Olmec Hieroglyphic Writing

By C.A. Winters, Ph.D

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Copyright © 2012 Clyde Winters

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Table of ContentsIntroduction……………………………………………………………………………

……..5

Chapter

1………………………………………………………………………………………17

Chapter 2: Olmec

Language…………………………………………………………27

Chapter 3: Olmec and Mayan Languages……………………………………35

Chapter 4: Olmec

Phonology……………………………………………………….62

Chapter 5: Olmec

Nouns………………………………………………………………70

Chapter 6: Olmec

Adjectives………………………………………………………..75

Chapter 7:Olmec

Adverbs…………………………………………………………….78

Chapter 8:Olmec

Articles……………………………………………………………..81

Chapter 9: Olmec

Sentences………………………………………………………..82

Chpter 10: Olmec

Writing……………………………………………………………..84

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Chapter 11: Syllabic

Writing………………………………………………………….99

Chapter 12: Hieroglyphic

Writing………………………………………………….108

References………………………………………………………………………………

………131

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Introduction

Dr. Andrzej Wiercinski of Warsaw University is the most influential

scientist in the study of the most ancient civilization of Mexico: the

Olmecs .Dr. Wiercinski found African skeletons at the Olmec sites of

Monte Alban and Tlatilco. Morley, Brainerd and Sharer (1989) said that

Monte Alban was a colonial Olmec center (p.12). Diehl and Coe (1996)

admitted that the inspiration of Olmec Horizon A, common to San

Lorenzo's iniitial phase has been found at Tlatilco. Moreover, the

pottery from this site is engraved with Olmec signs.

The Olmec civilization was developed along the coast of the Gulf of

Mexico in the states of Tabasco and Veracruz (Pouligny 1988:34).The

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Pacific area was early colonized by Olmec people in middle Preclassic

times (Morley, Brainerd & Sharer 1984).

The Olmec civilization was unique. It originated full bloom at some

forty sites by 1200 B.C. (Coe, 1989; Tate, 1995). Coe (1989) noted

that:

"On the contrary, the evidence, although negative, is that the Olmec

style of art, and Olmec engineering ability suddenly appeared full-

fledged from about 1200 B.C. (p. 82).

This archaeological evidence also led Tate (1995) to note that

"Olmec culture as far as we know seems to have had no antcedents,

no material models remain for its monumental constructions and

sculptures and the ritual acts captured in small objects" (p.65).

The Maya were not the first to occupy the Yucatan and Gulf regions

of Mexico. It is evident from Maya traditions and the artifacts

recovered from many ancient Mexican sites that a different race lived

in Mayaland before the Mayan speakers settled this region.

The linguistic evidence suggest that around 1200 B.C., a new

linguistic group arrived in the Gulf region of Mexico.M. Swadesh (1953)

has presented evidence that at least 3200 years ago a non- Maya

speaking group wedged itself between the Huastecs and the Maya.

Soustelle (1984: 29) tells us that "We cannot help but think that the

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people that shattered the unity of the Proto-Mayas was also the people

that brought Olmec civilization to the region".

Weiner (1922) believe that some of these foreign people may have

come from West Africa. Dr. Wiercinski (1972) claims that some of the

Olmecs were of African origin.

Dr. Wiercinski supports this claim with skeletal evidence from

several Olmec sites where he found skeletons that were analogous to

the West African type . Wiercinski discovered that 13.5 percent of the

skeletons from Tlatilco and 4.5 percent of the skeletons from Cerro de

las Mesas were Africoid (Wiercinski & Jairazbhoy 1975).

Traditions mentioned by Bernardino Sahagun, a famous authority

on the Indian people of Mexico, records the settlement of Mexico by a

different race from the present Amerindian population. Sahagun says

that these "Eastern settlers of Mexico landed at Panotha, on the

Mexican Gulf. Here they remained for a time until they moved south in

search of mountains. Other migration to Mexico stories are mention in

the Popol Vuh, the ancient religious and historical text compiled by the

Quiche Mayan Indians.

Friar Diego de Landa (1978:8,28) , in Yucatan Before and After the

Conquest, wrote that "some old men of Yucatan say that they have

heard from their ancestors that this country was peopled by a certain

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race who came from the East, whom God delivered by opening for

them twelve roads through the sea".

This tradition probably refers to the twelve migrations of the Olmec

people. This view is supported by the stone reliefs from Izapa,

Chiapas , Mexico published by the New World Foundation. In Stela 5,

from Izapa we see a group of men on a boat riding the waves

(Wuthenau 1980; Smith 1984 ; Norman 1976).

It is clear that Stela No.5, from Izapa not only indicates the tree of life,

it also confirms the tradition recorded by Friar Diego de Landa that the

Olmec people made twelve migrations to the New World. This stela

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also confirms the tradition recorded by the famous Mayan historian

Ixtlixochitl, that the Olmec came to Mexico in "ships of barks " and

landed at Pontochan, which they commenced to populate (Winters

1984: 16). These Blacks are frequently depicted in the Mayan

books/writings carrying trade goods.

Izapa Stela Number 5

On Stela No.5 we see a boat surrounded by waves. In the center of the

boat on Stela No.5, we find a large tree. This tree has seven branches

and twelve roots. The seven branches probably represent the seven

major clans of the Olmec people. The twelve roots of the tree

extending into the water from the boat probably signifies the "twelve

roads through the sea", mentioned by Friar Diego Landa.

The Amerindian migration traditions and Stela No.5, probably

relates to a segment of the Olmec, who landed in boats in Panotha or

Pantla (the Huasteca) and moved along the coast as far as Guatemala.

This would correspond to the non-Maya speaking group detected by

Swadesh that separated the Maya and Huasteca speakers 2000 years

ago.

Bernardino de Sahagun (1946) a famous authority on Mexico also

supports the extra-American origin of the ancient Mexicans when he

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wrote that "Eastern settlers of Mexico landed at Panotla on the

Mexican Gulf. Here they remained for a time until they moved south in

search of mountains".The reported route of the Panotha settlers

recorded by Sahagun interestingly corresponds to the spread of the

Olmecs in Meso-America. The Olmec civilization extended from the

Gulf of Mexico to Chalcatzingo, in the Mexican highlands along the

Pacific coast (Morley, Brainerd & Sharer 1983, p.52).

This Amerindian historical and linguistic evidence indicates that a

new linguistic group entered the Olmec heartland around the time we

find the Olmec culutre in Mexico (Soustelle, 1984). Winters

(1979,1997) claims that this new linguistic group was a group of

Manding people that migrated from West Africa to Mexico.

Justeson and Kaufman (1993) and Marcus (1989) manitain that the

Olmec people spoke a Otomanguean language. The Otomanguean

family include Zapotec, Mixtec and Otomi to name a few.

The hypothesis that the Olmec spoke an Otomanguean language is not

supported by the contemporary spatial distribution of the languages

spoken in the Tabasco/Veracruz area. Thomas Lee (1989, 223) noted

that

"...closely Mixe, Zoque and Popoluca languages are spoken in

numerous villages in a mixed manner having little or no apparent

semblance of linguistic or spatial unity. The general assumption made

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by the few investigators who have considered the situation, is that the

modern linguistic pattern is a result of the disruption of an Old

homogeneous language group by more powerful neighbors or

invaders...."

If this linguistic evidence is correct, many of the languages in the

Otomanguean family are spoken by people who may have only

recently settled in the Olmec heartland, and may not reflect the people

that invented the culture we call Olmecs today.

The Olmecs probably spoke a Manding language (Winters, 1979,

1997). This view is supported by the Manding substratum in the Otomi

(Winters, 1979), and Mayan languages (Wiener, 1920-22; Winters,

1979).

When the Mande/Olmec arrived in Mexico the local people

continued to practice their culture. The Olmec people did not attempt

to conquer the local people they built their sites in protected areas. As

time went on the local people would have become engaged in trade

with the Mande and over time adopt many elements of their culture.

This would explain the Mayan adoption of the Mande term for writing.

African related artifacts have been discovered at archaeological

sites; this artifactual evidence include Mande inscriptions and red-and-

black pottery. African writing on Olmec artifacts is the most obvious

African artifact found by arcaheologist. Drucker in 1955 found two

inscribed celts at LaVenta in offering #4. These celts were written in

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African writing, found in a controlled excavation talk about Pe, a

leading sprititual leader that was buried at LaVenta Offering #4

(Winters, 1979).

The red-and-black ware used by the Proto-Mande in the Saharan

Highlands was also used by the Olmec. Examples of this pottery style

include the so-called Blackware red pigmnet of Las Bocas and Tlatilco.

Many of these vessels are inscribed with Olmec writing.

The Olmec spoke a variety of the Mande language closely related to

the Malinke-Bambara group, which is still spoken in West Africa today.

Many scholars refuse to admit that Africans early settled America.

The major evidence of the African origin of the Olmecs come from

their writing. The writing system used by the Olmec and later adopted

by the Maya, was first used by Mande speaking people in North Africa

and is called Libyco-Berber ( eventhough it can not be read in a Berber

language). The first scholar to recognize the african origin of the Olmec

writing was Leo Wiener, in Africa and the Discovery of America.

The Proto- Olmec or Manding people formerly lived in North Africa in

the Saharan Highlands : and Fezzan.(. Winters, 1986) . Here the

ancestors of the Olmecs left their oldest inscription written in the

Manding script (which some people call Libyco-Berber, eventhough

they can not be reading Berber) : was found at Oued Mertoutek and

dated by Wulsin in , Papers of the peabody Museum of American

Arcaheology and Ethnology (Vol.19(1), 1940), to 3000 B.C. This

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indicates that the Manding hand writing 2000 years before they settled

the Gulf of Mexico.

Dr. Wiener, highlighted the fact that the writing on the Tuxtla

statuette was identical to writing used by the Mande speaking people.

Using the evidence of cognate scripts and language I was able to

decipher the Olmec writing in 1979.

The Olmec left this writing on inscribed celts recovered during

archaeological excavation at such sites as LaVenta, by Drucker for

example. The Olmec also used the black-and-red ware which all

archaeologist agree originated in Saharan Africa. This provides

artifactual evidence for African-Olmecs.

The Olmecs probably founded writing in the Mexico. Dr. Coe, in

"Olmec Jaguar and Olmec Kings" (1968), suggested that the beliefs of

the Maya were of Olmec origin and that the pre Maya were Olmecs

(1968,p.103). This agreed with Brainerd and Sharer's, The ancient

Maya (1983,p.65) concept of colonial Olmec at Maya sites. Moreover,

this view is supported by the appearance of jaguar stucco mask

pyramids (probably built by the Olmecs) under Mayan pyramids e.g.,

Cerros Structure 5-C-2nd, Uxaxacatun pyramid and structure 5D-22 at

Tikal. This would conform to Schele and Freidel's belief that the

monumental structures of the Maya were derived from Olmec

prototypes.

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Terrence Kaufman has proposed that the Olmec spoke a

Mexe-Zoquean speech. My research as discussed in the articles

mentioned above indicate that the Olmec people spoke a variation of

the Malinke-Bambara language and not a Zoquean language.

