“Aztlanáhuac: Mesoamerica in North America,� an exhibit that uncovers evidence in maps, written documents and oral traditions of Mesoamerican migrations and communities throughout the United States, is now on view in the Charles E. Young Research Library lobby through June 30. A team from the UCLA César E. Chávez Center for Interdisciplinary Instruction in Chicana and Chicano Studies has organized the exhibit.
On Wednesday, June 2, lead researcher Roberto Rodriguez, UCLA professor of history Juan Gómez-Quiñones and exhibit organizer Irene Vasquez will lead a discussion about the exhibit between 10 a.m. and noon in the lobby of the Young Research Library. A Spanish-language discussion will begin at 10 a.m. and an English-language discussion will take place at 11 a.m.
According to exhibit organizers, Mesoamerican place names throughout the United States such as Montezuma, Aztec, Anahuac, Tula and others, commonly have been attributed to the romanticism of 19th-century U.S. archaeologists. But an ongoing, collaborative research effort that includes exploring cartographic, linguistic, agricultural and cultural connections between the peoples of North and South America has offered another perspective, exhibit organizers said. Researchers have uncovered evidence of ancient connections between these places and the peoples of Mesoamerica, which encompassed the area from present-day central Mexico south and east through Guatemala, Belize, Honduras and Nicaragua, organizers said.
“Aztlanáhuac� presents maps from the 1500s through the 1800s that suggest possible pre-Columbian migration points, including Aztlán, of the Aztec/Mexica peoples. They also hint at traces in the landscape of older Mexican, Chichimeca, Toltec, and Central and South American peoples. In addition, the exhibit features early codices and chronicles that reflect oral traditions regarding origins and migrations, as well as stories of instruction, trade, hunting and travel.
According to principal exhibit organizer Roberto Rodriguez, the notion of Aztlanáhuac encompasses the southwestern United States and Mexico (Aztlán and Anahuac.) Aztlán is the purported homeland of the Aztecs/Mexicas, which has commonly been considered a myth as reflected in the flag of Mexico. The exhibit shows maps that allude to Aztlán, including three maps that point to the Salt Lake region in Utah as the point of origin/departure for the Aztecs/Mexicas, Rodriguez said.
Exhibit contents are drawn from the stacks collections of the Research Library as well as from the Research Library Department of Special Collections; the Henry J. Bruman Map Collection, which is located in the Research Library’s Reference and Instructional Services; and personal libraries of the organizers.
The principal organizers are Roberto RodrÃguez and Patrisia Gonzales, 2003 Distinguished Community Scholars at the Chávez Center and nationally syndicated columnists. Contributors include Antonio RÃos-Bustamante, professor of Chicano studies at California State University, Stanislaus; Irene Vásquez, assistant professor of history at East Los Angeles College and a visiting assistant professor at the Chávez Center during 2003; Daniela Conde, Cynthia González and Rosario Luis, UCLA students; Jo Anna Ley, Chavez Center webmistress; and Frank Gutiérrez, counselor and instructor at East Los Angeles College. Reynaldo F. MacÃas, chair of the Chávez Center, and Juan Gómez-Quiñones, UCLA professor of history, served as advisers.
Admission to the library and the exhibit is free.
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