"Gay" in Nahuatl?

David Young wenakuo at yahoo.com
Wed May 21 16:41:34 UTC 2014 

I feel compelled to respond to your inquiry.   A number of years ago I asked one of the elders of the community from Mexico City to tell me about men and women that were gay and lesbian.  He said that there were communities where gay men lived and communities where lesbian women lived in precolumbian times.  You had to be an adult to live in these communities.  The men were referred to as papalotlacatl and the women were yaocihuatl.  They were communities of artisans in the case of men and warrior women in the case of the women.

In many of the Indigenous communities in North America, there are specific words for people that were gender different.  In some cases, there was more than one gender recognized by the communities.  In many communities those that were gender different were revered and held special roles within the community.  With the coming of the Catholic priests, these individuals and the roles that they played became hidden to keep these individuals safe from persecution by the Christians.  The Pueblos, for example, would not talk about their gender different relatives.  The Apache and Navajo held special places in particular ceremonies for the naadle, recognizing four genders.  Many of these roles have been lost over time, the persecution of Christians and the advent of gay liberation that has a "recognize ME because I'm gay" attitude.  The gay movement is in stark contrast to Indigenous notions of humility and recognized role assignment within the community.
  The gay movement has focused on sex rather than community role.

When I lived in Veracruz, Mexico, in 1979, I became familiar with the term Mayate.  In Aztlan (the US southwest) the term means "black person" and it can be pejorative.  In Mexico, it referred to a male penetrative partner in a "homosexual" relationship.  Let me qualify this, much to the chagrin of Mexicanos I imagine, by saying that there is a distinction between what straight men regard as "gay" in the US and what is practiced in Mexico.  My experience is that straight men in Mexico will engage in sexual behavior with other men more readily than in the US.  The "straight" Mexicano men that engage in sex with "gay" men in Mexico in an insertive, active, masculine role are regarded as mayates.  While the "gay" men that are the receptive partners are regarded as maricones, and all of the other pejorative terms you can think of.  If we regard what men do sexually as a reflection of identity then we miss the boat in attempting to find language in
 nahuatl to describe something that is very different today, and for which we, not only refuse to have healthy discussions about, but disregard because of our own inhibitions or prejudices.

The American (read US) paradigm of assigning sexual behavior to deviant identity categories fails to account for a diversity of sexual expression that has absolutely nothing to do with identity.  And, it fails to account for culturally defined, (historically and contemporarily) gender roles outside of the male/female binary that have nothing to do with sexual behavior.

So, while mayatli may be understood to be the "receptive" anal sexual partner, that is not how it is understood in "practice."  A more thorough discourse with those of us that have both lived and studied the larger questions of gender, sexual identity and sexual behavior is in order if there is to be a better understanding of language and how it is used and understood.  Heterosexually identified men can not articulate this issue, "queens" engaging straight men in sex cannot usually articulate this issue, and gay identified men usual inculcate terms, pejorative or otherwise, without full consideration of their implications.  Because of the shame and prejudice, there are rarely healthy cross cultural and cross history discourses on the topics.  My two cents.

David Atekpatzin Young, MA, Curandero
Apache Tribe of Colorado
On Saturday, May 17, 2014 6:57 AM, Roberto Romero <cuecuex at gmail.com> wrote:
 


Hola

Uno de los vocablos de origen nahuatl que se usan para nombrar a los
hombres homosexuales cuya función en su relación es ser los
penetrados, es la palabra Mayate o ya deformado Mayaton, que viene de
Mayatli

La palabra Mayate la he escuchado y se usa lo mismo en colonias
populares de la ciudad de México que en ciudades del Estado de Mexico
y  en pequeños pueblos de la región Bajío.

La razon de usar la  palabra Mayate para los entendidos es que con
esa misma palabra se nombra a  escarabajos, insectos cuya única
defensa es "Empinar la cola"  "Parar la cola" " Presentan  La cola" .

