Paper short abstract:

This presentation aims to explore the transformations in the relationship between La Malinche volcano in east-central Mexico and the Nahua communities living at its slopes, with particular attention to the impact of ecological deterioration in the area in producing a crisis of such relationship.

Paper long abstract:

La Malinche or Matlalcueye is a volcano located in the states of Puebla and Tlaxcala (Mexico) that represents a central ecosystemic, economic, and identity site for the Nahua and Otomi communities that live at its foot. Its toponyms condense much of Mexico's history: La Malinche, also known as doña Marina, was a slave woman who became the interpreter of Hernan Cortés, whose translation work was crucial to the outcomes of the conquest of the Mexica empire; Matlalcueye, on the other hand, is the Tlaxcaltec name of a Nahua water deity who was very important within the cult of the mountains prevalent in prehispanic Mexico. The relationship between local communities in the area and the La Malinche volcano thus dates back to prehispanic times, when figures such as the tiempero were in charge of establishing a social relationship with the mountains and the weather, responsible for good crop recults and human health. This relationship, however, seems to have broken down due to the violent historical and social processes, coupled with current climatic changes and ecological deterioration of the area, which shape experiences of disorientation among the communities' inhabitants. Condensing this crisis between community and territory emerges the figure of the talador, the illegal woodcutter, a community dweller who contributes to the environmental devastation of La Malinche's forests and who reveals all the voracity of the current predatory economic system.