Olivier Le Guen
Biographic Data
| ID | 186963 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Olivier Le Guen |
| GIVEN NAMES | Olivier |
| FAMILY NAME | Le Guen |
| SIGNATURE | LE GUEN O |
| AFFILIATIONS | Centro de Investigación y Estudios Superiores en Antropología Social |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-7314-242X |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 17 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 23 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 17 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2003 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
The Chilam Balam, the Rulers and God. A New Perspective on the Christianization of the k ́atun Prophecies of the Chilam Balam
This paper analyzes a specific genre of colonial Maya literature: the prophecies found in the so-called Books of Chilam Balam, written in the Maya language during the colonial period. These texts predict events related to 20-year periods known as k’atun . A comparative examination of these prophecies reveals that while some are of clear Maya origin, others gradually incorporate Christian concepts and even direct references to Catholic texts. I pr…
Spatial Cognition, Modality and Language Emergence: Cognitive Representation of Space in Yucatec Maya Sign Language (Mexico)
This paper analyzes spatial gestures and cognition in a new, or so-called "emerging", visual language, the Yucatec Maya Sign Language (YSML). This sign language was created by deaf and hearing signers in various Yucatec Maya villages on the Yucatec Peninsula (Mexico). Although the sign language is not a signed version of spoken Yucatec Maya, both languages evolve in a similar cultural setting. Studies have shown that cultures around the world see…
Early Emergence of Agreement in Yucatec Maya Sign Language
In many sign languages, space is used to express grammatical features. However, verb agreement in space is noticeably slow to appear in emerging sign languages. Many reasons have been proposed to explain this delay or even absence: the reduced size of the community, the recent creation of the sign language and the lack of exposure to a fully formed language. To examine the way space is used to express agreement in Yucatec Maya Sign Language (YMSL…
Are Children Sensitive to What They Know: An Insight from Yucatec Mayan Children
Metacognitive abilities are considered as a hallmark of advanced human cognition. Existing empirical studies have exclusively focused on populations from Western and industrialized societies. Little is known about young children’s metacognitive abilities in other societal and cultural contexts. Here we tested 4-year-old Yucatec Mayan (a rural native population from Mexico) by adopting a metacognitive task in which children’s explicit assessment o…
Cross-speaker repetition and epistemic stance in Tzeltal, Yucatec, and Zapotec conversations
Gesture studies and anthropological perspectives: An introduction
This contribution is the introduction for the special issue of Gesture entitled “Anthropology of Gesture”. As such, it raises two main questions: how do gestures contribute to the field of anthropology? And, inversely, how anthropology can improve our understanding of gesture and gestural behaviours? Of particular importance for this special issue, is the emphasis on what Lempert called “the anthropological sensibility” which aims at taking a mor…
Differential coding of perception in the world’s languages
Is there a universal hierarchy of the senses, such that some senses (e.g., vision) are more accessible to consciousness and linguistic description than others (e.g., smell)? The long-standing presumption in Western thought has been that vision and audition are more objective than the other senses, serving as the basis of knowledge and understanding, whereas touch, taste, and smell are crude and of little value. This predicts that humans ought to …
La importancia del tunk’ul en el ritual y canto ceremonial del carnaval de Pomuch, Campeche. Un estudio interdisciplinario
En este trabajo analizamos la presencia del tunk’ul en los festejos del Carnaval en Pomuch, Campeche. Además, efectuamos una descripción del ritual y un análisis del canto ceremonial en el cual el instrumento conforma un eslabón de primer orden. Nuestra aproximación, mediante fuentes etnológicas, históricas y lingüísticas, revela también la interrelación entre los diversos componentes espaciales, temporales y sociales imbricados en la ceremonia. …
Una concepción del tiempo no-lineal en dos lenguas: El Maya Yucateco Colonial Y Actual Y La Lengua De Señas Maya Yucateca
En este trabajo se plantea la existencia una concepción del tiempo propiamente maya (yucateca) en la cual el tiempo no es metafóricamente lineal y puede ser concebido como 'estructuralmente cíclico'. Usaré ejemplos de dos lenguas que podemos considerar como pertenecientes a una misma cultura maya yucateca. La primera es el maya yucateco y se considera en una perspectiva diacrónica, tomando ejemplos del maya actual pero también del maya colonial, …
A garden experiment revisited: Inter-generational change in environmental perception and management of theMayaLowlands,Guatemala
This study reports ethnographic and experimental analyses of inter-generational changes in nativeItza'Maya and immigrant Ladino populations ofGuatemala's Petén rainforest concerning understanding of ecological relationships between plants, animals, and humans, and the perceived role of forest spirits in sustaining these relationships. We find dramatic changes in understanding ecological relationships and the perceived role of forest spirits.Itza'…
