Over many centuries native Maya people migrated northward from Guatemala where they had created their first settlements as early as 900 BC.
By 550 AD they had established major cities in the southern area of the Yucatan Peninsula. Some of the ruins of the Ruta Puuc Route that
surround Santa Elena date as far back as 600 A.D. The village of Santa Elena itself was settled by a combination of Maya, Mestizo, and
Spaniards and was originally called Nohcacab. The sanctuary portion of Santa Elena's Catholic fortress church was constructed in the 1500's,
atop an imposing mound of pre-Columbian origin, as a primitive chapel for the native Mayas who were also known as Indios. It is believed that
at one time the village's population was as high as 27,000.
Santa Elena is the village where John Lloyd Stephens and Frederick Catherwood brought to world attention the names and the splendor of the
ancient Maya cities of Uxmal, Kabah, Sayil, and Labnah, and the famous cave illustrations of Xtakumbixunaam with its steep descending wooden
ladder. Stephens and Catherwood were here before the Caste Wars broke out in 1847, so they saw the way the people were living before the
long 50+ year bloody rebellion on the peninsula. Using the village as a base and staying in the convent part of our Catholic church, they
explored the surrounding area, writing about and illustrating the various ruins and caves as they rediscovered them, first in 1839 and later in
1841. They also detailed village life and customs as they saw and experienced them. Many of our village traditions, from dances to religious
processions and foods, have changed little since then.
There is a well in the village square in the center of Santa Elena. This is not actually a well, but a tunnel-like entrance down which you
descend. The people say the tunnel went all the way to Mani, about 40 kilometers away, and that the Maya used it to escape the Spaniards
during the Caste Wars.
In 1865, 213 German speaking people, (men, women, and children), from the area of Hamburg, were brought specifically to the village of
Nohcacab. This was a project of foreign colonization promoted during the reign of Emperor Maximillian of Hapsburg with the governing body of
the state of Yucatan. The majority of these people were farmers and craftsmen: wheelwrights, shoemakers, cabinet makers, etc. The German
names that remain today are Holtz and Ditrich, among others, and there are still some descendants of those European immigrants that formed
relationships among the village inhabitants. Very little survived of their influence, at least that is known. No strudel, no wiener schnitzel, just
some old photos. There are stories of a fiery liquor called Schnapps, so maybe something remained. But take a look at the interior of our huge
Catholic church some time, and ask yourself why it is so different, painted in an almost whimsical manner - much like Northern
German/Scandinavian tole painting. Perhaps something besides the memory of Schnapps did remain. I have seen nothing else like this
painting anywhere else on the peninsula.
During the Caste Wars, native Mayans fled from Nohcacab to escape the Spaniards by seeking refuge in the nearby hills. The village was
burned during the war. Upon returning and seeing the condition of their village, the native Mayans were said to have exclaimed "elelnaj"; (the j
pronounced like an h, making the word sound like Elena) which means "burned house" in Mayan. In the late 1800's a petition was granted to
change the village's name to Santa Elena.
In August of 1980, while remodeling the tile floor of the church, 12 coffins were discovered containing the mummified corpses of infants and
young children of the German settlers. Each of the bodies still retain their hair, nails, eyelashes, and skin, plus various clothing affects. These
date to the 19th century. Some of these mummies are on display in the museum located adjacent to the church, the same place that Stephens
and Catherwood stayed.
Of the original German immigrants, nothing remains except a few distant descendants - blue eyes, lighter hair. They were not prepared for life
here. Not in clothing, climate, crops that could be raised, nor skills that could be used. On top of that, they hit the Caste War years. Tropical
infections would have taken a stiff toll also. The few that remained dispersed to various parts of the peninsula, leaving the village once again to
the Mayas. Today, the village population is about 4,000 people.
The Mayas, their language and customs, are alive and well here today. Mayan customs still being performed in the village today. You can read
about our lively annual celebrations in honor of our village Saints in our story on El K'ooche.
