Pueblos originarios en contextos urbanos más allá de la autoadscripción.

Una propuesta para su identificación en México

Abstract

The main purpose of this article is to make a review through a comparative reading regarding different definitions of the concept of “native peoples” that have been made from the Mesoamerican tradition in Mexican Anthropology and to propose criteria for their identification in urban contexts, where the conventional features, such as language and clothing, have disappeared. It also has the intention to highlight the role of anthropology in the acknowledgment of subjects of law by providing analytical elements that allow them to uphold their territories, identities, and ways of living. In the first part of the article, I briefly refer to the origin of the term among people in Mexico City, along with a fast view of their pre-Columbian history. In the second part, I review the current approaches to the concept of “native peoples” and contrast it with what Good (2005) calls "Mesoamerican cultural logic". In the third section, I present three identifying criteria: historicity, commonality, and territoriality. Finally, the last section provides a recap and outlines some final thoughts.