Where was the place that the sons of Mosiah "separated themselves and departed one from another" (Alma 17:13)? According to John Sorenson, from this place of separation, Ammon went to the land of Ishmael, and Aaron headed for the city of Jerusalem, while others in the group next showed up at a place called Ani-Anti. None of these spots had been mentioned in earlier discussions of the land. The junction where the brothers parted might have been an ancient meeting point of paths from different directions. [John L. Sorenson, An Ancient American Setting for the Book of Mormon, F.A.R.M.S., p. 221]
According to Joseph Allen, assuming a Mesoamerican setting, that Santa Rosa, Chiapas, Mexico was the location of the local land of Zarahemla, and that Kaminaljuyu (Guatemala City, Guatemala) was the location of the local land of Nephi; then there are two possibilities as to where the sons of Mosiah separated themselves upon arriving in the borders of the land of Nephi: (1) Cuatro Caminos ("four roads" or "four routes") which is just outside of Quetzaltenango, Guatemala, and (2) Los Encuentros ("where two roads meet"). At the present time, we favor #2 (Los Encuentros). From this meeting place, one path leads down to Lake Atitlan (the proposed site of Jerusalem), another leads towards Kaminaljuyu (which path supposedly passed through the land of Ishmael on the way), and another path leads back towards Chiapas, Mexico (the land of Zarahemla from which the sons of Mosiah had come). [Joseph L. Allen, Exploring the Lands of the Book of Mormon, p. 365]
Alma 17:13 In the borders of the land of the Lamanites . . . they . . . departed one from another ([Illustration]): Possible area where the sons of Mosiah separated to go forth among the Lamanites to preach the gospel. [Joseph L. Allen, Exploring the Lands of the Book of Mormon, p. 367].