Holy Wednesday: A Nahua Drama from Early Colonial MexicoIdentified only in 1986, the Nahuatl Holy Week play is the earliest known dramatic script in any Native American language. In Holy Wednesday, Louise Burkhart presents side-by-side English translations of the Nahuatl play and its Spanish source. An accompanying commentary analyzes the differences between the two versions to reveal how the native author altered the Spanish text to fit his own aesthetic sensibility and the broader discursive universe of the Nahua church. A richly detailed introduction places both works and their creators within the cultural and political contexts of late sixteenth-century Mexico and Spain. |
Other editions - View all
Common terms and phrases
Adam angel Anunciación Arróniz auto Bautista Bernardino de Sahagún Biblioteca Nacional blessing Burkhart century Christian church Colegio collegians colonial confraternities cross cultural dead death demons despedimiento divinity Doctrina Easter festival flagellation Florentine Codex Franciscan fray Juan friars harrowing of hell heaven Holy Fathers Holy Wednesday Holy Wednesday drama Holy Week Horcasitas Huexotzingo indigenous Izquierdo's Jerusalem José Karttunen Latin Limbo loanword Lockhart lord Jesus Christ manuscript Mary Magdalene Mary's Mendieta Mexico City Miguel León-Portilla Nahua author Nahua playwright Nahuatl Christ Nahuatl Mary Nahuatl play Nahuatl texts narrative native noblewoman oh my precious pascua Passion Pérez performance precious child precious mother prophecies prophets Psalmodia christiana refers religious repartimiento rescue revived ritual sacred Sahagún Saint Mary script sixteenth-century songs soul sovereign Spain Spaniards Spanish Spanish text speech stanza suffering Tenochtitlan term theater thorns tion Tlatelolco Tlaxcala torment Torquemada translation University verb Virgin Wednesday play words ΙΟ