Opata people
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Roman Catholicism[1] |
The Opata (
Most Opatan towns were situated in
In the 16th century, at the time of Spanish contact, the Opata were the most numerous people in Sonora.[2]
Some sources indicate that as an identifiable ethnic group, the Opata are now extinct, or nearly extinct.
Language
The
]The Eudeve dialect is called Dohema. The Tehuimas spoke Tehuima, and the Jovas spoke Jova. The Eudeve and Tehuima languages were closely related, as "different as Portuguese and Spanish." Jova was a more distinct language.[7]
The Ópata language, with the possible exception of the Jova dialect, were extinct by 1950.[3] During the 1993 census in Mexico, 12 persons claimed to be "Opata" speakers, but this is widely considered to be an error in the census count.[citation needed]
Professor Manuel García Madrid, an Opata from Sonora, has published a linguistic text on the Tehuima dialect. American
Name
As the three Opatan groups lived adjacent to one another,
History
16th century
In the 16th century, Ópata may have entered
The Opatas traded with other Indian nations (Concho,
17th and 18th centuries
Sisibotari ("The Great Lord") was a respected Jova chieftain known throughout Opata country who lived from the late 16th century to the mid-17th century. He served as a major intermediary between the Opatan peoples and the Spanish, which helped maintain peace between the two peoples during his time. Father Andrés Pérez de Ribas described Sisibotari, "He was handsome and still young, wore a long coat attached at his shoulder like a cape, and his loins were covered with a cloth, as was the custom of that nation. On the wrist of his left hand, which holds the bow when the hand pulls the cord to send the arrow, he wore a very becoming marten skin".[14]
The Opata fiercely resisted the expedition of Spanish explorer
In 1628,
By 1688, the Spanish established 22 missions among the Ópata.
19th century
By 1800, the Opata were mostly followers of Christianity, commonly spoke Spanish, and were largely under the rule of the Spanish government.[19] Many Opatans became cowboys on Spanish ranches, or migrated to mining towns to work in the mines.[20]
Tension between the Spanish, the Mexicans, and the Opata manifested itself in numerous revolts in the 19th century. In 1820, 300 Opata warriors defeated a Spanish force of 1,000 soldiers and destroyed a mining town near Tonichi. Later, they won another battle at Arivechi, killing more than 30 soldiers. A Spanish force of 2,000 soldiers finally defeated the Opata, forcing the survivors to surrender. The Spanish executed the Opata leaders, including Dorame,[21] a Eudeve, whose surname is still common in the Opatería region of Sonora.[22] Revolts continued after Mexico gained its independence from Spain in 1821. Another Opata leader, Dolores Gutiérrez, was executed in 1833 by the Mexicans for his involvement in a revolt.[23] Although the Opata had formidable reputations as warriors, they were never able to unite as a single people to oppose the Spanish and Mexicans.
Fierce battles with the Apache took a heavy toll on the Opata.[24]
Most of the Opata supported the French during their brief rule of Mexico from 1864 to 1867, as did most Sonoran Indians. An Opata, Refugio Tanori, became a general in the military forces supporting the Imperial rule of Maximilian I. When Tanori's forces were defeated, he fled to Guaymas, and boarded a ship headed for Baja California. Before the ship reached the peninsula, it was stopped by Republican forces. Tanori was captured and executed.[25] The retribution of the Mexicans against the Opata after the defeat of the French occupation resulted in the loss of nearly all of their remaining lands and the end of their resistance to Mexican rule.[26]
20th century
In 1902, American anthropologist
Population
Population estimates for Opatería at the time of Spanish contact range from 20,000 to 70,000, with most estimates nearer the higher figure. The Opatas were the most numerous of the several indigenous groups in the state of Sonora, and the river valleys of their territory were densely populated with their permanent villages. Disease, war, and famine reduced the aboriginal population of Opatería to 6,000 by 1764.
