. 332; _Levy_, _Nicaragua_, p. 6; see vol. i., of this work, p. 792.

[XII-24] _Id._

[XII-25] _Id._

[XII-26] _Id._, p. 790.

[XII-27] _Nicaragua_, (Ed. 1856), vol. ii., pp. 309-12; _Oviedo_, _Hist. Gen._, tom. iv., p. 35.

[XII-28] For locality, see vol. i., p. 792.

[XII-29] _Torquemada_, tom. i., pp. 332-3.

[XII-30] _Hist._, tom. ii., pp. 108-9.