Friday, November 14, 2025

03 - Zapatistas commons - comparative etymological analysis

 Perfect — let’s break it down etymologically and conceptually, comparing the Spanish title with its approximate rendering in Jach t’aan (Lacandon Maya).


Original Spanish

“El común Zapatista ante la Tormenta: Encuentro de resistencias y rebeldías en contra del Fascismo.”

Core meaning:
The Zapatista common (or communal way of life) facing the storm: a gathering of resistances and rebellions against fascism.


Approximate Jach t’aan version

“U juntéelil winikob Zapatista ti’ u k’aaxil k’áak’náal: k’ajtalilil k’uxajilob yéetel ch’úupulil ichil u xokob in na’atikilil.”


Word-by-word & etymological comparison

Spanish Concept Jach t’aan Approximation Literal/Root Meaning Notes
El común Zapatista U juntéelil winikob Zapatista u juntéelil = their gathering / assembly (from juntéel, "meeting, togetherness")winikob = people, humans, men (plural of winik, person) In Mayan thought, community (juntéelil winikob) means collective being, not property-based “common.”
ante la Tormenta ti’ u k’aaxil k’áak’náal ti’ = facing, beforeu k’aaxil = the forest / wild placek’áak’náal = place of fire or storm “Tormenta” doesn’t exist literally, so it’s expressed as a fiery chaos of the forest — symbol of crisis.
Encuentro k’ajtalilil from k’ajtal = to be, to exist; -ilil nominalizes it: “the being-together” or “the happening” This conveys the sense of a shared happening or assembly rather than a formal meeting.
Resistencias k’uxajilob from k’uxaj = pain, suffering; -ilob = plural noun form → “those who endure pain” Resistance is seen as endurance, resilience — an embodied strength.
Rebeldías ch’úupulil from ch’úup = to rise, to emerge; -ulil = abstract noun form → “the rising up” Emphasizes uprising as natural emergence, not just opposition.
en contra del Fascismo ichil u xokob in na’atikilil ichil = withinu xokob = their counting / namingna’atikilil = understanding, awareness There’s no term for “fascism,” so this phrase literally means “within our understanding of domination.”

Conceptual Translation (fluid English rendering):

“The gathering of Zapatista people in the wild storm: a shared being of endurance and uprising within our understanding of domination.”

This translation keeps the Mayan relational worldview intact — where community, resistance, and nature are intertwined, and “the storm” isn’t just political chaos but a living environmental-spiritual crisis.


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