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MountainResearchand Development,
Vol. 5, No. 1, 1985, pp. 45-60
Division of Environmental
Studies
University
of California
Davis, California95616, U.S.A.
'
Andes, habit6esd'abordpar des peupless'adonnanta la chasse et la cueillette,ontete le
ont
avec l'Empire
et
des
et
d'une
centralisation
d'une
autonome
de
politique,qui
paturages,
siege
expansion
l'agriculture
culmin6i
et fondamentalement
inca. Cettesituationa rapidement
changepar suitede la conquetepar les Espagnolsen 1532,et l'6tablissement
ces changements
commedes transformations
d'interpr6ter
plutotque de les
subsequentd'une 6conomieminiere.11est prff6rable
Les conquerantset les autochtonesont refagonn6certainsmodes indigines
d6crireen termesde continuit6set discontinuit6s.
encoresousdes formes
tantsoitpeu diff6rentes.
sociale,etpolitiquequi subsistent
&conomique,
L'expansionde I'6conomie
d'organisation
mondialeet des institutions
d'Etata amen6de nouvellesformesde participation
des habitantsoriginaires
des r6gionsmontagneuses
distincts
des r6gionsmontagneuses
dansles soci6t6snationalesdes r6publiquesandines.La presencecontinuede peuplesethniquement
est present~ecommele r6sultatd'une incorporation
dans l'&conomiemondialeplut8tque d'une isolationpar rapporth celle-ci.
desAndes.Les
RESUME Brefhistorique
INTRODUCTION
Many observers would agree that the history of the
native peoples of the Andes is a tragic one thatlends itself
to a briefsummary:the biological and culturaldescendants
of peoples who built gloriousempires now live as impover-
ished and powerlessvillagers.These observerswould concur that the conquest of the Incas by the Spaniards in the
1530s was the single most importantevent in this destruction. They might differon other points. Modernization
46
/ MOUNTAIN
RESEARCH
AND DEVELOPMENT
The Andean world as discussed here is not preciselycoincident with the Andes that a geologistmightidentifyas
extendingfromTrinidad to Tierra del Fuego. It coincides
fairlycloselywiththeboundaries oftheInca Empire, which
in turnincorporatedregionswhichhad previouslyhad economic, political, and culturalties to the Central Andes but
had difficulty
in expandingitsfrontiers
further.This region
primarilycorrespondsto the republics of Ecuador, Peru,
and Bolivia, with some portions of northernChile and
northwesternArgentina. The article deals primarilywith
the firstthree countries.
The great variety of environmentsin this region can
generallybe dividedintothreeecologicalzones: coast, highlands, and eastern lowlands, all of which lie in a northsouth direction. These zones extend over such a great distance thattheytraverseseveral climaticregions. The rainfall comes mainly fromthe Amazon basin to the east. In
the northernpart ofthe Andes the rainfallis heavy, nearly
continuous, and predictable. The climate furthersouth is
more irregular,seasonal, and drier.Rainfall fromthe west
is heaviest in northernEcuador. The highland portionsof
northern Peru and Ecuador have grasslands known as
pdramo,composed of species thatforma dense sod; thepuna
furthersouth is more steppe-like. The rain-shadow effect
of the Andes ensures that the west coast is far drier than
the eastern slopes; in factmuch of the coast is desertwith
sparse vegetationor totallybarrenland betweenthevalleys
that carry rivers from the highlands, in contrast to the
dense, humid tropical foreston the east. The Ecuadorian
coast is more forested,though,and much ofeasternBolivia
is a savannah.
