Hunzahúa was the first '' zaque''; ruler of the northern Muisca with capital Hunza, named after him. His contemporary ''

zipa When the Spanish arrived in the central Colombian highlands, the region was organized into the Muisca Confederation, which had two rulers; the ''zipa'' was the ruler of the southern part and based in Muyquytá. The ''hoa'' was the ruler of the ...

'' of the southern Muisca was Meicuchuca.

Biography

Hunzahúa, heir of

Idacansás Idacansás, Idacansas, Idacanzas or Iduakanzas was a mythical ''cacique'' who was said to have been the first priest of the sacred city of Sugamuxi, present-day Sogamoso, Colombia, then part of the territories of the Muisca. He is characterized ...

, was a ''

cacique A ''cacique'' (Latin American ; ; feminine form: ''cacica'') was a tribal chieftain of the Taíno people, the indigenous inhabitants at European contact of the Bahamas, the Greater Antilles, and the northern Lesser Antilles. The term is a S ...

'' in the sacred valley of the '' iraca'' and was chosen by the other ''caciques'' of the region to make peace between the battling parties. He became the first ''zaque'' of the northern Muisca region based in Hunza, present-day

Tunja Tunja () is a city on the Eastern Ranges of the Colombian Andes, in the region known as the Altiplano Cundiboyacense, 130 km northeast of Bogotá. In 2018 it had a population of 172,548 inhabitants. It is the capital of Boyacá departmen ...

, and one of his policies was the ban on the use of weapons. According to Muisca scholar Javier Ocampo López, who wrote extensively about the

religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatur ...

and

mythology Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narra ...

of the Muisca, his mother was named Faravita and his sister Noncetá.Hunzahúa y su hermana Noncetá
/ref> Legend tells that Hunzahúa fell in love with his older sister and made her his wife when he left Hunza for Chipatá. Faravita, the mother of the ''zaque'', disagreed with the marriage of her two children and attacked the couple, spilling a bowl of

chicha ''Chicha'' is a fermented (alcoholic) or non-fermented beverage of Latin America, emerging from the Andes and Amazonia regions. In both the pre- and post- Spanish conquest periods, corn beer ('' chicha de jora'') made from a variety of maize ...

. This created the Hunzahúa Well. When Hunzahúa saw what his mother had done, and the Muisca protesting against his

incest Incest ( ) is human sexual activity between family members or close relatives. This typically includes sexual activity between people in consanguinity (blood relations), and sometimes those related by affinity ( marriage or stepfamily), ado ...

, he damned Hunza and the surrounding valley. Noncetá gave birth to her younger brother's son in

Susa Susa ( ; Middle elx, 𒀸𒋗𒊺𒂗, translit=Šušen; Middle and Neo- elx, 𒋢𒋢𒌦, translit=Šušun; Neo- Elamite and Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼𒀭, translit=Šušán; Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼, translit=Šušá; fa, شوش ...

, but the young boy turned into a rock. The sad couple traveled further, to the Tequendama Falls. Here, they changed into two rocks at either side of the sacred waterfall. The reign of the northern Muisca spread from the

Chicamocha River Chicamocha River is a river of Boyacá and Santander in central-eastern Colombia. It is part of the Magdalena river system that flows into the Caribbean Sea. Chicamocha River originates in the municipality of Tuta in the department of Boyac ...

to the area populated by the Sutagao around Fusagasugá and from the flatlands of San Juan to the border region with the Panche and Muzo, including the territories of Vélez. The previous unknown unity of the region permitted the conservation of the Chibcha language and Muisca religion and mythology. Peace was disturbed when the southern Muisca ''zipa'' Saguamanchica took up arms against the northern ''zaque'' Michuá, succeeding the rule of Hunzahúa in 1470.History of the Muisca
- Banco de la República

Hunzahúa in Muisca history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hunzahua Muisca rulers Muisca mythology and religion History of Colombia 15th-century births 1470 deaths 15th-century South American people 15th century in Colombia People from Tunja Muysccubun

Biography

Hunzahúa in Muisca history

See also

References