Isla Mujeres: The great influence of women in this destination throughout history

Today we commemorate International Women’s Day, and since this beautiful Caribbean island is closely related to female representation, we will share some interesting facts about its history and culture.

History

Since pre-Hispanic times, Isla Mujeres was designated by the Mayans as the sanctuary of the Goddess Ixchel, an important deity that symbolized fertility, the moon and the rainbow.

There was no stable population that inhabited the island; It was destined exclusively for her veneration, for which they built a temple in the southernmost part and organized pilgrimages for her from the shores of Nizuc (today Cancún) that women had to undertake when making their transition from girl to woman. As part of the rites that included these visits, they left statues in the form of women to the goddess Ixchel. Many years later, when the Spanish conquerors arrived on its shores, they found these statuettes and decided to name them as they are known to date.

The passing of time

Due to the Caste War that occurred in Yucatan in 1847, many families fled to islands such as Holbox, Cozumel and Isla Mujeres to seek refuge. They survived thanks to fishing, which over the years became their main economic activity. As in many other parts of Mexico and the world, the main role of women in society consisted of being mothers and wives, carrying out household activities and having little to do with other tasks.

Present

Today Isla Mujeres is home to approximately 23,000 inhabitants, composed by locals and foreigners from numerous countries who are mainly dedicated to tourism. Women were integrated as very active workers in different areas, ranging from entrepreneurs who own hotels, bars, restaurants and shops to workers who are part of numerous companies; and they even occupy important government positions, the best example being the president municipal Atenea Gómez Ricalde, elected in 2021.

Kay Apartments

In addition to the aforementioned, we are very proud to share with you that Kay’s team is composed largely by women, starting with myself, the author of this article, and even the owner, Kasie Dobbs, an entrepreneur originally from Canada with over 20 years living in Mexico. Thank you so much for reading us. Happy International Women’s Day.