Book

Teotilan del Valle: a typical Mesoamerican community

University MicrofilmsAnn Arbor • Published In 1979 • Pages:

By: Taylor, Robert Bartley.

Abstract
This dissertation presents an intensive in-depth study of the ethnography of the Valley Zapotec town of Teotitlan del Valle. The stated purpose for collecting this ethnographic material on Toetitlan was '...to provide a basis for more specialized studies in that community over a period of years, particularly studies of change' (p. ii). Tied in with this general purpose is the question of whether or not the data gathered at Teotitlan is 'typical' of the Mesoamerican area as a whole, particularly with reference to such community studies as Ruth Bunzel's on Chichicastenango, Robert Redfield's on Chan Kom, Elsie Clews Parsons' on Mitla, Oscar Lewis' on Tepoztlan and Ralph Beals' on Cheran. After a detailed presentation of the data, which makes up the bulk of the document, the author compares 226 cultural traits which he calls 'typical characteristics' in terms of their presence or absence in the communities listed above. In his fianl tabulation of these comparisons the author found that Teotitlan exhibited '...184 or 81 per cent of the total number of characteristics as compiled from Redfield and Tax's paper. This high proportion indicates that the assumption that Teotitlan is a typical Mesoamerican community is correct' (p. 332). The cultural data presented in the document are generally well organized and highly detailed in nature, but do lack coverage of kinship relations and social structure.
Subjects
Towns
Organized ceremonial
Rest days and holidays
Sickness
Cereal agriculture
Normal garb
Woven and other interworked fabrics
Dwellings
Food preparation
Diet
culture
Zapotec
HRAF PubDate
2009
Region
Middle America and the Caribbean
Sub Region
Central Mexico
Document Type
Book
Evaluation
Creator Type
Ethnologist
Document Rating
5: Excellent Primary Data
Analyst
John Beierle ; 1979
Field Date
1956-1957
Coverage Date
1956-1959
Coverage Place
Town of Teotitlan del Valle, Vallley Zapotec, Oaxaca, Mexico
Notes
Robert Bartley Taylor, Jr.
UM60-05406
Includes bibliographical references (p. 333-334)
Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Oregon, 1960
LCSH
Zapotec Indians