An Olmec origin for many pre-Classic Maya, would explain the

cover-up of the jaguar stucco mask pyramids with classic Maya

pyramids at these sites. It would also explain Schele and Freidel's

(1990,p.56) claim that the first king of Palenque was the Olmec leader

U-Kix-chan; and that the ancient Maya adopted many Olmec social

institutions and olmec symbolic imagery.

Landa in makes it clear that the Yucatec Maya claimed that they got

writing from a group of foreigners called Tutul Xiu (Tozzer,1941). The

term Tutul Xiu, can be translated in Manding as Tutu-l ,"Very good

Subjects of the Order", Xi-u, "The Shi" , or The Shis (who) are very

good supporters of the cult-order". In this passage the -l, is a suffix of

augmentation and the -u, is the plural element. The Shi, is probably

related to the Manding term "Si", which was also an ethnonym.

The fact that the Yucatec term for writing is "c'i:b'" and the Olmec/

Malinke-Bambara term for writing "se'be'", are analogous in sound

support a Manding origin for the Mayan term for writing. Moreover this

confirms the earlier findings by Wiener of a Malinke-Bambara

substratum in the culture and religious terms of the Maya and Aztec

people.

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In addition to the Mande speaking Olmec or Xi people influcing the

Mayan languages they also influenced the Otomi language of Mexico.

The Otomi language also shows affinity to the Mande languages.

Otomi Mande

to that to

min grab mina

ka, ki cut te'ge'

ku brother koro

nee mouth ne

sine 'lip' sine 'sucking part of the mouth'

ne language ne

sui night su

t?i son/daughter ti

da eye do

ta/ye man tye/ kye

The Otomi and Mande languages also demonstrate similar grammatical

features: Otomi ho' ka' ra' 'ngu "he makes the houses" Mande a kee nu

' he makes the family habitation. The Otomi use /bi/ to form the

complete action. This agrees with the Mande verb to be: bi. For

example: Otomi bi du 'he died', bi zo-gi ' he left it' Mande a bi sa ' he is

dead'. In Otomi find da' , to form the incompleted action, e.g., ci 'eat'

daci 'he will eat'. This agrees with the Mande affix da/la used to form

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the factitive or transitive value e.g., la bo 'to take this place' This

indicates agreement between the Mande and Otomi languages.

In conclusion the affinity between Olmec and African skeletons,

artifactual evidence from Olmec sites, of Olmec/Manding and Mayan

signs support the view that the Mande speaking Olmecs gave the Maya

writing. These Olmecs as discussed in earlier postings came from

Saharan/ North Africa before 1000 B.C. This would explain the

agreement beween Mayan *c'ihb' and Olmec/Manding *se'be'. This

along with the obvious total affinity of the Olmec symbols and the

symbols used by the Manding people at Oued Mertoutek in 3000 B.C.,

and later around the Nigerbend which Wiener used to compare with

the Tuxtla symbols, all support the fact that the Olmec were Manding

speaking Meso-Americans.

The fact that the Olmecs were predominately African in no way

demeans the abilities of native Americans. In fact, the Olmecs left

behind a rich culture/ civilizations that has made the later civilizations

of the Zapotecs and Maya some of the greatest civilizations in World

History.

Chapter 1: Origin of the Olmecs

Diehl and Coe (1995, 12) of Harvard University have made it clear

that until a skeleton of an African is found on an Olmec site he will not

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accept the art evidence that there were Africans among the Olmecs.

This is rather surprising because Constance Irwin and Dr. Wiercinski

(1972) have both reported that skeletal remains of Africans have been

found in Mexico. Constance Irwin, in Fair Gods and Stone Faces, says

that anthropologist see "distinct signs of Negroid ancestry in many a

New World skull...."

The Olmec were a cosmopolitan people of African origin. As a result

we find many other nationalities living in the Olmec cities in addition to

Africans, from many parts of the Old World. Alexander von Wuthenau

has recorded the iconographic evidence for the European and Chinese

people that traded with the Olmec people.

But the evidence of African skeletons found at many Olmec sites,

and their trading partners from the Old World found by Dr. Andrzej

Wiercinski prove the cosmopolitan nature of Olmec society. Many

African skeletons have been found in Mexico. Carlo Marquez (1956,

pp.179-180) claimed that these skeletons indicated marked

pronathousness and prominent cheek bones.

The greatest anthropologist to study the ethnic origins of the Olmec

people is Andrzej Wiercinski of Warsaw University. Professor

Wiercinski, Head of the Department of Historical Anthropology, and

Fellow of the New York City and Polish Chapter of the Explorers Club, is

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the first, and last anthropologists to conduct a biological study of

Olmec people, the founders of civilization in Mexico.

Dr. Wiercinski’s (1972)work on the ancient Olmec is the most

quoted scientific paper on the ancient Olmec quoted by numerous

researchers working on the origins of the Olmec people of Mexico

(Griffith, 1993; Rensberger,1988;van Sertima, 1976; Wiercinski, 1972;

Wiercinski & Jairazbhoy 1975). This work by Wiercinski (1972) is

important because he proved that the Olmec civilization was a

cosmopolitan civilization, much like the United States is today.

Dr. Wiercinski (1972) claims that some of the Olmecs were of Old

World origin, especially African origin. He supports this claim with

skeletal evidence from several Olmec sites where he found skeletons

that were analogous to the West African type black. Wiercinski

discovered that 13.5 percent of the skeletons from Tlatilco and 4.5

percent of the skeletons from Cerro de las Mesas were Africoid

( Rensberger,1988;van Sertima, 1976; Wiercinski, 1972; Wiercinski &

Jairazbhoy 1975).

Dr. Wiercinski (1972) claims that some of the Olmecs were of African

origin. He supports this claim with skeletal evidence from several

Olmec sites where he found skeletons that were analogous to the West

African type black. Many Olmec skulls show cranial deformations

(Pailles, 1980), yet Wiercinski (1972b) was able to determine the

ethnic origins of the Olmecs. Marquez (1956, 179-80) made it clear

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that a common trait of the African skulls found in Mexico include

marked prognathousness ,prominent cheek bones are also mentioned.

Fronto-occipital deformation among the Olmec is not surprising

because cranial deformations was common among the Mande

speaking people until fairly recently (Desplanges, 1906).

Many African skeletons have been found in Mexico. Carlo Marquez

(1956, pp.179-180) claimed that these skeletons indicated marked

pronathousness and prominent cheek bones.

Wiercinski found African skeletons at the Olmec sites of Monte

Alban, Cerro de las Mesas and Tlatilco. Morley, Brainerd and Sharer

(1989) said that Monte Alban was a colonial Olmec center (p.12).

Diehl and Coe (1996) admitted that the inspiration of Olmec Horizon

A, common to San Lorenzo's iniitial phase has been found at Tlatilco.

Moreover, the pottery from this site is engraved with Olmec signs.

According to Wiercinski (1972b) Africans represented more than

13.5 percent of the skeletal remains found at Tlatilco and 4.5 percent

of the Cerro remains (see Table 2). Wiercinski (1972b) studied a total

of 125 crania from Tlatilco and Cerro.

There were 38 males and 62 female crania in the study from

Tlatilco and 18 males and 7 females from Cerro. Whereas 36 percent of

the skeletal remains were of males, 64 percent were women

(Wiercinski, 1972b).

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To determine the racial heritage of the ancient Olmecs, Dr.

Wiercinski (1972b) used classic diagnostic traits determined by

craniometric and cranioscopic methods. These measurements were

then compared to a series of three crania sets from Poland, Mongolia

and Uganda to represent the three racial categories of mankind.

In Table 1, we have the racial composition of the Olmec skulls. The only European type recorded in this

table is the Alpine group which represents only 1.9 percent of the crania from Tlatilco.

Table 1.Olmec Races

Racial Type Tlatilco

Norm Percent

Cerro de Mesas

Norm Percent

Subpacific

Dongolan

Subainuid

Pacific

Armenoid

Armenoid-Bushman

Anatolian

Alpine

Ainuid

Ainuid-Arctic

Laponoid-Equatorial

Pacific-Equatorial

20 38.5

10 19.2

7 13.5

4 7.7

2 3.9

2 3.9

2 3.9

1 1.9

1 1.9

1 1.9

1 1.9

1 1.9

________________

7 63.6

--- ----

3 27.3

--- ----

--- ----

1 9.1

--- ---

--- ---

--- ---

--- ---

--- ---

--- ---

________________

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Totals (norm) 52 11

The other alleged "white" crania from Wiercinski's typology of Olmec

crania, represent the Dongolan (19.2 percent), Armenoid (7.7 percent),

Armenoid-Bushman (3.9 percent) and Anatolian (3.9 percent). The

Dongolan, Anatolian and Armenoid terms are euphemisms for the so-

called "Brown Race" "Dynastic Race", "Hamitic Race",and etc., which

racist Europeans claimed were the founders of civilization in Africa.

Table 2:

Racial Composition:

Loponoid

Armenoid

Ainuid+Artic

Pacific

Equatorial+Bushman

Tlatico

21.2

18.3

10.6

36.5

13.5

Cerro de las Mesas

31.8

4.5

13.6

45.5

4.5

Poe (1997), Keita (1993,1996), Carlson and Gerven (1979)and

MacGaffey (1970) have made it clear that these people were Africans

or Negroes with so-called 'caucasian features' resulting from genetic

drift and microevolution (Keita, 1996; Poe, 1997). This would mean

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that the racial composition of 26.9 percent of the crania found at

Tlatilco and 9.1 percent of crania from Cerro de las Mesas were of

African origin.

In Table 2, we record the racial composition of the Olmec according

to the Wiercinski (1972b) study. The races recorded in this table are

based on the Polish Comparative-Morphological School (PCMS). The

PCMS terms Dongolan , Armenoid, and Equatorial groups refer to

African people with varying facial features which are all Blacks. This is

obvious when we look at the iconographic and sculptural evidence

used by Wiercinski (1972b) to support his conclusions.

Wiercinski (1972b) compared the physiognomy of the Olmecs to

corresponding examples of Olmec sculptures and bas-reliefs on the

stelas. For example, Wiercinski (1972b, p.160) makes it clear that the

clossal Olmec heads represent the Dongolan type. It is interesting to

note that the emperical frequencies of the Dongolan type at Tlatilco

is .231, this was more than twice as high as Wiercinski's theorectical

figure of .101, for the presence of Dongolans at Tlatilco.

The other possible African type found at Tlatilco and Cerro were the

Laponoid group. The Laponoid group represents the Austroloid-

Melanesian type of (Negro) Pacific Islander, not the Mongolian type. If

we add together the following percent of the Olmecs represented in

Table 2, by the Laponoid (21.2%), Equatorial (13.5), and Armenoid

(18.3) groups we can assume that at least 53 percent of the Olmecs at

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Tlatilco were Africans or Blacks. Using the same figures recorded in

Table 2 for Cerro,we observe that 40.8 percent of these Olmecs would

have been classified as Black if they lived in contemporary America.

Rossum (1996) has criticied the work of Dr. Wiercinski because he

found that not only blacks, but whites were also present in ancient

America. To support this view he (1) claims that Wiercinski was wrong

because he found that Negro/Black people lived in Shang China, and 2)

that he compared ancient skeletons to modern Old World people.

