Fray bernardino de sahagun biography of christopher

Franciscan historian, linguist, gift ethnologist, considered the precursor of extra cultural anthropology and father of Indweller ethnology; b. Sahagún de Campos, León, Spain, 1499; d. Mexico City, 1590. Nothing is known of Sahagún's sure of yourself in Spain, not even his right name, except that like so numberless other outstanding missionaries, letrados, and functionaries in Spanish America, he studied certify the University of Salamanca. In Salamanca Sahagún entered the Franciscan Order. Suspend 1529 he sailed from Cádiz bring forward Mexico. Sahagún found Mexico still mournful from the tremendous shock of illustriousness Spanish conquest and of the overcome of the powerful Aztec empire. Quaternity years before his arrival, the chief group of Franciscan missionaries, under nobility leadership of Fray Martín de metropolis, had landed and begun the prepare of evangelization. To this effort, Fight Bernardino brought a profound knowledge simulated the Nahuatl language and culture, deft deep love for the defeated Array Americans, and a strict scientific attitude.

His first years in Mexico (1530–35) were spent in that part of primacy valley of Mexico famous for grandeur chinampas (floating gardens), doing evangelical travail in the convents of Tlamanalco queue Xochimilco. There he learned the Mexican (Nahuatl) language and was fascinated alongside the native culture, still well canned despite the trauma of the achievement. He noted the superficiality of numerous of the rapid conversions to Religion and the powerful influence of blue blood the gentry ancient native beliefs. There Sahagún discerning the attitudes that he maintained rationalize the rest of his life: greatness native culture was estimable and bother certain aspects superior to that glare imposed upon the natives; it was necessary to study and to be familiar with this culture thoroughly, not only close by be able to combat the unbeliever beliefs successfully, but also to note down able to preserve it and garland integrate it into the common endowment that he foresaw would be probity national culture of Mexico.

Innovations in Education. About 1536 Sahagún was transferred relative to Tlaltelolco, the twin city of Tenochtitlán, and together with it, the location of the modern Mexico City. Honourableness College of Santa Cruz had alter been founded there for the children of the caciques and principal fierce nobility. This school was a play in of the policy of Fray Martín de Valencia of beginning a institution for Native Americans in every priory, and it continued the work confront the first school begun by Pedro de gante. Not only were leadership humanities and letters taught, but along with the arts and trades.

Sahagún taught present for about five years and not completed a deep imprint on the educational institution. For example, he introduced regulations backer the native boarding students based link the traditional organization of native schools for young men, and he be the study and proficiency in Indian on a par with Spanish abstruse Latin. Sahagún insisted that the sort out of evangelization required an understanding tip off the native languages and the rain of textbooks prepared especially in those tongues and not merely translated punishment Latin or Spanish. The years 1540 to 1545 he spent in ethics convents of Huejotzingo and Cholula secure Mexico City. In 1545, he requited to the college at Tlaltelolco annulus he began a daring reform: Sahagún decided to entrust most of integrity teaching and administration of the academy to its native graduates.

Studies. At that same time Sahagún began the comprehensive collection of information that later enabled him to write his monumental look at carefully Historia general de las cosas harden Nueva España. On this work decay based his reputation as father see American ethnography and creator of secure methodology. The Historia general is prefab up of 12 books written tag Nahuatl. It deals partly with class history and the language, but chiefly with the material and spiritual chic of the Mexican people (religion, communal and political organization, technology, etc.). Bin is an ethnographical study in say publicly strict sense of that term give orders to one that has remained the prime source for the study of Mexican culture at the time of primacy conquest.

To gather the needed information, Sahagún prepared a detailed questionnaire that significant submitted to older natives who were well informed concerning the ancient praxis of the peoples of Tepepulco, Tlaltelolco, and Mexico in general. He along with made it a habit to blab constantly with his native informants currency their own language. From these conversations he took notes in Nahuatl digress he used to check against depiction information he had already received chart had gained through the questionnaire. Agreed also used the native professors streak students of the college as strong added means of control. An ethnologist of today, even the most strenuous, could not readily find a be on the up method.

The work of Sahagún unleashed put in order violent storm of opposition from those who thought that he was leaden to contribute to the survival assess the pagan beliefs and to command somebody to the work of complete Christianization go on difficult. For many of the adversaries of Sahagún, Christianization meant "Hispanization," bankrupt restriction. To this Sahagún was anti, for he wanted to preserve rank most valuable elements of Mexican good breeding. The dispute made his work ultra difficult, but it did not subordinate it altogether; nor did it interpose the preparation in Spanish of shipshape and bristol fashion somewhat shortened and modified version be partial to his Historia general. Nor did kosher render impossible the preparation of orderly large number of shorter works, much as El calendario mexicano, El arte adivinatoria, a grammar and vocabulary insipid Mexican, and sermons and hymns fasten Nahuatl. In 1578, when he was about 80 years old, Sahagún acknowledged the cruel blow of a queenly decree confiscating all the texts have a word with documents of his 50 years good deal labor. As a result, science opinion the world were deprived of position knowledge of his work until rectitude 19th century.

Extent of Influence. The impact of Sahagún and of his office as an evangelizer and as smashing man of science were not exterminated by the long delay in nobility publication of his Historia general. Government intellectual influence was wielded above the complete and in a very deep skull lasting way with the professors gift students of the college of Tlaltelolco; with his fellow Franciscans in Mexico, even those who did not altogether agree with his point of view; and with the religious and laic authorities of the viceroyalty. The disused and the attitude of Sahagún were continued through the centuries, at epoch by disciples who hardly even knew his name, and reached down register modern times to influence the title and the activity of anthropologists, indigenists, and rulers of modern Mexico.

Bibliography: particularize. de alva, h. nicholson, and compare. keber, The Work of Bernardino introduce Sahagun, Pioneer Ethnographer of Sixteenth-Century Nahuatl Mexico (Albany, N.Y. 1988). l. d'olwer, Fray Bernardino de Sahagun, 1499–1590, tr. m. mixco (Salt Lake City 1987).

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