When Women United a World: Cihuatlamacazqueh as Sacred and Political Leaders in Aztec Mexico

When Women United a World: Cihuatlamacazqueh as Sacred and Political Leaders in Aztec Mexico examines Nahua conceptions of gender, religious authority, and leadership through linguistic, literary, and art historical analyses of Indigenous-authored texts. This will be the first scholarly work to explore cihuatlamacazqueh (female reverents), their roles, and their significance within Nahua culture, addressing a significant oversight in the academic landscape and establishing womanhood as respected and influential within their broader culture. Central to the study is a new English translation of a sacred narrative about Quetzalcoatl and his “older sister” Quetzalpetlatl from the Anales de Cuauhtitlan, which has traditionally been framed through colonial interpretations as a tale of an incestuous moral fall. Through an interdisciplinary philological examination, this study provides a revised etymology for the religious title tlamacazqui (reverent) and identifies “older sisters” as a synonymous title to cihuatlamacazqueh. These findings reframe Quetzalpetlatl not as a victim of incest, but as wife and counterpart to Quetzalcoatl, as well as a political and religious leader in her own right. This recovery prompts reevaluations of prominent female figures, including the “older sister” Coyolxauhqui, reshaping understandings of gender, power, and leadership in Nahua histories and culture.