In this study, we discuss how the Mopan Maya of Belize attribute certain diseases to an indigenou... more In this study, we discuss how the Mopan Maya of Belize attribute certain diseases to an indigenous understanding of human blood properties. We further describe how specific plants are said to affect the quality or nature of blood and the native ethnobotanical methods used to moderately "strengthen" or "build" blood. Furthermore, we investigate emic Mopan concepts of wellness and disease embedded in their understanding of blood and the necessity to maintain an equilibrium within their blood by using forest botanicals. In addition, we detail the use of various medicinal plants by the Mopan in treating specific categories of physical and ethnopsychiatric disorders.
In this article, we couple Peircean semiotic theory with Laban movement analysis (LMA) to interpr... more In this article, we couple Peircean semiotic theory with Laban movement analysis (LMA) to interpret scenes of Classic period Maya dance. We focus primarily on depictions found on polychrome ceramics that feature the dances of the Maize God and contrast them with those featuring the wahy creatures that inhabit the underworld. We interpret their inner emotional states based on their postural and gestural vocabularies using LMA, developed for that very purpose. The body can be considered a semiotic sign, and is therefore capable of simultaneously conveying iconic, symbolic, and indexical meanings. Maya dance has typically been interpreted at the iconic or symbolic levels, which reveal its mimetic or representational qualities. We explore the indexical qualities of the bodies of the dancers, and propose that shifting our attention to the indicative mode enables us to gain yet more insight into their embodied states.
En este artículo combinamos la teoría semiótica peirceana con el Análisis del Movimiento Laban (LMA) para interpreter escenas de la danza Maya del período Clásico. Nos enfocamos principalmente en las imágenes de las cerámicas policromadas que representan las danzas del Dios del Maíz y las contrastamos con las imágenes de las criaturas wahy que habitan el inframundo. Interpretamos sus estados emocionales, basándonos en su vocabulario postural y gestual a través del LMA, lo cual se desarrolló precisamente para ese propósito. El cuerpo mismo se podría considerar como un signo semiótico, y como tal, podría expresar los significados icónicos, simbólicos e indiciales simultáneamente. La danza Maya se ha interpretado típicamente a nivel icónico o simbólico para revelar sus cualidades miméticas o representacionales. Con este estudio exploramos las características indiciales de los cuerpos de los bailarines, y sugerimos un enfoque más centrado en el modo indicial para obtener una mejor perspectiva de sus estados personificados.
Classic period Maya rulers are often reduced to “ideal types” and are discussed in terms that wou... more Classic period Maya rulers are often reduced to “ideal types” and are discussed in terms that would suggest they were a homogenous group of individuals cut from the same cloth. Contrary to that assumption, this study employs epigraphic, iconographic, archaeological, ethnohistoric and ethnographic data to demonstrate there was significant local and regional variation in the way kingship was expressed through artistic programs, calendrics, ritual activity, accoutrements of power, sacred warfare, the taking of theophoric throne names and titulary, and the composition and adaptation of local pantheons.
The identity of each polity was inseparably connected with that of its ruler, and variations on the rulership theme served to reinforce their unique identity in the larger landscape vis-à-vis other polities. The underlying theoretical approach relies on concepts of mimesis and alterity, duality, and complementary opposition, all of which are creative acts which serve to establish a sense of Self in contrast to the Other, both human and divine. This study also examines concepts of divine kingship and deification, and argues that rulers were “functionally divine” while living and were elevated to “ontologically divine” status upon becoming apotheosized ancestors after death. As apotheosized ancestors, they took their place in the pliable local pantheon which further reinforced the unique identity of each site.
In this study, we discuss how the Mopan Maya of Belize attribute certain diseases to an indigenou... more In this study, we discuss how the Mopan Maya of Belize attribute certain diseases to an indigenous understanding of human blood properties. We further describe how specific plants are said to affect the quality or nature of blood and the native ethnobotanical methods used to moderately "strengthen" or "build" blood. Furthermore, we investigate emic Mopan concepts of wellness and disease embedded in their understanding of blood and the necessity to maintain an equilibrium within their blood by using forest botanicals. In addition, we detail the use of various medicinal plants by the Mopan in treating specific categories of physical and ethnopsychiatric disorders.
In this article, we couple Peircean semiotic theory with Laban movement analysis (LMA) to interpr... more In this article, we couple Peircean semiotic theory with Laban movement analysis (LMA) to interpret scenes of Classic period Maya dance. We focus primarily on depictions found on polychrome ceramics that feature the dances of the Maize God and contrast them with those featuring the wahy creatures that inhabit the underworld. We interpret their inner emotional states based on their postural and gestural vocabularies using LMA, developed for that very purpose. The body can be considered a semiotic sign, and is therefore capable of simultaneously conveying iconic, symbolic, and indexical meanings. Maya dance has typically been interpreted at the iconic or symbolic levels, which reveal its mimetic or representational qualities. We explore the indexical qualities of the bodies of the dancers, and propose that shifting our attention to the indicative mode enables us to gain yet more insight into their embodied states.
