Maya Fashion and Textile Politics in Guatemala

Authors

Dr. Walter E. Little

Files

Description

Contemporary Maya textile production and fashion in Guatemala pushes the boundaries of authenticity, tradition, and what is handmade. New production techniques and shifting economic conditions for Maya women workers challenge notions of what are authentic Mayan textiles, resulting in debates that challenge Mayas gendered and cultural identity positions. Contradictory consumption practices by Mayas further problematize the roles that urban Maya textile entrepreneurs play, as they embrace technological changes in weaving and innovate Maya clothing fashions. Under the guise of economic mobility and fairness, textile entrepreneurs mobilize the labor and opinions of rural artisans, laborers, vendors and middlepersons, and a wide range consumers that result in debates about Maya clothing use, cultural re/presentation, and cultural appropriation.

Dr. Walter E. Little is a Professor of Anthropology whose ethnographic research in Guatemala focuses on how Kaqchikel and K'iche' Mayas make their livelihoods as artisans and vendors in urban heritage sites. He is the author of over 60 articles and 13 books and edited volumes. His monograph, Mayas in the Marketplace: Tourism, Globalization, and Cultural Identity (2004), won the 2005 Best Book Award from the New England Council for Latin American Studies, and his co-edited volume, Street Economies in the Urban Global South (2013), won the Society for the Anthropology of Work's Best Book Award in 2014. His co-authored book, Kik’aslemal ri Kaqchikela’ - Kaqchikel Maya Life: Kaqchikel Maya Language, will be published by University of Texas Press in 2026.

Publication Date

3-12-2026

City

Albuquerque

Comments

This event is free and open to the public.

Recommended Citation

E. Little, Dr. Walter. "Maya Fashion and Textile Politics in Guatemala." (2026). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/laii_events/568