Kristine,
Flycatcher Inn Boutique Hotel, Santa Elena
10 minutes southeast of Uxmal in Yucatan, Mexico
By 550 AD they had established major cities in the southern area of the Yucatan Peninsula. Some of the ruins of the Ruta Puuc Route that
surround Santa Elena date as far back as 600 A.D. The village of Santa Elena itself was settled by a combination of Maya, Mestizo, and
Spaniards and was originally called Nohcacab. The sanctuary portion of Santa Elena's Catholic fortress church was constructed in the 1500's,
atop an imposing mound of pre-Columbian origin, as a primitive chapel for the native Mayas who were also known as Indios. It is believed that
at one time the village's population was as high as 27,000.
Santa Elena is the village where John Lloyd Stephens and Frederick Catherwood brought to world attention the names and the splendor of the
ancient Maya cities of Uxmal, Kabah, Sayil, and Labnah, and the famous cave illustrations of Xtakumbixunaam with its steep descending wooden
ladder. Stephens and Catherwood were here before the Caste Wars broke out in 1847, so they saw the way the people were living before the
long 50+ year bloody rebellion on the peninsula. Using the village as a base and staying in the convent part of our Catholic church, they
explored the surrounding area, writing about and illustrating the various ruins and caves as they rediscovered them, first in 1839 and later in
1841. They also detailed village life and customs as they saw and experienced them. Many of our village traditions, from dances to religious
processions and foods, have changed little since then.
There is a well in the village square in the center of Santa Elena. This is not actually a well, but a tunnel-like entrance down which you
descend. The people say the tunnel went all the way to Mani, about 40 kilometers away, and that the Maya used it to escape the Spaniards
during the Caste Wars.
In 1865, 213 German speaking people, (men, women, and children), from the area of Hamburg, were brought specifically to the village of
Nohcacab. This was a project of foreign colonization promoted during the reign of Emperor Maximillian of Hapsburg with the governing body of
the state of Yucatan. The majority of these people were farmers and craftsmen: wheelwrights, shoemakers, cabinet makers, etc. The German
names that remain today are Holtz and Ditrich, among others, and there are still some descendants of those European immigrants that formed
relationships among the village inhabitants. Very little survived of their influence, at least that is known. No strudel, no wiener schnitzel, just
some old photos. There are stories of a fiery liquor called Schnapps, so maybe something remained. But take a look at the interior of our huge
Catholic church some time, and ask yourself why it is so different, painted in an almost whimsical manner - much like Northern
German/Scandinavian tole painting. Perhaps something besides the memory of Schnapps did remain. I have seen nothing else like this
painting anywhere else on the peninsula.
During the Caste Wars, native Mayans fled from Nohcacab to escape the Spaniards by seeking refuge in the nearby hills. The village was
burned during the war. Upon returning and seeing the condition of their village, the native Mayans were said to have exclaimed "elelnaj"; (the j
pronounced like an h, making the word sound like Elena) which means "burned house" in Mayan. In the late 1800's a petition was granted to
change the village's name to Santa Elena.
In August of 1980, while remodeling the tile floor of the church, 12 coffins were discovered containing the mummified corpses of infants and
young children of the German settlers. Each of the bodies still retain their hair, nails, eyelashes, and skin, plus various clothing affects. These
date to the 19th century. Some of these mummies are on display in the museum located adjacent to the church, the same place that Stephens
and Catherwood stayed.
Of the original German immigrants, nothing remains except a few distant descendants - blue eyes, lighter hair. They were not prepared for life
here. Not in clothing, climate, crops that could be raised, nor skills that could be used. On top of that, they hit the Caste War years. Tropical
infections would have taken a stiff toll also. The few that remained dispersed to various parts of the peninsula, leaving the village once again to
the Mayas. Today, the village population is about 4,000 people.
The Mayas, their language and customs, are alive and well here today. Mayan customs still being performed in the village today. You can read
about our lively annual celebrations in honor of our village Saints in our story on El K'ooche.
Kristine,
Flycatcher Inn Boutique Hotel, Santa Elena
10 minutes southeast of Uxmal in Yucatan, Mexico
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| Explore Santa Elena And Learn Of Our Proud Village History |
| View of Santa Elena from the church roof. |
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| The Flycatcher Inn |
| A Yucatan B&B Bed & Breakfast Boutique Hotel Inn Accommodation |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |
