TEOTL ERC Project

14/09/2026

TEOTL is coming back from vacation! 🌞🌴

We hope you had a great and relaxing break! And if you’re looking for something to make your journey to work or university a little more enjoyable, we recommend listening to a conversation with TEOTL team member Dr Julia Madajczak, who recently appeared on the Wiedza w Głosie podcast. 🎙️🎧

The podcast is in Polish 🇵🇱, but again, isn’t that a good reason to start learning this language?

You can listen to the podcast on YouTube ▶️: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=osMEC0T8n9E
and on Spotify 🎵: https://open.spotify.com/episode/4DSfHMGwMiJbV7cYLSObGN?si=26688c3385714646

Wiedza w Głosie · Episode

26/06/2026

💧 Have you ever heard of the Nahua "blue and yellow waters"?

According to various sources, Tenochtitlan was founded at the place where two sacred springs flowed, one blue and one yellow. The metaphor of the "blue and yellow waters" also appears in other early colonial sources. It was associated with deities such as Tlazolteotl and Tloque Nahuaque, with the tlatoani's role as ruler and purifier, and with ceremonies dedicating newborns to water—rituals that Spaniards likened to baptism. 🌊✨

🤔 What did these mysterious waters represent? War? Justice? Purification? Or perhaps the beginning of a new era?

🔍 Discover the answers in the newly published article "Blue Waters and Yellow Waters in Nahua Thought: A Metaphor of Tenochca Identity and Toltec Legitimacy", published in Latin American Antiquity (Cambridge University Press) and written by our PI, Dr. Agnieszka Brylak. 📖🎓

Read the article here: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/latin-american-antiquity/article/blue-waters-and-yellow-waters-in-nahua-thought-a-metaphor-of-tenochca-identity-and-toltec-legitimacy/63A464CE234275AF8B9BAAFF7BC81F55

🌍 We are also delighted to share that the publication has already attracted international attention! Just two days after its release, the research was featured by the Spanish-language popular science portal La Brújula Verde.

📰 Read the feature here:
🔗 https://www.labrujulaverde.com/2026/06/que-son-las-misteriosas-aguas-azules-y-amarillas-que-los-aztecas-usaron-para-identificarse-como-herederos-de-la-civilizacion-tolteca

🎉 Congratulations, Agnieszka! Great job! 👏🥳

23/06/2026

We’re happy to share that our TEOTL team member, Dr. Julia Madajczak, participated in the opening ceremony of the Centre for Research on the Berlin Collections at the Jagiellonian University! 🎓📚

✨ Dr. Madajczak was invited in recognition of her previous work on a research project dedicated to a manuscript from the Berlin Collections. If you would like to learn more about this research, we encourage you to explore the publications she co-authored on the subject:

📖 Aztecka układanka. Szesnastowieczny rękopis ze zbiorów Biblioteki Jagiellońskiej
🔗https://www.wuw.pl/product-pol-14928-Aztecka-ukladanka-Szesnastowieczny-rekopis-ze-zbiorow-Biblioteki-Jagiellonskiej.html

📖 Fragments of the Sixteenth-Century Nahuatl Census from the Jagiellonian Library
🔗 https://brill.com/display/title/56008

🏛️📚 You can find out more about the Centre for Research on the Berlin Collections here: 🔗 https://jcrb.uj.edu.pl/start

👏 Congratulations to Julia on this recognition of her research, and to the Jagiellonian University on this excellent initiative! We wish the Centre every success in its future research and activities.

19/06/2026

🌸 In Western cultures, flowers are often associated with mourning and remembrance. But did you know that in the Nahua world, flowers could also symbolize a glorious death?

In pre-Hispanic Central Mexico, xochimiquiztli, "flowery death", was one of the most powerful concepts shaping ideas about war, sacrifice, honor, and the afterlife.

Does that sound interesting? If so, you may enjoy the new book by TEOTL team member Dr. Katarzyna Szoblik, The Flowery Death: The Image of Death in the Nahua Songs of Cantares Mexicanos, recently published by the University Press of Colorado.

🎉 Congratulations, Kasia, great job!

👉 You can purchase the book here: https://upcolorado.com/university-press-of-colorado/the-flowery-death

The book is part of the SONATA project funded by the National Science Centre, Poland 🇵🇱✨

17/06/2026

Have you ever wondered how the costumes 👗, feathers 🪶, and plants 🌿 depicted in representations of Nahua deities encoded specific meanings, including the names and titles of the gods? Did you know that the apparent ambiguity of these images followed strict conventions, revealing how divinity was conceptualized in Nahua thought? ✨

If this sounds interesting, we have great news for you! 📢📚 The answers to these questions can be found in Les dieux du Mexique central ancien : un langage codé (2026), recently published by Société d’ethnologie in its Écritures series. 📖
The book is the result of a collaboration between two members of the TEOTL project—anthropologist Danièle Dehouve and philologist Katarzyna Mikulska—and historian of religions Loïk Vauzelle. 🤝

