Indigenous Intellectuals’ Use of Bilingualism to Resist Spanish Narratives
Don Fernando de Alva Ixtlilxochitl as a Nahua Scholar
Nahua scholars such as Don Fernando de Alva Ixtlilxochitl played a significant role in helping the indigenous peoples maintain their roles and voices by preventing the Spanish from dominating their conquest narratives. The scientist had a noble origin and a pretty good education, as a result of which he could speak the language of Nahuatl and the Spanish conquerors (Brian et al. 3). He was able to bring considerable knowledge into and elucidate many of the events that were then taking place by writing and analyzing them (Barrio and Cantón 118).
The Spanish conquest of Mexico was one of the most significant historical moments that significantly impacted both countries and people. Don Fernando de Alva Ixtlilxochitl was born in 1578 and received a rich cultural heritage, enabling him to understand the Spaniards and his people (Herzog 81). This way, the scientist could mediate between the Nahuas and the Spanish.
The Use of Bilingualism for Writing Books on Indigenous Perspectives About the Spanish Conquest
Don Fernando de Alva Ixtlilxochitl used his bilingual advantage to write books about the Spanish conquest. In this way, he represented the views of the indigenous population on how the Spaniards treated them and how brutal the war was. (Kauffmann 2). For this reason, some of his works, such as “Relaciones” and “Historia de la Nación Mexicana”, are of particular historical value (Kauffmann 700).
Thus, many generations who grew up after the war can understand the author’s point of view regarding this event and the people who lived then. Writing a true story at that time was a difficult task, as the author had to confront the multiple Spanish distortions that were the dominant myth (Lee 153). Thus, Alva Ixtlilxochitl was able not only to document all historical events but also to do so in a way that people would read his records.
Challenging Spanish Narratives That Tried to Justify Colonization
The scientist’s bilingualism allowed him to challenge the Spanish narratives that sought to justify the war. The enslavement and colonization of the lands of the indigenous peoples were called into question due to the use of the Spanish language and the evidence that Alva Ixtlilxochitl demonstrated in his treatises (García 76). The propaganda spread by the Spanish colonialists about the inferiority of the indigenous peoples was undermined.
In this regard, his readings became popular and in demand, which led to the popularization of the culture of his people. He demonstrated the complexity, uniqueness, and richness of traditions and beliefs by focusing on the accomplishments of the Nahuas (Terraciano 1). This helped denounce the violence and put information that was more reliable than their propaganda into the minds of the Spaniards.
The bilingual writings of Alva Ixtlilxochitl had the necessary impact on the Spaniards. With their help, the scientist achieved a report on the proper attitude of the indigenous peoples to colonization and the hostility that the Nahuas felt towards the invaders (Laack 64). Thus, it contributed significantly to establishing the struggle and resistance for independence. Indigenous peoples could show their voice and rights in their land, contributing to their society’s development.
Don Domingo de San Antón Munón Chimalpahin Quauhtlehuanitzin
The chronicler and scholar Don Domingo de San Antón Munón Chimalpahin Quauhtlehuanitzin significantly influenced the development of the autonomy of Nahua culture. He was born in 1579 and came from a noble and educated family, contributing to the fact that he could learn Spanish and Nahuatl (Herzog 125).
Use of Nahuatl to Assert Nahua Cultural Autonomy
To assert the cultural autonomy of Nahua, he actively used Nahuatl in his works, such as “Annals of His Time,” proving that he contributed to his people’s isolation (Prieto 16). In addition, these works could also be read by Spaniards thanks to the author’s bilingual approach. In this way, Nahua culture could expand significantly.
Documenting Nahua Cultures and Resilience to Resist Colonization
Chimalpahin actively documented all the events that took place to show the perspectives of the indigenous peoples. Thus, the goal of revealing the manipulation of facts by the Spaniards was achieved (Asif 547). The resolve of the Nahua people was a significant factor in helping the author spread important information and enlighten the people. The traditions and beliefs of the people were the central aspect of his activities and significantly influenced the Spaniards’ perception of Nahua (Olivares 14). Although this did not stop the war, these labours were mainly able to isolate the Nahua and show the uniqueness of these people.
Bilingualism for Connections Between the Nahuas and Spanish
La Malinche
Bilingualism is an example of how two warring peoples can be connected. La Malinche was a renowned translator and played a significant role in establishing links and communication between the Nahua and the Spaniards during their intervention (Lyall and Romo 112). At the same time, she held a high position among the Spaniards as the concubine of the Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés (Cuevas 2; Smith 327). Thus, she used her bilingualism to help him in business, communication, and negotiations, significantly reducing the gap between the Spaniards and the Nahua (Bleichmar 1365).
Thus, knowing two languages, she could influence the results of the war of conquest. This was possible due to the role of translator and diplomat that she combined (Del Moral 94). Bridging the gaps between the two people helped eliminate potential difficulties and improve the negotiation process.
Negotiation and Diplomacy Through La Malinche
La Malinche was fluent in Nahuatl and Spanish, signifying her role as an intermediary. She was an important person who conveyed the problems and wishes of the Nahua to the Spaniards, which allowed the people to communicate high-quality information (Rivera 1; Brinkman 4). Thus, easy communication was established between the people, contributing to interaction and problem-solving (Rizzi and Pym 3).
Mutual understanding could be achieved more effectively because La Malinche knew both cultures. Due to this, the language barrier between cultures was overcome, allowing Nahuas and the Spanish to find common ground to resolve conflicts (Abang 1). Thus, it can be said that the two people could only communicate thanks to La Malinche’s activities.
