Quechua Culture

So the last week of my time here in Peru was pretty crazy!  I ended up going to Cusco (the old Incan capital 500 years ago before the Conquistadors came) and eventually made my way to Machu Picchu.  BUT I wanted to post about the Quechua culture which I think is what people think of immediately when they think of peru (that and llamas).  Amazingly, it wasn’t until the very end of my trip that I saw this stereotype of Peruvian life fulfilled (never in lima where 1/3 of people live)

Quechua culture (the people who were ruled under the Incan empire) is rich, vibrant, and diverse (for example the language has approximately forty-six different sub-languages).  In Peru, nearly a quarter of the population speaks Quechua, many of whom are concentrated in the mountainous regions of the Andean highlands.  Although Quechua culture is believed to have originated at least about two thousand years ago, the Spanish colonizers unfortunately drastically altered the Quechua way of life, banning the Quechua language and culture from politics and education.  Despite these obstacles, the Quechuan’s unique heritage has to still managed to flourish.

Farming is an integral part of life, from harvesting food to raising alpacas.  The Quechuan people even developed a sophisticated irrigation system for their mountainous climate, and developed over 100 types of potatoes.  Textiles, weaving and fabric are also an integral part of Quechua life, drawing from ancient techniques that have been passed down for generations.  Woven in a mix of deep oranges, vibrant reds and pinks, their textiles honor Pachamama (Quechua for “Mother Earth”), expressing their appreciation for growth and the natural world through their ritualistic weaving.   Children (6-12 years old) begin to learn to spin and weave at a young age.  At first the child may begin to play with the fiber, yarn and spindle, imitating the activities of the adults and producing basic attempts with many mistakes.  They improve their skills little by little with their first weavings being simple narrow bands (Jakimas) and then growing to more complex bands and larger textiles.  Adolescence (12-20 years old) is a time of important changes in clothing and relationships because it is the time of courtship.  Some weavers make special textiles that are traded or given as gifts to potential mates and are fondly remembered in later years.  For many, adolescence is a time when they produce the highest quality of weaving with their life, often spurred on by competition with friends.  However, this stage of weaving is a short one: they will soon find a partner and begin family life.  

I think lots of time people generalize Peru and Peruvian to images of Quechuan people next to llamas with babies on their backs.  There is a lot more to Peru but this is an important part of the culture that is definitely overgeneralized!  This almost bothered me, especially in tourist shops.  Nearly every textile, painting, sculpture, keychain, scarf, hat, magnet, pen, etc. was decorated in a “Quechua” style with very colorful weaved fabric or pictures of Quecha people with Peru written underneath.  These types of souvenirs were found everywhere, especially in Cusco (like every block).  But it was only when going to Pisac (nearby town) and other, more discrete, places in the more mountainous region of Peru where you actually saw the people making their crafts and got to converse with them.  I would much rather do this type of direct souvenir shopping rather than a tourist store any day!