Juan Bautista de Pomar
Encyclopedia
Juan Bautista Pomar (c. 1535 – 1590) was a historian and writer interested in pre-Columbian
Aztec
history.
According to references by Fray Juan de Torquemada
, he was born around 1535 at Texcoco. He was the great grandson of Nezahualcoyotl
, and was half-Spanish
on his father's side. Considered noble by the Spaniards, he was able to obtain one of his great-grandfather's royal houses, known as the Netzahualcoyotl, in Texcoco.
Pomar was raised as a Christian
but learned Aztec tradition from his mother. He was bilingual and spoke and wrote in both Spanish and the native language of the Aztecs, Nahuatl
. He is credited with one of the most important compilations of Nahuatl
poetry
, Romances de los señores de Nueva España
.
Pomar's major work includes an account of the Aztecs and Tlatelolcas
Relación de Juan Bautista Pomar completed in 1582. He interviewed aged Native Americans, who recounted memory of the older and lost customs of their people. His account, written at the suggestion of the protomedic of Philip II of Spain
, complements with the works of Bernardino de Sahagun
and Fernando de Alva Cortés Ixtlilxochitl
.
Pomar also wrote an account with the intention of claiming his rights to the legacy of Nezahualcoyotl.
Pre-Columbian
The pre-Columbian era incorporates all period subdivisions in the history and prehistory of the Americas before the appearance of significant European influences on the American continents, spanning the time of the original settlement in the Upper Paleolithic period to European colonization during...
Aztec
Aztec
The Aztec people were certain ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the Nahuatl language and who dominated large parts of Mesoamerica in the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries, a period referred to as the late post-classic period in Mesoamerican chronology.Aztec is the...
history.
According to references by Fray Juan de Torquemada
Fray Juan de Torquemada
Juan de Torquemada was a Franciscan friar, missionary and historian in Spanish colonial Mexico. He is most famous for his 1615 monumental history of the Indigenous entitled Los veinte y un libros rituales y Monarchia Indiana, commonly known as simply Monarchia Indiana...
, he was born around 1535 at Texcoco. He was the great grandson of Nezahualcoyotl
Nezahualcoyotl
Nezahualcoyotl was a philosopher, warrior, architect, poet and ruler of the city-state of Texcoco in pre-Columbian Mexico...
, and was half-Spanish
Mestizo
Mestizo is a term traditionally used in Latin America, Philippines and Spain for people of mixed European and Native American heritage or descent...
on his father's side. Considered noble by the Spaniards, he was able to obtain one of his great-grandfather's royal houses, known as the Netzahualcoyotl, in Texcoco.
Pomar was raised as a Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
but learned Aztec tradition from his mother. He was bilingual and spoke and wrote in both Spanish and the native language of the Aztecs, Nahuatl
Nahuatl
Nahuatl is thought to mean "a good, clear sound" This language name has several spellings, among them náhuatl , Naoatl, Nauatl, Nahuatl, Nawatl. In a back formation from the name of the language, the ethnic group of Nahuatl speakers are called Nahua...
. He is credited with one of the most important compilations of Nahuatl
Nahuatl
Nahuatl is thought to mean "a good, clear sound" This language name has several spellings, among them náhuatl , Naoatl, Nauatl, Nahuatl, Nawatl. In a back formation from the name of the language, the ethnic group of Nahuatl speakers are called Nahua...
poetry
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
, Romances de los señores de Nueva España
Romances de los señores de Nueva España
The Romances de los señores de Nueva España is a 16th century compilation of Nahuatl songs or poems preserved in the Library of the University of Texas...
.
Pomar's major work includes an account of the Aztecs and Tlatelolcas
Tlatelolco (altepetl)
Tlatelolco was a pre-Columbian Nahua altepetl in the Valley of Mexico. Its inhabitants were known as Tlatelolca. The Tlatelolca were a part of the Mexica ethnic group, a Nahuatl speaking people who arrived in what is now central Mexico in the 13th century...
Relación de Juan Bautista Pomar completed in 1582. He interviewed aged Native Americans, who recounted memory of the older and lost customs of their people. His account, written at the suggestion of the protomedic of Philip II of Spain
Philip II of Spain
Philip II was King of Spain, Portugal, Naples, Sicily, and, while married to Mary I, King of England and Ireland. He was lord of the Seventeen Provinces from 1556 until 1581, holding various titles for the individual territories such as duke or count....
, complements with the works of Bernardino de Sahagun
Bernardino de Sahagún
Bernardino de Sahagún was a Franciscan friar, missionary priest and pioneering ethnographer who participated in the Catholic evangelization of colonial New Spain . Born in Sahagún, Spain, in 1499, he journeyed to New Spain in 1529, and spent more than 50 years conducting interviews regarding Aztec...
and Fernando de Alva Cortés Ixtlilxochitl
Fernando de Alva Cortés Ixtlilxochitl
Fernando de Alva Cortés Ixtlilxóchitl was a Novohispanic historian.-Life:A Castizo born between 1568 and 1580, Alva Cortés Ixtlilxóchitl was a direct descendant of Ixtlilxochitl I and Ixtlilxochitl II, who had been tlatoque of Texcoco...
.
Pomar also wrote an account with the intention of claiming his rights to the legacy of Nezahualcoyotl.