Por analogía se dice que es lo que hacen  los hombres homosexuales
para en  la copula poder ser penetrados. "Se empinan", "Paran la cola"
o ya hispanizado Presentan  el culo .

Sin homofobia alguna mi pequeña contribución. Espero sea de utilidad

Roberto Romero Gutierrez


2014-05-08 1:55 GMT+08:00, Tomas Amaya <t.amaya at eninfinitum.com>:
> Hi, Michael
>
> This “xe” belongs to the “question - particles”. Other particles of the same
> kind are: “xa”, “xoh”, “cox”
> Particles that I find related hereto are “cuix” and “azo” in classical
> nahuatl.
> Here their meaning (approximately) in English and Spanish:
> 1)
> (a)xá: maybe, then..?; será que …, entonces…?
> Example: Xa ticnequi tiaz cineco.
> Eng. Do you, maybe, want to to go to the movies? Then, do you want to go to
> movies?
> Sp. ¿Será que quieres ir al cine? ¿Quieres ir al cine, tal vez?
> 2)
> Xoh: really…?; ¿De veras …
> Example: Xoh ticnequi tiaz cineco.
> Eng: Do you really want to go to the movies?
> Sp.: ¿De veras quieres ir al cine?
> 3)
> Xe: Tell me,  is it true that; a poco …
> Exemple: Xe ticnequi tiaz cineco.
> Eng.: Tell me, is it true that you want to go to the movies (I supposed that
> you do not like it)
> Sp.: A poco (de veras) quieres ir al cine.
> 4)
> Cox: particle to question; partícula para preguntar.
> Example: cox ticnequi tiaz cineco.
> Eng.: Do yo want to go to the movies?
> Sp. ¿Quieres ir al cine?
>
> For better understanding, I think its important to mention the possible
> answers:
> 1. Quema nicnequi niaz.Yes, I want to go.
> 2. Ahmo, caah nicnequi niaz / Ahmo, ahmo nicnequi niaz. No, I don want to
> go:
> 3. Quén yeh ahmo, achá quema. Why not? Maybe yes.
> 4. Quema. Yes
>
>
>
>> Date: Tue, 6 May 2014 10:14:49 -0400
>> From: mmccaffe at indiana.edu
>> To: t.amaya at eninfinitum.com
>> CC: ximena.gutierrez at comunidad.unam.mx; magnuspharao at gmail.com;
>> nahuatl at lists.famsi.org
>> Subject: Re: [Nahuat-l] "Gay" in Nahuatl?
>>
>>
>> In the examples that you gave yesterday, you used the word "Xe" with
>> yes-no questions. I'm not familiar with this word. Does it have a
>> cognate in classical Nahuatl?
>>
>> Thank you, Tomas,
>>
>> Michael
>>
>> Quoting Tomas Amaya <t.amaya at eninfinitum.com>:
>>
>> > Hola Ximena,
>> >
>> > Cihuayolotl may mean woman's heart or female heart. In Spanish:
>> > corazón de mujer o corazón femenino. Maybe your teacher referred to
>> > "cihuayotl" which means femininity or "what is typical of a woman"
>> > (Spanish: femineidad; "lo de la mujer").
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > There is another possibility: that your teacher was speaking
>> > metaphorically (I do not know if pejoratively or not); if it is the
>> > case, the meaning of "cihuayolotl" may be: "the one who being man has
>> > the heart of a woman". Here, we could also make use of the possessive
>> > : cihuayoleh (the one who has a female heart).
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > The example can be extended in Cuetzalan-Nahuat:
>> >
>> > "Cihuayoleh" referred to a man "could" mean "homosexual", but its
>> > first meaning is "a sensible man". "Oquichyoleh" ("who has a male
>> > heart") "could" mean "lesbian", but principally: "a strong woman".
>> >
>> > Saludos/regards
>> >
>> > Tomas Amaya
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Date: Mon, 5 May 2014 22:27:14 -0500
>> > Subject: Re: [Nahuat-l] "Gay" in Nahuatl?
>> > From: ximena.gutierrez at comunidad.unam.mx
>> > To: t.amaya at eninfinitum.com
>> > CC: magnuspharao at gmail.com; nahuatl at lists.famsi.org
