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"Hacienda Tijax", the name we chose for our farm/jungle lodge is composed of two words: Hacienda and Tijax. The first is from the Spanish language and it means, "place where things are done" from the verb hacer which means to do. This word is used to describe land holdings where some product is processed and sold afterwards. So since we produce rubber and cattle "hacienda" seemed like a good word to describe us, we also stay very busy most of the time. Tijax is a word of Kaqchikeles origin. The Kaqchikeles are a native Guatemalan nation of Maya-Quiche origin who live in the central highlands of Guatemala. Tijax is what the Kaqchikeles called obsidian knives and arrowheads and in general any piece of chipped crystal. The Mayans developed the most accurate time keeping calendar used on this planet. It is still in use today by the Aj'kij (the shaman sorcerers in charge of keeping time). We decided to use Tijax as a name for our place because we found large amounts of crystal chips on the property. It is also as a way to honor the first known settlers of this land, their culture, and the spirit of the land itself whom we feel is still inspiring our actions. The Tijax was so important to Mayans that they named one of the days of their calendar after it so, like we have Monday and Tuesday and so on. They named days after the things that were important to them such as the obsidian and chert knives or the reed mat (pop) and the germ of the corn kernel (noj) etc. There are twenty days in the Mayan month. The word the ancient Mayans used for Tijax was: Etznab. In the Yucatan there are famous ruins of an ancient Mayan city called Etznab. There is found one of the most beautiful pyramids at Etznab and it is called the pyramid of the Sorcerer. |
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