L’habitation maya: Espaces, frontières et quelques lieux de passage
En ce début de recherche qui met en œuvre informations archéologiques, épigraphiques et ethnologiques, nous proposons certains arguments montrant une continuité linguistique et conceptuelle de l’habitation maya en tant qu’espace délimité. Les frontières visibles et invisibles qui ferment ou fractionnent son espace temporairement ou durablement semblent assez similaires dans les diverses régions et époques envisagées. À travers l’accueil des perso…
Modes of pointing to existing spaces and the use of frames of reference
This paper aims at providing a systematic framework for investigating differences in how people point to existing spaces. Pointing is considered according to two conditions: (1) A non-transposed condition where the body of the speaker always constitutes the origo and where the various types of pointing are differentiated by the status of the target and (2) a transposed condition where both the distant figure and the distant ground are identified …
Materiality vs. Expressivity: The Use of Sensory Vocabulary in Yucatec Maya
In this article, sensory vocabulary relating to color, texture, and other sensory experiences in Yucatec Maya (a language spoken in Mexico) is examined, and its possible relation to material culture practices explored. In Yucatec Maya, some perceptual experience can be expressed in a fine-grained way through a compact one-word adjective. Complex notions can be succinctly expressed by combining roots with a general meaning and applying templates o…
Ubèel pixan: El camino de las almas. Ancestros familiares y colectivos entre los mayas yucatecos
Este artículo se plantea investigar las costumbres funerarias y los rituales para las almas de los mayas yucatecos en la actualidad, a fin de entender mejor las relaciones entre éstos y algunos patrones prehispánicos de enterramiento. Se propone que las almas de los muertos son consideradas como ancestros y que se distingue entre ancestros familiares y colectivos según varios criterios: el lugar de enterramiento, el sitio donde se llevan a cabo l…
Les reconstructions de la vie de Jésus-Christ en aire maya: Deux parcours miraculeux chez les Tzeltal et les Yucatèques
Les histoires mayas de Jésus-Christ Les recueils de tradition orale maya enregistrent au fil des terrains l’occurrence de l’histoire de Jésus-Christ dans plusieurs ethnies mayas, à différents moments du xxe siècle, et sous des formes stylistiques distinctes. L’aspect le plus frappant de ces versions est la pluralité des noms concurrents que porte Jésus-Christ selon le lieu de recueil : si Jesukristo est employé chez les Yucatèques, les Tzeltal, l…
Parfum de Rose, odeur de sainteté: Un sermon tzeltal sur la première sainte des Amériques
1. Présentation du sermon de sainte Rose Le sermon de sainte Rose en langue tzeltalque nous présentons au lecteur a une histoire incertaine ; l’identité de son auteur l’est également. Nous savons qu’il fut écrit en 1798 et qu’il appartient àune série d’autres textes (le plus ancien datant de 1675) qui font partie de la collection de documents écrits en langues cabil, chanabal, mochó, tzeltal et tzotzil, acquis par l’abbé Charles-Étienne Brasse…
Quand les morts reviennent… Réflexion sur l’ancestralité chez les Mayas des Basses Terres
Quand les morts reviennent... Réflexion sur l’ancestralité chez les Mayas des Basses Terres. Le culte des ancêtres est souvent évoqué dans la littérature ethnologique amérindienne, sans que soit pourtant établie son existence. Cet article s’attache à montrer que certains groupes mayas des Basses Terres pratiquent un culte familial des ancêtres, dont le jour des morts, ou hanal pixan, apparaît comme la manifestation la plus prégnante. Nous fondero…
Modes of pointing to existing spaces and the use of frames of reference
This paper aims at providing a systematic framework for investigating differences in how people point to existing spaces. Pointing is considered according to two conditions: (1) A non-transposed condition where the body of the speaker always constitutes the origo and where the various types of pointing are differentiated by the status of the target and (2) a transposed condition where both the distant figure and the distant ground are identified …
Cross-speaker repetition and epistemic stance in Tzeltal, Yucatec, and Zapotec conversations
A garden experiment revisited: Inter-generational change in environmental perception and management of theMayaLowlands,Guatemala
This study reports ethnographic and experimental analyses of inter-generational changes in nativeItza'Maya and immigrant Ladino populations ofGuatemala's Petén rainforest concerning understanding of ecological relationships between plants, animals, and humans, and the perceived role of forest spirits in sustaining these relationships. We find dramatic changes in understanding ecological relationships and the perceived role of forest spirits.Itza'…
Early Emergence of Agreement in Yucatec Maya Sign Language
In many sign languages, space is used to express grammatical features. However, verb agreement in space is noticeably slow to appear in emerging sign languages. Many reasons have been proposed to explain this delay or even absence: the reduced size of the community, the recent creation of the sign language and the lack of exposure to a fully formed language. To examine the way space is used to express agreement in Yucatec Maya Sign Language (YMSL…
