In the eighteenth century, padre fray francisco ximenez, of the dominican order, came to the village of chichicastenango, guatemala, where the ancient tradition of the quiche maya still prevailed. The newberrys popol vuh was most likely copied from this original manuscript now lost in 170103, in the guatemalan town of chichicastenango, by dominican father francisco ximenez. The newberry library recently disbound and digitized the oldest surviving text of popol vuh. In the introduction to the original manuscript, however, the unknown author states that since the word of god has been promulgated, hereafter during the cycle of. Popol vuh also popol wuj or popul vuh or pop vuj is a text recounting the mythology and history of the k. The popol vuh kiche for council book or book of the community. It includes the mayan creation myth, the exploits of the hero twins. The popol vuh represents the most studied indigenous text of mesoamerica, with its breadth of detail concerning maya worldview, religion, cosmology, and society. Francisco ximenezs manuscript of the popol vuh 170015, found in santo.
There is, as woodruff has noted, little biographical data about ximenez. The popol vuh, which has been translated as book of the council, book of the. He transcribed them in his own language, but used roman letters. Librivox free audiobook getting geeky w miranda janell youtube power hour podcast. The popol vuh is the story of creation according to the quiche maya of the region known today as guatemala. Written in kiche a mayan language by a mayan author or authors between 1554 and 1558, it uses the latin alphabet with spanish orthography. The translations of the popol vuh 16 a pronouncing dictionary 21 the book of the people. The mayan book of creation, the dawn of life, and the glories of gods and kings. Ximenezs transcription uses latin script to present the quiche original and. Popol vuh, maya document, an invaluable source of knowledge of ancient mayan mythology and culture. Father ximenez, who had the original manuscript in his hands. It chronicles the creation of humankind, the actions of. Popol vuh also popol wuj or popul vuh is a text recounting the mythology and history of the k. In the creation myth of the popol vuh, there were two creator gods, gucumatz and tepeu.
Let us rise up as one, let no one be left behind, let there be neither one nor two of us, but. The popol vuh variously translated as the council book, the book of the people or literally as the book of the mat is the corpus of mythological and historical narratives, including the creation story according to the quichemaya people. Written in kiche a mayan language by a mayan author or authors between. The popol vuh manuscript came to the newberry along with several other contemporary manuscripts by francisco ximenez, all of which are cataloged together as ayer ms 1515. But the selection of events is not in order, and the authors of the popol vuh make selections from the various source books as they saw fit. The form and function of animal codes in the popol vuh. Aside from the year, his birth and baptismal records do not agree on the actual date of his birth, and the year of his death is less certain, either in late.
The popol vuh was first transcribed in the quiche language, but in latin characters, in the middle of the sixteenth century, by some unknown but highly literate quiche maya indianprobably from the oral traditions of his people. The popol vuh and the dominican religious extirpation in. The popol vuh is considered one of the literary treasures of the americas. A linguist, ximenez was interested in the native quiche or kiche language. Although assigned reading for my latin american history course, i really enjoyed reading the popol vuh. This document, written shortly after the spanish conquest by a quiche indian who had learned to read and write spanish, is generally known as the popol vuh, popol buj, book of the council, book of the community, the sacred book, or national book of the quiche, and it contains the cosmogonical concepts and ancient traditions of this aboriginal. The name popol vuh translates as book of the community, book of counsel, or more literally as book of the people. Regarded as an ethnohistorical treasure, this narrative has been read exclusively as a freestanding, selfcontained text to inquire into a history far removed from when it was actually created.
In an effort to make it more widely available and reduce nonessential handling of the text, the newberry has worked with ohio state university to make this. The manuscript of chichicastenango is an anonymous document. Written by editor vopus the popol vuh kiche for council book or book of the community. These were a branch of the maya that dominated the western highlands of modern day. It was originally preserved through oral tradition until approximately 1550 when it was written down. Popol vuh, the book of the people, is known from a single. One of the few maya texts that survived the spanish purging of anything not christian, the popol vuh is the maya history of the gods, the creation of people, the role animals played in society, and adventures that remind this reader of gilgamesh and enkidu. Archaeological findings have shown large populations centers and a complex class structure.
The survival of the popol vuh is credited to the 18thcentury dominican friar francisco ximenez who made a copy of the original text in spanish. The popol vuh council book or book of the community. This is a great tragedy, because until about five hundred years. Popol vuh popol vuh is the creation story myth by the mayans. Popol is the word for the assembly of the nobles and hence has sometimes been called the book of the holy assembly, identical in title with one of the books of the kabbalah. It tells the story of how the sea and sky gods joined together before the beginning of time to create land, plants, and living creatures on the earth, and stars, planets, and suns in. Transcription in quiche mayan and translation into. The maya creation myth story summary of the popol vuh. The book features a creation myth, the dawn of life under. Popol vuh, the book of the people, is known from a single manuscript. It is at once a work of myth and a work of history. Sacred book of the maya by christenson, allen j isbn. Popol vuh meaning the book of the people depicts an intricate creation tale that consists of cosmology teachings, planet origins, and four deities.
The popol vuh and the dominican friar francisco ximenez. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. The ancient maya book of the dawn of life and the glories of gods and kings. Between 17011703, the spanish friar francisco ximenez found that version where he was stationed in chichicastenango, copied it and translated the document into spanish. The authors of the alphabetic popol vuh were members of the three lordly lineages that had once ruled the quiche kingdom. In or around 1714, ximenez incorporated the spanish content in book one, chapters 221 of his historia.
Suchagoodoldeal books toys clothing via united states. The maya quiche narrative as a product of religious extirpation in colonial highland. Popol vuh the sacred book of the ancient quiche maya civilization amerian indian. The name popol vuh was also adopted by two european rock bands. Thanks to his kind and understanding spirit, the priest won the esteem of the population and in gratitude. Elsewhere in the text it is referred to as popol vuh line 8278. The popul vuh, which has been translated as book of the council, book of the. This is compounded by the annoying propensity of mesoamerican languages to disregard chronological order as really meaningful.
It includes the mayan creation myth, the exploits of the. After ximenez made his copy, the original text was presumably given back to the maya. Text, structure, and ideology in the prologue to the second treatise. The book was written in quiche maya, but in the roman alphabet. The popol vuh is the most important of these saved books. They were required to pay a floral tribute in order to get out. Popol vuh preamble 34 part i 38 part ii 64 part iii 126 part iv 149 appendix a a note by sylvanus griswold morley 191 b a note by adrian recinos 192.