The word Nacajuca comes from the náhuatl term “Nacaxuxuca,” which means place of pale or discolored faces. It is said that the name arose because Nacajuca settlements were near a river and for this reason the inhabitants were sick with malaria. The Nacajuca yokot´an region is inhabited by the maya-chontal ethnic group. However, the first groups in the region were the Olmecs. Later Mayans and Zoques settled and they developed their own characteristics, which gave rise to the Maya-Chontal civilization, now known as “Yokotanes”.
Currently most indigenous Yokotanes are in Nacajuca. However, previously their territory covered the plain of the Gulf of Mexico. The large area they occupied was due to their main characteristic: excellent navigation. Due to the region’s large area, they could control trade, giving them access to the flow of goods and people through well-established routes linking Tabasco with Chiapas, Soconusco, Guatemala and the Central Highlands of Mexico. In addition to trade, the Chontales practiced agriculture and they dominated the art of fishing in the sea and in the network of canals spread throughout the plains. Currently the life of the Chontales has undergone dramatic changes.
biolblogia 