A final introductorynote: the term"Indian" is an ambiguous one, since the genetic,linguistic,social, and cultural criteriawhich can be used to classifypeople do not
necessarilyoverlap. As many anthropologistsand sociologistshave shown(Fuenzalida, 1970; Mayer, 1970; van den
Berghe, 1974), one individual can have differentstatuses
depending on differentcontexts, and the terms "Indian"
and "peasant"have strongpoliticalconnotations.The term
"Indian" used here refersto people witha well-recognized,
distinctsocial status,and the terms"Andean" and "indigenous" are reserved for the pre-Columbian cultures and
those which derive from them. The word "Andean" will
also have a narrowlygeographical usage, as in "Andean
republics"and "Andean foothills",and "peasant" will refer
to people, Indian or not,who earn a livingby directlyworking fields and raising herds.
(1500 B.C.-A.D.
1400)
B. S. ORLOVE/ 47
the guinea pig, was domesticatedby about 1800 B.C. Some
of thesecrops were grownearlierin Mesoamerica and may
have diffusedsouth to the Andes, but some archaeologists
claim an Andean origin forthem. Agriculturealso developed early in the eastern lowlands; manioc, which was
domesticated there, appeared on the coast by 1800 B.C.
Dates of domestication of highland crops are more difficult to establish because of poorer preservation, particularly of tubers, but the entireAndean crop inventorywas
essentiallycomplete during the firstmillenium B.C., includingthe protein-rich
highlandgrains,quinuaand caiiihua,
several tuber species of which the potato is the most important,the legume tarwi,and the mildlynarcoticcoca leaf.
Meat, wool, hides, and dung fromthe llama and alpaca,
relativesofthe camel, became available aftertheirdomestication. The date forllama domesticationis believed to be
around 2500 B.C. The llama was also importantas a pack
animal, and the Muscovy duck provided a supplementary
source of meat.
The Andes were the site of an independentdevelopment
of crafts. These developments, like those of agriculture,
appear to have taken place more or less simultaneouslyon
the coast and in the highlands and, irrthe case of pottery,
in the eastern lowlands. Large-scale architecturebegan
around 2000 B.C. Potteryand loom weaving began a few
centurieslater, at the time of the spread of maize agriculture and village settlementson the coast. Metallurgy developed and spread in the firstmillenium B.C. The times
after the development of agriculture can be marked by
periods of cultural unification,known to archaeologistsas
horizons because of the broad spatial distributionof common culturalmaterials. These horizons, the productofthe
spread of a religionor the incorporationinto a single economic or political system,alternatedwithtimes of greater
culturaldiversity,known as intermediateperiods. The first
of the times of unification,known to archaeologists as the
Early Horizon, began around 900 B.C. and lasted tillA.D.
200.
An increase in the scale of social and political organization followedthisdevelopmentof agriculture,domesticated
animals, and pottery.Around 900 B.C. a stylein art and
architecture,including a specifictype of temple construction and depictions of a number of supernatural beings,
associated with a temple site in Chavin in the northern
Peruvian highlands, spread throughthe northernand central Peruvian coast and highlandsand into southernEcuador. It representedan ending ofthe high degree ofcultural
isolation of earlier times. The force behind this relative
culturaluniformity
appears to have been primarilyreligious
and ideological ratherthan military,but archaeologistsstill
do not understand several aspects of the main cult: the
placing of major ritual sculpturesin hidden underground
chambers and the importance of tropical forestelements
such as thejaguar, the harpy eagle, and the cayman. The
1400-1532)
complete than of the earlier ones because of the combination of historicaland ethnohistoricalsources with archae-
48 / MOUNTAINRESEARCHANDDEVELOPMENT
ology. It fitsgenerallyinto the earlier scheme of Andean
prehistoryas the Late Horizon.
It is notable in many ways. The Incas began as a relatively small political unit centred in the city of Cuzco in
the southernPeruvian highlands. Their unificationof the
Andes is remarkable forits rapidity(it began in 1438, less
than a centurybeforethe Spanish Conquest, withthe Inca
conquest of the Chancas) and forthe total area incorporated. By the 1480s, the Incas controlledmost of highland
and coastal Ecuador, Peru, northernand centralChile, and
highland portionsof Bolivia and northwesternArgentina,
an area witha populationofabout six millionpeople. Much
as the Middle Horizon incorporateda largerarea than the
Early Horizon, so the Late Horizon expanded further,until
it met centresof opposition it could not overcome. These
includedthe warlikeAraucanian peoples of southernChile,
the Chiriguanos in southeasternBolivia and lowland tropical forestpeoples in eastern Peru and Ecuador. These
groups would resist conquest until the late nineteenthor
early twentiethcentury.