En este artículo combinamos la teoría semiótica peirceana con el Análisis del Movimiento Laban (LMA) para interpreter escenas de la danza Maya del período Clásico. Nos enfocamos principalmente en las imágenes de las cerámicas policromadas que representan las danzas del Dios del Maíz y las contrastamos con las imágenes de las criaturas wahy que habitan el inframundo. Interpretamos sus estados emocionales, basándonos en su vocabulario postural y gestual a través del LMA, lo cual se desarrolló precisamente para ese propósito. El cuerpo mismo se podría considerar como un signo semiótico, y como tal, podría expresar los significados icónicos, simbólicos e indiciales simultáneamente. La danza Maya se ha interpretado típicamente a nivel icónico o simbólico para revelar sus cualidades miméticas o representacionales. Con este estudio exploramos las características indiciales de los cuerpos de los bailarines, y sugerimos un enfoque más centrado en el modo indicial para obtener una mejor perspectiva de sus estados personificados.
Classic period Maya rulers are often reduced to “ideal types” and are discussed in terms that wou... more Classic period Maya rulers are often reduced to “ideal types” and are discussed in terms that would suggest they were a homogenous group of individuals cut from the same cloth. Contrary to that assumption, this study employs epigraphic, iconographic, archaeological, ethnohistoric and ethnographic data to demonstrate there was significant local and regional variation in the way kingship was expressed through artistic programs, calendrics, ritual activity, accoutrements of power, sacred warfare, the taking of theophoric throne names and titulary, and the composition and adaptation of local pantheons.
The identity of each polity was inseparably connected with that of its ruler, and variations on the rulership theme served to reinforce their unique identity in the larger landscape vis-à-vis other polities. The underlying theoretical approach relies on concepts of mimesis and alterity, duality, and complementary opposition, all of which are creative acts which serve to establish a sense of Self in contrast to the Other, both human and divine. This study also examines concepts of divine kingship and deification, and argues that rulers were “functionally divine” while living and were elevated to “ontologically divine” status upon becoming apotheosized ancestors after death. As apotheosized ancestors, they took their place in the pliable local pantheon which further reinforced the unique identity of each site.
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En este artículo combinamos la teoría semiótica peirceana con el Análisis del Movimiento Laban (LMA) para interpreter escenas de la danza Maya del período Clásico. Nos enfocamos principalmente en las imágenes de las cerámicas policromadas que representan las danzas del Dios del Maíz y las contrastamos con las imágenes de las criaturas wahy que habitan el inframundo. Interpretamos sus estados emocionales, basándonos en su vocabulario postural y gestual a través del LMA, lo cual se desarrolló precisamente para ese propósito. El cuerpo mismo se podría considerar como un signo semiótico, y como tal, podría expresar los significados icónicos, simbólicos e indiciales simultáneamente. La danza Maya se ha interpretado típicamente a nivel icónico o simbólico para revelar sus cualidades miméticas o representacionales. Con este estudio exploramos las características indiciales de los cuerpos de los bailarines, y sugerimos un enfoque más centrado en el modo indicial para obtener una mejor perspectiva de sus estados personificados.
The identity of each polity was inseparably connected with that of its ruler, and variations on the rulership theme served to reinforce their unique identity in the larger landscape vis-à-vis other polities. The underlying theoretical approach relies on concepts of mimesis and alterity, duality, and complementary opposition, all of which are creative acts which serve to establish a sense of Self in contrast to the Other, both human and divine. This study also examines concepts of divine kingship and deification, and argues that rulers were “functionally divine” while living and were elevated to “ontologically divine” status upon becoming apotheosized ancestors after death. As apotheosized ancestors, they took their place in the pliable local pantheon which further reinforced the unique identity of each site.
En este artículo combinamos la teoría semiótica peirceana con el Análisis del Movimiento Laban (LMA) para interpreter escenas de la danza Maya del período Clásico. Nos enfocamos principalmente en las imágenes de las cerámicas policromadas que representan las danzas del Dios del Maíz y las contrastamos con las imágenes de las criaturas wahy que habitan el inframundo. Interpretamos sus estados emocionales, basándonos en su vocabulario postural y gestual a través del LMA, lo cual se desarrolló precisamente para ese propósito. El cuerpo mismo se podría considerar como un signo semiótico, y como tal, podría expresar los significados icónicos, simbólicos e indiciales simultáneamente. La danza Maya se ha interpretado típicamente a nivel icónico o simbólico para revelar sus cualidades miméticas o representacionales. Con este estudio exploramos las características indiciales de los cuerpos de los bailarines, y sugerimos un enfoque más centrado en el modo indicial para obtener una mejor perspectiva de sus estados personificados.
The identity of each polity was inseparably connected with that of its ruler, and variations on the rulership theme served to reinforce their unique identity in the larger landscape vis-à-vis other polities. The underlying theoretical approach relies on concepts of mimesis and alterity, duality, and complementary opposition, all of which are creative acts which serve to establish a sense of Self in contrast to the Other, both human and divine. This study also examines concepts of divine kingship and deification, and argues that rulers were “functionally divine” while living and were elevated to “ontologically divine” status upon becoming apotheosized ancestors after death. As apotheosized ancestors, they took their place in the pliable local pantheon which further reinforced the unique identity of each site.