According to the UN, there are an estimated 476 million indigenous peoples in the world, spread across 90 countries. These peoples live together in small communities, traditionally support themselves, have their own culture, are politically more or less independent and live largely outside the global social and economic systems. They do not necessarily use money or a written language, tend not to have class divisions, but rather distribute power among themselves, often with deep-rooted traditions.
It is undeniable that Peru's history and culture owes much to the indigenous people who have inhabited the country for centuries...
It is not easy to say when and how the first indigenous groups settled in the Peruvian Amazon. The more or less archaeologically confirmed dates vary between two thousand and three thousand years before our era. Very different migrations came together, the Jibaros from the Caribbean, the Arawaks from Venezuela penetrated into the central jungle and into Urubamba. The Panos came from central Brazil to establish settlements in the Ucayali River basin along with the Shipobo-Conibo, Cashibos, Matsés and Yaminahuas and others. And finally, the Tupíguaraníes – cuyo, whose place of origin is in Paraguay, southern Brazil and part of Amazonian Bolivia – arrived to settle in what is now the “Madre de Dios” region.
These peoples typically have a strong connection to their ancestral land, being born, working, living and dying in the lowlands of the Madre de Dios River. Their land is their only possession. The environment consists of the plants, animals and their small farms. They do not destroy or clear their surroundings, but rather maintain the forest so that it produces for them. The forest is the basis of their existence, they identify themselves with it. Life and Earth are one, the source of spirituality. She teaches, clothes, feeds, gives them protection and medicine. She is the mother of these peoples and writes their history. ** |
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In the pre-Hispanic period there were close relationships of economic and cultural exchange between the Andean and Amazonian societies.
After the Spanish conquest, this scenario was redefined. However, the lack of a settled population and economic resources meant that Viceroy Francisco de Toledo had difficulties in his conquest. The advance was left to the religious missions led by the Franciscans, Augustinians and Dominicans.
These peoples are usually referred to as “primitive” and “backward”. They actually just live a different lifestyle that is in balance with their natural environment. They adhere to traditions and languages that seem strange and foreign to us. **There are 47 official languages in Peru. 3 million Peruvians speak Quechua. In the Loreto region alone there are 27 languages. |
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The Crown's presence in the Amazon was shaken in June 1742 when the longest rebellion of the colonial era broke out in the heart of the central Peruvian jungle under the leadership of Juan Santos Atahualpa (Tupac Amaru II, see photo).
The movement destroyed the Franciscans' evangelization work within months and led to a retreat of the Spanish into the mountains, resulting in the abandonment of the mission centers. The Amazon region remained “no man’s land” for the time being.
Until the “guano boom” that developed during the first government of Ramon Castilla (1845-1851). This was essentially the beginning of a new colonization project, which, however, stalled in the period between the Guano Crisis and the Pacific War.
People became interested in the jungle for a variety of reasons: geopolitical (advancement of the internal border and defense of the external border), economic (exploitation of existing resources), as well as ideological and cultural reasons (reduction of the indigenous population of the Amazon into permanent settlements and their incorporation into the "Civilization"). With this new modernization project, countless expeditions led by civilians and adventurers were carried out.
The Rubber Boom
After the conflict with Chile, new characters emerged in the deep jungle at the end of the 19th century - settlers, rubber tappers and traders - in search of quick wealth. One of them was Carlos Fitzcarrald, who founded a company that not only decimated the region's rubber trees, but also much of the native population, particularly in the Ucayali River area. The “rubber fever” led to an impressive number of immigrations of foreign merchants from all over the world, making Iquitos a cosmopolitan city. Loreto experienced rapid growth.
The Haciendas
After the collapse of the rubber trade, some small population centers remained, many of colonial missionary origin, others formed around the rubber "haciendas". The almost slavish system of labor control of the large landowners led to a collapse of the traditional life model of a significant part of the indigenous population.
Families began to live together in scattered residential areas with different ethnic backgrounds, which led to cultural mixing of the races. Only in peripheral areas did some indigenous population groups manage to maintain their economic autonomy and thus evade the control of the rubber bosses.
In the other areas, the rural population's contact and dependence on the outside world increased. The presence of merchants and middlemen increased on the river banks, with whom they exchanged hides, resin, wood, ropes, canoes or hammocks for products such as cloth, salt, machetes or medicine.
Despite their seemingly simple technology, these people have learned to live well in a seemingly inhospitable environment. Many believe that tribal life is dirty, violent and short. That's not the case. Many of these societies can make a living with a very short working day because they need little. The fact that they have no money does not contradict the fact that they are rich in their own way.** |
The State Presence
The establishment of rural schools (escuela rural) also led to a reorganization of the population of the Amazon region. In the 1950s, the educational offering, which had previously been limited to a few larger cities in the region, was expanded, giving the vast majority of the rural population access to primary education. The process of settling down in many traditionally migratory communities was therefore closely linked to the presence of the school. This played a central role in the formation of stable cities in the Peruvian Amazon.
In the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, various towns were founded that have survived to this day, such as La Merced and Chanchamayo in the Junin department and Moyobamba and Tarapoto in the San Martin department.
(Source: Enciclopedia temática del Perú, **ARA-Naturerbe Regenwald, focus: oekozid 6)