The remarkable expansion of the Incas had littleto do
withtechnologicalinnovation. They introducedonly a few
items: the foot plough or chakitaklla,which was more
efficientat fieldpreparation than the earlier digging sticks
and hoes, and two architecturaldevelopments,the plumbbob fordeterminingvertical orientationand the mortarless masonry of closely-fittinggigantic stone blocks.
Unlike otherLate IntermediatePeriod highland groups,
whose main purpose in warfare seemed to have been the
takingof booty, the Incas managed an imperial economy.
They sought to incorporate subjugated groups into their
political system,grantingthem considerable autonomy in
managing their internal subsistence economic affairs,involving them in exchanges of high prestige items such as
cloth, arranging marriages between their elites and Inca
noble families, and keeping members of their elites in
Cuzco in a status as both hostage and honoured guest.
They also used directmilitaryforceat times,and relocated
rebellious groups at long distances from their original
homelands. The lack of competing empires meant that
many local groups were engaged in conflictswhich the
Incas could exploit; the Chancas, once conquered, could
turnagainst theirtraditionalenemies to the northwiththe
aid of the Incas. The Incas did not face their potentially
most serious enemy, the
until they had reached
Chimfi,
the northernPeruvian highlands in Cajamarca and had
already acquired considerable strength.
The Inca Empire leftthe conquered ethnicgroupsintact.
It drew its economic base througha formoflabour tribute
known as mit'a.The commoners,who cultivatedtheirown
lands, were also required to contributea specifiedamount
of labour on lands which were assigned eitherto the Inca
state or the imperial religion. The imperial use of lands
depended on thiscorvielabour. There was verylittle,ifany,
private ownership of land under the Incas. Some mit'a
contributionswere made by craft specialists or through
militaryservice. Nobles of subjugated peoples ensured that
the mit'awas carriedout, but did not performit themselves.
The yanacona,people who were in permanent and hereditaryartisan status,also did not own lands or performother
tributeservice. The Incas also maintained a large bureaucracy to administerthe empire. The vast scale of the Inca
Empire and the freeingof men previouslyoccupied by warfarethroughthe Pax Incaica was used to expand terraces,
particularly for maize cultivation in the highlands, to
extend llama and alpaca herdingto new areas, to build an
extensive systemof roads and storehouses,where produce
fromthe lands of the state and the church were kept and
redistributedto areas with famines, and to maintain the
Inca politicaland religiousinstitutions.The Incas also built
temples and palaces, but did not emphasize large urban
centresas much as certainearlierAndean groupsdid. They
relied on administeredtrade ratherthan the organization
of markets or the formationof merchant groups (with a
few possible exceptions in the Ecuadorian highlands and
on the central Peruvian coast) (Rostoworowski de Diez
Canseco, 1977; Salomon, 1978). This general image of
prosperityunder the Incas contrastswiththe warringtimes
of the Late Intermediate Period and the conquest,
epidemics, and forced labour after the arrival of the
Spaniards. It raises the question of the legitimacyof the
Inca Empire, of whetherlocal peasants and elitesaccepted
the Inca rule. The Incas clearly held a strongideology of
the divine descentoftheirrulersand the importanceof sun
worshipas the statecultand Quechua as the statelanguage.
The imitationof Inca architectureand craftsby non-Inca
groups, both elitesand commoners,in many areas appears
to have been a spontaneous ratherthan an imposed style,
an indication of the prestige in which they were held
(Julien, 1983). In other places, such as the Ica Valley on
the south coast of Peru, local elitescontinuedpre-Inca traditions (Menzel, 1976).