First, it was not surprising that Wiercinski found affinities between

African and ancient Chinese populations, because everyone knows that

many Negro/African /Oceanic skeletons (referred to as Loponoid by the

Polish school) have been found in ancient China see: Kwang-chih

Chang The Archaeology of ancient China (1976,1977, p.76,1987,

pp.64,68). These Blacks were spread throughout Kwangsi, Kwantung,

Szechwan, Yunnan and Pearl River delta.

Skeletons from Liu-Chiang and Dawenkou, early Neolithic sites

found in China, were also Negro. Moreover, the Dawenkou skeletons

show skull deformation and extraction of teeth customs, analogous to

customs among Blacks in Polynesia and Africa.

Secondly, Rossum argues that Wiercinski was wrong about Blacks in

ancient America because a comparison of modern native American

skeletal material and the ancient Olmec skeletal material indicate no

admixture. The study of Vargas and Rossum are flawed. They are

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flawed because the skeletal reference collection they used in their

comparison of Olmec skeletal remains and modern Amerindian

populations because the Mexicans have been mixing with African and

European populations since the 1500's. This has left many components

of these Old World people within and among Mexican Amerindians.

The iconography of the classic Olmec and Mayan civilization show no

correspondence in facial features. But many contemporary Maya and

other Amerind groups show African characteristics and DNA. Underhill,

et al (1996) found that the Mayan people have an African Y

chromosome. This would explain the "puffy" faces of contemporary

Amerinds, which are incongruent with the Mayan type associated with

classic Mayan sculptures and stelas.

Wiercinski on the otherhand, compared his SRC to an unmixed

European and African sample. This comparison avoided the use of

skeletal material that is clearly mixed with Africans and Europeans, in

much the same way as the Afro-American people he discussed in his

essay who have acquired "white" features since mixing with whites due

to the slave trade.

A. von Wuthenau (1980), and Wiercinski (1972b) highlight the

numerous art pieces depicting the African or Black variety which made

up the Olmec people. This re-anlysis of the Olmec skeletal meterial

from Tlatilco and Cerro, which correctly identifies Armenoid, Dongolan

and Loponoid as euphmisms for "Negro" make it clear that a

24

substantial number of the Olmecs were Blacks support the art

evidence and writing which point to an African origin for Olmec

civilization.

In conclusion,Polish physical anthropologist use many terms to

refer to the African type represented by Olmec skeletal remains

including Armenoid, Dongolan, Loponoid and Equatorial. The evidence

of African skeletons found at many Olmec sites, and their trading

partners from the Old World found by Dr. Andrzej Wiercinski prove the

cosmopolitan nature of Olmec society. This skeletal evidence explains

the discovery of many African tribes in Mexico and Central America

when Columbus discovered the Americas (de Quatrefages, 1836).

The skeletal material from Tlatilco and Cerro de las Mesas and

evidence that the Olmecs used an African writing to inscribe their

monuments and artifacts, make it clear that Africans were a

predominant part of the Olmec population. These Olmecs constructed

complex pyramids and large sculptured monuments weighing tons.

The Maya during the Pre-Classic period built pyramids over the Olmec

pyramids to disguise the Olmec origin of these pyramids.

The identification by Dr. Wiercinski of the ethnic origin of the Olmec

is the most important discovery of any scientists in relation to the

Olmec. Through Dr. Wercinski’s discovery that the Olmec may have

come from Africa, due to their biological association to Africans

25

suggested that the Olmec people probably spoke a language closely

related to an African language.

Chapter 2: The Olmec Language

The anthropological research by Wiercinski makes it clear that

many of the Olmecs were Africans. The fact that many Olmec

skeletons were identical to those of people presently living in Africa

suggested that the cognate language for the Olmecs might be found in

Africa.

A likely candidate for the Olmec language was the Mande group of

languages spoken over a wide area in Western Africa. This view was

supported by the linguistic evidence found by Wiener (1922) that

indicate a Mande/Manding substratum exist in many Amerindian

languages spoken in Mexico. Moreover, Wiener found startling

evidence of cognate Mande cultural items found in the Mayan and

Aztec languages. This cognation suggested that the speakers of these

languages formerly lived in intimate contact with people speaking

Mande languages.

Even though there is considerable linguistic evidence supporting

the view that the Olmec spoke a Mande language. Some researchers,

26

namely Justenson and Kaufman believe that the Olmec spoke a Mixe-

Zoque language, since members of this linguistic group live in the

Tuxtla mountain region, which was a center of Olmec civilization.

There are three problems with the Justenson and Kaufman

decipherments of

Epi-Olmec: 1) there is no clear evidence of Zoque speakers in Olmec

areas 3200

years ago, 2) there is no such thing as a "pre-Proto-Soquean/Zoquean

language,

3)there is an absence of a Zoque substratum in the Mayan languages.

Let’s examine the hypothesis of ,Justenson and Kaufman in their

1997 article claim that they read the Epi-Olmec inscriptions using "pre-

Proto-Zoquean". This is impossible ,a "Pre-Proto" language refers to the

internal reconstruction of vowel patterns, not entire words. Linguists

can reconstruct a pre-proto language , but this language is only related

to internal developments within the target language.

Secondly, Justenson and Kaufman base their claim of a Zoque

origin for the Olmec language on the presence of a few Zoque

speakers around mount Tuxtla. Justeson and Kaufman maintain that

the Olmec people spoke a

Otomanguean language. The Otomanguean family includes Zapotec,

Mixtec and Otomi to name a few. The hypothesis that the Olmec

spoke an Otomanguean language is not supported by the

27

contemporary spatial distribution of the languages spoken in the

Tabasco/Vera Cruz area.

Thomas Lee in R.J. Sharer and D. C. Grove (Eds.), Regional

Perspectives on the Olmecs, New York: Cambridge University Press

(1989, 223) noted that

"...closely Mixe, Zoque and Popoluca languages are spoken in

numerous villages

in a mixed manner having little or no apparent semblance of linguistic

or spatial unity. The general assumption made by the few

investigators who have considered the situation, is that the modern

linguistic pattern is a result of

the disruption of an Old homogeneous language group by more

powerful neighbors or invaders...."

If this linguistic evidence is correct, many of the languages in the

Otomanguean family are spoken by people who may have only

recently settled in

the Olmec heartland, and may not reflect the people that invented the

culture we

call Olmecs today. This view us supported by the Mixe-Zoque oral

tradition.

Lipp (1991) recorded the following Mixe tradition for the origins of

Mixe rituals: “The elders say that there was a people who possessed

considerable knowledge and science and that they could make children

28

sick by simply looking at them. At one time they came from a part of

Vera Cruz and took up residence here. However, they spoke a

different language. Clearly, they were also Mixe but their language

was much modified, and we did not understand the words they spoke.

In place of tum for 'one' we say tu"k, and in place of pagac,

'thirteen', we say mahktugi:k. But they taught [us] much culture,

teachings, and divination, knowledge of the movement of the earth,

sun, the movements of the air, winds, and water. All of this they

knew"(p.77).

This narrative is interesting because it suggest that a group of

strangers for Vera Cruz took culture and civilization to the Mixe. The

fact that the Olmec came from Vera Cruz leads us to assume that this

immigrant group may have been the Olmec people. If the Mixe

received their culture from the Olmecs, like the Maya, we can assume

that the Mixe were not the original Olmec as maintained by

Campbell (1999). Moreover the Mixe languages include many Malinke

loan words:

29

30

Finally, the Justenson and Kaufman hypothesis is not supported by

the

evidence for the origin of the Mayan term for writing. The Mayan term

for

writing is not related to Zoque.

Mayan tradition make it clear that they got writing from another

31

Meso-American group. Landa noted that the Yucatec Maya claimed

that they got

writing from a group of foreigners called Tutul Xiu from Nonoulco

(Tozzer,

1941). Xiu is not the name for the Zoque.

Brown has suggested that the Mayan term c'ib' diffused from the

Cholan and

Yucatecan Maya to the other Mayan speakers. This term is probably

not derived from Mixe-Zoque. If the Maya had got writing from the

Mixe-Zoque, the term for writing would Probably be found in a Mixe-

Zoque language. The research indicates that no word for writing exist

in this language. The absence of a Mixe-Zoque word for writing

indicates that the speakers of this language probably did not invent

the Olmec writing.

Chapter 3: The Olmec/Mande and Mayan Languages

32

Linguistic evidence is the most convicing data supporting a

Mande relationship with the Maya, and the Mande origin of Olmec

culture. The comparative method can helps us confirm or

disconfirm any relationship between the Mayan and Mande

languages.

The comparative method is used by linguists to determine the

relatedness of languages, and to reconstruct earlier language

states. The comparative linguist has two major goals (1) trace

the history of language families and reconstruct the mother

language of each family, and (2) determine the forces which

affect language. In general, comparative linguists are interested

in determining phonetic laws, analogy/ correspondence and loan

words.

Patterns of correspondence is the examination of terms

which show uniformity. This uniformity leads to the inference

that languages are related since conformity of terms in two or

more languages indicate they came from a common ancestor.

A basic objective of the comparative linguist is to isolate

words with common or similar meanings that have systematic

consonantal agreement with little regards for the location and/or

type of vowels. Consonantal agreement is the regular appearance

of consonants at certain locations in words having similar

33

meanings and representing similar speech sounds.

Linguistic resemblances denote a historical relationship.

This suggest that resemblances in fundamental vocabulary and

culture terms can help one reconstruct the culture of the

speakers of genetically related languages. We use historical

linguistic methods to document the history of a languge in both

vocabulary and grammar.

M. Swadesh in "The Language of the Archaeological Haustecs"

(1953), presented evidence that the Huastec and Maya languages

were separated by a new linguistic group around 3200. This is an

interesting date because it was around this time that we see the

rise of the Olmec.

I have proposed that the Olmec spoke a Mande language similar

to Malinke-Bambara. It stands to reason that if this hypothesis

is correct we will find evidence of this relationship in the

languages spoken by the Maya, because they adopted many aspects

of the Olmec culture according to practically all researchers

concerned with Mayan history.

The Olmec settled many early sites in the lands occupied by the Mayan

speaking people.

34

As a result the Mayan speaking people adopted many Olmec/Mande

terms. As a result we find numerous Mande words copied into the

Yucatec and Quiche Mayan languages.

Below we compare the Quiche and Malinke-Bambara languages. The

terms compared in this study come from the following sources:

Delafosse, Maurice.(1929). *La Langue Mandingue et ses

Dialectes (Malinke, Bambara, Dioula)*. Vol 1. Intro. Grammaire,

Lexique Francais Mandingue).Paris: Librarie. Orientaliste Paul

Geuthner

Campbell,Lyle.(1977). Quichean linguistic prehistory .Berkeley :

University of California Press.University of California publications in

linguistics. v. 81

Tedlock,Dennis.(1996). Popol Vuh. New York: A Touchstone Book.

The Mayan languages are spoken in an area from Yucatan and E

Chiapas in Mexico, into much of Guatemala and Belize, and W

Honduras. The Quiche language is a member of the Mayan family,

spoken in the western highlands of Guatemala. It is most closely

related to the Cakchiquel, Tzutujil, Sacapultee, and Sipacapa

languages of central Guatemala and more distantly related to

35

Pocomam, Pocomchí, Kekchí, and other languages of the Eastern

Mayan group .

