Cognitive Mapping of a Folk Taxonomy of Mexican Pottery: A Multivariate Approach

A folk taxonomy of cooking pottery from Puebla, Mexico, is derived from potters, according to a method described here. Making no assumptions about the taxonomy, the potters' raw data are subjected to a multivariate analysis. The resulting cognitive mapping reveals an inherent structure that can be interpreted in two dimensions, and attributed to two factors: open/closed pottery types, and multiple/nonmultiple ears. These factors are found to be analogous to important cultural categories in the society, upon which people organize their thinking and behavior. Multivariate analysis manifests the system underlying the folk taxonomy, and provides a check on the ethnographer. [folk taxonomy; multivariate analysis; pottery: Puebla, Mexico]