Anne Key and the Cihuateteo

Friday Afternoon's Session began with Anne Key's paper: From Beloved Sisters to Vampires: Myths and Misinterpretations of the Cihuateteo.

The Cihuateteo (literally “women goddesses”) appear in the Mesoamerican cosmology as women that died in childbirth and were deified. They are mentioned in the writings by the Spanish clerics and appear in the Mesoamerican 260 day ritual calendar. Through the study of the different sources of information on the Cihuateteo, two starkly contrasting images appear. In the prayers recited by the midwife at the woman’s death, she is referred to as a “beloved sister”, and the midwife begs her not to forget her family and to petition the deities for those left on earth. In other descriptions by the early clerics, these immortal women are considered malevolent demons that cause paralysis. In modern writings, the Cihuateteo are considered the “Aztec Vampires”. The demonization of these powerful Goddesses can be attributed to the inability of the Spanish clerics to accept female divinity as well as misinterpretation of ritual and devotional practices.