Alfredo López Austin

Alfredo Federico López Austin (March 12, 1936 – October 15, 2021) was a Mexican historian who wrote extensively on the Aztec worldview and on Mesoamerican religion. As an academic teacher, he inspired generations of students, but his influence extends beyond the boundaries of academic life. His sons are Alfredo Xallápil López Luján, well known biologist and informatic and the renowned archaeologist, Leonardo Náuhmitl López Luján.

López Austin was born in Ciudad Juárez, México. He attended law school and worked as a lawyer in his hometown. His academic association with the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM, Mexico's autonomous national university), where he was a student, spans some fifty years, and he still held a position as a researcher (emeritus) at UNAM's Instituto de Investigaciones Antropológicas (IIA, or Institute of Anthropological Research). López Austin lectured in the History department of UNAM's Faculty of Philosophy and Literature, the Facultad de Filosofía y Letras (FFyL).

In 2020, López Austin won the National Prize for Arts and Sciences in Fine Arts.