Cora

The Cora are a Middle American Indian people inhabiting the states of Jalisco and Nayarit in western Mexico. They number around 40,000, along with the neighboring Huichol people, and reside in a mountainous, cool, and dry region. Their language is closely related to Huichol and Nahua.

Cora people are primarily farmers, cultivating corn, beans, squash, and cucumbers on steep hillsides. They also raise livestock for milk and cheese and occasionally sheep for wool. Their dwellings, called rancherias, are loosely clustered households in the countryside. Community centers typically include a church or temple, public buildings, and houses for families visiting from the rancherias. Traditional crafts like pottery and weaving are still practiced, with men and women wearing traditional or semi-traditional clothing. Ritual kinship and a blend of Roman Catholic and native pagan religious practices, including the use of peyote in certain rites, are significant aspects of their culture.12