Conín (also known by his

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

name Hernando ernandode Tapia) was a Native American conquistador of the Otomí people, who helped the

Spaniards Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance-speaking ethnic group native to the Iberian Peninsula, primarily associated with the modern nation-state of Spain. Genetically and ethnolinguistically, Spaniards belong to the broader Southern a ...

conquer territories in the central part of Mexico during the 16th century. In the Otomí language his name means "Thunder."

Early life

Conín was born in Nopala in the Xilotepec province (modern state of Hidalgo), most likely in the late 15th century. Before the conquest he traded blankets, salt, hides, and other goods among the Chichimecas, Otomís, Tlaxcalans, and

Mexica The Mexica (Nahuatl: ; singular ) are a Nahuatl-speaking people of the Valley of Mexico who were the rulers of the Triple Alliance, more commonly referred to as the Aztec Empire. The Mexica established Tenochtitlan, a settlement on an island ...

. After the conquest of

Tenochtitlan , also known as Mexico-Tenochtitlan, was a large Mexican in what is now the historic center of Mexico City. The exact date of the founding of the city is unclear, but the date 13 March 1325 was chosen in 1925 to celebrate the 600th annivers ...

by the Spanish in 1521, Conín left Xilotepec with his family and lived with the Chichimeca tribes in Andamaxei ( Otomi for "Place of the Ball Game") in the Bajío (present day

Querétaro Querétaro, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Querétaro, is one of the Political divisions of Mexico, 32 federal entities of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Querétaro, 18 municipalities. Its capital city is Querétaro Cit ...

Conversion

Around 1528 or 1529 the conquistador Hernán Pérez de Bocanegra (along with a contingent of warriors from the newly conquered Tarascan Empire) arrived in the region seeking to make an alliance with Conín. Conín had seen the power of the Spanish first hand and worked with Bocanegra to bring the region under Spanish control peacefully. Accepting Spanish control also meant accepting Roman Catholicism and Conín was the first to be baptized, taking the Christian name Hernando (Fernando) de Tapia. He took the name Hernando from Hernán Pérez de Bocanera and Tapia from the conquistador Andrés de Tapia.

Foundation of Querétaro

When Hernán Pérez de Bocanegra initially arrived at Andamaxei, his Tarascan allies called it Queréndaro which means "Place of Pines" in the Purépecha language. This became the origin for the name of the town that would be founded by Conín and Juan Sánchez de Alanís, a servant of Bocanegra who was fluent in the Otomí language. Between 1531 and 1540 the growth of the Spanish population in the settlement was slow. During the 1540s the real work of foundation began with the construction of irrigation ditches and an influx of Spanish, Otomí, Nahua, and other indigenous tribes attracted by the fertile land and relative peace.

History

In 1521, the Spanish arrived in

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, and soon conquered indigenous populations all over the country. Cristobal de Olid entered the

region the following year. Although the arrival of Spaniards was generally met with resistance by the indigenous cultures, the Otomí people aligned themselves with the Spaniards and fought beside them to defeat the

Aztecs The Aztecs ( ) were a Mesoamerican civilization that flourished in central Mexico in the post-classic period from 1300 to 1521. The Aztec people included different ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the ...

living in the Querétaro region. As a demonstration of loyalty, the Otomi leader Conin converted to

Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

between the years 1522 and 1526 and changed his name to Fernando de Tapia. In 1531 the city of Santiago de Querétaro was planned by Juan Sánchez de Alaniz and Conin.

Legends and Tradition

According to tradition, the conquest of Querétaro was accomplished without resorting to arms after seeing a vision of the Cross and Saint James the Great ("Santiago"), after whom the city was named.http://www.mexicodesconocido.com.mx/leyenda-dorada-la-conquista-de-queretaro.html In Spanish

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Conin 16th-century Mexican people Year of birth unknown Spanish Indian auxiliaries