When it comes to the history of translation, there are a number of outstanding figures that everyone interested in this field will have studied at some point, from Saint Jerome to Jorge Luis Borges, passing through the famous Jean-François Champollion. However, in today’s publication we are going to talk about a woman who, although she may be unknown to many, her work as a translator and interpreter was fundamental in one of the most exciting historical episodes: the conquest of the Aztec Empire by the Spaniards.
The discovery of America and the following processes of conquest and colonization, besides being important milestones in world history, meant an encounter between very different civilizations in which language played a crucial role. Despite its significant importance, very little has been said about this linguistic episode.
Although it is true that, during the first encounters, communication with the ‘Amerindians’ was done through signing, an important dilemma soon arose: either the natives would learn Spanish or the colonizers would learn the aboriginal languages. At the beginning, during the conquest, the Spaniards opted to capture indigenous people to learn Spanish so that they could later act as interpreters. It is in this context that the figure of Malinche appears.
Of Aztec origin, her indigenous name was Malintzin, which, mispronounced by the Spaniards, became Malinche. When she was baptized she was given the name Marina. Because of the important role she played in the conquest of Mexico as an interpreter of the Mayan and Aztec languages and as a mediator between Spaniards and Indians, she was given the Christian name of “doña”.
She was given to Hernán Cortés’ army by the caciques of Tabasco on March 15, 1519, after the battle of Centla, along with nineteen other young Indian women, as part of a gift made up of gold carved pieces, rich embroidered blankets and sumptuous plumery objects, with which the Tabascans sealed their alliance of peace with the Spaniards after their victory in the battle of Centla. After they were baptized, Cortés distributed the twenty Indians among his captains, handing Malinche to Alonso Hernández de Puertocarrero. Later, the bilingualism of the latter, whose mother tongue was Aztec, having learned Mayan during her stay in Tabasco, made her an indispensable tool for the conquistadors.
It was in 1519 that the interpreter was able to demonstrate her linguistic skills for the first time in Veracruz, during the meeting with Moctezuma’s ambassadors. Faced with the inability of Jerónimo de Aguilar —who only spoke Maya, having been kidnapped by the Maya of the Yucatán and later freed by Cortés— to mediate, Marina dared to translate the words of the Mexica emissaries from Nahuatl into Yucatecan Maya. As a result, Aguilar was able to translate into Spanish for Cortés.
He remained with Cortés throughout the conquest, not only as an interpreter, but also providing him with valuable information about the Aztec empire, its internal weaknesses, its relationship with other peoples and ethnic groups, and the discontent of some indigenous lordships due to the taxation imposed by the Mexicans. All this information made possible the pacts of alliance between the Spanish and the ethnic groups that opposed the authoritarian government of the Aztecs and whose collaboration was decisive for the success of the conquest.
Likewise, he participated in evangelization tasks, interpreting the talks of the priests, and was present in the battles against the Aztecs, where he was in charge of translating the orders of the Spaniards to their Indian allies.
However, in spite of these data, it could be said that the figure of Malinche is shrouded in mystery. It is known that she had a love affair with Hernán Cortés, from which a mestizo son, Martín, was born in 1522. However, later, by Cortés’ own decision, she married a veteran captain of his army, Juan Jaramillo, whose marriage took place in 1525. A year later, Malinche and Jaramillo’s daughter was born, baptized María. Malinche would die shortly after.
In view of this, it is interesting to note here how some researchers, in their revisionist studies on the history of the conquest, have highlighted the fundamental role played by figures such as Malinche in the triumph of the Spaniards in the New World. This is the case of the work of Mexican historian and anthropologist Federico Navarrete, who, in his book Malintzin, o la conquista como traducción (2021), argues that Malintzin’s work as a translator was as or more important for the success of the conquest than the feats of arms of Hernán Cortés.
Certainly, in the process of the conquest of Mexico, carried out between 1519 and 1521, the help of groups opposed to the Mexicans (an army made up of between one hundred thousand and two hundred thousand Mesoamericans and less than one thousand Spaniards) was fundamental. Therefore, although the historiography of the conquest has traditionally emphasized the ‘external’ aspects of the conquest, such as the technical superiority of the Spaniards over the Indians or the character of the conquerors themselves, today there is a tendency to focus more on the ‘internal’ aspects, considered key to understanding the Spanish victory.
In this sense, it was Cortés’ attitude of attacking the pinnacle of power, together with the strong internal tensions among the indigenous groups themselves, as well as the cultural and religious traditions that prevailed at that time in the Mexica Empire ―a whole series of apocalyptic beliefs that announced the return of the deity Quetzalcóatl― that made the rapid conquest possible.
It is also interesting to note the way in which Malinche translated, whose method has been recorded in several chronicles. Based on Cortés’ Cartas de relación, an innovative “chain of communication” between the invader, the interpreter and the indigenous rulers is proposed. The model is divided into eight steps (four in Spanish and four in Nahuatl). According to this proposal, Malintzin was at the center of the communicative process, interpreting Cortés’ request and translating legal and religious concepts into their Náhuatl equivalents, and vice versa. This allowed the language ―that was the name given to those who served as interpreters― to control the communicative process, independently of the interests of Cortés and the indigenous leaders.
For all these reasons, it is worth concluding here with the words of Navarrete, who affirms that the conquest of Mexico was “of words and negotiations as of weapons and battles, a conquest made possible by translation”.
Carlos Sánchez Luis