Congratulations to all the authors on this outstanding publication! 🎉🥳👏📚

👉 You can buy the book here: https://www.lcdpu.fr/books/8EBFAB08-BD39-4A2A-AAAF-F72857328DC4

18/05/2026

[Español abajo]

🌍 What: XXI Congreso AHILA “Latinoamérica en la Historia: Recursos y Desafíos”
Symposium: “Prácticas y creencias religiosas en la Mesoamérica prehispánica” – Call for Papers
📍 Where: Ludovika University of Public Service, Budapest, Hungary
📅 When: July 12–16, 2027
⏳ Deadline for submissions: September 10, 2026
📩 Submit proposals / contact: [email protected], [email protected]
📄 Format of proposals:
The paper proposal must include: 1) name and institutional affiliation; 2) email address; 3) title of the paper; 4) a brief abstract (maximum 300 words); 5) the speaker’s curriculum vitae (maximum 200 words).
🗣️ Conference language: Spanish

We are pleased to announce that the 21st International Congress of the Association of European Latin American Historians (AHILA), co-organized by the University of Szeged and Ludovika University of Public Service, will take place in Budapest, Hungary, from July 12 to 16, 2027, under the motto “Latin America in History: Resources and Challenges.”🌟

Among the many thematic symposia, the TEOTL team warmly invites you to submit proposals to the symposium ✨ “Prácticas y creencias religiosas en la Mesoamérica prehispánica” ✨ coordinated by TEOTL team member Dr. Julia Madajczak and Prof. Sergio Botta.

🔍 As the coordinators of the symposium note: “Our symposium aims to bring together recent research results and proposals in order to promote a critical exchange on various aspects of pre-Hispanic religions across different Mesoamerican cultures. Without intending to provide an exhaustive list, topics of interest include: Indigenous religious concepts; gods and other non-human beings; relationships between the ecumene and the anecumene; rituals and calendrical festivals; priestly organization; processes of ideological change during the early colonial period and the influence of Christianity on Mesoamerican religions; sources (both written and archaeological artifacts) and methods for the study of these religions; as well as critical discussions of previous methodologies and research results.”
For more details, visit the congress website: https://ahila.eu/xxi-congreso-ahila-2027/

We look forward to your participation!

🌍 Qué: XXI Congreso AHILA “Latinoamérica en la Historia: Recursos y Desafíos”
Simposio: “Prácticas y creencias religiosas en la Mesoamérica prehispánica” – Convocatoria de Ponencias
📍 Dónde: Universidad Ludovika de Servicio Público, Budapest, Hungría
📅 Cuándo: 12–16 de julio de 2027
⏳ Fecha límite para el envío de propuestas: 10 de septiembre de 2026
📩 Envío de propuestas / contacto: [email protected], [email protected]
📄 Formato de las propuestas:
La propuesta de ponencia debe incluir: 1) nombre y afiliación institucional; 2) correo electrónico; 3) título de la ponencia; 4) un breve resumen (máximo 300 palabras); 5) currículum vitae del/de la ponente (máximo 200 palabras).
🗣️ Idioma del congreso: español

Nos complace anunciar que el XXI Congreso Internacional de la Asociación de Historiadores Latinoamericanistas Europeos (AHILA), coorganizado por la Universidad de Szeged y Universidad Ludovika de Servicio Público, se celebrará en Budapest, Hungría, del 12 al 16 de julio de 2027 bajo el lema “Latinoamérica en la Historia: Recursos y Desafíos”. 🌟

Entre los diversos simposios temáticos, el equipo TEOTL invita cordialmente a enviar propuestas para el simposio ✨ “Prácticas y creencias religiosas en la Mesoamérica prehispánica” ✨ coordinado por la Dra. Julia Madajczak y el Prof. Sergio Botta.

🔍 Como señalan los coordinadores del simposio: “Nuestro simposio propone reunir resultados y propuestas de investigación recientes con el fin de promover un intercambio crítico sobre diversos aspectos de las religiones prehispánicas en distintas culturas mesoamericanas. Sin pretender ofrecer una lista exhaustiva, entre los temas de interés figuran: los conceptos religiosos indígenas; los dioses y otros seres no humanos; las relaciones entre el ecúmeno y el anecúmeno; los rituales y las fiestas calendáricas; la organización sacerdotal; los procesos de cambio ideológico en el periodo colonial temprano y la influencia del cristianismo en las religiones mesoamericanas; las fuentes (tanto escritas como artefactos arqueológicos) y los métodos para el estudio de estas religiones; así como la discusión crítica de metodologías y resultados previos..”

Para más información, visite la página web del congreso: https://ahila.eu/xxi-congreso-ahila-2027/

¡Esperamos su participación!