Culture Preservation Through La Malinche
Thanks to the preservation of the culture of the indigenous peoples, with the help of La Malinche, they were able to spread their traditions among the Spaniards. Establishing close contacts with the Spaniards allowed the translator to convey the deeply rooted Nahua cultural features (Rull 75). This partly contributed to the indigenous peoples avoiding cultural assimilation and maintaining individuality (Olko 3; Alfaro 5).
Religious customs and cultural traditions are essential aspects of every nation, so their preservation is a significant factor in the preservation of the people. Due to the constant activity in the role of translator, La Malinche managed to adapt to both cultures (Ntokli 244). This allowed the preservation of cultural wealth and heritage, which positively impacted the future of Nahua.
Works Cited
Abang, Jasmine A. “Malintzin: The Buried Voice of the Spanish Conquest.” The Toro Historical Review, vol. 8, no. 1, 2020. Web.
Alfaro, Rebecca. “Reclamation: A Feminist Genealogy of the Cultural Symbols of the Chicana Feminist Movement.” (2019). Web.
Asif, Manan Ahmed. “2 reading across firishta and chimalpahin.” History and Theory 60.3 (2021): 541-547. Web.
Barrio, Miguel Ángel Ruz, and Cristina Bosque Cantón. “La reconstrucción del pasado del Acolhuacan en los inicios del siglo XVII: Fernando de Alva Ixtlilxochitl y su uso del.” Itinerarios 36 (2022): 117-142. Web.
Bleichmar, Daniela. “Painting the Aztec Past in Early Colonial Mexico: Translation and Knowledge Production in the Codex Mendoza.” Renaissance Quarterly, vol. 72, no. 4, 2019, 1362-1415. Web.
Brian Amber, Benton Bradley, Villella B. Peter and Pablo García Loaeza. History of the Chichimeca Nation: Don Fernando de Alva Ixtlilxochitl’s Seventeeth-Century Chronicle of Ancient Mexico. University of Oklahoma Press, 2019.
Brinkman, Diane. “La Llorona and La Malinche Are Chicana Daughters: Healing Matrilineal Trauma by Transforming” Bad” Mexican Mother Archetypes.” 2019. Web.
Cuevas Cruz, Roxana. “The myth of La Malinche explained through the perspectives of mexican and chicana feminist literature.” 2021. Web.
Del Moral, Tania. “Hija de la Chingada: Visibility and Erasure of La Malinche in Contemporary Mexican Discourse.” Crossings: Swarthmore Undergraduate Feminist Research Journal 1.1 (2023): 7. Web.
García Loaeza, Pablo. “The Transcoding of the Codex Xolotl in Don Fernando de Alva Ixtlilxochitl’s Historia de la nación chichimeca.” Ethnohistory 66.1 (2019): 71-94. Web.
Herzog, Richard. “Acolhua Past and Novohispanic Merit: Self and Community in Fernando de Alva Ixtlilxochitl’s Struggles for a Cacicazgo.” Distributive Struggle and the Self in the Early Modern Iberian World: 81. Web.
Herzog, Richard. “Conferring a Universal Scope to Nahua Political Concepts.” Indigenous Knowledge as a Resource: 125-310. Web.
Kauffmann, Leisa A. The Legacy of Rulership in Fernando de Alva Ixtlilxochitl’s Historia de la nación chichimeca. University of New Mexico Press, 2019.
Kauffmann, Leisa. “History of the Chichimeca Nation: Don Fernando de Alva Ixtlilxochitl’s Seventeenth-Century Chronicle of Ancient Mexico.” 2020, 700-701. Web.
Laack, Isabel. Aztec religion and art of writing: investigating embodied meaning, indigenous semiotics, and the Nahua sense of reality. Brill, 2019.
Lee, Jongsoo. “The Legacy of Rulership in Fernando de Alva Ixtlilxochitl’s “Historia de la nación chichimeca”. 2021, pp. 152-154. Web.
Lyall, Victoria I., and Terezita Romo, eds. Traitor, Survivor, Icon: The Legacy of La Malinche. Yale University Press, 2022.
Ntokli, Maria. “A Xicanista (Re) Vision of a Contemporary Malinche in Ana Castillo’s The Mixquiahuala Letters (1986).” 2020. Web.
Olivares Toral, Madai Yamilet. English teaching and learning in tele-secondary: the case of a nahuatl community. BS thesis. Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla, 2022. Web.
Olko, Justyna. “Language attitudes and educational opportunities: challenging a history of oppression and assimilation among Indigenous communities in Mexico.” Sámi dutkansearvvi journála 1, 2019, 1-37. Web.
Prieto, Carlos Macías. “Preserving the History of Cemanahuac: Domingo Chimalpahin’s Rewriting of Spanish Narratives in the Annals of His Time (ca. 1608–1615).” Early American Literature, vol. 57, no. 1, 2022, 15-41. Web.
Rivera, Nora K. The rhetorical mediator: Understanding agency In Indigenous translation and interpretation through Indigenous approaches to UX. Diss. The University of Texas at El Paso, 2021. Web.
Rizzi, Andrea, Birgit Lang, and Anthony Pym. What is Translation History?: a trust-based approach. Springer, 2019.
Rull, Ana Pulido. Mapping Indigenous Land: Native Land Grants in Colonial New Spain. University of Oklahoma Press, 2020.
Smith, Katelyn. “Adapting Gender: Mexican Feminisms from Literature to Film.” A Contracorriente: una revista de estudios latinoamericanos, vol. 17, no. 3, 2020, 326-329. Web.
Terraciano, Kevin. “Introduction: An Encyclopedia of Nahua Culture: Context and Content.” The Florentine Codex: An encyclopedia of the Nahua world in sixteenth-century Mexico. University of Texas Press, 2019. 1-18. Web.