A Study of an Assimilated Group in Northern Sonora
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Marobavi: A Study of an Assimilated Group in Northern Sonora Item Type Book; text Authors Owen, Roger C. Publisher University of Arizona Press (Tucson, AZ) Rights Copyright © Arizona Board of Regents Download date 07/10/2021 17:16:59 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/595472 DONA RlTA GUARAQUI, GUARDIAN OF THE CHURCH. MAROBAVI: A STUDY OF AN ASSIMILATED GROUP IN NORTHERN SONORA ROGER C. OWEN NUMBER 3 ANTHROPOLOGICAL PAPERS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA TUCSON 1 959 " \ ,, \ \ \ \ \ Sketch Ma p of , , .- \ \', RIO CANON AREA --- UNPAVED ROAD ~ RIVER N .......------41 = 10 M I. s • SAN JUAN i PUEBLO ANTIGUO ! RODEO _---------[. MAROBAVI --_... \ ... - '. \ LA MESA de SAN JUAN --........ :\ SAN JOSE ....... ----____ .,----~ _PALO FIERRO _,------'- "," " '", ------------------- ...... • .A'\ " ~ -'/.... ,,/ " 0 / " 0 / / ' \ ~'A'\ / \-Y- / :\ o'J4_ / \-~ / \ / I ' ,/ TOMCHIC ,I MAP 1. SKETCH MAP OF THE RIO CANON VALLEY REGION OF NORTH-CENTRAL SONORA, MEXICO. ............. Leteltd for Plan of MAROBAVI, SONORA o 1955 VALLEY ROAD IT" :' VIL LAGE ROAD :0 PATHS .... A, CHURCH D. CEMETERY B, SCHOOL E. CANTINA C. COMISARIA F. JAIL G. MAJOR STORES Sc ale ~-------1Ij1,,. .. 1711Ydo. " ............ " " .. ~.::.""" .. :, " ·0 . .. : ••• ·t.':. :.l : : T : ", :: "'0"; '" MAP 2. PLAN OF MAROBAVI, SONORA, MEXICO-1955, PREFACE THIS REPORT attempts to describe certain How "typical" an example is Marobavi of rural aspects of life in a small village in north-central Sonoran society?l No attempt has been made Sonora, Mexico. The data presented were col herein to reconstruct Opata culture, nor to docu lected over a five-month period - February to ment the circumstances of Opata-Spanish, Opata June, 1955 - during which time I spent seventy Mexican culture contact. I have studied the con one days in residence in Marobavi, which is a temporary not just because of personal predilec pseudonym. tion but also due to the tremendous research time Marobavi is located near what was, in aborig necessary to document the past to the point inal times, the western border of the Opata In where reconstructed cultural and historical data dian area (Johnson 1950). The original impetus may be used to interpret and explain contem to this research was a curiosity regarding what, if porary behavior, if, indeed, that point can be anything, remained of the once complex culture reached. In regard to the representativeness of the of the Opata group. At the time this research village, again time in the field was a limiting project first was formulated very little knowledge factor. From the several visits made to nearby was available regarding rural central Sonora, and villages, and from frequent contact with their it was then believed possible that some part of inhabitants, I believe that Marobavi is represen Opata culture might still survive. The Yaquis tative of some and, unquestionably, is not rep to the south demonstrated that such cultural sur resentative of others, even within the small valley vival was possible. Upon residence in the village where the village is located. Marobavi is in many it quickly became apparent that no such "survival" ways isolated from the outside world. In the Rio had occurred here. Then the research was focused Canon valley it is most similar to those towns on the social groups within the village with par and villages which are similarly isolated. The ticular emphasis being placed on those people companion study by Hinton surveys the villages descendant from the aboriginal group. and towns of eastern Sonora. In presenting this descriptive material, and While living in Marobavi I stayed in a small in interpreting some of what I saw, I am aware house rented from one of the villagers and ate that two months field research could have pro with the family of the man from whom I was vided only incomplete, and possibly inaccurate renting. When I first entered the valley I stressed data. If I had spent two years in the village I an interest in the history of the region in general would have more confidence in the reliability of and its churches in particular. My initial reluct my observations and the validity of my conclu ance to state explicitly my research interests was sions. This report is considered by myself to be due to the reported sensitivity of the people in this neither definitive nor complete, but is offered as section of Sonora to the term "Indian" and its an attempt to partially reduce the vacuum that application to themselves. Only during the first exists in this area of Mexican ethnology. month or so of residence were questions frequent Two very pertinent questions are not answered concerning my objectives in living in the village; here: (1) What are the historical antecedents of later they were quite rare. I tried to explain ex the phenomena described and analyzed, and (2) actly what I was studying to two individuals, but vi my objectives were not very clear even to them. status with other members of the village nor my Some people believed, until the last, that I was close friendship with members of his family. interested in mines or buried treasure, and others, With the rest of the people an easy pleasant at least at first, thought I was an undercover acquaintanceship was established, and with some Protestant missionary. friendship. The principal field techniques were observa A copy of the field notes on which this report tion, informal interviewing, and limited participa is based is on file at the Department of Anthro tion. I took a house-to-house census and all of pology, University of Arizona, as is the small the population figures used in this report, unless ethnological and archaeological collection made otherwise noted, are based on that. in conjunction with the study. Some of the roles I filled while in the village were portrait photographer, town common-trans ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS port, and host to many of the unoccupied men of THIS REPORT was presented originally to the the village, particularly during the evenings. Early Department of Anthropology, University of Ari in the field period men from the middle and lower zona, as a master's thesis. The research and writ status positions in Marobavi began frequenting my ing were done under the direction and supervision house. Usually there were from two to six men of Dr. Edward H. Spicer. The field work was present each night and, at one time or another, supported by a grant from the Ebin F. Comins all but two or three of the men of the village Fund of the University of Arizona and I want to appeared. Other roles filled were hunting com express my gratitude to the committee in charge panion, baseball teammate, neighbor, boarder, of that fund for their vital aid. English teacher, employer, customer, god-father lowe my introduction to Sonora and the Rio to a jariseo, and many others. I knew all of the Canon valley to Thomas B. Hinton. His wide men of the village by sight and all but a few by knowledge of Sonora, her people and history, name, and at various times talked with them all. and his comments and criticisms on this manu With some of the women, however, few words script have been of special value to me. I should were ever exchanged and only then because of like to thank Jorge A. Martinez whose aid and the house-to-house census. advice through the years have helped me greatly To varying degrees every household contrib in my attempt to understand Mexico. uted data to the study. The bulk of the material Valuable comments, suggestions, and criti comes from about twenty households. Among cisms have been received from many people: Drs. these are those headed by the civil and criminal Ralph Beals, Leonard Broom, Pedro Carrasco, judge, the judge of land use, several of the village's Paul Ezell, William A. Lessa, the late George most active mescal makers, a cantora of the C. Barker, and others. church, and the wealthiest man in the village. Without the aid of my wife, Suzanne M. I had close personal relationships with the store Owen, this report would possibly be non-existant. keeper who is the younger brother of the town's Finally, to the people of Marobavi, Sonora, wealthiest man, one of the cantoras, the civil who welcomed a curious and frequently inept judge, and the large family with which I ate. Overt stranger into their village, I want to say that resistance to the study became evident only once those were seventy-one days enjoyably spent. I when a young girl declined to answer the ques hope that they find my reporting neither inacc tions involved in the census. No reason for this urate nor unpleasant. was ever ascertained nor was the apparent breach ever healed. Relationships with the first man ROGER C. OWEN contacted in the village deteriorated badly late in Ensenada, Baja California the study but this did not appear to affect my July 1, 1959 vii CONTENTS 1. BACKGROUND 2. THE VILLAGE OF MAROBAVI LOCATION 15 DESCRIPTION OF VILLAGE 16 THE PEOPLE 18 LANGUAGE AND EDUCATION 19 THE LARGER COMMUNITY 20 3. MAKING A LIVING FARMING AND CATTLE RAISING 23 MESCAL 27 WAGE LABOR AND SPECIALIZATION 29 COMMERCE 29 CLOTHING AND FOOD 30 HUNTING AND GATHERING 32 HANDICRAFTS 33 WEALTH AND POVERTY 33 4. THE SOCIETY HOUSEHOLD AND FAMILY 35 MARRIAGE. 36 KIN GROUPS 37 STATUS GROUPS 38 SOCIAL BEHAVIOR 41 CIVIL OFFICES 44 5. RELIGION THE CHURCH 45 RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATION 45 BELIEFS AND CEREMONIALS 47 RELIGIOUS ATTITUDES 49 6. CONCLUSIONS 52 NOTES. 54 TABLES. 55 ILLUSTRATIONS 58 REFERENCES 68 ix 1 BACKGROUND WHEN EUROPEANS first entered northern Marcos de Niza, who left Culiacan in 1539 to Sonora in 1536 it has been estimated that the seek the fabled seven cities of gold, or Cibola, population of the region may have exceeded that had been reported by de Vaca.