UNC symposium provides perspective on Maya culture

UNC is hosting a symposium today and Friday on Maya culture — just in time for the Dec. 21 end of the world.

But Maya cultural experts who will be speaking at the event suggest otherwise.

One of the goals of the symposium is to put the Maya calendar, which has been interpreted to project the end of the world in 2012, into perspective.

The symposium, called “13 Bak’tun: New Maya Perspectives in 2012,” will feature a series of exhibits, lectures, and readings from UNC faculty and speakers. The on-campus events are free and open to the public.

Claudia Funke, curator of the rare books collection at Wilson Library, said the symposium will focus on exploring the contemporary Maya voice.

“Beginning in the 1960s, Maya people started writing poetry, literature, memoirs, and history, and there is now a Maya cultural renaissance following many years of oppression,” she said.

Exhibits will be on display at the FedEx Global Education Center and the Wilson Library.

They will feature images, textiles, and rare books contributed by George Stuart, a UNC alumnus and former National Geographic archaeologist with an extensive background in Maya studies.

UNC is no stranger to Maya culture. It houses the Yucatec Maya Summer Institute, and several University professors are experts in the field.

UNC anthropology professor Patricia McAnany will host a talk on Friday entitled “Cycles of Time and Classic Maya Royal Dynasties,” which is in conjunction with one of her classes, Anthropology 232: Ancestral Maya Civilizations.

The talk will focus on the origins of the Maya calendar, how it was used in the past, and whether people should be worried with the coming end of its cycle.

Sophomore Julie Brown, who is a student in McAnany’s class, said she is excited to be involved.

“It’s interesting to get the cultural and historical background of what exactly is supposed to happen,” she said.

McAnany said while many universities hold similar symposiums, this one is unique since it will feature commentary from people of Maya descent.

“One of the ways in which this event is singular and distinctive is that it brings together Maya poets, Maya leaders, and Maya intellectuals to talk about 2012 and what it means and what it doesn’t mean to Mayans themselves,” McAnany said.

The symposium will kick off with Victor Montejo, the keynote speaker, at 5:30 p.m. today at Wilson Library.

Participants from across the world, including Belize, Guatemala and Mexico, will give their perspectives at the event.

“I think at UNC, (globalism) means understanding other cultures and expanding ways of thinking by expanding on other people’s thoughts,” Funke said.

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