These issues of economic control,politicalincorporation,
and culturallegitimacyare only incompletelystudied. Currentarchaeological and ethnohistoricalworkshows greater
regionaldiversitywithintheInca Empire thanhad formerly
been believed. One studyin the centralPeruvian highlands
suggeststhat the Incas made good use of pre-existingnotions of generosity,presentinggiftsof valued itemsto conquered groupsand receivinggiftsin return.Their extension
of maize cultivatingareas, forinstance, may be associated
with the preparation of chichaor maize beer, offeredto
groups whose labour or political support the Incas sought
(Morris, 1978). Much of theirwarfarewas also ritualized.
in maintainingtheir
Nevertheless,the Incas had difficulties
control over some areas, particularlythe Lake Titicaca
basin, and their dominion may have been felt to be
onerous.
Some documents indicate the manner in which the conquered groupsunder the Incas provisionedthemselveswith
food through the pattern of verticality,the direct access
to several ecological zones at differentelevations (Murra,
1964, 1967, 1972, 1975). The Chupaychus in the central
Peruvian highlands maintained their main population
nuclei in a maize and tuberzone, but sentmembersat distances of a few days' walk to work as herders and miners
in thepuna and to cultivateand gathertropicalforestproducts in adjacent lowland areas. The Lupaqa on the shores
of Lake Titicaca on thePeru-Boliviaborderhad theircentre
at a higher elevation in a tuber zone. They utilized the
B. S. ORLOVE / 49
Traditional
mineralextraction
continuesto thepresoftechnology.
Thisphoent,usinga varietyofforms
tograph,takennearMaras, DepartmentofCuzco,
Peru, showsa systemof terracesin whichsalt is
concentrated
fromwaterfroma salty
byevaporation
spring.
50
/ MOUNTAIN
RESEARCH
AND DEVELOPMENT
THE CONQUEST
The Spanish Conquest is the central event in Andean
historyand one withoutparallel in the case of the Himalaya. It remains in differentformsin the minds ofAndean
peasants and town dwellers. Although many elements of
native organization, dating fromthe time of the Incas and
earlier, survived, and the order imposed by the Spaniards
did not take its definitiveforms until decades later, the
Conquest is important both as a single event and as a
period in which certain conflictsshaped colonial rule.
The experienceofthe Spanish statebeforethe Conquest
prepared and encouraged it to seek new areas forimperial
incorporation. The kingdoms of Aragon and Castile had
united and absorbed most of the different
kingdomsofthe
of
fortheirroyal
sources
revenue
They
sought
peninsula.
treasuryto assist in thistask ofunificationand ofplacating
other groups that opposed them. The role of the Catholic
Church in the long struggleforthe reconquest ofthe Iberian Peninsula fromthe Muslims provided an important
focus forthis mission. The expulsion of theJews and the
remaining Muslims took place in 1492. Expeditions into
NorthAfricaand to Atlanticislands provided an initialimpulse forfurtherexpansion. The conquest ofthe Caribbean
and Mesoamerica, with precious metals and populations
whose labour could be tapped, provided a stimulus for
furtherexplorations.
The group headed by Pizarro that set sail fromPanama
in 1526 encountered an Inca ocean-going rafton a mission to trade theircraftsforprecious shells and coral. After
otherexpeditions,Pizarro preparedthemajor assault which
arrived in 1532. The conquest of the entire Inca Empire
by fewerthan 250 Spaniards has frequentlybeen regarded
with awe. The Europeans, however, had several advantages. The Inca Empire, in its shortlife, did not develop
well-institutionalized
means forthe transferof power, and
the Spaniards arrivedat the end of an exhaustingcivil war
betweenthe brothersHuascar and Atahuallpa over the succession to their father,Huayna Capac, and his probable
heir, Ninan Cuyuchi, who both died in an epidemic which
mighthave been brought to the New World by the Europeans. AlthoughAtahaullpa had won the war, he had not
fullyconsolidated his victory.