I have also illustrated sound regularity in relation to Mayan

and Mande lexical items. In my post I noted that:

In Malinke-Bambara the word Ka and Kan means 'serpent, upon

high,and sky'. In Yucatec we find that can/kan and caan/kaan

means ' serpent and heaven'. The fact that both languages share

the same homophonic words , point to a formerly intimate contact

between the speakers of Mayan and Mande languages in ancient

times.

Often we find that Mande words beginning with /s/ , appear as

/c/ ,/x/ or /k/ in the Mayan languages. For example, Malinke Bambara,

the

word sa means 'sell, to buy and market'. This is related to Mayan

con 'to sell', and can 'serpent'. In Quiche we have ka:x 'sky' which

corresponds

to Mande sa / ka 'sky'. In Quiche many words beginning with /ch/

correspond to Mande words possessing an initial /k/, e.g.,

Quiche Malinke-Bambara

36

ch'ich' bird kono

achi man kye

chi>ic bite ki

chhix rock kaba

37

It is also interesting to note that many Quiche words beginning with /x/ which

is pronounced 'sh', correspond to Malinke-Bamabara words with an initial /s/

e.g.,

Quiche Malinke-Bambara

xab' rain sa

ixa? seed si

uxe root sulu, suru

Other Quiche and Mande cognates include:

Quiche Malinke-Bambara

saq'e daytime,sunlight sa 'heaven, sky'

k'i many kika

38

ja lineage, family ga, gba

ja water ji

q'aq fire ga-ndi

palo lake, sea ba, b'la

k'oto to carve, cut ka

k':um squash kula, kura

Ba father fa

Ba lord Ba 'great' (Person)

ka 'land,earth' ka 'suffix joined to names of

lands,etc.

ich eye n'ya

39

le the, that, this le

ma no ma

naal parent, mother na

ni point, at the point na

cah earth, land ka (see above)

balam jaguar/tiger balan 'leopard worship'

sib' smoke sisi

xolo:m head ku

xuku? boat, canoe kulu

ca<al neck ka

40

qul neck ka

k'u?sh chest kesu

k'o:x mask ku

pu:m stomach furu

pach bark fara

The Quiche and Malinke-Bambara cognates show the following patterns

a------->a c------->s

o------->u c------->k

u------->a z------->s

x s k------->k

41

x k p------->f

q------->k ch------>k

Below we compared Yucatec and Malinke-Bambara terms. I have

placed the page number where each Mayan term can be found in Maurice

Swadesh, Critina Alvarez and Juan R. Bastarrachea's, " Diccionario de

Elementos del Maya Yucatec Colonial" (Mexico: Universidad Nacional

Autonoma de Mexico Centro de Estudios Mayas, 1970). The Malinke-

Bambara terms come from

Delafosse, Maurice.(1929). *La Langue Mandingue et ses Dialectes

(Malinke, Bambara, Dioula)*. Vol 1. Intro. Grammaire, Lexique

Francais Mandingue).Paris: Librarie. Orientaliste Paul Geuthner.

Phonetic correspondences exists between the Malinke-Bambara

and Yucatec. There is full agreement between k, m,n, and t. There

is also assimilation of c to k, z to s.

Yucatec Malinke Bambara

42

z s

zuu, 'joined,unite su,' shape p.95

zul 'to wet' su, 'precipitation p.95

zou, 'to entagle' su, 'be i mixture' p.95

zay, 'assemble' se, 'join' p.94

c k

earth cab ka p.15

serpent can kan p.18

rock chhix kaba

to cause cal ku

43

sky caan ka p.15, p.38

village cah ka 'suffix joined to names of towns p.15

maize co 'grain of maize' ka p.40

k k

sun kin k'le p.58

buckle kal koli p.57

to kill kim ki

sky kan kan

44

god, sacre ku ku, ko p.60

t t

man ta' tye p.79

come tal ta p.79

to cover too tu

law toh tu

truth toh tu, 'fact, real' p.81

forest te tu

45

male ton,'male sexual organ' tye, khon p.81

saliva tub tu p.82

b b

went,gone bin bi p.36

water bak ba

water ha a p.15

lord ba ba

arrows been bine

balan 'jaguar'/tiger balan 'leopard worship' p.17

n n

46

mother na' na p.66

house nu nu

house na nu p.66

nose ni nu p.16

p p

to be pe pe

to break pa'a pe p.71

There are many Maya and Manding cognate kinship terms

including:

47

Maya English Manding

naal parent,mother na

ba father pa

ba lord ba

An examination of Mayan and Mande homophones also indicates

striking similarity. There is a connection between Malinke-

Bambara and Yucatec homonyms for 'high, sky and serpent'.

In Malinke-Bambara the word Ka and Kan means 'serpent, upon

high,and sky'. In Yucatec we find that can/kan and caan/kaan

means ' serpent and heaven'. The fact that both languages share

the same homophonic words , point to a formerly intimate contact

between the speakers of Mayan and Mande languages in ancient

times.

Often we find that Mande words beginning with /s/ , appear as

/c/ in the Mayan languages. For example, Malinke Bambara, the

word sa means 'sell, to buy and market'. This is related to Mayan

con 'to sell', and can 'serpent'. For example we have

48

Mayan Malinke-Bambara

can serpent sa

con to sell sa, san

caan heaven, sky sa

cah 'small village' so 'village, home'

The copying of Mande /s/ words into Mayan lexicons as /c/ words

are probably the result of phonological interference of Mayan /c/, which

influenced how Malinke-Bambara words were lexicalized by biligual Yucatec

speakers. Interference occurs when speakers carry features from their

first language over into a second language. Thus, we have Yucatec con49

'to sell', and Malinke-Bambara san 'to sell.

Phonetic correspondences exists between the Malinke-Bambara

and Yucatec. There is full agreement between k, m,n, and t. There

is also assimilation of c to k, z to s.

Yucatec Malinke Bambara

z s

zuu, 'joined,unite su,' shape p.95

zul 'to wet' su, 'precipitation p.95

zou, 'to entagle' su, 'be i mixture' p.95

zay, 'assemble' se, 'join' p.94

c k

earth cab ka p.15

serpent can kan p.18

rock chhix kaba

to cause cal ku

sky caan ka p.15, p.38

village cah ka 'suffix joined to

names of towns p.15

maize co 'grain of maize' ka p.40

k k

sun kin k'le p.58

buckle kal koli p.5750

to kill kim ki

sky kan kan

god, sacre ku ku, ko p.60

t t

man ta' tye p.79

come tal ta p.79

to cover too tu

law toh tu

truth toh tu, 'fact, real' p.81

forest te tu

male ton,'male sexual organ' tye, khon p.81

saliva tub tu p.82

b b

went,gone bin bi p.36

water bak ba

water ha a p.15

lord ba ba

arrows been bine

balam 'jaguar'/tiger balan 'leopard worship' p.17

n n

mother na' na p.6651

house nu nu

house na nu p.66

nose ni nu p.16

p p

to be pe pe

to break pa'a pe p.71

Phonetic correspondences exists between the Malinke-Bambara

Yucatec and Quiche. There is full agreement between k, m,n, and t. There

is also assimilation of c to k, z to s.

Yucatec, Quiche Malinke Bambara

zuu, 'joined,unite su,' shape

zul 'to wet' su, 'precipitation

zou, 'to entagle' su, 'be i mixture'

zay, 'assemble' se, 'join'

earth cab ka

serpent can kan

rock chhix kaba

to cause cal ku

sky caan ka

village cah ka 'suffix joined to

names of towns 52

maize co 'grain of maize' ka

sun kin k'le

buckle kal koli

to kill kim ki

sky kan kan

god, sacre ku ku, ko

k'oto 'to carve' ka 'to cut

squash k':um 'ayote' kula, kura

man ta' tye

to place ta ta

to cover too tu

law toh tu

truth toh tu, 'fact, real'

forest te tu

male ton,'male sexual organ' tye, khon

saliva tub tu

went,gone bin bi

water bak ba

water ha a 53

lord ba ba

arrows been binye

balam 'jaguar'/tiger balan 'leopard worship'

mother na' na

house nu nu

house na nu

nose ni nu

to be pe pe

to break pa'a pe

seed ixa? si

rain xab sa

head xolo:m ku

boat xuxu? kulu

neck ca<al ka

neck qul ka

chest k'u'sh kesu

rain ka:x sa, ka

mask k'o:x ku

water ja ji

stomach pu:m furu54

bark pach fara

rain cha'ac sa, san, sanji

bird ch'ich kono

man achi kye

bite chi>ic ki

no ma:n ma

smoke sib' sisi

you a a

I n'en, in ne, ni

you ech e

These cognates show the following patterns

a------->a c------->s

o------->u c------->k

u------->a z------->s

x s k------->k

x k p------->f

q------->k ch------>k

Many of the Mayan sites were first settled by the Olmec.

This is supported by the fact that the Mayan inscriptions from Palenque

claim that the first ruler of this city was the Olmec leader U-Kix-chan.

In addition, some Mayan kings were styled Kuk according to Mary Miller

55

and Karl Taube,in "The Gods and symbols of ancient Mexico and Maya, said

this

term was also used in the Olmec inscriptions, like those from Tuxtla, to

denote the local ruler of many Olmec sites. It was probably during this

period of contact that the Maya began to copy Mande terms and

incorporate them in their lexicon.

This comparison of Quiche and Yucatec to the Mande languages is a

valid way to illustrate the ancient relationship between the Pre-Classic Maya

and Mande speaking

Olmec. Archaeologist and epigraphers no longer believe that the Classic

Maya inscriptions were only written in Cholan Maya. Now scholars

recognize that many Mayan inscriptions written during the Classic

period were written in Yucatec and probably the language spoken in the area

where the Mayan inscriptions are found. See:

1. R. J. Sharer," Diversity and Continuity in Maya

civilization: Quirigua as a case study", in (Ed.) T. Patrick Culbert,

Classic Maya Political History,( New York:Cambridge University Press, 1996)

p. 187.

2. N. Hammond, "Inside the black box:defining Maya polity".

In (Ed.) T. Patrick Culbert, Classic Maya Political History,

( New York:Cambridge University Press, 1996) p.25456

3. J.S. Justeson, W. M. Norman, L. Campbell, & T.S. Kaufman, The

Foreign impact on Lowland Mayan languages ans Script. Middle American

Research Institute, Publication 53. New Orleans: Tulane University, 1985.

This would also explain why the Maya, according to Landa had Universities

where elites learned writing and other subjects. He noted that the Ahkin May

or Ahuacan May (High Priest) "...and his disciples appointed the priests for

the towns, examining them in their sciences and ceremonies...he provided

their books and sent them forth. They in turn attended to the service of the

temples, teaching their sciences and writing books upon them" (see: Friar

Diego de Landa, Yucatan before and After the Conquest, (trs.) by William

Gates, Dover Publications ,New York, 1978).

