Zaachila has considerable cultural wealth with native music, dance, gastronomy and market days filled with flavors and colors, whose traditions have been preserved for generations.
Zaachila Zapotec is spoken in the town. The town is formed by ten neighborhoods called San Pedro, San Pablo, San José, San Sebastián, San Jacinto, Del Carmen, Soledad, La Purísima, La Virgen and Del Niño. Each has its own patron saint and corresponding festival. These festivals are coordinated each year by a formal committee which includes a president, secretary and other positions. The center of town has a large plaza with a kiosk, which is surrounded by the municipal palace, archeological site and the church, called "Nuestra Señora de la Natividad" (Our Lady of the Nativity). The church is notable for a number of colonial-era
santos, statues of saints, some of them executed in polychrome and still in beautiful condition. Zaachila has a
stationary municipal market in which can be found regional foods such as
barbacoa, "
chichilo,"
mole verde, turkey in mole with rice,
carnitas and empanadas, served with
tepache,
atole,
mezcal and hot chocolate; however, most shopping is done on Thursday, the town's market day.
The Día de Plaza The Thursday Día de Plaza (
tianguis), or outdoor market, is Zaachila's weekly main event, which attracts people from various parts of the Valley of Oaxaca, many of whom are Zapotec-speaking peoples from the rural areas. The stalls spread for blocks below the archeological site and the main church. This market tradition dates back to pre-Hispanic times and has changed very little since then. This market is divided into three sections. The first is called by the Zapotec name "Logueguindan," which means "plaza of the people of the hills," This firewood is obtained from the surrounding hills by native Zapotecs and sold by women, with many of the transactions occurring in the Zapotec language. In addition to firewood, they may offer fruits and vegetables as well. The wood market also sells farming implements such as yokes for oxen. To bring the wood home, there is a service where blue carts pulled by donkeys or horses carry purchases. Although the market has existed for many years, only recently has it been formally organized with an administrator. There is also a large unexplored pyramid. Although largely un-excavated, two tombs were discovered at the site in 1962. These tombs are thought to belong to important
Mixtec persons, as they contained a number of interesting grave goods. The first of these tombs has an entrance decorated with feline heads and inside were found seven figures molded from stucco, six placed in pairs on the side walls of the main chamber. In the antechamber, there are depictions of owls and people along with the date of Five Flower. The objects found in these tombs are now on display at the
National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City.
Dance of the Zancudos The Dance of the Zancudos originated in the San Pedro neighborhood over 100 years ago and is one of the few places the dance can still be found. The origin of the Dance of the Zancudos is in a promise the inhabitants of Zaachila made to Saint Peter. The story behind it states that an old man encountered an apparition of
Saint Peter who asked the community build a church in his name. The apparition appeared each day until it was captured by the local people and enclosed in a small church. Guards were posted at the entrance with rifles and
machetes. However, the next day, it was discovered that the saint was no longer there, and he appeared again to the old man who had originally seen him, and indicated that God had sent him to protect the village. Eight days remained until the feast of Saint Peter, and the saint asked that the villagers form pairs on stilts to dance. On the feast day, the men danced on stilts while the women surrounded them with candles and incense. The dancers arrived at the foot of a hill where an image of the saint was found, which was brought to the San Pedro neighborhood where a church was constructed for it. José Mendoza is the captain of the Zancudo group of the San Pedro neighborhood, and has spent about forty years recruiting dancers and training them. This includes teaching how to make the stilts made from ocote wood. These stilts measure two meters long and have a "foot" fastened by wire and rope. Recruited dancers are boys from 12 to 14 years of age and are trained for two months after they make a pledge to Saint Peter. At first, the boys balance themselves with safety ropes on their stilts. Only men are permitted to dance, with some wearing women's masks. Performances can extend for hours, during which small gifts are distributed among the spectators from baskets. The dancers are accompanied by musical groups, "chinas Oaxaqueñas" and "monos de calenda." These dancers perform the strenuous performance on the feast day of Saint Peter as well as at the Guelaguetza of Oaxaca and other dance festivals in Mexico. ==The municipality==