The Spaniards also had some militaryadvantages, principally their horses, which could charge through masses
of native soldiers, and their swords. Their guns, by contrast,were awkward and difficultto load. The image that
theymay have had as supernaturalbeings apparentlywas
dispelled afterseveral militaryencounters.They were able
to move quickly and in 1532 they captured Atahuallpa.
(A.D. 1532-1570)
Despite his effortsto manipulate the Spaniards as he had
done other Andean nobles, they held him hostage, and,
afterreceiving a ransom of six and a half ton of gold and
nearly twice that weight of silver, executed him. In the
following years, they were able to ally themselves with
followersof Huascar's faction and other groups opposed
to the Incas and to use them as allies against other native
groups. The participantsin the full-scalerebellionsof the
late 1530s were farfewerin number than the earlier Inca
armies. They were weakened by Spanish disruptions of
communicationsand of traditionalproceduresoflegitimizing authority.In addition, theyhad to face Spanish reinforcementsattractedby the enormous wealth in precious
metals. The Spanish Conquest was essentiallycompleteby
the end of the decade, although the small neo-Inca state
set up by nobles and commoners who fled to the jungles
northofCuzco in Vilcabamba was not defeateduntil 1572.
The long wars between different
factionsof conquistadores
were a more severe threatto the consolidation of Spanish
rule (Hemming, 1970).
Familiar with cities as seats of governmentand commerce, the Spaniards quickly foundeda number of towns,
including those that are now the capitals of the Andean
countries: Quito in 1534, Lima in 1535, La Paz in 1549.
Much of the native resistancewas quickly overcome, but
in other ways the consolidation of Spanish rule was slow.
The Spaniards relied on curacasor local nobles to rally
supportin the fightagainst centresof resistance,but sometimes foundthemdifficult
to bend to theirwill(Stein, 1981)
- a problemthatcontinuedforthe Spaniards forcenturies.
The divisionsamong Spaniards themselves,betweenearlier
and later arrivals,between those more closelytied to royal
authorityand those whose power was based on personal
militarypower or local ties, exacerbated the difficultiesof
consolidation.
The Spaniards came from a variety of social backgrounds, including peasants, artisans, merchants, and
nobles. They also reconstituteda complex society in the
Andes (Lockhart, 1968). In the eyes of the Spaniards and
many Indians, the Conquest entitledthe Spaniards to receive some sortoftribute.In many cases, thistributetook
the formof encomiendas
or grants made to conquistadores
which entitledthem to the rightsof labour and goods produced by Indians in a particulararea in exchange forensuring theirreligious instruction.Conflictsemerged between
the encomenderos
and royal authorities,between encomenderos
factionsofconquistadores, between
appointed by different
the Church and religious orders which sought to acquire
B. S.
more of the serious and lucrative responsibilitiesof Christianization.These tensionsled to violentcivilwars between
groups of Spaniards. By introducingthe "New Laws" of
1542, royal authoritiessought to reduce the autonomy of
the encomenderos
and limitthe inheritanceofthe title.Private
of
land
ownership
by Spaniards began to emerge. Long
debates arose over the nature of the Indian and over the
appropriate scope of Spanish rule, motivated in part by
but also by a genuine faithand an
greed and self-interest,
adhesion to the Church acquired over centuriesof fighting
against infidels. These concerns continued in somewhat
CONSOLIDATION
ORLOVE
/ 51
52
/ MOUNTAIN
RESEARCH
AND DEVELOPMENT
AND INDEPENDENCE
(A.D.
1750-1860)
B. S. ORLOVE / 53
Traditionalritualexchangescontinuein thecontext
ofmodernorganizational
forms.