There is a clear prevalence of an African substratum for the origin of writing

among the Maya. All the experts agree that the Olmec people probably gave

writing to the Maya. Mayanist agree that the Brown (1991) found that the

Proto Maya term for "write" is *c'ihb' or *c'ib'. Since the Olmec people

probably spoke a Mande language, the Mayan term for writing would

probably correspond to the Mande term for writing. A comparison of these

terms confirmed this hypothesis. The Mayan term for writing *c'ib' or *c'ihb'

is derived from the Olmec/Manding term for writing *se'be'. The ancient

Mayans wrote their inscriptions in Chol, Yucatec and probably Quiche. 57

The Proto Olmec or Manding people formerly lived in North Africa in the

Saharan Highlands : and Fezzan.(see C. A. Winters, "The Migration routes of

the Proto Mande", The Mankind Quarterly 27(1), (1986) pp.77 98) . Here the

ancestors of the Olmecs left their oldest inscription written in the Manding

script (which some people call Libyco Berber, eventhough they can not be

read in Berber) : was found at Oued Mertoutek and dated by Wulsin in ,

Papers of the peabody Museum of American Arcaheology and Ethnology

(Vol.19(1), 1940), to 3000 B.C. This indicates that the Manding hand writing

2000 years before they settled the Gulf of Mexico.

These Proto-Olmec people lived in the Highlands of the Sahara. Here we

find numerous depictions of boats engraved in the rock formations that these

people used to navigate the Sahara before it became a desert.

The Olmec, another Central American culture and probably the first

Americans to develop a number and math system, influenced their Mayan

neighbors. Mayans borrowed much of their art and architecture from the

Olmecs, including the pyramid structures that the Mayans are so famous for.

The first of these great Mayan structures appeared between 400 B.C. and

150 A.D.

58

It is time that we stop the name calling and work together to explain

to the world the African presence in ancient America.

Many of these words are from the basic vocabulary. They support

the hypothesis that in ancient times Mayan speakers lived in intimate

contact with the Mande speaking Olmec people.

Moreover this is further confirmation of Leo Wiener's theory in

Africa and the Discovery of America that the religion and culture of the

Meso-Americans was influenced by Mande speaking people from West

Africa.

-

Chapter 4: The Olmec Phonology

The Olmec language is an agglutinative language. Words are

formed in Olmec by the addition of suffixes to Olmec morphemes.

Due to homophony of Olmec monosyllabic signs the same sign and

its word form can have multiple meanings. To understand Olmec

writing you must use the acrophonic principle to interpret the Olmec

logosyllabic signs.

The unit of the Olmec logosyllabary is consonant ( C) and vowel (V)

or CCV. Each symbol can have multiple meanings.

The Olmec consonant system is as follows

p t k kp

b d g gb

f s h

w r y

m n ŋ

The Olmec consonants have the following pronounciation

B boy p pure

D dog r ran

Gy jump s saw

F full t tip

G gull ŋ sing

K canvas

L log

M man

N note

In Olmec nasal consonants occur in initial position before another

sonsonant. For example, n’ is pronounced m before p and kb; n’ is

pronounced ŋ before k and g.

Pronouns

The are three pronouns in the Olmec inscriptions. They are :

n , I, me

I i , you, your

a , it, he; she

. In Olmec the pronoun is usually suffixed to the morpheme, but it

can also occur in the initial position. For example,

a

a ku yu

literal translation (Lit.) it leading tomb

“ It is a leading tomb”.

A ku po bu-mbo gyu

Lit. He Govenor pure gigantic spirit of

tranquility

“He is a Governor of gigantic purity the source of spiritual tranquility”.

A ku ni

Lit. He in possession principle of life

“He is in possession of the principle of life”.

A ku po

Lit. it stem pure

“It is a pure stem”.

A ta ni ngba i

Lit. it here soul home thou

“ It is here. (This) is the home of your soul”.

The most common pronoun in Olmec was the second person

pronoun –i .

The pronoun i, means thine, thou, you and your. For example,

Sè i

Lit. successful thou

“Thou art successful”.

Po i to/tu

Lit. pure your King

“Your pure King”.

I la gyo

Lit. thou firmly situation divinity

“Thou (art) firmly situated with the divinity”.

I po

Lit. Thou pure

I gyo pa

Lit. thou cult leader admiration

“Thou (art) a cult leader of admiration”

There is only one example of the first person pronoun n’, in the

Olmec inscriptions. This phrase is nde po tu ta , Lit. my union purity

rule sacred. The translation is “My union (with) purity and sacred rule”

or it could read “My union (with) purity (and) rule of the mystic order”.

Chapter 5: Olmec Nouns

There are three types of nouns in Olmec. These nouns represent

inanimate and animate objects and qualities held to be superior traits

for mankind.

Inanimate Nouns

Bi, custom (habit), times of narration

Bolo, vestibule

Da prize

fa, container, place spot,

proximity

fa, abundance, full,

plenitude; love

fo, salutations

ga , hearth, home

gbe, cleasing, sanctified

II gyo, amulet, talisman effective in providing one with virtue

Ka, family maison, family house

kè, to study, learn, read

ki, order, commandment, law, envoy on a mission, raising

star

O

Ta ki

“Sacred raising star”

kyu, tomb

la, good situation, apogee, foundation, gone to bed

la po tu

“The pure craftsman of the cult association”.

mè, understanding, judgment, comprehension;

skill

(n)de, uncultivated land, uncultivated land near a river

nga, glow

ngba, home

sa, air, heaven, end

, su, city, home, village, home, domicle,

village

, O ta, habitation, place

ta ku

“(This) place (is) tops”.

to, place of rest

tu, refuge, abode

yo / yu , large hemisphere tomb

yu to ta se

large hemisphere tomb place of rest here realize

“ Here to be realized the large hemisphere tomb as a place of rest”.

Animate nouns include the following terms.

Ba, powerful, spirit body

Bo, great, moral gradeur, to merit

II Gyo-se, descendant of the divinity, son of god

, Ku, head, Govenor

Kye, ‘man’

La, craftsman, artisan

Sa, excellency, lord

II Se gyo, supporter of the divinity

, Tu / to, King, head of government, law

Nouns of Quality

The are a number of Olmec nouns that describe a human quality or

state of existence. These nouns include the following:

Bu , state of retreat

Fe, desire, wish

Fa, possession

Gina, “to be endowed with mysterious faculties”

Gyu, spiritual tranquility

Ngbe, white, favorable

ni, principal of life

po, purity, righteous

se, clever, victorious, power

ta, sacred object, mystic order, propriety

yo, vital spirit, image of the race

Below are a number of quality nouns used in Olmec sentences.

1. , fe po kye

“The pure wish for order”

Chapter 6: The Olmec Adjectives and Adverbs

There are a number of adjectives in the Olmec language. The most

common Olmec adjectives include the following:

Ba, grand, great, strong, robust

Bo, to finish

Bu, ample, big, large;

Bu-mbo, size, bulk, bigness, gigantic

Da, grand (used to describe dignitaries, and elites)

Pè, vast, huge, immense

Po, pure, purity

Su, vigorous

, Ku, leading

In Olmec the adjective usually follows the noun or verb. Here we

have –ba, which is joined to nouns to denote the idea of greatness,

physical or moral, e.g., a kyè ba, “This man is great”. For example

let’s look at the adjectives: bu, and pè:

1. Tyu a ki bu

Lit. Tomb his laws ample

Trans. “His tomb (is) ample Law”.

2. Tu pe I pè

Lit. “ King prodigious is superior”.

Trans. “The prodigious king is superior”.

In many cases the pronoun usually follows the adjective in Olmec

sentences. The most common pronoun in Olmec is –a , ‘he, she, it’.

For example,

ba ku la

1. La ku ba

Lit. dormitory Governor large i

Trans. “The Governor’s large dormitory ”.

a ba ku la

La ku ba-a

Lit dormitory Governor large it

Trans. “The Governor’s dormitory (family burial site) it is large”.

In some cases the adjective is placed before the noun. This is

especially true in relation to the adjective pè , ‘extensive, vast, and

important’. For example,

1. Pè kyu

Lit. “Prodigious Tomb”.

2. Pè gyo a kye ba

Lit. important effective wonder making power he man/personage

considerable

Trans. “He is indeed an important personage (with) considerable

wonder making powers”.

3. Pè gyo po ni

Lit. vast talisman pure soul

Trans. “A vast talisman is the pure soul”

4. Po ka I se

Lit. pure family mansion your realized

Trans. “Your pure family mansion is realized (here)”.

Chapter 7: Adverbs

In Olmec there are five adverbs. Like the adjectives in Olmec the

adverb can be placed either at the beginning of a sentence or after a

noun or verb. For example,

a, ‘indeed’

1. a I pè gyu

Lit. indeed thou assumed source of spiritual tranquility

Trans. “Thou indeed (have) assumed the (posture) (of a) source (of)

spiritual tranquility”.

The term pè , ‘indeed’ is also an adverb. For example,

2. la pe ta pè

Lit. craftsman prodigious superior indeed

Trans. “The prodigious craftsman indeed, is superior”.

In addition to bè , representing the verb ‘to be’, it can also

represent the adverb ‘here’ and ‘very much’. For example,

3. Bè ni gyo

Lit. Here/ very much propriety talisman

Trans. “This talisman has very much propriety”.

Olmec adverbs da “ now, at this moment” and

bi, “, present, moment, and coincidence’ are frequently used . For

example,

4. yu po gbe bi

Lit. big hemisphere tomb sanctified at present

Trans. “The big hemisphere tomb at this moment is sanctified”.

5. da bu po I ki

Lit. at this moment in state of retreat purity thou an envoy on a

mission

Trans. “At this moment (you are) in a state of retreat, thou purity (is

like) an envoy on a mission (to spread good)”.

6. ta la da bo

Lit. sacred object craftsman grand moral grandeur

Trans. “Sacred object (of) the grand Craftsman of moral grandeur”.

Other Olmec adverbs include li ‘indeed’, ta ‘here, and ku

‘cleansing’. For example,

7. li gyo

Lit. “Indeed a specialist of the cult/religious order”.

8. lit u

Lit. “Indeed, the Ruler”.

9. ni lu nga ta

Lit. propriety much glow here

Trans. “Much propriety glows here”.

10. po mi ta

Lit. pure imbibitions here

Trans. “Here are pure imbibitions”.

11. su po ku i nu

Lit. offer libations pure cleansing thou habitation

Trans. “Offer pure cleansing libations in though habitation”.

Chapter 8: Olmec Articles

The article ‘the, this, etc.’, are usually not written in the Olmec

inscriptions. But there are to frequently used articles in Olmec

i ‘the, this’, and tu ‘this’. These articles are

usually suffixed to adjectives especially po ‘pure, purity’. For example,

1. gyo po

Lit. talisman effective in providing one with virtue pure

Trans. “pure talisman effective in providing one with virtue”

Gyo po-i

Lit. talisman effective in providing one with virtue pure this

Trans. “This pure talisman effective in providing one with virtue”.

2. fa po tu

Lit. container pure Law

Trans. “Container of the pure Law”

I fa po tu

Lit. this container pure law

Trans. “This container (of) the pure Law”.

Chapter 9: Olmec Sentence

The Olmec inscriptions provide us with several sentence patterns,

depending on the type of inscriptions. The terseness of the Olmec

inscriptions allowed considerable grammatical license in the

inscriptions.

The favorite sentence pattern of a language includes a subject (S),

verb (V) and object (O). The order of Olmec sentences vary, but the

usual sentence pattern is SVO. For example,

ni bè ta

1. ta bè ni

Lit. habitation very much propriety

Trans. “This habitation has very much propriety”.

su ta fa tu

2. tu fa ta su

Lit. abode possession partisan of the mystic order offer up libations

Trans. “This abode is in the possession of the partisan of the mystic

order, (here) offer up libations”.

