The Inner Landscape of the Nahua World: The Indigenous Household and Land in Eighteenth-Century Central Mexico

The paper will explore how by the eighteenth century the Nahuas of central Mexico conceived of and related to the daily space of their houses and lands, with a focus on the physical structure of the house, and the description of the parcels of land, all with an eye to social and gender distinctions. Persistence of traditional elements and impact of Spanish influence will be assessed through a chronological analysis and comparison with the sixteenth century. The paper will be based on documents produced by the indigenous people themselves (mainly Nahuatl testaments) as well as sources in Spanish. The Toluca Valley is the scope of the case study, while other areas are used for comparison.