Chikinchel () was the name of a

Mayan Mayan most commonly refers to: * Maya peoples, various indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica and northern Central America * Maya civilization, pre-Columbian culture of Mesoamerica and northern Central America * Mayan languages, language family spoken ...

chiefdom A chiefdom is a form of hierarchical political organization in non-industrial societies usually based on kinship, and in which formal leadership is monopolized by the legitimate senior members of select families or 'houses'. These elites form a ...

of the northern coast of

Yucatán Yucatán (, also , , ; yua, Yúukatan ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Yucatán,; yua, link=no, Xóot' Noj Lu'umil Yúukatan. is one of the 31 states which comprise the federal entities of Mexico. It comprises 106 separate mun ...

, before the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors in the sixteenth century. Chauacá has also been used to refer to this province, but apparently it was the name of the main city. After the destruction of

Mayapan Mayapan (Màayapáan in Modern Maya; in Spanish Mayapán) is a Pre-Columbian Maya site a couple of kilometers south of the town of Telchaquillo in Municipality of Tecoh, approximately 40 km south-east of Mérida and 100 km west o ...

(1441–1461), in the Yucatán Peninsula, it created rivalries among the Maya, and formed 16 separate jurisdictions, called

Kuchkabal A ''kuchkabal'' ( , ''kuchkabalo'ob'', 'province'), also known as an ''ah kuch-kab'' or ''ah cuch-cab'', was a system of social and political organisation common to Maya polities of the Maya Lowlands, in the Yucatán Peninsula, during the ...

s. In each Kuchkabal there was a Halach Uinik (), who was the chief with the most political, judicial, and militaristic authority and lived in a principal city considered the capital of the jurisdiction.

Historical Dates and Territories

It bordered the Tazes and Cupul in the south, Ah Kin Chel in the west, and Ekab in the east, which separated an area of swamps and, to the north, a large portion of the coast of the

Yucatán Peninsula The Yucatán Peninsula (, also , ; es, Península de Yucatán ) is a large peninsula in southeastern Mexico and adjacent portions of Belize and Guatemala. The peninsula extends towards the northeast, separating the Gulf of Mexico to the north ...

. The area provided an abundance of animals to hunt and salt and salt to mine (it was the leading producer on the peninsula), although unhealthy conditions caused dignitaries to live in remote villages along the coast. Chikinchel does not appear to have been a united providence. Chauaca fought frequently with local rivals, like Sinsimato and Dzonotaké. However, salt united the inhabitants of the jurisdiction because they prevented outsiders from Ah Kin Chel and the south from going where valuable chloride was produced.

References

Mayan chiefdoms of the Yucatán Peninsula {{Mexico-hist-stub