3. su i su

Lit. domicile is honored as a libation

Trans. “This domicile is honored as a libation”.

4. tu yu ta i ngbe

Lit. king tomb sacred object is unblemished

Trans. “The king’s tomb is a sacre unblemished object”.

5. ki ku lu

Lit. the order to touch from a distance hold it upright

Trans. “(He) touches from a distance the order (of the cult), to hold it

upright”.

There are also some VSO sentences in Olmec. The VSO sentences

are usually short statements. For example,

1. tu gbe

Lit. cause to grow righteousness

2. da bo

Lit. arrange moral gradeur.

3. ta me

Lit. welcome understanding

Chapter 10: The Olmec Writing

The second source of evidence for the African origin of the Olmecs

comes from the writing of the Maya and Olmec people. As mentioned

earlier most experts believe that the Mayan writing system came from

the Olmecs (Soustelle, 1984). The evidence of African style writing

among the Olmecs is evidence for Old World influence in Mexico.

The Olmec people introduced writing to the New World. Many Meso-

American accept the possibility that the Olmecs were the first to 1)

invent a complex system of chronology; 2) a method of calculating

time; and 3) a hieroglyphic script which was later adopted by the

Izapan and Mayan civilizations (Soustelle, 1984). As a result, the Olmec

people left numerous inscriptions on monuments, celts and portable

artifacts that give us keen insight into the Olmec culture, religion and

politics.

Over a decade ago Winters (1979, 1997) deciphered the Olmec

writing and discovered that you could read the Olmec inscriptions

using the sound value of the Vai signs. The Olmecs spoke and aspect

of the Manding (Malinke-Bambara) language spoken in West Africa

(Winters, 1979, 1980, 1981,1984).

Scholars have long recognized that the Olmecs engraved many

symbols or signs on pottery, statuettes, batons/scepters, stelas and

bas reliefs that have been regarded as a possible form of writing (Coe,

1965; Gay ,1973; Popenoe and Hatch , 1971 ; Soustelle, 1984). These

experts accept the view that the system of dots and bars whether

associated with glyphs or not, found on Olmec artifacts probably

indicated their possession of a system of chronology (Soustelle, 1984).

As a result, we find that the Olmec monuments: Altar 7, of LaVenta;

Stela no.7 of LaVenta; Monument E at Tres Zapotes; Stela C of Tres

Zapotes; and the Tuxtla statuette are engraved with calendrical

information (Morell, 1991; Soustelle, 1984).

Although many Meso-Americanists accept the view that the Olmecs

possessed calendrical symbols controversy surrounds the presence of

writing among the Olmecs. Wiener (1922) and Lawrence (1961) have

maintained that the Olmec writing was identical to the Manding writing

used in Africa. Michael Coe and John Justeson (until recently), on the

otherhand believe that the Olmecs possessed a form of iconography

but not writing (Morell, 1991).

Many theories have been promoted in relation to the origin of

Olmec writing. Some researchers claim it may be related to the Oracle

bone writing of the ancient Chinese.

Michael Xu assistant professor of Chinese Studies at Texas

Christian University has proposed that the Olmec people may have

written in the Chinese language. He based his opinion on the alleged

similarity between the Olmec writing and the Shang writing.

The Chinese wrote their inscriptions on Oracle bones. These Oracle

bone inscriptions were written by the Shang people to divine the

This theory is fine except for the fact that the Olmec writing has

little affinity to the Shang writing. Moreover some of the alleged

similarities found by Dr. Xu do not relate to Shang witing at all. A

careful examination of the Shang table below and

the Oracle bone inscriptions clearly show that none of these signs are

identical to the Olmec writing found on the LaVenta celt as claimed by

Professor Xu.

A Cursory examination of the Shang signs depicted in table ____

clearly show that they do not match the alleged Shang signs identified

by Xu in his article. In fact, a comparison of the actual signs on the

LaVenta celt and the alleged "Shang" signs lack any agreement.

The view that Africans originated writing in America is not new.

Scholars early recognized the affinity between Amerindian scripts and

the Mande script(s).

By 1832, Rafinesque noted the similarities between the Mayan

glyphs and the Libyco-Berber writing. And Leo Wiener (1922, v.3), was

the first researcher to recognize the resemblance's between the

Manding writing and the symbols on the Tuxtla statuette. In addition,

Harold Lawrence (1962) noted that the "petroglyphic" inscriptions

found throughout much of the southern hemisphere compared

identically with the writing system of the Manding.

The Olmecs have left numerous symbols or signs inscribed on

pottery, statuettes, batons/scepters, stelas and bas-reliefs that have

been recognized as writing ( Soustelle, 1984; von Wuthenau, 1980;

Winters, 1979). The view that the Olmecs were the first Americans to

1) invent a complex system of chronology, 2) a method of calculating

time, and 3) a hieroglyphic script which was later adopted by Izapan

and Mayan civilizations, is now accepted by practically all Meso-

American specialist (Soustelle, 1984).

The Olmecs probably founded writing in the Mexico. Schele and

Freide (1990) have discussed the Olmec influence over the Maya. This

agreed with Brainerd and Sharer's, The ancient Maya (1983, p.65)

concept of colonial Olmec at Mayan sites. Moreover, this view is

supported by the appearance of jaguar stucco mask pyramids

(probably built by the Olmecs) under Mayan pyramids e.g., Cerros

Structure 5-C-2nd, Uxaxacatun pyramid and structure 5D-22 at Tikal.

This would conform to Schele and Freidel's belief that the monumental

structures of the Maya were derived from Olmec prototypes.

An Olmec origin for many PreClassic Maya sites, would explain the

cover-up of the jaguar stucco mask pyramids with classic Maya

pyramids at these sites. It would also explain Schele and Freidel's

(1990) claim that the first king of Palenque was the Olmec leader U-

Kix-chan; and that the ancient Maya adopted many Olmec social

institutions and Olmec symbolic imagery.

Over a decade ago I deciphered the Olmec writing and discovered

that you could read the Maya inscriptions using the sound value of the

Olmec signs--read in Yucatec. The Olmecs spoke and aspect of the

Manding (Malinke-Bambara) language spoken in West Africa (Winters,

1979, 1980, 1981,1984).

B. Stross (1973) mentions the Mayan tradition for a foreign origin of

Mayan writing. This idea is also confirmed by Mayan oral tradition

(Tozzer, 1941), and C.H. Brown (1991) who claimed that writing did not

exist among the Proto-Maya.

Terrence Kaufman has proposed that the Olmec spoke a Mexe-

Zoquean speech and therefore the authors of Olmec writing were

Mexe-Zoquean speakers. This view fails to match the epigraphic

evidence. The Olmec people spoke a Manding (Malinke-Bambara)

language and not Zoquean.

There is a clear African substratum for the origin of writing among the

Maya (Wiener, 1922). All the experts agree that the Olmec people gave the

Maya people writing (Schele & Freidel, 1990; Soustelle, 1984). Mayanist also

agree that the Proto-Maya term for writing was *c'ihb' or *c'ib'.

_____________________________________________________________Figure 1. Mayan

Terms for Writing

Yucatec c'i:b' Chorti c'ihb'a Mam c'i:b'at

Lacandon c'ib' Chol c'hb'an Teco c'i:b'a

Itza c'ib' Chontal c'ib' Ixil c'ib'

Mopan c'ib' Tzeltalan c'ib'

Proto-Term for write *c'ib'

The Mayan /c/ is often pronounced like the hard Spanish /c/ and has a /s/

sound. Brown (1991) argues that *c'ihb may be the ancient Mayan term for

writing but, it can not be Proto-Mayan because writing did not exist among

the Maya until 600 B.C. This was 1500 years after the break up of the Proto-

Maya (Brown, 1991).

Landa makes it clear that supports the linguistic evidence (Tozzer, 1941).

Landa noted that the Yucatec Maya claimed that they got writing from a

group of foreigners called Tutul Xiu from Nonoulco (Tozzer, 1941).

The Tutul Xi were probably Manding speaking Olmecs. The term Tutul

Xiu, can be translated using Manding as follows:

Tutul1, "Very good subjects of the Order".

Xiu2, "The Shi (/the race)".

"The Shis (who) are very good Subjects of the cult-Order".

The term Shi, is probably related to the Manding term Si, which was also

used as an ethnonym.

The Mayan term for writing is derived from the Manding term

*se'be. Below are the various terms for writing used by the Manding/Mande

people for writing.

_____________________________________________________________Figure

2.Manding Term for Writing

Malinke se'be Serere safe

Bambara se'be Susu se'be

Dioula se'we' Samo se'be

Sarakole safa W. Malinke safa

Proto-Term for writing *se'be , *safâ

_____________________________________________________________

Brown has suggested that the Mayan term c'ib' diffused from the Cholan

and Yucatecan Maya to the other Mayan speakers. This term is probably

derived from Manding *Se'be which is analogous to *c'ib'. This would explain

the identification of the Olmec or Xi/Shi people as Manding speakers.

1. This -l, in Tutu-l, is probably the suffix of augmentation.

2. The -u, element is the plural suffix for the Manding languages.

There are other Mayan terms that are derived from the Olmec language.

Below we provide lexical evidence of the affinity between Yucatec Maya and

Olmec-Manding:

MAYA Olmec-Manding

bak water, river ba

balan jaguar balam

ba lord ba

ku sacred, god ko

kan snake ka

ka earth, land ka

kaan sky, heaven ka

kan maize ka

na mother na

na, nu house nu

toh law te

ch'ul holy jo

ma great ma

pib hole in ground, underground pe, p

In summary , the Mayan term for writing was derived from the Olmec

people who introduced writing to the Maya when they met at Nonoulco.

These Manding speaking people came to Mexico in twelve waves of

immigrants around 1200 B.C.

Method of Decipherment

In 1979, I announced the decipherment of the Olmec writing (Winters,

1979). It is generally accepted that the decipherment of an unknown

language/script requires 1) bilingual texts and/or 2) knowledge of the

cognate language(s). It has long been felt by many Meso-Americanist that

the Olmec writing met non of these criteria because, no one knew exactly

what language was spoken by the Olmec that appear suddenly at San

Lorenzo and La Venta in Veracruz, around 1200 B.C.

This was a false analogy. There has been for over 50 years evidence that

the Olmec people probably wrote there inscriptions in the Manding language

and the Manding writing from North Africa called Libyco-Berber, was used to

write the Olmec language

To decipher an unknown script it is unnecessary to reconstruct the Proto-

language of the authors of the target script. In both the major decipherments

of ancient scripts, e.g., cuneiform and Egyptian, contemporary languages in

their synchronic states were used to gleam insight into the reading of dead

languages. No one can deny, that it was Champolion's knowledge of Coptic,

that led to his successful decipherment of Egyptian hieroglyphics.

The view that Africans originated writing in America is not new. Scholars

early recognized the affinity between Amerindian scripts and the Mande

script(s).

By 1832, Rafinesque noted the similarities between the Mayan glyphs and

the Libyco-Berber writing. And Leo Wiener (1922, v.3), was the first

researcher to recognize the resemblances between the Manding writing and

the symbols on the Tuxtla statuette. In addition, Harold Lawrence (1962)

noted that the "petroglyphic" inscriptions found throughout much of the

southern hemisphere compared identically with the writing system of the

Manding.

