Table Of Contentthe maya tropical forest
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The
Maya
(cid:2)
Tropical
Forest
people, parks,
&
ancient cities
james d. nations
University of Texas Press Austin
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Material from Th e Maya Textile Tradition, edited by Margot Schevill
(New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1997), reprinted by permission of the
publisher.
Material from Chapter 1 of Timber, Tourists, and Temples, edited by
Richard Primack, David Bray, Hugo Galletti, and Ismael Ponciano (Wash-
ington, D.C.: Island Press, 1998), reprinted by permission of the publisher.
Material from Jan de Vos, Oro verde: la conquista de la Selva Lacan-
dona por los madereros tabasqueños, 1822–1949 (Mexico City: Fondo de
Cultura Económica, 1988) reprinted by permission of the author.
Material from Jan de Vos, Viajes al desierto de la soledad: cuando la
Selva Lacandona aún era selva (Mexico City: Secretaría de Educación
Pública, 1988) reprinted by permission of the author.
Copyright © 2006 by James D. Nations
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America
First edition, 2006
Requests for permission to reproduce material from this work should
be sent to:
Permissions
University of Texas Press
P.O. Box 7819
Austin, TX 78713-7819
www.utexas.edu/utpress/about/bpermission.html
∞ The pap er used in this book meets the minimum requirements of
ansi/niso z39.48-1992 (r1997) (Permanence of Paper).
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Nations, James D.
Th e Maya tropical forest : people, parks, and ancient cities /
James D. Nations. — 1st ed.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
isbn 0-292-71282-0 (hardcover : alk. paper) — isbn 0-292-71318-5
(pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Mayas—Ethnobotany. 2. Mayas—Ethnozoology. 3. Rain forest
ecology—Yucatán Peninsula. 4. Human ecology—Yucatán Peninsula.
5. Yucatán Peninsula—Environmental aspects. I. Title.
f1435.3.e74n38 2006
304.2'09726—dc22
2005023469
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To my parents, Charlie and Em Nations, for such an excellent
beginning.
To the memory of Carlos Soza Manzanero and Carlos Cata-
lán, the fi nest community conservationists in the Guatemalan
Petén.
To Mary E. Hartman, Chris Nations, Jamie Nations, and Nick
Nations, for making it all worthwhile. Mary has been my kind
and compassionate companion throughout the years covered by
this book. I could not, and would not, have done this without her.
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C
ontents
preface ix
acknowledgments xiii
notes on names and orthography xvii
on distances and measurements xix
epochs of civilization in the maya tropical forest xxi
Part One: Time, Land, and Forest 1
1. introduction to the maya tropical forest
3
Sidebar: Biosphere Reserves 15
2. history of the maya tropical forest
18
Th e New Land’s Form 18
Th e Rise of Maya Civilization 19
Th e Classic Maya 22
First Encounters 30
A Mysterious Poison 31
Conquest of the Lowland Maya 35
Th e Rise of the Western World 44
3. natural history of the maya tropical forest
46
Introduction 46
Weather 50
Animals 51
Sidebar: U kunyah chäk k’ek’en 59
(Lacandón Maya Chant to Cure the Coatimundi Growling Disease)
Wild Plants 93
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viii (cid:2) the maya tropical forest
Part Two: Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize 111
4. mexico
113
Th e Selva Lacandona 113
Sidebar: Th e Best Pilot in Chiapas 128
People of the Selva Lacandona 129
Protected Areas 142
Archaeological Sites 149
Sidebar: Letter from Calakmul 170
5. guatemala
172
Introduction 172
Th e Maya Tropical Forest in Guatemala 175
Modern Peoples in the Guatemalan Petén 177
Sidebar: Th e Lacandón Maya in Guatemala 180
Protected Areas 186
Major Archaeological Sites in the Guatemalan Petén 200
6. belize
225
Introduction 225
Geography of Belize 228
Modern Peoples 233
Protected Areas 239
Archaeological Sites 248
Part Th ree: Th e Future of the Maya Tropical Forest 257
7. the future of the selva maya
259
Protected Areas: Th reats and Solutions 262
Archaeology: Th reats and Solutions 268
Cultural Diversity: Th reats and Solutions 270
Th e Challenge of Population Growth 276
Th e Promise of Ecological Tourism 280
Regional Incentives 282
Lessons from the Ancient Maya 283
glossary 287
references cited 289
index 313
Photos following p. 110
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P
reface
Working in the Maya Tropical Forest for more than 25 years gave me the
opportunity to examine scores of books on the region, but my research in
libraries and bookstores never turned up the one book I was looking for.
I was seeking a book that brought together the basic information on the
region’s people, archaeology, and natural resource conservation. Most of
all, the book would tell interesting stories about the people, history, and
wildlife of the Maya Tropical Forest. Th is volume represents my eff ort to
create that book for future travelers and researchers.
Th e Maya Tropical Forest: People, Parks, and Ancient Cities tells a uni-
fi ed story of the lowland tropical forest of southern Mexico, Guatemala,
and Belize. Th e Maya Tropical Forest is the closest rainforest to the United
States and one of the most visited tourist sites in the Western Hemisphere.
Journalists have called the Maya the most fascinating ancient culture since
Egyptian pharaohs fi rst inspired the public imagination, and few months
go by without at least one major article on the ancient or modern Maya in
National Geographic, Natural History, Newsweek, or Time. Descriptions
of Maya archaeology appear regularly in the New York Times, Washington
Post, and Los Angeles Times. Simultaneously, questions about the fate of
the world’s rainforests have seeped deep into public concern during the
past 25 years, and generations of students are seeking to learn more about
the fate of these forests.
Th e Maya Tropical Forest: People, Parks, and Ancient Cities guides
the reader through the past and future of southern Mexico, Guatemala,
and Belize, telling some of the stories I have heard and experienced in the
region’s archaeological sites, national parks, and communities. Th e book
describes the region’s plants and wildlife, explains how the ancient Maya
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