International Social Science Journal (Chinese Edition)

No.1, 2026

From Indianism to Southern Anthropology: The Epistemic Shift in Mexican Anthropology

(Abstract)

Zhang Qingren

Originating from colonial governance practices over diverse populations, Mexican anthropology has taken indigenous populations as its core research subject since its inception. The discipline emerged through the processes of the perception, categorization, and management of social differences, thereby generating a structural tension of internal colonialism. Following the Mexican Revolution in the early 20th century, nation-state building became a central issue, and anthropology was embedded within the national governance system. In the 1960s, changes in domestic and international circumstances prompted profound reflection on the knowledge–power relations within the anthropological community. After the end of the Cold War, Mexican anthropology began to reflect on its “peripheral” position within the global knowledge system and put forward the proposition of “Southern anthropology.” The indigenization of Mexican anthropology does not entail a disengagement from international academic dialogue; rather, it represents an ongoing practice of knowledge translation grounded in engagement with reality. Its development consistently maintains a critical tension between national logic, global academic evaluation systems, and market mechanisms. In anthropological research, the continued dominance of Western discourse and the interferences of capital, etc., remain a persistent challenge to the theoretical independence and indigenization construction of Mexican anthropology.