Galán Pa dxandí‘.”That would be great if it were true”: Zapotec women's comment on their role in society

Abstract

This paper discusses outsiders and insiders representations of Isthmus Zapotec women of Oaxaca, Mexico. Zapotec society has often been portrayed as a matriarchal one, ruled by sexually‐liberated women. Ethnographic and artistic materials written by Mexican and foreign writers sustain this image and misrepresent Zapotec women. This work tries to present Zapotec women's voices and compare how they conceive of themselves as opposed to how they have been portrayed.

Keywords:

• Representations
• Zapotec
• Women
• Gender equality

Notes

Galán pa dxandi as an expression has an ironic connotation in Zapotec language. It was said by Na Aela Vázquez and Alicia Rasgado Ruiz‐both Zapotec women‐when I asked their opinion about what has been said on Zapotec womens “supremacy.” All the natives comments in this paper are made with their acknowledgement. There are also other quotes that have a written source. These sources are cited in the list of references.