12 al 16 de julio de 2027 • Budapest, Hungría El XXI Congreso de AHILA tendrá lugar en Budapest del 12 al 16 de julio de 2027, coorganizado por la Universidad de Szeged y la Universidad Ludovika de Servicio Público, cuyo campus será la sede principal del congreso. 2027 es un año de conmemorac...

08/05/2026

Have you ever wondered how the Nahua imagined their otherworlds 💀🌑 —and what the numbers eight and nine have to do with it? 🔢

If so, we have great news! The academic journal Ancient Mesoamerica, published by Cambridge University Press, has just released the article “Beyond Mictlan: The Otherworlds of the Pre-Contact Nahua”, written by two TEOTL team members, Dr. Julia Madajczak and Prof. Katarzyna Mikulska, together with Dr. Roberto Martínez.

Congratulations, Julia and Kasia! Great job! 🎉🥳
🔗 Link to the article (available in open access):
https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/ancient-mesoamerica/article/beyond-mictlan-the-otherworlds-of-the-precontact-nahua/D876B805B25DC6FE52F6B550DC1CE056

04/05/2026

[Español abajo]

🌍 What: International Congress Humanities – Society – Identity; section: (Re)inventing Mesoamerica: Indigenous, Epistemologies, Cultural Practices, and Construction of the Past – Call for Papers
📍 Where: University of Warsaw, Faculty of Modern Languages, Warsaw, Poland
📅 When: December 3–5, 2026
⏳ Deadline for submissions: June 30, 2026
📩 Submit proposals / contact: [email protected], [email protected]
🗣️ Conference languages: The conference language is English; however, proposals and presentations in Spanish may also be considered.

We are pleased to announce that the 5th International Congress Humanities – Society – Identity will take place in Warsaw, Poland, from December 2 to 4, 2026, under the motto “(Un)certainties and (Re)inventions.” 🌟 Among the many thematic lines and panels, the TEOTL team warmly invites you to submit proposals to the section: ✨(Re)inventing Mesoamerica: Indigenous, Epistemologies, Cultural Practices, and Construction of the Past ✨ coordinated by the research group Centro de Estudios Mesoamericanos+ (CEM+).

❗Please note that participation is in person only — neither active (as a speaker) nor passive (as an listener) online participation will be possible.

For more details, please check the information on the images and visit the congress website: https://hsic.wn.uw.edu.pl/
We look forward to your participation!

🌍 Qué: Congreso Internacional Humanidades – Sociedad – Identidad; sección: (Re)inventing Mesoamerica: Indigenous, Epistemologies, Cultural Practices, and Construction of the Past – Convocatoria de Ponencias
📍 Dónde: Universidad de Varsovia, Facultad de Lenguas Modernas, Varsovia, Polonia
📅 Cuándo: 2–4 de diciembre de 2026
⏳ Fecha límite para el envío de propuestas: 15 de junio de 2026
📩 Envío de propuestas / contacto: [email protected], [email protected]
🗣️ Idiomas del congreso: El idioma del congreso es el inglés; sin embargo, también se podrán considerar propuestas y presentaciones en español.

Nos complace anunciar que el 5.º Congreso Internacional Humanities – Society – Identity se celebrará en Varsovia, Polonia, del 2 al 4 de diciembre de 2026, bajo el lema “(Un)certainties and (Re)invention”. 🌟 Entre las diversas líneas temáticas y paneles, el equipo TEOTL invita cordialmente a enviar propuestas para la sección: ✨ (Re)inventing Mesoamerica: Indigenous, Epistemologies, Cultural Practices, and Construction of the Past✨ coordinada por el grupo de investigación Centro de Estudios Mesoamericanos+ (CEM+).

❗Atención: La participación será exclusivamente presencial — no será posible participar en línea, ni de forma activa (como ponente), ni de forma pasiva (como oyente).

Para más información, consulta las imágenes y visita la página web del congreso: https://hsic.wn.uw.edu.pl/
¡Esperamos su participación!

01/05/2026

During this year’s Annual Conference of the Association of Nahuatl Scholars, members of our TEOTL team had the amazing opportunity to explore Nahuatl resources at the Doris Z. Stone Latin American Library 📚 and the Library Research Center 📚 at Tulane University in New Orleans.

They also visited an exhibition by Christine Hernández on Maestra Antonia Osorio Naranjo. 🎨✨

28/04/2026

Have you ever wondered how the Nahua people expressed their gratitude? 🤔 If so, we have great news for you! The new edition of The Bancroft Dialogues has just been released!

On April 16, during the Annual Meeting of the Association of Nahuatl Scholars, the TEOTL team took part in the book celebration How to Be Grateful: An Aztec Guide to the Art of Gratitude, edited by Frances Karttunen and Camilla Townsend and presented by them 📖✨

We highly recommend this fascinating publication! 🙌
Below you can find some photos from the presentation 📸