Gesture studies and anthropological perspectives: An introduction
This contribution is the introduction for the special issue of Gesture entitled “Anthropology of Gesture”. As such, it raises two main questions: how do gestures contribute to the field of anthropology? And, inversely, how anthropology can improve our understanding of gesture and gestural behaviours? Of particular importance for this special issue, is the emphasis on what Lempert called “the anthropological sensibility” which aims at taking a mor…
La importancia del tunk’ul en el ritual y canto ceremonial del carnaval de Pomuch, Campeche. Un estudio interdisciplinario
En este trabajo analizamos la presencia del tunk’ul en los festejos del Carnaval en Pomuch, Campeche. Además, efectuamos una descripción del ritual y un análisis del canto ceremonial en el cual el instrumento conforma un eslabón de primer orden. Nuestra aproximación, mediante fuentes etnológicas, históricas y lingüísticas, revela también la interrelación entre los diversos componentes espaciales, temporales y sociales imbricados en la ceremonia. …
Materiality vs. Expressivity: The Use of Sensory Vocabulary in Yucatec Maya
In this article, sensory vocabulary relating to color, texture, and other sensory experiences in Yucatec Maya (a language spoken in Mexico) is examined, and its possible relation to material culture practices explored. In Yucatec Maya, some perceptual experience can be expressed in a fine-grained way through a compact one-word adjective. Complex notions can be succinctly expressed by combining roots with a general meaning and applying templates o…
Quand les morts reviennent… Réflexion sur l’ancestralité chez les Mayas des Basses Terres
Quand les morts reviennent... Réflexion sur l’ancestralité chez les Mayas des Basses Terres. Le culte des ancêtres est souvent évoqué dans la littérature ethnologique amérindienne, sans que soit pourtant établie son existence. Cet article s’attache à montrer que certains groupes mayas des Basses Terres pratiquent un culte familial des ancêtres, dont le jour des morts, ou hanal pixan, apparaît comme la manifestation la plus prégnante. Nous fondero…
Les reconstructions de la vie de Jésus-Christ en aire maya: Deux parcours miraculeux chez les Tzeltal et les Yucatèques
Les histoires mayas de Jésus-Christ Les recueils de tradition orale maya enregistrent au fil des terrains l’occurrence de l’histoire de Jésus-Christ dans plusieurs ethnies mayas, à différents moments du xxe siècle, et sous des formes stylistiques distinctes. L’aspect le plus frappant de ces versions est la pluralité des noms concurrents que porte Jésus-Christ selon le lieu de recueil : si Jesukristo est employé chez les Yucatèques, les Tzeltal, l…
Parfum de Rose, odeur de sainteté: Un sermon tzeltal sur la première sainte des Amériques
1. Présentation du sermon de sainte Rose Le sermon de sainte Rose en langue tzeltalque nous présentons au lecteur a une histoire incertaine ; l’identité de son auteur l’est également. Nous savons qu’il fut écrit en 1798 et qu’il appartient àune série d’autres textes (le plus ancien datant de 1675) qui font partie de la collection de documents écrits en langues cabil, chanabal, mochó, tzeltal et tzotzil, acquis par l’abbé Charles-Étienne Brasse…
Ubèel pixan: El camino de las almas. Ancestros familiares y colectivos entre los mayas yucatecos
Este artículo se plantea investigar las costumbres funerarias y los rituales para las almas de los mayas yucatecos en la actualidad, a fin de entender mejor las relaciones entre éstos y algunos patrones prehispánicos de enterramiento. Se propone que las almas de los muertos son consideradas como ancestros y que se distingue entre ancestros familiares y colectivos según varios criterios: el lugar de enterramiento, el sitio donde se llevan a cabo l…
Modes of pointing to existing spaces and the use of frames of reference
This paper aims at providing a systematic framework for investigating differences in how people point to existing spaces. Pointing is considered according to two conditions: (1) A non-transposed condition where the body of the speaker always constitutes the origo and where the various types of pointing are differentiated by the status of the target and (2) a transposed condition where both the distant figure and the distant ground are identified …
Materiality vs. Expressivity: The Use of Sensory Vocabulary in Yucatec Maya
In this article, sensory vocabulary relating to color, texture, and other sensory experiences in Yucatec Maya (a language spoken in Mexico) is examined, and its possible relation to material culture practices explored. In Yucatec Maya, some perceptual experience can be expressed in a fine-grained way through a compact one-word adjective. Complex notions can be succinctly expressed by combining roots with a general meaning and applying templates o…
L’habitation maya: Espaces, frontières et quelques lieux de passage
En ce début de recherche qui met en œuvre informations archéologiques, épigraphiques et ethnologiques, nous proposons certains arguments montrant une continuité linguistique et conceptuelle de l’habitation maya en tant qu’espace délimité. Les frontières visibles et invisibles qui ferment ou fractionnent son espace temporairement ou durablement semblent assez similaires dans les diverses régions et époques envisagées. À travers l’accueil des perso…
