The Costa Chica de Guerrero (Spanish for "small coast of Guerrero") is an area along the south coast of the state of Guerrero, Mexico, extending from just south of Acapulco to the Oaxaca border. Geographically, it consists of part of the Sierra Madre del Sur, a strip of rolling hills that lowers to coastal plains to the Pacific Ocean. Various rivers here form large estuaries and lagoons that host various species of commercial fish.
This area is paired with the Costa Chica of Oaxaca as both have significant populations of Afro-Mexicans. The Afro-Mexican presence in Guerrero is strongest in this region, especially in the coastal municipalities from Marquelia to Cuajinicuilapa. Another important ethnic group is the Amuzgo, who are by far the largest indigenous ethnicity in the region, in the municipalities of Xochistlahuaca, Tlacoachistlahuaca and Ometepec. The Amuzgo, especially in Xochistlahuca, still wear traditional clothing and speak the Amuzgo language. Many women still weave cloth on backstrap looms. The region is one of the poorest in Mexico, with an economy based on subsistence agriculture and fishing, with some commerce, especially along Highway 200, which parallels the coast.
Geography
The Costa Chica of Guerrero is a coastal region beginning just southeast of Acapulco, and ending at the Oaxaca state border to the south. It is culturally paired with the Costa Chica of Oaxaca as both have significant populations of Afro-Mexicans, who often also have indigenous ancestry.
The Costa Chica is one of the seven regions of the state along with Zona Norte, Tierra Caliente, Centro, La Montaña, Acapulco and Costa Grande. The largest metropolitan area of the region is San Marcos. There are fifteen municipalities in the region: Ayutla, Azoyú, Copala, Cuautepec, Florencio Villarreal, Igualapa, Ometepec, San Luis Acatlán, San Marcos, Tecoanapa, Tlacoachistlahuaca, Xochistlahuaca, Cuajinicuilapa, Marquelia and Juchitán.
Most of the terrain is dominated by the Sierra Madre del Sur as it parallels the coast. Between the mountains and the ocean is a narrow strip of hilly land called the Lomérios de la Vertiente del Pacífico and coastal plains called the Planicies Costeras. The region is filled with winding rivers which empty into the Pacific. The vegetation is deciduous low height tropical forest that loses most of its leaves during the dry season from November to May. Oceanside municipalities include San Marcos, Florencio Villarreal, Copala, Marquelia and Cuajinicuilapa. The three main lagoons are Tecomate, Chautengo and Tres Palos. The largest bay is the Bay of Puerto Marques next to Acapulco.
The area has a hot climate that reaches an average high temperature of 32C. The dry season extends from November to May and a rainy season from June to October. The area is prone to cyclones from June to October. In 1997, Hurricane Pauline devastated the Costa Chica in both Guerrero and Oaxaca with winds reaching between 166 and 200 km/h. The toll was 120 dead, and 8,700 other victims. The region was left with partially destroyed roads with left a number of communities physically isolated for days.
Afro-Mexican community
The Costa Chica (of both Guerrero and Oaxaca) is one of two zones in Mexico with significant Afro-Mexican populations, with the other being in the state of Veracruz. While Afro-Mexicans are found in most parts of the Costa Chica, the highest concentrations in Guerrero are found between Marquelia and Cuajinicuilapa. Members of this group in the region are often identified by skin color. Some consider the classification to be racism, while others identify as primarily Afro-Mexican. Many also have indigenous or mestizo ancestry. While Africans are described as the “third root,” along with indigenous and Spanish people as part of Mexico heritage, this has often been "forgotten” in the description of the “mestizaje” identity of Mexico, which stresses the mixture of European and indigenous peoples.
After the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, disease, war and overwork killed part of the native population. In a number of areas, the Spanish brought in African slaves to replace the lost labor. Juan Garrido, one of numerous African conquistadors, accompanied Hernán Cortés in Mexico in 1519. During the colonial period, there was a significant African slave population. Large quantities of slaves were imported starting in the mid-1500s and by 16th and 17th centuries. The first Africans brought to the Pacific coast arrived to Acapulco brought by Spanish galleons. Many later arrivals included escaped black slaves, called “cimarrones” who found refuge in the area. However, most local stories about how Africans arrived to the area have to do with local shipwrecks, whether it was a slave ship or not. All end with the idea that they found freedom and refuge in the communities along the coast. Due to the isolation of the area and their desire to keep their freedom, little was written about their history.
The historic Afro-Mexican communities were known for building round mud huts with thatched roofs, the design of which can be traced back to what are now Ghana and the Ivory Coast. Few of these traditional structures remain; over time, the people adopted local customs. Today, Afro-Mexican culture does not have its own language or dress. It is sometimes distinguished by body language and vocabulary, as well as a shared heritage.
The culture was featured in a documentary called Santa Negritud by La Maga Films sponsored by Susana Harp . The history and culture of these people is also the focus of a museum in Cuajinicuilapa, called the Museo de las Culturas Afromestizas .
Amuzgos and other indigenous
Indigenous peoples of the area include the Amuzgo, Mixtec, Tlapanec and Nahuas. The Amuzgo are the most numerous by far, followed by the Mixtec, who are mostly found in Tlacoachistlahuaca. Historically the indigenous peoples associated the African slaves with the Spanish. The colonists sometimes used the slaves to execute indigenous people. Most indigenous and Afro Mexicans live in separate communities or separate neighborhoods of the same community. However, the separation is not absolute, as there have been marriages between indigenous and Afro Mexicans.
