Ah Kin Chel facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Kuchkabal Ah Kin Chel
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| 1441–1547 | |||||||||
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| Capital | Tecoh | ||||||||
| Religion | Maya religion | ||||||||
| Government | Monarchy | ||||||||
| Halach Uinik | |||||||||
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• 1441-?
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Mo-Chel | ||||||||
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• 1527-1547
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Namux Chel | ||||||||
| Historical era | Post classic and Early modern | ||||||||
| 1441 | |||||||||
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• Spanish conquest of Yucatan
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1547 | ||||||||
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Ah Kin Chel was a powerful Maya state, or Kuchkabal, located in the northern part of the Yucatán Peninsula. It existed before the Spanish conquistadors arrived in the 1500s.
This state was founded in 1441 by a leader named Mo-Chel. Its main city, or capital, was Tecoh. Ah Kin Chel was formed after a big alliance of Maya cities, called the League of Mayapan, broke apart.
Contents
History of Ah Kin Chel
Before the Founding of Ah Kin Chel
Around the mid-800s, the ancient Maya civilization started to decline. By the early 900s, the Yucatán area was split into many different states.
At one point, a ruler named Ce Acatl Topiltzin from the Toltec Empire took control of the Yucatán Peninsula. However, the Toltec rule did not last for a long time.
In 987, a leader named Ah Mekat Tutul Xiu brought together the cities of Uxmal, Mayapan, and Chichen Itza. They formed the League of Mayapan. This League was a group of Maya states that promised to live in peace. Many cities joined the League willingly. For example, Izamal was the fifth city to join.
However, Tecoh, which later became the capital of Ah Kin Chel, was conquered by K'ak'upakal. He was a powerful military leader from Chichen Itza.
Ah Kin Chel Becomes Independent
Mo-Chel was the very first Halach Uinik (ruler) of Ah Kin Chel. He began the rule of the Chel family, who would govern this state. Mo-Chel was a nobleman and was related to one of the main priests in Mayapan.
Another priest, Ah Xupan Nauat, arranged for his daughter, Namox Chel, to marry Mo-Chel. It is said that Mo-Chel predicted that the League of Mayapan would fall apart. So, he left with some of his followers and went to Tecoh, which was near Izamal. There, he created his own independent state.
He named his new nation Ah Kin Chel. "Ah Kin" means "high priest" or "from the sun," and "Chel" came from his family name. This was a common way for Maya states to get their names. Soon after, the League of Mayapan entered a civil war. This war was between two powerful families, the Cocom and the Tutul-Xiu. The war began in 1441 and ended in 1461. Mayapan was destroyed, and the League broke into seventeen smaller states called Kuchkabal.
The Chel family continued to rule Ah Kin Chel until its end. Namux Chel, the last ruler, was in power when the Spanish explorer Francisco de Montejo visited in 1527. To avoid fighting, Namux Chel allowed the Spanish to pass through his land. After three attempts, the Spanish finally conquered the Yucatán in 1547.
How Ah Kin Chel Was Organized
The Kuchkabals, like Ah Kin Chel, were divided into smaller areas called batalib. Each batalib was led by a batab.
The main ruler of a Kuchkabal was called a Halach Uinik. This title means "person of command." A Halach Uinik was usually a monarch, meaning they ruled alone. However, some Kuchkabals were oligarchies. In an oligarchy, a small group of people share power. In these cases, each batalib would have a representative in a council or senate.
Sometimes, one batalib within an oligarchy had more powerful batabob (plural of batab). The batabob were usually related to the Halach Uinik.
See also
In Spanish: Ah Kin Chel para niños
