Zapotec peoples

The Zapotec, an Indigenous people of Mexico, call themselves "People of the Clouds." Most live in Oaxaca, a southern state, though some communities exist in nearby states. Between 400,000 and 650,000 people identify as Zapotec today, and many speak only a Zapotec language or dialect. Before European contact, their civilization was a highly advanced Mesoamerican culture, notable for having its own writing system.

Over recent decades, many people of Zapotec heritage have moved to the United States, especially to California’s Los Angeles and Central Valley areas, where they keep their own community organizations. Four main Zapotec groups exist: those in the southern Isthmus of Tehuantepec, those in the northern Sierra Madre de Oaxaca mountains, the southern Zapotec in the Sierra Sur mountains, and the Central Valley Zapotec around the Valley of Oaxaca.

Name

The name "Zapotec" was long thought to come from the Nahuatl word for "inhabitants of the place of sapote." Recent research from UNAM suggests it may be a hybrid—Zapochteca or Zaapochteca—combining "za/zaa" (cloud) and "pochteca" (merchant).

History

Scholars mostly agree the Zapotec lived in Oaxaca’s Central Valley as early as 500 to 300 BCE, during the Monte Alban I period, when they set up a major governance system. Five Monte Alban periods span from 500 BCE to the 1521 conquest. Archaeological finds at Monte Alban—called the first city in ancient Mesoamerica—show settlement as far back as 1150 BCE. These discoveries link to the Formative, Classic, and post-Classic periods of regional civilization.

The Formative stage (about 500 BCE to 200 CE, Monte Alban I and II) saw a shift to settled villages and farming. The Classic stage (200 to 900 CE, Monte Alban III) brought social and political structures, plus a rise in religious activity among leaders. The later "Militaristic stage" (900 to 1521 CE, Monte Alban IV–V) saw warfare and "cults of war" become common.

Language

The Zapotecan language group includes over 60 variants plus the related Chatino language. Isthmus Zapotec, spoken on Oaxaca’s southern coastal plain, is the major variant. In the 2020 census, 500,000 people spoke a Zapotec language, with 5.7% being monolingual.

Religion

Today, most Zapotec are Catholic, but ancient practices like burying the dead with valuables persist. Some local Catholic saints resemble old Zapotec gods—for example, San Pedro is linked to the rain god Cocijo. The first missionaries were Bartolomé de Olmeda (a Mercedarian) and Juan Díaz (a secular priest), who was killed in Quechula near Tepeaca for destroying idols. While the Virgin of Guadalupe is central elsewhere, many Zapotec Catholics revere the Virgen de Juquila, making an annual pilgrimage to Santa Catarina Juquila from December 7 to 9.

Before Spanish conquest, church and state were not separate in Zapotec society. A lord had to train in religious practice before taking power. Large temples called yo hopèe (house of the vital force) housed priests performing rites.

The pè, or life force, existed in natural elements like wind and breath, seen as the spirit of all beings. Priests (Copa pitào) were mostly nobles, trained before entering the hierarchy; commoners could join only lower ranks. The highest priest, the ouija-tào (great seer), was compared to the Pope by 16th-century Spanish accounts, but lived in Mitla, not Monte Alban.

The Zapotec were polytheistic, attributing natural elements to gods. For Valley Zapotec, the primary god was Pitao Cozobi, linked to maize and agriculture. Other gods included Cocijo (rain and lightning, similar to Tlaloc), Pitao Cozaana (creator of humans and animals, god of ancestors), and Pitao Hichaana (goddess of maize).