Rafinesque (1832) published an important paper on the Mayan writing

that helped in the decipherment of the Olmec Writing. In this paper he

discussed the fact that when the Mayan glyphs were broken down into their

constituent parts, they were analogous to the ancient Libyco-Berber writing .

The Libyco-Berber writing can not be read in either Berber or Taurag, even

though these people use an alphabetic script similar to the Libyco-Berber

script which is syllabic CV and CVC in structure.

This was an important article because it offered the possibility that the

Mayan signs could be read by comparing them to the Libyco-Berber symbols

(Rafineque, 1832). This was not a farfetched idea, because we know for a

fact that the cuneiform writing was used to write four different languages:

Sumerian, Hittite, Assyrian and Akkadian.

I was able to read the Libyco-Berber signs because they are analogous to

the Mande signs recorded by Delafosse (1899).

These Mande speakers, or the Si people , now centered in West Africa

and the Sahelian region formerly lived in an area where Libyco-Berber

inscriptions are found (Winters, 1983, 1986). Using the Manding languages I

have been able to decipher the Libyco-Berber inscriptions (Winters, 1983).

The second clue to the Manding origin of the Olmec writing was provided

by Leo Wiener in Africa and the Discovery of America (1922,v.3). Wiener

presented evidence that the High Civilizations of Mexico (Maya and Aztecs)

had acquired many of the cultural and religious traditions of the Malinke-

Bambara (Manding people) of West Africa. In volume 3, of Africa and the

Discovery of America, Wiener discussed the analogy between the glyphs on

the Tuxtla statuette and the Manding glyphs engraved on rocks in

Mandeland.

I was able to test the hypothesis of Rafinesque and Wiener through a

comparison of the signs inscribed on the Tuxtla statuette and the La Venta

celts ( Winters, 1979). Using the should values from the Manding symbols, to

read the La Venta celts I was able to decipher both the celts and other

Olmec inscriptions.

The Mande people often refer to themselves as Sye or Si 'black, race,

family, etc.'. The Si people appear to have been mentioned by the Maya

(Tozzer, 1941). Tozzer (1941) claimed that the Yucatec Maya said that the

Tutul Xiu (shiu), a group of foreigners from zuiva, in Nonoualoco territory

taught the Maya how to read and write. This term Xiu agrees with the name

Si, for the Manding people (also it should be noted that in the Manding

languages the plural number is formed by the suffix -u, -wu).

Progress in deciphering the Olmec writing has depended largely on a

knowledge of the Malinke-Bambara (Manding) languages and the Vai writing

system (Delofosse, 1899). This language is monosyllabic. The terms in the

Manding languages explain the characteristics of the Olmec civilization.

The Olmec inscriptions are primarily of three types 1) talismanic

inscriptions found on monuments, statuettes, vessels, masks, and celts; 2)

obituaries found on celts and other burial artifacts; and 3) signs on scepters

denoting political authority.

The Olmec script has two forms or stages : 1) syllabic and 2) hieroglyphic.

The syllabic script was employed in the Olmec writing found on the masks,

celts, statuettes and portable artifacts in general. The hieroglyphic script is

usually employed on bas-reliefs, stelas (i.e., Mojarra, and tomb wall writing.

The only exception to this rule for Olmec writing was the Tuxtla statuette.

Olmec was an agglutinative language. Olmec had mixed syntactic

constituents because of its use of affixes. The basic word order for Olmec

was subject (S), object (O), and vowel (V) in simple declarative sentences.

Due to the use of several prefixes in Olmec there are some VO sentences in

the corpus of Olmec inscriptions.

The Olmec script has 13 consonants:

k

g

d -d-

t

n

b -b-

f

p

m

y -y-

l

w

s

In the Olmec script the consonants k, m, and n, was often placed in front

of selected Olmec words, e.g., be : mbe, ngbe; and pe: Kpe. In these

instances the nasal consonant can be dropped, and the monosyllabic word

following the initial consonant element can be read , e.g., Kpe= pe '

spacious, pin down, flat lands, etc. Thusly, the appearance of CCV or CCCV

Olmec forms are the result of the addition of initial consonantal elements to

monosyllabic Olmec terms.

Chapter 11: Syllabic Writing

The famous inscribed celts of offering no.4 LaVenta, indicate both the

plain (Fig. 1) and cursive syllabic Olmec scripts (Fig. 2). In the cursive form of

the writing the individual syllabic signs are joined to one another, in the plain

Olmec writing the signs stand alone. The cursive Olmec script probably

evolved into Olmec hieroglyphics.

The inscriptions engraved on celts and batons are more rounded than the

script used on masks, statuettes and bas-reliefs. The pottery writing on the

Los Bocas and Tlatilco ware are also in a fine rounded style.

In this chapter we will use the inscribed celts found at La Venta in 1955,

at offering No.4, the inscribed jadeite celt from near El Sitio, and the Black

Stone Serpent Scepter of Cardenas, Tabasco as examples of the Olmec

writing. All the translations of Olmec artifacts are based on the Manding

dictionary of Delafosse (1921).

The celts of La Venta offering no.4, were discovered by Drucker in 1955.

These celts show both the plain and cursive forms of the Olmec script. These

inscribed celts were part of a collection of 16 figurines and jade and

serpentine found in offering no.4 (Soustelle, 1984).

In La Venta offering no.4, fifteen figurines were arranged around a central

figure. According to the inscriptions on the celts in this collection, the

personage buried in this tomb was Pè. The bold head of Pè suggest that he

was their cult leader.

A pit had been dug over the incised celts and figurines, a hole leading

from the earth's surface down to the burial cache suggest that this was used

for pouring libations on the figurines. This view is supported by the fact that

the inscriptions written in the plain Olmec syllabic style ( Fig. 1), mentions

the fact that Pè tomb was to act as a talisman or protective shrine for the

faithful.

The six celts found in La Venta offering no.4, were arranged in a semi-

circle. Four of the celts were engraved. The first and last celts in the semi-

circle were not engraved.

Moving from left to right two engraved jade celts when joined together

depict an Olmec priest wearing an elaborate headdress and holding what

appears to be a torch or baton in his hand. This figure probably represented

Pè. It is analogous to the figure engraved on a jade Breastplate (no. 13:583),

now located in the National Museum of Anthropology at Mexico City

( Wuthenau, 1980).

The first two celts probably were originally joined together and served as

a symbol of authority for the deceased priest while he was alive. The

breakage of this celt into two parts probably symbolized the withdrawal of

the priest's physical body, from the physical plane to the spiritual plane. The

placement in the tomb

of Pè's "celt of power" was meant to hold his spiritual power at the grave

site.

The third engraved celt at La Venta offering no.4, was engraved in the

cursive Olmec script (Fig. 2). In the text of the cursive script we find Pè's

obituary.

La Venta CeltsLa Venta Celts

Transliteration of Symbols on Figure 1

Fè fè mi pè po gbè

without breath void consumed Pè pure/holy below (in)

lu bè ma

the family habitation lay low the celebrity (the) Lord (in)

yu ka-pè ba ko

the big hemisphere tomb Ka-Pè the Great (in) the back of

se yu we

(to) possess for posterity the big hemisphere tomb Hence

ta lu ba i

this place the family habitation great/strong thine

gba kyè be po

fixed in the ground inheritance/estate here pure/holy

mbe be

lay low the celebrity lay low the celebrity.

Translation

" Without breath. Void. Consumed (lies) the Hole Pè, below the family

habitation. Lay low the celebrity, the Lord, in the hemisphere tomb. The

Great Ka-Pè, in the back of the big hemisphere tomb, possesses (this place)

for posterity. Thine inheritance (is) fixed in this ground. Here the pure

celebrity lays low. Lay low the celebrity".

Vocabulary

fè, v. to be void, empty, without breath

mi, v. consumed

Pè, proper name; v. spacious, pin down

po, adj. : superlative of white translated as holy, pure, the good

gbè, v. lay low, below; virtue

lu, family habitation

bè, v: lay low the celebrity

ma, it can be translated as "Great one" or "Lord"; it

can also be a suffix joined to a substantive or a verb

to show intensity.

yu, the big hemisphere tomb

Ka, a title given to Olmec elites

ba, adj.: great

ka, adv.: in the back of

se, possess (this place) for posterity

we, adv.: hence

ta, this place, place, here

lu, n.: the family habitation

ba, adj.: great

i, pronominal particle of the second person: thine, thou, you

gba, transitive v.: fixed in the ground

kyè, inheritance, estate

be, here

It is interesting to note that on this celt, after the use of the Olmec

term po, a /g/ or /m/ is prefixed to bè, to make this word into a CCV

term. Another interesting fact about this inscription is that

reduplication is used at the end, and beginning of this inscription to

denote emphasis.

The fourth engraved celt from left to right in La Venta offering no.4,

is written in the plain Olmec script (Fig. 1). This inscription declares

that the tomb of Pè is a talisman of great power.

Transliteration of Figure 1

Kyè gyo dè gbè

A man the leader of the cult indeed virtue

le gyo we mbè to

to be consecration hence here place of rest

he gyo

good talisman.

Translation

"The man (was) the leader of the cult. Indeed (a man of) virtue to be

an object of consecration. Hence here a place of rest (a) good talisman

(protective shrine for the faithful)".

Vocabulary

kyè, Man

gyo, one faithful to the cult/deity, object of consecration,

leader of the cult association; talisman, amulet

dè, suffix of determination or definite article; indeed

gbè, virtue, righteousness, etc.

le, verbal postposition: to be

we, adv.: therefore, hence

mbè, here

to, place of rest

he, adj.: good

Navarrete (1974) , has published two interesting engraved pieces.

They are scepters, the Black Stone Serpent Scepter (Fig.3) and, an

incised jadeite celt from El Sitio (Fig. 4).

The Black stone scepter from Cardenas, Tobasco ( Fig. 3) has only

two characters to/tu and bè. These characters indicate that this was

indeed a scepter and symbolized the sovereign's high office and

power. The signs tu bè can be interpreted as "Royalty rest here" or

"Scrupulous observer of the Law".

Chapter 12: Hieroglyphic Olmec Writing

There are two forms of Olmec hieroglyphic writing : the pure hieroglyphics ( or picture

signs); and the phonetic hieroglyphics. The phonetic hieroglyphics are a combination of

syllabic and logographic signs. Below is an Olmec sign from the Tuxtla statuette:

pe extensive,pit hole in ground

gyo(> jo) effective talisman, wonder

making power

a this, it

kye man

ba great

Translation " Extensive (and) effective wonder making power. This man is great".

To read hieroglyphic Olmec you have to break down the symbols into their phonetic

elements. This means that the hieroglyphs are made up of Olmec phonetic signs.

Figure 12: 1 Inscriptions from the Tuxtla Statuette

Above you can see how the Olmec signs when broken down into their constituent parts

represent Olmec syllabic symbols.

Most of the hieroglyphic Olmec signs are found on the Tuxtla statuette and the

Mojarra Stela. Below are some of the most frequent hieroglyphic signs from these

monuments.

Su Po ku i-nu , “Offer pure cleansing libations in thou habitation”.

Po ka , “Your pure family mansion ”.

a ta. ni ngba i, “It is here. This it the home of your soul”.