Culture
Settlement pattern and livelihood
At the time of first contact with the Spanish, the Opata may have been the most numerous and culturally complex people living in Oasis America, comprising the desert regions of northern Mexico and the southwestern United States.[29]
The towns of the Opata were found in the broad valleys of the five north–south trending rivers of northern and eastern Sonora. The rivers, west to east, are the San Miguel, Sonora, Moctezuma, and the two upper tributaries of the Yaqui, the Bavispe and the Arcos. The Opata were not members of a single political entity, but rather organized into a number of "statelets" – several of which may have also been populated by their neighbors to the south, the Pima Bajo. The statelets were characterized by a ruling class, slavery, irrigation agriculture, and emphasis on trade. They featured a central town, functioning as the seat of government, of at least 200 two and three-story adobe houses and a population of six per house or 1,200 or more.[30] In the countryside for several miles in every direction from the central town were satellite communities: hamlets of 9 to 25 houses and "rancherías" of less than 9 houses.[31]
The Opata depended upon agriculture for much of their subsistence.
The statelet era of Opata history endured from 1350 to 1550.[citation needed] With decreasing population due to European diseases, Opatan societies in the 17th century became smaller and less complex.
Attire and architecture
Opata women were skilled weavers and wove dyed and full-length colorful
Dwellings consisted of
Sexual mores and family planning
Fertility rites also took place. Described as "obscene" in Spanish priests' written accounts (see, for example Cañas, 1730), a commonly reported fertility rite was a round dance known as the "Mariachi."[38][page needed]
Subgroups
At the time of the first contact with the Spanish in the 16th century, there were multiple sub-groups of Opata people. However, by the mid-17th century, the Spanish identified only three Opatan groups.[39]
The largest was the Eudeve (eh-oo-deh-veh), whose ancient villages and current towns encompass the western portions of traditional Opata territory. The Eudeve also referred to themselves as Deve. Both names mean "people" in their language.
The second largest group was first known as the Ore, but were later called the Tegüima or Tehuima (teh-wee-mah). Their ancient villages and current towns encompass the northeastern and central portion of Opata territory. Tehuima means "river people."
The smallest Opatan group was the Ova or Jova (ho-vah). Jova means "water people." They originally inhabited eight villages in the southeastern portion of Opata territory. Some of their villages were Negarachi, Sahuaripa, Teopari, Tutuaca, Xiripa, and Yepomera. A number of the Jova lived in Chihuahua. These people were still independent, and not under Spanish rule, as late as 1678.[40]
During the 18th century, the Jova intermarried with neighboring Eudeves and they merged into one single group. At that point the Jova no longer could be identified as a distinct indigenous ethnic group.[citation needed]
According to the "Noticias Estadisticas del Estado de Sonora" by D. Francisco Velasco the Opata Nation is subdued in:
- Opatas Tegüis, towns: Opodepe, Terapa, Cucurpe, Álamos, Batuco.
- Opatas Tegüimas, towns: Sinoquipe, Banamichi, Huepaca, Aconchi, Babiacora, Chinapa, Bacuachi, Cuquiarachi, Cumpas.
- Opatas Caüinachis, towns: Toniche, Matape, Oputo, Oposura, Guasavas, Bacadeguachi, Nacori (otro), Mochopa.
- Opatas Eudeves, towns (including other Opatas): Matape, Nacori, Los Alamos, Ranchería Robesco, Bacanora, Batuco, Tepuspe, Cucurpe, Saracatzi, Toape, Opodepe.
- Opatas Jovas, towns (including other Opatas) and extending to Chihuahua: San José Teopari, Los Dolores, Sahuaripa, Pónida, Santo Tomas, Arivetzi, San Mateo Malzura.[citation needed]
Descendants
Some people in Sonora and southern Arizona identify as being of Ópata descent today.[citation needed] Very few Ópata traditions are exercised today, and their character is generally mestizaje (mainline Mexican mestizo) as opposed to a traditional indigenous character and lifestyle.[citation needed]
However, the ancient Opatan spring procession rite known today as the fariseo (with some Catholicism mixed in) is still exercised during
See also
- Spanish missions in the Sonoran Desert
- Kathleen Alcalá, Mexican/Jewish-American author who identifies as having Ópata ancestry and writes about Ópata subjects[41]
Notes
- ^ a b Edward H. Spicer, Cycles of Conquest, p. 93.
- ^ ISBN 9780816528974. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
- ^ a b Edward H. Spicer, Cycles of Conquest, p. 446–47.
- ISBN 978-0816528974.
- ^ Global Spark, "Nicole Yanes, Opata Nation" 2015.
