He was born in
Fuente Ovejuna as Juan de Ecija. At the age of 13, he requested to be admitted to the
Order of St. Francis, but was denied. His father, Hernando de Ecija, died in 1528, and Juan and his elder brother Hernando de Paz moved to New Spain. There, Hernando became a secretary to the
Royal Audiencia of Mexico.[1] Juan became a member of the
Dominican Order and assumed his new name Domingo de la Anunciación.
Domingo was considered of the most zealous instructors of the
Mexican Indians. During the
epidemic of 1545, he went from village to village to attend the natives.
After de la Anunciación returned to Mexico, he returned to Mexico to continue teaching. In 1565 he published his only known work, a book of Christian doctrine in
Spanish and
Nahuatl entitled Doctrina cristiana breve y compendiosa por vía de diálogo entre un maestro y un discípulo.[4][5]
In 1585, Domingo became blind and retired from teaching; he died in 1591. After his brother's death, Herando de Paz became a Dominican and a member of the order.[6]