Pe to ta, “The abode of refuge (it) is thrust in the ground here”.

Pè gyo . A kyè ba, “He was (indeed) an important personage (with)

considerable and effective wonder making powers.

Po tu fa gyo, “This Holy Ruler possesses the spirit of the divinity”.

Fa po, “(He) is in possession of much purity”.

Po tu, “The pure habitation” or “(He) is the same as purity” or Po tu yo, “ The

pure refuge of the soul”..

Yu po gbe bi, “Henceforth, the big hemisphere tomb is pure righteousness”

or “The soul is sanctified and henceforth holy”.

Po bolo ni, “The pure vestibule of Propriety”.

So gap o tu ni, “Give libations at this pure hearth, a refuge of propriety”.

Po bè kpa lu. Tu ta yo, “ Lay low the celebrity with approval. This is a place

of refuge for the soul”.

I kyu, “Thou suddenness”.

Ni lu nga ta, “Much propriety glows here”.

Na Tutu, “To touch from a distance Tutu”.

Ku a ti ku to, “He is at the commencement of (re)birth”.

Tu to ta se, “The large hemisphere tomb is a place of rest to be realized

here”.

I la gyo, “Thou (art) firmly situated with the divinity”.

Te te “The very honest”.

Po Tutu, “The Holy Tutu”.

Yu i ta, “The big hemisphere tomb is thine”.

Tutu, name of personage referred to on the Tuxtla statuette.

“The abode of pure refuge”.

Po gbe, “Pure Righteousness”.

Da bu po i ki, “ At this moment (you are) in a state of retreat—puirty—

thou (art) an envoy on a mission”.

Bi ki gyo. A mbo. Da bè mbo gyo ni, “The great ancestor (he) works like a

talisman. Indeed (he is) like a raising star. At this moment (he) exist in parity to a

talisman”.

Yu yu. Po mi ta. Yu yu, “Offer pure libations (at) this large

hemisphere tomb”.

Tu ni. Tu ni, “Cause (here) the conferring of all his virtue to this

very good abode”.

Yo pe, “His vital spirit”.

Fe ki po mbo Po so, “The proximity to the pure law is coming out of

this pure abode”.

Ta ku. Tyu a ki bu, “This place is tops”, or “This tomb, it gives

messages/law/order”.

Tu po gbe ni, “This place of rest is pure righteousness”.

, su, “offer up libations….”

Po mi ta, “This pure place of imbibition”.

Po tu ni , “Place of pure propriety”.

Po nub a-na a pè mbo na bè kye ba nu ni , “His pure soul brings strength.

He has assumed the equivalence (to be s divinity). The summit of purity has refuge here.

(Here) very much propriety”.

A po mbo kyu Yu yu, “This tomb is as pure as the celebrity inside the

tomb”.

Po bè ta, “Exist in a pure unique state”, 1) “Lay low the pure

celebrity alone”, 2) “Lay low the pure celebrity to sleep”, 3) “Lay low the pure celebrity

in a good situation”.

“To realize no vice (at) this habitation”.

A ku po bu mbo gyu, “He is a Governor of gigantic purity, the source

of spiritual tranquility” or “He is a pure stem. [He] give(s) a blow to crush evil”.

A Ku ni. Pe gyo po ni, “A vast talisman to confer the fruit of

conception”, 2) “He is the summit of the manifestation of life”, 3) A vast talisman is [his]

Ni, he is the summit of the pure Ni.

Bè ta mè,“Exist in a unique state of spiritual tranquility”.

Ki ku lu , “[He will] touch from a distance the Order, to hold it upright”.

Tu ni nit u, “Cause (here) the conferring of all his virtue to this very

abode”.

Be fo i, “ Thou gives salutations (here) [to the celebrity laid low]”.

The phonetic hieroglyphic Olmec signs do not stand for one word, these signs are

Olmec compound symbols organized to make a picture. There are two types of Olmec

compound-signs: subordinate and synthetic.

In the subordinate compound signs we see the combining of two or more Olmec base

signs or roots representing a noun and a verb. Examples of this compound type are found

in the El Sitio celt and the Tuxtla statuette. Below we find examples of the subordinate

Olmec compound signs:

Pè to ta

"The abode of refuge (it) is thrust in the ground".

Pè gyo. A kyè ba

"Extensive (and) effective wonder working

power. This man (is) great".

A ku po bu mbo gyu

"It is a pure stem; give a blow to

crush evil".

Figure 12:2 El Sitio Celt

The characters written on the incised jadeite celt from El Sitio , Mexico was

written in the hieroglyphic script (Fig. 12:2). This hieroglyphic writing represents

compound syllabic Olmec characters in an ornate style, which probably evolved into the

Mayan and Izapan hieroglyphic scripts. This ornate style of writing usually has two or

more syllabic signs joined together as illustrated in Figure 12:2.

Transliteration of El Sitio Inscriptions

Po ta tu bè ta

Purity here take refuge Bè sacred object/solitary

tu to ta tu i

Ruler sequestered here place of rest thou/you

fè bè gbè po

in the company unite the pure purity

po gba ta pè ta

purity plant propriety to spread over this place

se ta a ta

to possess for posterity sacred object he this place

ma tu

ancestor/lord rest.

Translation

"Purity, take refuge here. Bè is here. The Ruler is sequestered (he who was righteous).

Here is (his) place of rest. You are in the company (of the Deity). Unite with the purest of

the Pure. Plant purity and propriety to spread over this place (and) to possess for

posterity. He (is ) a sacred object. This place the Lord rest".

Vocabulary

po, purity

ta, here, this place; place of rest, rest; Partisan, supporter;

propriety; to be sacred, sacred object, mystic order;

tu, Ruler, King; take refuge

bè, name; to be, exist; unite

to, sequestered

i, pronominal article, 2nd person, you, thou, thine

fè, in the company

gbè, pure, virtuous, righteous

po, purity, pure, the good

gba, to plant

pè, spacious, pin down; spread over

se, v. to lead; to be in possession for posterity

a, pronominal article, 3rd person, he, she, it

ma, Lord, ancestor

The synthetic Olmec compound signs represent a compound expression. These signs

reflect a complete sentence. In the synthetic compound we have VO type sentence as

opposed to the SOV type sentence associated with Olmec subordinate compound signs.

Below are several examples:

Bè ta mè

"Exist in a unique state of comprehension". Or

Bè ta gyu

"Exist in a unique state of spiritual

tranquility".

ki ku lu

" Send away the personal character". or

"Send away the personality to the family

habitation".

Po be ta

Purity exist here. or

Be ta

(1) Lay low the celebrity alone

(2) " " " " in a good situation

(3) “”””””””” " " " " to sleep

(4) " " " " a sacred object

Olmec hieroglyphic signs also appear on the jaguar stucco pyramids and inside the

Preclassic tombs discovered under them. The Olmec hieroglyphic signs are seen in the

panels of the first temple of Cerros, Structure 5C (Schele & Freidel, 1990).

There are two panels at the Cerros pyramid the Eveningstar panel and the Morningstar

panel. On the top of the head of the Evening-star jaguar and the morning star jaguar

stucco mask at cerros we have the Olmec sign of lineage bi. In Olmec bi,

means 'today, present, moment, lineage'. But the symbols on either side of the

Eveningstar and morning star panel are different.

Some of the earliest Mayan pyramids, like the ones at Cerros and Tikal are built over

earlier pyramids which may have been built by the Olmec. One of the most interesting

artifacts from the Tikal pyramid is the greenstone pectoral.

Figure 12:3 Greenstone Pectoral mask

The headband glyph found greenstone pectoral from Tikal, and in

the Tuxtla statuette inscription is very interesting. The headband glyph includes three

Olmec signs Bi , Ta , Po . As a result from right to left we

read the following signs on the headband of this dignitary from Tikal: Po Bi ta. Po ta ,

or "Pure lineage and Propriety. Pure Propriety".

The decipherment of the Olmec writing indicates that the common people visited the

Cerros pyramid and other burial sites to offer libations, and obtain blessings from the

personages buried therein. To denote the divine status of many temples the Preclassic

Maya-Olmec folk left inscriptions with the Su ba Su glyph. in the following

figure, we have five examples of the Su ba Su or Tu Su ba Su sign from 1) Tuxtla

statuette, 2) Cerros, 3) Rio Azul and 4) Tikal.

The translation of these signs are below:

1. Su su, "Offer up Many libations".

2. Su ba Su, "Offer libations to this unique Ba.(Headdress glyph:

Ga po bi ta po ga, "The habitation is pure, the great ancestor/or

lineage has propriety, (indeed) a pure habitation" (after this sign we see the Su

ba su sign repeated.)

3. Pe Se su ba su, "Pe to realize in this house the offering of

libations (for) his Ba, offer libations"

4. Se tu ni Se, "To realize this very good abode--merit

be fo li, Lay low (the celebrity) cause (him to) rest

(herein) indeed.

Su ba su, Give libations (for) the Ba, offer the libations.

5. Yo kele nde. Pa fe yo. Su ba kele su. The vital spirit is unique indeed.

Very much admiration the desire of this spirit. Give libations (for) this

unique Ba! Give libations.

Other Olmec signs at Cerros include:

Tu fa ta su sign.

This sign is made up of

tu

fa

ta

su

It means in Olmec"This abode possessed by the Partisan (of the Mystic order) offer

libations". This sign is related to other Olmec symbolism from sites in Mayaland

including Kaminaljuyu and Izapa. The signs from these sites is formed by three signs.

The sign is formed by the following signs:

tu

fa

be

It means "This abode the possession of a celebrity laid low (here).

An understanding of the Olmec writing allows us to read the obituary in chamber

burial 48 of Tikal, Structure 5D-33-2nd; and the Rio Azul inscription. An examination of

these inscriptions will show that the glyphs on lines 1,2,3, and 8(a) agree with similar

signs on the Tikal inscriptions.

Rio Azul Inscriptions

Figure 12:3 Rio Azul Inscriptions

Figure 12:4 Breakdown of Rio Azul Inscriptions into their

syllabic parts.

Figure 12:5 Bilingual Mayan Olmec Inscription

In the Figure 12:5 , we illustrate how you can read Mayan inscriptions using the

phonetic approach, based on interpreting the sound value based on the Olmec-Manding

sign, but read in the Yucatec language.

Figure 12:6 Ahau sign from Copan and Calmalcalco

The sign ah po or ahau, is a good example of the use of Olmec symbols to write

Mayan words. this sign which Schele and Freidel interpret as: is made up of three Olmec

signs Tu tu and po. In Olmec these signs mean Tu tu "the ruler that rules" and Po 'pure',

i.e., 'Pure ruler that rules'.

In conclusion, the Olmec people had both a syllabic and hieroglyphic script. The

terms in this writing are monosyllabic and each term may have multiple meanings. The

Olmec terms have been interpreted using the Manding lexical items recorded by

Delafosse, in La Langue Mandigue et ses dialectes.

The Olmec inscriptions on portable items such as incised celts and scepters were

sacred relics, containing the obituaries of great rulers, talismanic messages, or symbols of

authority. These inscriptions indicate that the Olmec or Xi people were very religious and

that the tombs and graves of Xi dignitaries served both as a talisman, and shrine for the

common people.

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