- ^ "The 3rd International Indigenous Women's Symposium on Environmental and Reproductive Health" April 14–15, 2018
- ^ Johnson, Jean B. "The Opata: An Inland Tribe of Sonora." in The North Mexican Frontier, ed. by Basil C. Hedrick, J. Charles Kelly, and Carroll L. Riley. Carbondale, IL; Southern Illinois U Press, 1971, p. 171
- ^ Yetman, p. 78
- ^ Edward H. Spicer, Cycles of Conquest, p. 67.
- ^ Riley,Carroll L. The Frontier People: The Greater Southwest in the Protohistoric Period. Albuquerque: U of NM Press, 1987, p. 72
- ^ Yetman, p. 20
- ^ Johnson, p. 171
- ^ "Historia de los Opatas". Google Docs. Retrieved Sep 12, 2022.
- ^ The Mexican Dream: Or, The Interrupted Thought of Amerindian Civilizations - J. M. G. Le Clezio - Google Books
- ^ Spicer, Cycles of Conquest, p. 98.
- ^ Yetman, pp. 34, 82; Riley, p. 84
- ^ Spicer, Cycles of Conquest, p. 96.
- ^ Spicer, Cycles of Conquest, p. 89.
- ^ Forbes, Jack D. "Historical Survey of the Indians of Sonora, 1821-1910." Ethnohistory. Vol. 4, No. 4 (Fall 1957), p. 336
- ^ Yetman, pp.90-91
- ^ Spicer, Cycles of Conquest, p. 102.
- ^ Yetman, pp. 220–22; Forbes, 339-340
- ^ Spicer, Cycles of Conquest, p. 62.
- JSTOR 40167832.
- ^ Yetman, pp. 243-244
- ^ Yetman, pp. 244-245
- ^ Forbes, 358; Yetman, pp. 244-45
- ^ Yetman, p. 79
- ^ Doolittle, William E. "Settlements and the Development of ‘Statelets’ in Sonora, Mexico." Journal of Field Archaeology, Vol. 11, No. 1 (Spring 1984), p. 13
- ^ Doolittle, William E. "Aboriginal Agricultural Development in the Valley of Sonora, Mexico." Geographical Review, Vol. 70, No. 3 (July 1980), p. 339
- ^ Doolittle, 1984, pp. 19–20.
- ^ Riley, pp 59-65
- ^ Yetman, p. 56
- ^ Hammond & Rey, p. 251
- ^ de la Canal, pp. 135v-137v
- ^ de la Canal, pp. 129–31.
- ^ Cañas, p. 10
- ^ Bandolier, 1890
- ^ Yetman, p. 65
- ^ Ortiz Zapata, Juan (1678). "Nacion de las Ovas Donde Hay Algunos". In García Figueroa, Juan. (1857). Documentos para la Historia de México. IVa Serie, Vol. iii (in Spanish). Mexico: J. R. Navarro. pp. 341–42.
Relación de las Misiones que la Compañía de Jesús tiene en el Reino y Provincia de la Nueva Vizcaya en la Nueva España [List of Missions of the Society of Jesus in the Kingdom and Province of the Nueva Vizcaya in the New Spain].
- ^ Dana. "Meet Kathleen Alcalá". Storyknife. Retrieved 31 January 2023.
References
- Bandolier, Adolph Francis Alphonse. Final report of Investigations among the Indians of the Southwestern United States, Carried on Mainly in the Years From 1880 to 1885. Part I (Papers of the Archaeological Institute of America; American Series III: Cambridge University Press. 1890) pp. 68, 239.
- Cañas, Cristóbal. Estado de la Provincia de Sonora, julio de 1730. Documentos para la historia de México, 3a seri. 1835-1857. Transcribed, with notes by Flavio Molina Molina, 1978. Hermosillo, México: Diocese of Sonora.
- de la Canal, Gerónimo. Report of Gerónimo de la Canal: January 31, 1653. (Misiones 26. Archivo General de la Nación.)
- Hammond, George, & Rey, Agapito. Narratives of the Coronado Expedition, 1540-1542. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1940.
- Spicer, Edward H. (2015). Cycles of Conquest: The Impact of Spain, Mexico, and the United States on the Indians of the Southwest, 1533–1960. Tucson: University of Arizona Press. ISBN 9780816532926.
- Yetman, David A. (2010). The Ópatas: In Search of a Sonoran People. Tucson: University of Arizona Press. ISBN 9780816528974.
Further reading
- Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 20 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 121.
- Opata, Countries and Their Cultures