through familial and communal contacts, they rarely explain how these contacts are initiated,

negotiated, and propagated. During this research I was able to discover some key vocabulary that

helped clarify how migrants borrow, lend, and help one another. A precise understanding of the

migrant vocabulary aids in illustrating the power dynamics intrinsic to Maya-Ladino migration

and how patron-client relations function to support this migration.

 Undocumented Migration Through the Decades

 In order for an undocumented Pinulteco to migrate to the United States, he/she typically

needs to hire a human smuggler ("coyote") to get through Mexico and cross the U.S. border. In

the past, the migrant would pay a fee in the sending country's currency which would secure

passage to his destination city. Older Ladino migrants remember paying 800 or 1000 Quetzales

(about the equivalent in dollars since the exchange rate in Guatemala in the 1970s and early

1980s was one to one) to a coyote in Guatemala City, who would then deliver the migrant to Los

Angeles via Tijuana. Those migrants who were heading to a city on the East Coast (usually New

York or Boston) arranged for the airfare from Los Angeles to be tallied into the smuggling fee.

In contrast, during the 1990s as the human smuggling business expanded and security along the

U.S.-Mexico border strengthened, migrants were required to contract with several coyotes in

order to make it to their final destination. Thus, today's migrants incur many more expenses than

in previous years. Likewise, the way in which they pay for the services of coyotes has become

increasingly complex.

 The complexity of migrating to the United States is illustrated in the following example. In

2003, a migrant would pay a certain amount in Quetzales in Guatemala and then another

substantial amount in dollars once he successfully reached the last "safe house" on the U.S. side

of the border. "Safe houses" are residences, hotels, or abandoned buildings where migrants stay

on the way through Mexico and upon arrival in the United States. Because of the likelihood of