Indigenous tradition, change, and uncertainty in western Honduras: how Lenca potters maintain craft production livelihoods in the face of socioeconomic development

ABSTRACT

For the indigenous Lenca people of western Honduras, pottery production represents an economically and spiritually important tradition. Historically exchanged in regional trade networks, pottery is still produced today. However, this tradition is changing due to socioeconomic and political development. Lenca pottery has shifted from utilitarian wares to more aesthetic pieces favored by tourists – a change encouraged by state constructions of national identity. Promotion of what are considered ‘marketable’ indigenous crafts and attractions in the tourism industry has resulted in misconceptions among domestic and international tourists regarding distinct indigenous tradition – like Lenca pottery. Drawing on nine months of fieldwork in the Lenca community of La Campa, Lempira, this research note examines how contemporary pottery tradition may be shaped by state constructions of indigenous heritage and identity, which are reproduced through the national tourism industry. Through the application of neoliberal multiculturalism, this work explores how these political processes restrict Lenca craft producers from benefitting from tourism. To conclude, this article presents empirical evidence suggesting that despite these obstacles, Lenca artisans in La Campa maintain pottery production as a livelihood through innovative choices in altering selling and production methods.

KEYWORDS:

• Lenca
• neoliberal multiculturalism
• pottery tradition
• development
• tourism

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s)

Notes

1. Presently, the typical tourist in western Honduras is a national middle to upper-class citizen visiting from San Pedro Sula or Tegucigalpa. Primary interests are ecotourism or specific touristic events rather than cultural tourism. Following the COVID-19 pandemic, international tourist visits to Honduras are limited (Toombs 2021).

2. Pottery is also produced in Intibucá, La Paz, Choluteca and elsewhere in Honduras. However, styles differ significantly, and not all pottery styles in these regions have as long a history as in La Campa. For instance, in Cofradía, Intibucá, white clay pottery is produced by hand and with wheels. While pottery was historically produced here, white clay pottery is relatively recent, and some contemporary production methods and forms were learned within the last 30 years from development institutions (País 2019; Toombs 2021).

3. Black (1995), Herranz (1993), and others comment on the ambiguity of the term ‘Lenca.’ It first appeared in 16th-century colonial records but was not widely used by Spanish colonists. Black argues that the term was used somewhat indiscriminately to define cultural-linguistic groups in colonial Mesoamerica. However, there is sufficient evidence in the historical record to define the distribution of the Lenca language in western Honduras (Chapman 1986).

4. La Campa is not currently recognized as a “Pueblo con Encanto,” though Yamaranguila, where more recent white clay pottery is produced, holds the distinction (País 2019).

5. In November 2021, Liberal Party candidate Xiomara Castro was elected as the country’s first female president, ending 12 years of National Party leadership in Honduras (Sherman 2021).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by: The Boonstra Family Research Fellowship (Center for Latin American Studies, University of Florida); The Polly and Paul Doughty Research Award (Dept. of Anthropology, University of Florida); The Amaya Burns Research Award (Dept. of Anthropology, University of Florida); O. Ruth McQuown Scholarship (Center for Women’s Studies, University of Florida); and a Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad Award.

Notes on contributors

Hannah Toombs

Hannah Toombs is a PhD candidate in Cultural Anthropology and Latin American Studies at the University of Florida. Her research in western Honduras focuses on how forces of socioeconomic development (tourism, political constructions of national identity, environmental change) shape traditional craft production livelihoods in indigenous Lenca communities. She focuses on collaborative ethnography in her work to create promotional resources in support of local, community-led tourism efforts. She is a Fulbright-Hays recipient, currently completing her dissertation fieldwork in Honduras.