Salvador Alfredo Alvarez Suarez

Salvador Alfredo Alvarez Suarez is a social anthropologist at ENAH in Mexico and holds a PhD in History and Civilizations (EHESS). He specializes in European expansion in the New World and the agrarian history of northern Mexico (16th–20th centuries). His research also focuses on historical cartography and long-term territorial dynamics.

The project

Title: What form of agrarian modernity is possible today in northern Mexico?

"This study offers a reflection on agrarian modernity in northern Mexico. It examines the historical, social, and environmental processes that have shaped this territory from Spanish colonisation to the twentieth century, challenging the traditional view of the northern Mexican latifundium, often considered marginal and unproductive. After the conquest of densely populated regions, the Spanish turned to the north, an arid and sparsely inhabited area. Faced with resistance from Indigenous peoples and scarce resources, the settlers had to seek self-sufficiency. The introduction of European cattle, which multiplied rapidly in an environment without natural predators, profoundly transformed the landscape and facilitated the colonists’ adaptation. The first settlements were established near rivers and ciénegas, taking advantage of the best pastures for livestock.

Haciendas became the dominant unit of production and ownership, combining agriculture with extensive livestock rearing. Technical progress focused on adapting to the environment, water management, and cattle husbandry, while intensive agricultural productivity remained secondary. The system of "ancient" flood irrigation characterised the large haciendas: river water was distributed through acequias to create wet pastures in the ciénegas, essential for livestock. Herd management relied on ancestral techniques, with vaqueros playing a central role in controlling the animals.

Haciendas functioned as true territorial estates, controlling key resources: water, agricultural land, pastures, and large herds of cattle. This study thus illuminates the complexity of northern Mexican agrarian modernity and offers a renewed reading of the latifundium, emphasising the interaction between environmental adaptation, agricultural techniques, and social organisation."

Hosting Institution: École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales (EHESS)

Selective Bibliography

• Salvador Alvarez et Alejandro Tortolero, "Expansion de la propriété foncière, conflit rural et réforme agraire au Mexique (1856-1940)" dans: Pablo Luna & Niccolo Mignemi (dir.), Prédateurs et résistants. Appropriation et réappropriation de la terre et des ressources naturelles (16è-20e siècles), Paris, Editions Syllepse, 2016
• Salvador Alvarez, "La estructura básica de una forma de dominio territorial: la hacienda colonial en el norte central mexicano", dans: Carlos González Herrera, ed., La hacienda en Chihuahua. Su evolución histórica, Chihuahua, Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua, pp. 23-80.
• Salvador Alvarez, "Los señores de la tierra: latifundio, frontera agrícola y coyuntura económica en Chihuahua durante el siglo XIX", dans: Salvador Alvarez, Alejandro Tortolero, Margarita Menegus, comp., Derechos de propiedad y crecimiento económico, contribuciones para una perspectiva comparada en América y Europa, Santa Marta, Colombia, Editorial Unimagdalena, Universidad del Magdalena, 2018
• Salvador Alvarez, Las ciencias sociales y el territorio en México del Porfiriato a la posrevolución: paradigmas, interpretaciones, utopías, dans: Oscar F. Contreras, Cristina Puga, coords., Las ciencias sociales y el Estado nacional en México, México, Fondo de Cultura Económica, 2018, pp. 58-83.
• "Las crisis de subsistencia en el mundo europeo preindustrial. Elementos estructurales", dans: Chantal Cramaussel, ed., La incidencia demográfica de las crisis de subsistencia, escasez y epidemias. Comparaciones entre el Viejo Mundo y el Nuevo Mundo, Zamora, El Colegio de Michoacán – Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, 2019, pp. 23-54
• Salvador Alvarez, "Transferencias tecnológicas y continuidades estructurales en una economía orgánica preindustrial. Chihuahua a finales del siglo XIX", dans: Salvador Álvarez - Alejandro Tortolero (eds), Continentes, intercambios e hibridaciones Transferencias técnicas y culturales en la historial rural entre Europa y América (siglos XVI al XX), ISBN: 978-958-746-618-8, Universidad del Magdalena - El Colegio de Michoacán, Magdalena, Colombia - Zamora, Michoacán , 2023.