Aztec Heirs: Mexicanidad, Embodied Memory, and the Practice of History
The Journal of Latin American and Caribbean Anthropology June 1, 2026 DOI: 10.1111/jlca.70051 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Ethnography Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Mostly urban mestizos participating in the Mexicanidad movement in central Mexico |
| Duration | Long-term ethnographic research, 2009–2017 |
| Key findings | Argues that Mexicanidad practitioners generate counter-histories through ritual, moral labor, and visionary experience, treating oral transmission as the premier source of authority. By idealizing the Aztec past through embodied and oneiric practice, they transform stigma into dignity and reclaim interpretive authority over history, fashioning a proud Mexica identity in contrast to nationalist narratives that marginalize Aztec heirs. |
Abstract
ABSTRACT This article examines Mexicanidad—an urban movement linked to Danza Azteca—as a contemporary reanimation of the Aztec past through ritual, discipline, and embodied memory. Based on long‐term ethnographic research in central Mexico (2009–2017), it argues that practitioners generate counter‐histories through ritual, moral labor, and visionary experience, treating oral transmission as the premier source of authority. Building on Jenkins's notion of history as present‐centered production and on memory studies (Connerton; Halbwachs; Jelin) and social‐movement theory (Eyerman & Jamison), the analysis shows how dance, sweat‐lodge ceremonies, dreams, and communal work become practices of knowing and transmitting the past. In contrast to nationalist narratives that glorify Aztec antiquity while marginalizing its heirs, Mexicanidad idealizes the Aztec past to transform stigma into dignity. Through embodied and oneiric practice, participants—mostly urban mestizos—reclaim interpretive authority over history and fashion a proud, distinct Mexica identity in contemporary Mexico.