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Yaya is another word for Atabey, Yukaju’s full name is Yukajú Bágua Maórocoti. Maórocoti means ‘one without male ancestors. Tags: Mobile edit Mobile web edit |
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{{Short description|Masculine spirit of fertility in Taíno mythology}}
{{Infobox deity
| type = Taíno
| name =
| image = File:Three-pointed sculpture with carved face (zimi), Taino Culture, Puerto Rico, c. 1000-1494 AD, stone - Fitchburg Art Museum - DSC08790.JPG
| caption = A stone representation of the three-pointed zemi found in [[Puerto Rico]] (c. 1000-1494 AD)
| god_of = God of creation, the sky, the sea, bountiful harvest and peace
| abode = [[El Yunque (Puerto Rico)|El Yunque]]
| symbol = Three-pointed zemi, frog, rain, cassava and derivatives
| consort =
| parents = [[Atabey (goddess)|Atabey]] (mother)
| siblings =
| children = Boinael and Maroya
}}
'''Yúcahu'''<ref name="Pane 4">Fray Ramón Pané 1999, p.4</ref> —also written as '''Yucáhuguama Bagua Maórocoti''', '''Yukajú''', '''Yocajú''', '''Yokahu''' or '''Yukiyú'''— was the masculine spirit of fertility in [[Taíno
==Mythology==
Yúcahu was the supreme deity of the Taíno people.<ref name="Issuu 1912">{{cite web | title=TAÍNOS: ARTE Y SOCIEDAD | website=Issuu | date=May 15, 1912 | url=https://issuu.com/popularenlinea/docs/ta_nos_arte_y_sociedad | language=es | page=368 | access-date=November 20, 2021 | archive-date=November 7, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211107052737/https://issuu.com/popularenlinea/docs/ta_nos_arte_y_sociedad | url-status=live }}</ref> "They call him Yúcahu Bagua Maórocoti" is the earliest mention of the zemí taken from the first page of Fray Ramón Pané's ''Account of the Antiquities of the Indians''.<ref>Fray Ramón Pané was the first European missionary to arrive in the New World and the first to learn the native language. He was the first person who studied the beliefs of an indigenous people, and his account was the first book to be written by a European on American soil.</ref> As the Taíno did not possess a written language, the name is the phonetic spelling as recorded by the Spanish missionaries, Ramón Pané, and [[Bartolomé de las Casas]].
[[File:Pico El Yunque.jpg|thumb|[[El Yunque (Puerto Rico)|El Yunque peak]] in Puerto Rico is the mythological dwelling of Yúcahu.]]
The Taíno had a well developed [[creation myth]], which was mostly passed down via oral tradition. According to this account, in the beginning there was only [[Atabey (goddess)|Atabey]], who created the heavens. However, there was still a void, where nothingness prevailed. The heavens were inactive and any action was meaningless. Earth and the other cosmic entities laid barren. Despite being dominated by darkness, [[Atabey (goddess)|Atabey]] herself failed to notice that this universe was incomplete. Eventually she decided to create two new deities, Yucáhu and [[Guacar]], from magic and intangible elements. [[Atabey (goddess)|Atabey]] now felt confident that her creation could be completed and left it in charge of her sons. Yucáhu took over as a creation deity, becoming a universal architect and gathering the favour of his mother. From his dwelling in the heavens, he contemplated and awoke the Earth from its slumber. As part of this process, two new deities emerged from a cave. [[Boinael]] and [[Maroya]], controlling the sun and moon respectively, which were tasked with illuminating the new world day and night. No longer would the Earth be shrouded by darkness. Yucáhu was satisfied with his work, but in a fit of jealousy Guacar hid within the heavens, never to be seen again. Now bored, Yucáhu roamed and noticed four gemstones that lied in the ground, which he took and converted into the celestial star beings
[[File:Three-pointed stone owned by Mr Yunghannis, of Bayamón, Puerto Rico.jpg|thumb|Diagram of zemi, a three-pointed stone which was owned by someone in Bayamón, Puerto Rico<ref>{{cite web | title=Annual report of the Bureau of American Ethnology to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution : Smithsonian Institution. Bureau of American Ethnology | website=Internet Archive | year=1895 | url=https://archive.org/details/annualreportofbu25smithso | access-date=October 12, 2021}}</ref>]]
Yúcahu became known as the deity of [[agriculture]], as well as the zemi of peace and tranquility, he represented goodness. This was contrasted greatly by the goddess Guabancex (more commonly, but erroneously, known as [[Juracán]]) whose fierce nature was regarded as responsible for persuading other zemis in order to bring forth chaos and who was associated with the more aggressive [[Island Caribs|Caribs]]. Yúcahu was believed to have a throne in [[El Yunque (Puerto Rico)|El Yunque peak]], the largest mountain found in the tropical [[El Yunque National Forest]] reserve, where he resided in the same manner that the [[List of Greek mythological figures|Greek gods]] did in [[Mount Olympus]]. The Taíno referred to the peak as ''yuké'', or "The White Lands", in reference to the thick cloud shroud that always surrounds it. This mountain range diverts the wind of hurricanes, minimizing the damage that the storms do to the lower parts of the island. Noticing this, the natives interpreted this as Yúcahu confronting Guabancex and her cohorts over the safety of his worshipers. Located in the northern mountains of Puerto Rico, the region where El Yunke is located was originally known as "Yukiyu", a name that became associated with the deity.