The Amuzgo live in the border region of Guerrero and Oaxaca, near the Pacific Coast. Municipalities with the largest Amuzgo population in order are Xochistlahuaca, Tlacoachistlahuaca, Ometepec in Guerrero and San Pedro Amuzgos in Oaxaca. Census figures put the Amuzgo speaking population at about 35,000, but ethnic studies put the number at about 50,000, with about eighty percent living in the state of Guerrero. The Amuzgo language belongs to the Oto-Manguean family, most closely related to the Mixtecan sub-family.
The origin of the Amuzgo is unknown. One theory states that the group migrated to its current location from the north from the area of the Pánuco River. Another states that they migrated from South America. Amuzgo folklore states that they came from islands in the sea. The Amuzgo also populated the coast but Mixtec expansion, the Spanish conquest, and later African migration pushed them into the mountains. One interpretation of the name “Amuzgo” is from Nahuatl, meaning “place of books,” probably indicating that the region had administrative functions. The name of the language in Amuzgo is ñomnda (word of water). The name of the people is nnánncue (people in the middle).
There is important traditional textile production among the Amuzgos, along with ceramics, leather, cheese and piloncillo. Most surplus products are sold in Ometepec. Traditional weaving is done on a backstrap loom, and girls learn the process starting from when they are about six or seven years old. The most traditional garments are made from a local cotton called coyuche, which is grown, cleaned, spun, dyed then woven. The most notable and time-consuming garment is the women's huipil, which has, at times, very complicated designs woven into it. A number of Amuzgo weavers have been recognized for their work, including Florentina López de Jesús. Many Amuzgos in Guerrero still wear traditional garments, with men wearing loose white cotton pants and shirt and the women wearing a huipil and dress. However, those made with commercial cloth are becoming more common.
History
Archeological excavation in the region has been spotty with only preliminary evaluation starting from the 1930s, so information on the pre Hispanic history of this area is limited. Sites have been identified in the municipalities of Azoyú, Juchitán, Marquelia, Ometepec, San Luis Acatlán and Tecoanapa. Highland sites include Piedra Labrada, Los Zapotales, La Mira, Arcelia del Progreso and Yoloxóchitl all above 650 meters above sea level. Hill sites include Capulín Chocolate, El Pericón, Tecuantepec, El Limón, Horcasitas, Chinantla, San Luis Acatlán and Zoyatlán. Those by the ocean are generally near the mouths of rivers and include Las Arenillas and El Alto. Horcasitas and San Luis Acatlán are notable because they are built on natural elevations to avoid seasonal flooding from the San Luis River.
Arcelia del Progreso, Marquelia and Yoloxóchitl show Olmec influence. Much of the region was part of a Mixtec province called Ayacastla, which had its capital in Igualapa and also included Ometepec, Azoyú, Quahuitlan (now Cahuitán), and the extinct settlement of Tlacolula. In addition to the four found today, there were other indigenous groups, such as the Yopenahuatlec in what is now Marquelia, but they disappeared over the colonial period as the indigenous population markedly declined. Ayacastla, Huehuetán, Quahuitlan and the extinct villages of Cintla and Cuauhtzapotla each had their own unattested languages, referred to respectively as Ayacastec, Huehuetec, Quahutec, Cintec, and Zapotec (most likely unrelated to the Zapotec languages of Oaxaca).
During the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, Pedro de Alvarado conquered the area in 1522, founding the town of Acatlán the same year. In 1531, a Tlapanec uprising forced most of the Spanish residents to flee. During the rest of the 16th century, much of the indigenous population was decimated, primarily due to new infectious diseases carried by colonists; they also suffered from war and overwork. In Xochistlahuaca there were about 20,000 indigenous in 1522 but by 1582, only 200 survived.
The area was developed by colonists in the 16th century for ranching, and they imported slaves to help with the labor. They exported meat, hides and wool. Soon after, the area became inhabited by Africans and Afro-Mexicans. During the colonial period, the Spanish imported a total of about 200,000 African slaves from West Africa to Mexico over three centuries.Colin A. Palmer, Africa's Legacy in Mexico: A Legacy of Slavery, Smithsonian Institution: Migrations in History, n.d., accessed 24 November 2014Steve Sailer, Race Now, Part 3: "Where Did Mexico's Blacks Go?", UPI, 9 May 2002 Most were landed at Veracruz. Working on sugar plantations, in mines and in ranching, slaves who escaped migrated to the isolated Costa Chica region, where they found refuge.
Spanish landholders gave them protection in return for cheap labor, mostly tending cattle and curing leather. Over time, there was significant interracial mixing among Europeans, indigenous and Africans. Colonial authorities required slaves to convert to Catholicism. But, in smaller communities such as San Nicolas and Colorado, many Afro-Mexicans continued to use traditional magical practices to cure illness and resolve problems, often combining them with Catholic practice. Xochistlahuaca became an administrative and religious center in 1563, which it was during the height of the Mixtec people. It has remained an important religious center to this day.