The manon theleft,
withstreamers,
decorated
is makingofferings
ofalcoholand coca (containedin thetextiles
on theground)
to fourofficials,wearingponchos,of the peasant
54 / MOUNTAIN
RESEARCH
AND DEVELOPMENT
DEVELOPMENT
AND LIBERALISM
(A.D. 1860-1930)
B. S. ORLOVE / 55
reasons to expand highland haciendas: to supply food to
into plantationsofmost of the remainingcoastal communities which were the descendants of the Toledan reducciones; plantations, mines and cities (although some haciendas
were ill prepared to face the expansion of importsthatfolit also saw the eclipse of the native coastal languages.
The opening of the economy affectedthe native populalowed economic liberalization). The motivation in other
areas drew on politicalfactors;even thoughthe emergence
tions of the highlands as well. With abundant income, the
state could affordto end what were seen as archaic forms
of new wealthygroups made traditionalhighlandhacendaof servility;Indian tributewas abolished at the time that
dos much less powerfulthan in the decades afterindepenslaves were freed,ending also a reason to protectIndian
dence, theycontinued to be able to offervaluable support
or serious challenges to groups more directlylinked to excommunal lands. Indian ethnic identitycontinued strong
in many areas, despite this elimination of an institution
port agriculture.Liberal Ecuadorian coastal cacao growers
which had given it a formal, institutionalpresence. The
centredin Guayaquil, forinstance,had difficulty
in undercontinued role of communitiesin providingaccess to land
mining the power base of the conservativehacendados in
and labour was an importantfactor,as was the inequality
Quito and otherhighland areas. Some wealthyBolivians,
in relationsbetween elite and peasant. The general intenwho accurately feared that the prosperityof their mines
tion of liberalism to end formalethnic differenceswas not
or the dominance oftheirpartiesmightnot be long lasting,
successful.
used theireminence to acquire highland haciendas, a less
Other export economies had similar effectsin Ecuador,
lucrative but more secure economic and political base
with a revival of coastal cacao exports in the 1850s (van
(Rivera Cusicanqui, 1978b).
Certain factorsencouraged the monetarization of the
Aken, 1981), and in Bolivia, with the expansion of highland silvermining in the 1870s (Mitre, 1981; Platt, 1982).
economy. The civilian governmentsdedicated part oftheir
Civilian regimes expanded their power, and they ended
revenues to the improvementof transport,firstrailroads
tribute afterthey acquired new revenues. In Bolivia the
and thenmotorroads. The demand forfood increasedwith
1874 leyde exvinculacidn
to
sell
communal
lands
a relative and absolute expansion of the population not
attempted
as individual plots to Indians, although its application was
directlyinvolvedin agriculture.However, the involvement
often stronglyand, in some cases, successfullyresisted
of the native population was not simplyan automatic rethrough passive opposition and open rebellion.
sponse. Indeed, the liberalization of the economy often
economies
1860
between
and
1930
worked
Export
generallygrew
against native commercialagriculture;like the prealthoughthisperiod was markedby fluctuationsin demand
viously mentioned hacendados, some Indians could not
in industrialcountries,stemmingfromeconomic cycles of
meet foreigncompetition. For instance, the area planted
in wheat declined in some areas (Platt, 1982).
expansion and contractionand fromthe accelerationofproduction of the same resources in other parts of the world.
The pressurestowardthe monetarizationofthe highland
The nitrate fields in southern Peru and coastal Bolivia,
peasant economy were multiple(Favre, 1977). The native
developed with Britishcapital and worked primarilywith
economy was never entirelyclosed to purchased objects,
Chilean labourers, were seized by Chile, withopen British
particularlyritual articlessuch as coca, alcohol, and other
fiestaitems. Indian populations appear to have increased,
support; Peru and Bolivia were slow in recovering from
their defeat, but eventually did so with the support of
limitingthe availability of land and encouraging the purrevenues derived fromexport commodities,highland copchase of subsistenceitems.In some cases, highlanderswere
per and coastal cotton and sugar in the formercase, silver
duped into signingcontractsforwage labour on haciendas,
and tin in the latter.Direct and indirectforeigninvestment
but these purely involuntarycases of participation in the
sponsored much of this development. The rubber boom
money economy are probablynot representativeofthe main the early 1900s was a strongermotive fornational govjority of the native population. The expansion of commerernmentsto effectivelyoccupy the eastern lowlands than
cial agriculture, particularlyon the coast, may have cut
were the earlier desires to cultivatecoca and tropicalcrops
offvertical barter relations, forcingIndians to seek new
forthe Incas and Spaniards. The expansion into the areas
means of obtaining certain products. The acquisition of
adjacent to theAndes occurredrapidlybut it soon collapsed
purchased goods may also have represented the end of
afterthe Britishsmuggledrubberseeds out of South Amerdomination by mestizo elites, who opposed or prohibited
these items. The firstIndians who returnedto the village
ica and developed plantations in Southeast Asia.
