Тотонакапан: Тарихы мен қазіргі жағдайы

Totonacapan refers to the historical extension where the Totonac people of Mexico dominated, as well as to a region in the modern states of Veracruz and Puebla. The historical territory was much larger than the currently named region, extending from the Cazones River in the north to the Papaloapan River in the south and then west from the Gulf of Mexico into what is now the Sierra Norte de Puebla region and into parts of Hidalgo. When the Spanish arrived, the Totonac ethnicity dominated this large region, although they themselves were dominated by the Aztec Empire. For this reason, they allied with Hernán Cortés against Tenochtitlán. However, over the colonial period, the Totonac population and territory shrank, especially after 1750 when mestizos began infiltrating Totonacapan, taking political and economic power. This continued into the 19th and 20th centuries, prompting the division of most of historical Totonacpan between the states of Puebla and Veracruz. Today, the term refers only to a region in the north of Veracruz where Totonac culture is still important. This region is home to the El Tajín and Cempoala archeological sites as well as Papantla, which is noted for its performance of the Danza de los Voladores.

The earliest human settlements in the area date back to about 2000 BCE with agriculture practiced early with those communities on the coast having seafood prominent in the diet, especially mollusks. The area thrived with many small villages and ceremonial center because of abundant agricultural production. The beginning of the Classic period around 300BCE brought great changes to the region as it became part of an important trade route between Teotihuacan and the Maya. Evidence of Teotihuacan influence become evident including religion and architecture. The name "Totonacapan" is from the Totonac people (+ "pan" meaning "place"), who probably arrived to the area between the 8th and 9th centuries. It was populated by other cultures before this, which have since been lost. Their main archeological sites include El Tajín, Cempoala and Yohualichan (in the Sierra Norte de Puebla). El Tajín is considered crucial to Totonac identity. The territory originally extended from the Papaloapan River in the south to the Cazones River in the north, the Gulf of Mexico on the east and into the Sierra Madre Oriental mountains to the west into what is now the Sierra Norte de Puebla and perhaps even as far as Tulancingo. However, these western areas had become ethnically mixed due to influxes of Nahuas and Otomis long before the Spanish arrived. They were also heavily influenced by the olmec. The mestizos, meanwhile, were privatizing communally held land, confiscating religious property and prohibiting public worship to weaken the power of indigenous authorities. The Totonacs had some luck in turning the tide during the Mexican Revolution but these gains were lost in the 1930s. The process of dividing Totonacapan into various smaller entities politically and economically continued through the 20th century. One development was the construction of the Mexico City Tuxpan highway and the development of petroleum extraction in the Poza Rica area. The Teziutlán Tlatlauquitepec highway to Tenampulco reinforced a Veracruz/Puebla border. The Totonac population continues to decline in both states, especially since the 1980s with many migrating out due to the poor economy of the region. History has put pressure on the Totonac language, with speakers switching over to Spanish and in some cases, to Nahuatl even though those who change language still consider themselves Totonac. El Tajín was named a World Heritage Site in 1992, due to its cultural importance, especially to the Totonac people and its architecture. This architecture includes the use of decorative niches and cement in forms unknown in the rest of Mesoamerica. Its best known monument is the Pyramid of the Niches, but other important monuments include the Arroyo Group, the North and South Ballcourts and the palaces of Tajín Chico. Since the 1970s, El Tajin has been the most important archeological site in Veracruz for tourists, attracting over 650,000 visitors a year. The next most important site is Cempoala which during the height of the Totonacs, was the most important city. It was still important when the Spanish arrived, but it became mostly abandoned afterwards. However, their range is limited to less than in about seven municipalities. Wildlife includes squirrels, rabbits, armadillos, opossums, fresh and saltwater shrimp, trout, and various bird species. Infrastructure such as roadways and housing is in poor condition especially in the mountain areas. The construction of bridges is considered to be important to the regions development, especially to connect the coastline with the interior cities of Mexico. The principal economic activities are agriculture, the raising of cattle and in some areas, fishing. The coastal areas mostly produce corn with two harvests per year along with beans, chili peppers, oranges, limes, grapefruit, mandarin oranges, sugar cane, bananas, vanilla, sesame seed and more. The mountain areas principally grow coffee, black pepper, sapote and red mamey. Much of the citrus fruit is exported. Aside from cattle there is some other livestock such as pigs, sheep, horses and domestic fowl as well as bees. The bean was highly valued long before the arrival of the Spanish, used for religious rituals, perfumes and healing potions as well as a flavoring. When the Aztecs conquered Totonacapan, part of the tribute was in vanilla beans, mostly used to flavor chocolate drinks in Tenochtitlán. In the recent past, vanilla was a major trade in the region, with a number of vanilla “barons” in the first half of the 20th century making fortunes as middlemen and exporters. However, it began to be grown more cheaply elsewhere and the creation of synthetic vanilla collapsed the market for authentic Mexican vanilla. Despite the quality due to ideal growing conditions, Mexico produces only fifteen percent of the world's vanilla. However, a number of entrepreneurs are working to bring the crop back experimenting with production rates and promoting the quality of Totonacapan grown vanilla. The best vanilla still comes from here.

Although the Totonac people are no longer the dominant population in Totonacapan, their culture remains an important part of the Veracruz region still named for them. The various municipalities have formal, generally mestizo dominated, governments but there are also councils of elders in many indigenous communities which have various relationships with the various municipal authorities. However, these dances are also waning and survive mostly in marginalized communities. In very poor communities, dances are dying out because the people do not have the time or money to make or maintain the elaborate costumes. As older instructors die, there are no younger ones to take their place. Most of the population is Catholic although these are split into those who practice the traditional mix of indigenous and Catholic beliefs and reform Catholics who put less emphasis on the political and social aspects of traditional religious practice. In the 1950s, Protestantism was introduced to the area by the Instituto Lingüístico de Verano which now includes evangelists, Baptists and Pentecostals. Much of traditional cuisine survives because of the area's relative remoteness and traditional women still cook over wood fires, grinding corn and other foods on metates. Dishes include soups made from squash, sweet corn and beans. Beans are flavored with sesame seed. Small dishes include tlacoyos with beans, chili peppers with sesame seed, tamales with salted fish, turkey and other fillings, enchiladas zampadas. Vegetable dishes include a green called quelite with beans or with herbs and eggs, chayote with squash seeds, enchiladas with mamey and nopal cactus with eggs. Seafood dishes include shrimp in various preparations including with sesame seed and sweet potato and grilled fish. Meats include various domestic fowl, pork, beef and rabbit, often smoked. Most ingredients are indigenous with a few exceptions such as sesame seed and almonds. Another common dish is zacahuil, which is a kind of corn pudding.