Mexico, Innovation, Absorbing the New

The Trumpet in the Mariachi

At the end of 1940, according to an article in a journal of INAH, the radio station XEW pressed the Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán to add a trumpet: “se le ‘obliga’ al Mariachi Vargas a incluir la trompeta” (the Mariachi Vargas is “obliged” to include the trumpet).

The trumpet was not completely new. A recording of La Negra made in 1937 by the Mariachi Tapatío de José Marmolejo already had one. The article describes the result as the arrival of the trumpet as a canonical and indispensable instrument of the mariachi.

Indigenous Baroque

In the church of Santa María Tonantzintla, in Puebla, the decoration of the interior shows figures “de facciones indígenas” (with Indigenous features), according to México Desconocido. The decoration also includes tropical fruits such as mangoes and papayas, flowers and leaves.

In 1942, in La escultura colonial mexicana, published by El Colegio de México, the art historian José Moreno Villa proposed a name for such work: “yo propongo la antigua voz mexicana ‘Tequitqui’, o sea, tributario” (I propose the old Mexican word tequitqui, that is, tributary).

The Parade from the Film

In its first scenes, the James Bond film Spectre shows the Day of the Dead in the streets of Mexico City. It was released in Mexico on November 2, 2015. On October 29, 2016, Mexico City held its first Day of the Dead parade, from the Angel of Independence to the Zócalo. According to the city government, 250,000 people watched it.

Mayor Miguel Ángel Mancera explained the origin of the event: “lo hicimos porque salió en la película de James Bond” (we did it because it appeared in the James Bond film). He added that he did not want to claim that the city had thought of it.

México Desconocido notes that a large procession of catrinas had already taken place in the city on October 26, 2014, months before the filming.

The Amparo

The juicio de amparo, the action for protection, first appeared in the Constitution of Yucatán of 1841. According to an article in a law journal of UNAM, its author was Manuel Crescencio Rejón. In 1847, the Acta de Reformas took up the formula of Mariano Otero, under which a court grants protection only in the particular case before it.

The same article notes that most authors agree that the amparo “se inspiró en las ideas de Alexis de Tocqueville” (was inspired by the ideas of Alexis de Tocqueville). The article links these ideas to the judicial review of laws in the United States.

Tropicalizing

Tropicalizar, “to tropicalize,” is a term used in Mexican marketing. The marketing magazine Merca2.0 describes la tropicalización as “un recurso de marketing orientado a adaptar diferentes productos o servicios” (a marketing device for adapting different products or services) so that various communities accept them.

The word also applies to songs. Uno TV published a list of songs “que hemos cantado mal o simplemente tropicalizado” (that we have sung wrongly or simply tropicalized).

Compadre and Corona

Milenio writes that the accordion arrived in Mexico in the 19th century and that in Nuevo León it is used for genres from the polka to the cumbia. One line of the article reads: “El acordeón nos llega de la tradición centroeuropea desde el siglo XIX” (The accordion comes to us from the Central European tradition, since the 19th century).

Two accordion models of the maker Hohner carry Spanish names, Compadre and Corona. In 2024, a study of the Universidad Autónoma de Ciudad Juárez observed that these names “han incorporado palabras en nuestro idioma” (have taken words from our language). The author found no explanation for the choice.

Tacos al Pastor

In the 1920s, Lebanese immigrants recreated shawarma in Mexico. Many of them settled in Puebla.

In the 1960s, the dish became the taco al pastor. Pork replaced lamb, the meat was marinated in adobo and roasted with a pineapple on top, and the corn tortilla replaced Arab bread.

Two Universes

UNESCO proclaimed the Indigenous festivity dedicated to the dead in Mexico in 2003 and inscribed it on its Representative List in 2008. Its description says: “Esta fusión entre ritos religiosos prehispánicos y fiestas católicas permite el acercamiento de dos universos” (This fusion of pre-Hispanic religious rites and Catholic festivities brings two universes closer together).

Tonantzin

In the 16th century, the Franciscan Bernardino de Sahagún described a small hill “que se llama Tepeacac.” He added: “y los españoles llámanle Tepeaquilla, y ahora se llama Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe” (and the Spaniards call it Tepeaquilla, and now it is called Our Lady of Guadalupe).

According to a book of UNAM’s Institute of Historical Research, Sahagún reports that the people “tenían un templo dedicado a la madre de los dioses que la llamaban Tonantzin” (had a temple dedicated to the mother of the gods, whom they called Tonantzin).

The Constitution of 1917

Mexico’s Constitution of 1917 is still in force. In February 2022, Excélsior reported that it “ha sido reformada en 763 ocasiones” (has been amended 763 times), through more than 250 decrees.