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > I heard that the word is "cihuayolotl". This was said to me by a
>> > nahuatl teacher from CELE UNAM, Mexico. He's a native speaker from
>> > Texcoco.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Regards,
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Ximena Gutierrez
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > On Mon, May 5, 2014 at 4:41 PM, Tomas Amaya <t.amaya at eninfinitum.com>
>> > wrote:
>> >
>> > Hi Magnus, neic tohuampohuan!
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > The word CUILONI is used in Cuetzalan (pronounced "cuilonh", plural:
>> > "cuilo'meh") to design men and women with gay sexual preference.
>> > It can be used pejoratively or in neutral form.
>> > Examples:
>> > 1 Ahmo xicuilon, xe ahmo oncah cihuameh? (Do not be
>> > homosexual, are there no women?)
>> > 2 Xe ticuilon? Nehhua no. (Are you homosexual? Me too).
>> > 3 Ahmo quinequi monamictiz ýn Pancho, in cuilon ýn
>> > cuitazoquit (Pancho does not want to get married, this son of a ...
>> > is an homosexual!)
>> > 4 Yn tocuiloncayouh, ahmo zan cualli in mocelia nican (Our
>> > homosexuality is usually not (well) accepted here.
>> >
>> > Greetings
>> > Tomas
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >> Date: Sat, 3 May 2014 11:21:29 -0500
>> >> From: magnuspharao at gmail.com
>> >> To: nahuatl at lists.famsi.org
>> >> Subject: [Nahuat-l] "Gay" in Nahuatl?
>> >
>> >
>> >>
>> >> Hi Listeros
>> >>
>> >> I was just reading a brochure in Nahuatl published by CONAPRED Mexicos
>> >> national commission for the prevention of discrimination. In this
>> >> translation it describes the right not to be discriminated for ones
>> >> sexuality with the word "cuiloni" and "cuiloncayotl". According to
>> >> Molina
>> >> this word meant "puto que padece", likely in reference to the passive,
>> >> receptive or "effeminate" partner in a male/male sexual relation. first
>> >> of
>> >> all it struck me as an odd choice of word to describe homosexuality in
>> >> a
>> >> human rights context, and secondly I thought that I have never heard
>> >> this
>> >> word used in contemporary Nahuatl. (Here is a link to the brochure for
>> >> those interested
>> >> http://www.conapred.org.mx/userfiles/files/Enadis-2010-Nahuatl-Web_INACCSS.pdf)
>> >>
>> >> For this reason I thought I would ask you about which Nahuatl words
>> >> you
>> >> know for the different types of non-normative sexual identities, gay,
>> >> homosexual, bisexual, transvestite, transgendered etc. and how they
>> >> are
>> >> used. I'd be happy to know for each term where it is used (community
>> >> and
>> >> region), whether it is used pejoratively or neutrally (do anyone
>> >> selfidentify with it) and if you have any examples of how it might be
>> >> used
>> >> that would be excellent. I am thinking of collating the results into a
>> >> blog
>> >> post.
>> >>
>> >> Thanks beforehand!
>> >>
>> >> Magnus
>> >>
>> >>
>> >> --
>> >> Magnus Pharao Hansen
>> >> PhD. candidate
>> >> Department of Anthropology
>> >>
>> >> Brown University
>> >> 128 Hope St.
>> >> Providence, RI 02906
>> >>
>> >> *magnus_pharao_hansen at brown.edu <magnus_pharao_hansen at brown.edu>*
>> >> US: 001 401 651 8413
>> >> _______________________________________________
>> >> Nahuatl mailing list
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>> >
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>>
>>
>>
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