Tarapacá: contributions to andean history from a regional perspective (s. XV-XVI)

Abstract

Through both an archaeological and historical approach, we present a study of the indigenous sociopolitical formations of the Tarapacá region for the 15th and 16th centuries. Information is systematized from early documentary sources related to the permanent and seasonal populations residing along the Pacific coast between the Loa and Camarones rivers, an area bordered by the chiefdoms of Tacna and the Inca provinces of Atacama, Caranga, and Quillaca. Our qualitative analysis of regional and local historical and archaeological sources from the beginnings of the Spanish colonial period (1535-1571), suggest that regional geopolitical organization was characterized by the fragmentary dynamics among the Tarapacan populations and the provincial Inca apparatus. The available data suggest that at the time of the Spanish conquest of the Tarapacá region, the establishment of a cultural hierarchy and local and regional political affiliation were linked to the operation of an Inca provincial jurisdiction (or wamani).