The wool exporteconomy in centraland southernhighof Acora near Lake Titicaca in Peru around 1910 wearing
land Peru expanded afterthe 1860s, stimulatingboth the
shirtsof manufacturedcloth, which they purchased with
expansion of haciendas and the direct participation of
earningsfromlabour in Chilean copper mines,were beaten
Indian herders.This encouraged greatercommercialization
by townspeople.
of agricultureas the barteringof wool forfoodstuffs
in reThe presence of governmentagencies in highland areas
lations strongly reminiscent of classical verticalitywas
created new tensionsand allowed old ones to be expressed.
These agencies placed demands on native resources. One
replaced by purchase (Orlove, 1977; Jacobsen, 1979). Conflictsbetween Indians and hacendados, sparkedby competacticof governmentsseekingto expand road networkswas
tition for land, touched off rebellions in many cases
to require a certainnumber ofdays' unremuneratedlabour
each year, in a formnot unlike the mita.This corvieled to
(Orlove, 1980).
The links of export economies to hacienda expansion,
considerableopposition,as did thepresenceofpolice forces
monetarization of native economies, and rebellions were
reorganized on European models. In addition, the governoften not so direct. Individuals found other economic
ment agencies representedanother elite group. At times
56
/ MOUNTAIN
RESEARCH
AND DEVELOPMENT
OF LIBERAL
ORDER
AND RECENT
DECADES
(1930-PRESENT)
B. S. ORLOVE / 57
.... . ..
..
. .. .
i.-
....
,pt
.......
'i<
"
..<
....
,.
...? ?i.;
. .. . __.;,~~:
,.:! _,.........
., .....,.
>,,,.
, . ,:it; ,t '
...:
L&:...
. ,....s::!:
.........
..
::.
NIT~
Niplk.
. ...
.
. ...
A marketin Coata, Departmentof Puno, Peru. The expansionof marketsystemshas led peasantsto sell
barteredor consumedthemselves.The womanin thelowerright,with
whichtheyformerly
somefoodstuffs
cheesesmade frommilkfromherown cows to a vendorwho will
thecarrying
clothon herback, is offering
resellthemin nearbycities.Photographby B.S. Orlove
iRi
..
.....
i~ii!7!iii'' '', :':"''::'*';?;;'
.d
::
.
...
.i..::."i
:
..
10fi;~'z+
:: ?
ii
?i
411? ;~t~-
wool
.L
.,...
~~iY?-r r:
X
?44*2
~?
I?::
41k
58 / MOUNTAIN
RESEARCH
AND DEVELOPMENT
pendent on officialsand traders; theyare insensitiveto indigenous formsof organization and in some cases tryto
implant the notion of independent farmson more collectivelyoriented communities. None the less, theyhave offeredgenuine benefits:the eliminationof some oppressive
formsof labour obligations, the weakening of the landed
elite, the strengtheningof Indian and peasant claims to
some oftheirlands, and therecognitionofa place fornative
people in national politics. In some cases, indigenousorganizations have been strengthened,as in the officialrecognition of communal land tenurein Peru and Ecuador and
in the reinforcingof some traditional rotative officesin
Bolivia. The colonization programmes have also opened
new economic opportunities,althoughoftenat the expense
of native lowland groups; theyhave also led in some cases
to the emergence of small groups of wealthy peasants or
of new latifundistas.
