CHERAN: a sierra TARASCAN village — BEALS 



91 



with the larger national economy. Some of the 

 deficiencies of this report spring from the fact 

 that study of these larger economic systems 

 has not yet been made. It is apparent that the 

 Cheran system functions in considerable part 

 as a money economy and that in many respects 

 it is essentially a European type economy. 



Nevertheless, there are some differences of 

 possible significance. Despite the fact the 

 economy may be studied in monetary terms, 

 wealth concepts do not revolve wholly about 

 money and its values. Land itself has a sur- 

 prisingly low money value, yet it is the major 

 basis for evaluating individual wealth. Maize 

 also occupies a higher position than its money 

 value would indicate. Money is valued after 

 maize, not before it, and the man who has 

 money but no maize is apt to be regarded as 



poor indeed if there should be a maize shortage. 

 Even in normal times, the man who has to buy 

 maize is pitied, even though he has plenty of 

 money. 



Although further analysis might be desir- 

 able, it also seems that the emphasis on non- 

 productive expenditures is higher in Cheran 

 than in our own culture. The outlay in cash 

 and goods involved in religious festivals, wed- 

 dings, and similar events, seems much higher 

 proportionately. Men often forego material 

 advantage also for the spiritual rewards of 

 offices connected with the church, an aspect 

 which has not yet been discussed but which will 

 be described later in detail. It seems doubtful 

 if the motivations in these cases correspond 

 entirely to those of the "conspicuous expendi- 

 tures" of our own societ\\ 



THE COMMUNITY 



The community of Cheran may be viewed in 

 several ways. There are, first of all, the physi- 

 cal attributes of the town, its layout, subdivi- 

 sions, and boundaries. There are the objective 

 characteristics of the people who occupy the 

 area, their numbers, demographic characteris- 

 tics, and groupings. Yet other aspects of the 

 community are the bonds which hold it together 

 and the groupings within which the individual 

 functions as a part of the larger entity — the 

 family, the kinship group, the various institu- 

 tions such as the compadrazgo. The organiza- 

 tion of the community politically is also of great 

 importance : the structure of government, its 

 management, organization, functions, and 

 obligations. Finally, there looms important 

 in Cheran the ceremonial and religious organi- 

 zation. Although logically forming a part of 

 this section, discussion of the latter is deferred 

 for a separate treatment. 



THE MUNICIPIO 



Cheran is, first of all, a municipio, an admin- 

 istrative unit, smaller than the usual county in 

 the United States but having somewhat similar 

 characteristics. The ordinary tnunicipio in 

 Michoacan consists of a cabecera or head town, 

 somewhat similar to our county seat in func- 

 tions. In most Tarascan municipios about half 



the population live in the cabecera. Subordi- 

 nate to the cabecera ordinarily are a number of 

 tenencias, villages of several hundred to more 

 than a thousand population, and rancherias or 

 other small units. All these subordinate units 

 are administered from the cabecera through 

 local, appointed delegates, the jefes de tenencia. 

 Theoretically the residents in the tenencias and 

 other units play an equal part with the inhabi- 

 tants of the cabecera; in practice, government 

 is controlled from the cabecera. 



Cheran differs from the usual pattern in that 

 the municipio consists of the cabecera and one 

 small rancheria. Cheran, the town, is thus 

 about twice as large as most Tarascan cabeceras, 

 although the municipio has about the same 

 population as others. Formerly the situation 

 was somewhat different, with the tenencia of 

 Cheranastico forming part of the Tnnnicipio. 

 As the result of circumstances to be related 

 later, the people of Cheranastico withdrew from 

 the municipio of Cheran and now form part of 

 the municipio of Paracho. Had the population 

 of Cheranastico been sufficiently large, it might 

 even have become a separate municipio. The 

 withdrawal of Cheranastico emphasizes the fact 

 that cabeceras and tenoicias have their respec- 

 tive boundaries within the larger limits of the 

 7nunicipio. 