A garden experiment revisited: Inter-generational change in environmental perception and management of theMayaLowlands,Guatemala
This study reports ethnographic and experimental analyses of inter-generational changes in nativeItza'Maya and immigrant Ladino populations ofGuatemala's Petén rainforest concerning understanding of ecological relationships between plants, animals, and humans, and the perceived role of forest spirits in sustaining these relationships. We find dramatic changes in understanding ecological relationships and the perceived role of forest spirits.Itza'…
Una concepción del tiempo no-lineal en dos lenguas: El Maya Yucateco Colonial Y Actual Y La Lengua De Señas Maya Yucateca
En este trabajo se plantea la existencia una concepción del tiempo propiamente maya (yucateca) en la cual el tiempo no es metafóricamente lineal y puede ser concebido como 'estructuralmente cíclico'. Usaré ejemplos de dos lenguas que podemos considerar como pertenecientes a una misma cultura maya yucateca. La primera es el maya yucateco y se considera en una perspectiva diacrónica, tomando ejemplos del maya actual pero también del maya colonial, …
Differential coding of perception in the world’s languages
Is there a universal hierarchy of the senses, such that some senses (e.g., vision) are more accessible to consciousness and linguistic description than others (e.g., smell)? The long-standing presumption in Western thought has been that vision and audition are more objective than the other senses, serving as the basis of knowledge and understanding, whereas touch, taste, and smell are crude and of little value. This predicts that humans ought to …
La importancia del tunk’ul en el ritual y canto ceremonial del carnaval de Pomuch, Campeche. Un estudio interdisciplinario
En este trabajo analizamos la presencia del tunk’ul en los festejos del Carnaval en Pomuch, Campeche. Además, efectuamos una descripción del ritual y un análisis del canto ceremonial en el cual el instrumento conforma un eslabón de primer orden. Nuestra aproximación, mediante fuentes etnológicas, históricas y lingüísticas, revela también la interrelación entre los diversos componentes espaciales, temporales y sociales imbricados en la ceremonia. …
Gesture studies and anthropological perspectives: An introduction
This contribution is the introduction for the special issue of Gesture entitled “Anthropology of Gesture”. As such, it raises two main questions: how do gestures contribute to the field of anthropology? And, inversely, how anthropology can improve our understanding of gesture and gestural behaviours? Of particular importance for this special issue, is the emphasis on what Lempert called “the anthropological sensibility” which aims at taking a mor…
Are Children Sensitive to What They Know: An Insight from Yucatec Mayan Children
Metacognitive abilities are considered as a hallmark of advanced human cognition. Existing empirical studies have exclusively focused on populations from Western and industrialized societies. Little is known about young children’s metacognitive abilities in other societal and cultural contexts. Here we tested 4-year-old Yucatec Mayan (a rural native population from Mexico) by adopting a metacognitive task in which children’s explicit assessment o…
Cross-speaker repetition and epistemic stance in Tzeltal, Yucatec, and Zapotec conversations
Early Emergence of Agreement in Yucatec Maya Sign Language
In many sign languages, space is used to express grammatical features. However, verb agreement in space is noticeably slow to appear in emerging sign languages. Many reasons have been proposed to explain this delay or even absence: the reduced size of the community, the recent creation of the sign language and the lack of exposure to a fully formed language. To examine the way space is used to express agreement in Yucatec Maya Sign Language (YMSL…
Spatial Cognition, Modality and Language Emergence: Cognitive Representation of Space in Yucatec Maya Sign Language (Mexico)
This paper analyzes spatial gestures and cognition in a new, or so-called "emerging", visual language, the Yucatec Maya Sign Language (YSML). This sign language was created by deaf and hearing signers in various Yucatec Maya villages on the Yucatec Peninsula (Mexico). Although the sign language is not a signed version of spoken Yucatec Maya, both languages evolve in a similar cultural setting. Studies have shown that cultures around the world see…
The Chilam Balam, the Rulers and God. A New Perspective on the Christianization of the k ́atun Prophecies of the Chilam Balam
This paper analyzes a specific genre of colonial Maya literature: the prophecies found in the so-called Books of Chilam Balam, written in the Maya language during the colonial period. These texts predict events related to 20-year periods known as k’atun . A comparative examination of these prophecies reveals that while some are of clear Maya origin, others gradually incorporate Christian concepts and even direct references to Catholic texts. I pr…
Art (9 works) · Psychology (8 works) · Humanities (6 works) · Linguistics (6 works) · Categorization, perception, and language (5 works) · Latin American history and culture (5 works) · Maya (5 works) · Philosophy (5 works) · Philosophy (5 works) · Sociology (5 works)