The social and economic changes are so diverse that a
summary is difficult.In contrastto the very differentcircumstances in the Himalaya, though, some elements
emerge. The national economies have grown since the
recoveryfromthe Depression, because of global demand
for raw materials, foreignloans, and some expansion of
national markets.Population, cities, and industryhave all
expanded, primarily in the least indigenous population
sectors and geographical regions.
Nevertheless,nativepeoples participatein thesechanges,
as temporaryand permanentmigrantsto expanding areas
and as producers ofcommodities. In many cases these ties
have led to decliningstandardsof living, as Ferroni(1980)
shows in his studyof nutritionin highland Peru. In other
cases this participation has been very successful. For instance, Huayopampa, a communityin the highlandsofthe
departmentof Lima, with access to a number of zones at
differentelevations, uses communal lands to operate fruit
at other
orchards,while stillgrowingsubsistencefoodstuffs
altitudes. More generally,the areas where native peoples
are stillvery close to a subsistenceeconomy have been reduced (Gade, 1975). The forcesleading to a greaterdesire
forcash, describedin the previoussection,act in thisperiod
as well. The simultaneous involvement in a subsistence
economy and a cash economy, however, is not necessarily
a transitional situation, nor does it imply a progressive
individualization and destructionof communal formsof
organization(Guillet, 1981). Access to communallands can
become more importantboth as sources of cash income
and as cushions against fluctuations in a wage labour
market; greaterout-migrationand competitionforland in
productivezones may strengthenratherthan weaken local
political organization and fiesta systemsas communities
seek to limit access of outsiders to theirlands and to irrigation water. It is from this period that detailed ethnographic studies of local-level politics within Indian communities have been drawn. They show the importance of
three institutions:community-wideassemblies, where all
household heads, usually male, vote; community-wide
work groups; and the set of civil and religiousofficeswhich
household heads hold for a year on a rotational basis.
Forms of verticalityalso continue. In some puna areas
in westernhighland Bolivia, forinstance,herderssell their
B. S. ORLOVE / 59
wool but barter dried meat for agricultural products at
lower elevations, a situationthatapparentlyhas remained
stable forover a century(Caro, 1980). The direct access
to multiple zones by single communities also continues,
sometimes in unexpected areas, such as the narrow, irrigated valley oases of the northernChilean desert between
Arica and Antofagasta (Nifiez, 1978), and sometimes in
the classic archipelago pattern (Harris, 1981).
Urbanization has not eliminated Indian organization
and identity.Some of the strongestevidence comes from
Bolivia, the countrywiththe largestproportionof Indians.
The cities of La Paz and Cochabamba, forinstance, have
a stable patternof bilingualism; children born in town to
bilingual parents are likelyto be fluentin both languages.
The close ties between countrysideand city,facilitatedby
spatial proximity,encourage social contacts,the exchange
of goods, and participationin rural communityaffairsby
urban residents. Quechua identityand rituals continue
withvigour and have expanded in a number ofneighbourhoods in Quito (Salomon, 1981). Similarpatternsare found
in Lima, despite its greater geographic and cultural distance from the highlands; associations of migrants from
highland communitiesand regionsmaintain identitiesand
facilitatethe flow of resources between city and place of
origin. Some writersargue that this pattern is an extension of verticalityto a new zone (Isbell, 1979), and others
find similaritiesbetween organization of highland communities and squatter settlements(Lobo, 1982).
The linksbetweenstateagencies and highlandcommunities and the use of native clientelesforthe supportofpolitical parties are strongerin this period than in the previous
ones and may also serve to reinforcecommunityorganization. They strengthenthe Indian identityin many cases,
althoughthereare instancesofpredominantlymestizocommunities which have received official recognition and
Indian ones which have not. These links occur at different
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