On September 28, 2023, Dr. Ava Berinstein, Xch’ool Ixim, Linguistic Advisor, visited two primary schools in Nimlaha’kok and met with the principal, the teachers, and the students to present 30 bilingual Q’eqchi’ – Spanish booklets to each school. The booklet contained a collection of three Q’eqchi’ narratives about the “Dance of the Deer” that Berinstein had recorded and transcribed in 1978, while doing her linguistic research in Alta Verapaz.

Although, everyone was familiar with the Dance of the Deer; and many had even participated in the ceremony at annual festivals; no one had ever heard the ancestral legend which explains the origin of the deer dance.

Hearing ancestral legends – and reading them in your own language – is critical to the revitalization of Maya culture and restoring collective memory. At a time when the oral tradition is at risk of extinction (as our elders die), it is more and more important to recall and recite these sacred legends.

The Q’eqchi’ Association Xch’ool Ixim is working with schools in Alta Verapaz in an effort to revitalize Maya culture, as they work with students, teachers, parents, grandparents, and elders in the community to collect and teach valuable legends from our ancestors.