== Modern usage ==
▲Yúcahu became known as the deity of [[agriculture]], as well as the zemi of peace and tranquility, he represented goodness. This was contrasted greatly by the goddess Guabancex (more commonly, but erroneously, known as [[Juracán]]) whose fierce nature was regarded as responsible for persuading other zemis in order to bring forth chaos and who was associated with the more aggressive [[Island Caribs|Caribs]]. Yúcahu was believed to have a throne in [[El Yunque (Puerto Rico)|El Yunque peak]], the largest mountain found in the tropical [[El Yunque National Forest]] reserve, where he resided in the same manner that the [[List of Greek mythological figures|Greek gods]] did in [[Mount Olympus]]. The Taíno referred to the peak as ''yuké'', or "The White Lands", in reference to the thick cloud shroud that always surrounds it. This mountain range diverts the wind of hurricanes, minimizing the damage that the storms do to the lower parts of the island. Noticing this, the natives interpreted this as Yúcahu confronting Guabancex and her cohorts over the safety of his worshipers. Located in the northern mountains of Puerto Rico, the region where El Yunke is located was originally known as "Yukiyu", a name that became associated with the deity. Following the Spanish colonization, it became known under the Hispanized variant of [[Luquillo, Puerto Rico|Luquillo]], a name that remains in use.
===Religious===
Adaptations of traditional Taíno religion are practiced by a number of neo-Taíno groups, featuring Yúcahu as part of their pantheons.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://academic.uprm.edu/sruiz/geogr3155/id22.htm|title=LOS NUEVOS TAINOS|website=academic.uprm.edu|access-date=2020-04-11|archive-date=2020-11-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201125143004/http://academic.uprm.edu/sruiz/geogr3155/id22.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>
===Cultural===
As with other mythologies, Taíno religion and the good/evil (in this case Yúcahu/Juracán) dichotomy has been adapted for comic books, in particular being central as the source of supernatural superpowers in [[Edgardo Miranda-Rodriguez|Edgardo Miranda Rodríguez]]'s La Borinqueña.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://bleedingcool.com/comics/reading-la-borinquena-1-as-shazam-with-puerto-rican-mythology/|title=Reading La Borinquena #1 As Shazam With Puerto Rican Mythology|last=Johnston|first=Rich|date=2016-12-23|website=Bleeding Cool News And Rumors|language=en-US|access-date=2020-04-11|archive-date=2020-04-11|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200411190535/https://bleedingcool.com/comics/reading-la-borinquena-1-as-shazam-with-puerto-rican-mythology/|url-status=live}}</ref>
Preceding the impending passing of hurricanes [[Hurricane Irma|Irma]] and [[Hurricane Maria|Maria]] over Puerto Rico during the [[2017 Atlantic hurricane season]], artistic representations depicting an updated model of Yúcahu (as the sentient embodiment of [[El Yunque (Puerto Rico)|El Yunque]], distinguished by a humanoid form composed by the forest's vegetation) became widespread in social media as a method to boost the population's morale.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.univision.com/entretenimiento/mundo-mistico/cuando-llega-el-huracan-conoce-el-mito-de-el-yunque-y-su-poder-protector-en-puerto-rico-fotos|title=Cuando llega el huracán: conoce el mito de El Yunque y su poder protector en Puerto Rico|last=Univision|website=Univision|language=es|access-date=2020-04-11|archive-date=2018-05-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180503162317/https://www.univision.com/entretenimiento/mundo-mistico/cuando-llega-el-huracan-conoce-el-mito-de-el-yunque-y-su-poder-protector-en-puerto-rico-fotos|url-status=live}}</ref>
== References ==
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{{Reflist}}
* {{cite book|last=Fray Ramón Pané
* {{cite book|last=Arroyo|first=Antonio M. Stevens|title=Cave of the Jagua : the mythological world of the Taínos|year=2006|publisher=Univ. of Scranton Press|location=Scranton [u.a.]|isbn=1-58966-112-5|edition=2.}}
* {{cite book|last=Rouse|first=Irving|title=Tainos : Rise and Decline of the People Who Greeted Columbus|year=1993|publisher=Yale University Press|location=New Haven|isbn=0-300-05696-6|edition=New|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/tainosrisedeclin00rous}}
* {{cite book
|title= American Anthropologist
|year= 1909
|publisher= American Anthropological Association
|location= Original from the University of California
|pages= 354–356
|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=8HV0AAAAIAAJ
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yucahu}}
[[Category:Gods of the indigenous peoples of North America]]
[[Category:Taíno mythology]]
[[Category:Fertility gods]]
[[Category:Creator gods]]
[[Category:Sky and weather gods]]
[[Category:Sea and river gods]]
[[Category:Peace gods]]
[[Category:Agricultural gods]]
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