Coyolillo and Beginnings: A Brief Interview with Alfredo Martinez Maranto

ROWELL: What does the word "coyolillo" mean?

MARTÍNEZ MARANTO: Well, "coyolillo" is named for a plant, coyol, which is very much like the coconut, but smaller. It also has a very small fruit that is very hard—the inside is edible—which is also very much like a coconut. The fruit has to be opened with something hard—let's say opened with a rock—in order to get to the edible inside. I'm not sure, but supposedly, Coyolillo was named for this plant, because in the immediate outskirts of the pueblo there were many coyol plants. That's why this village was named Coyolillo. But to tell you the truth, no one knows exactly why the people speak about the existence of many coyol plants.

ROWELL: What is the importance of this plant?

MARTÍNEZ MARANTO: Actually, I don't think there is any importance, because you never see any—or better yet, there doesn't appear to be any of those plants, at least not in the places closest to the central zone of inhabitance. In this populated area, there aren't any of these plants. Maybe there are some near the forest.

JONES: So why is the town called "Coyolillo"?

MARTÍNEZ MARANTO: The town?

JONES: Yes.

MARTÍNEZ MARANTO: Well, the townspeople say that there were many coyol plants here, but I think it has been important due to the location. In other words, important because of the significant amount of plants in the location. I don't think there is another importance.

ROWELL: Does the plant exist today in Coyolillo?

MARTÍNEZ MARANTO: The plants are not seen around the town, but there is a probability they might exist outside the town.

ROWELL: How did the people get to this place called Coyolillo?

MARTÍNEZ MARANTO: I would relate that to the establishment of the haciendas or ranches that were formed at the arrival of the Spanish. They made haciendas, cattle farms, and, for labor, we all know that at the beginning of the Spanish Conquest the indigenous population was brought into slavery. The enslavement of the indigenous people ended as a result of exploitation and diseases—circumstances that were new to them. Many of them died, which caused the number of the indigenous population to decrease. Because of this, the enslavement of the indigenous people was banned, and for this reason people were brought from Africa as slaves to perform the duties that were originally performed by the indigenous people. Because of this, there were many places, especially in the central region of the state of Veracruz, where haciendas were established. Many of the Spanish people engaged in the enslavement of Africans as a labor force on their farms or haciendas. One of them was the Hacienda de Almolonga. There was another, which was close to the town of Coyolillo, which was called Hacienda de Maxtlatlan. The workers of the Hacienda de Almolonga probably migrated to Coyolillo, which is probably only around six kilometers away. There is also a probability that the residents came from other places of production, or other haciendas, such as La Concepción, or la Hacienda de Maxtlatlan, which is also very close to the town. Coyolillo is probably close to, say, four or five kilometers away. There is, however, a foundational myth that says that when some of these slaves (which were from la Hacienda de Almolonga) were working the fields, they found a buried treasure. After they retrieved it, the owner of the hacienda demanded it. However, in exchange for this demand, the slaves wanted their freedom to be granted. According to this, it was because of this exchange that the slaves moved to the site where Coyolillo is presently located. This is one of the versions of the history of how Coyolillo was founded.

ROWELL: The Hacienda de...