© T. M. Whitmore TODAY Pre-Columbian societies Lower Central America Caribbean Lowland South...

© T. M. Whitmore

TODAY•Pre-Columbian societies

Lower Central AmericaCaribbeanLowland South American tropicsSouthern Cone societiesAndean societiesSouth American Coastal Desert

societies

•(if time) Columbian Exchange/Encounter

•& Amerindian crops

© T. M. Whitmore

LAST TIME- Questions?

•Hurricane Felix

•Pre-Columbian societies in L.A.Mesoamerican cultures (highland

Mexico and Central America)

© T. M. Whitmore

Lower Central America•Area: coastal lowlands area NE

Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama

•A contact zone between the “high” civilizations of Mesoamerica and the Circum-Caribbean ones

•Caribbean littoral of lower Central America more like that Caribbean islands and N coastal South America

•Population and settlement: small scale polities total population probably not more than 3.5m

MesoamericaLower

Central America

© T. M. Whitmore

Caribbean I•Societies -- Taíno (Arawak), Caribs,

Ciboney – all present at time of Columbus; ethnography and history is not well known; linguistic relatives in Amazonia

•Population –uncertainty and controversy about pre-Columbian population range is from 200,000 to 8-10 million!

Best guess is about 3 million for all Caribbean

Taino or Arawak

CaribCiboney

© T. M. Whitmore

Caribbean II•Livelihood – rich environment; multiple

food sources: land, seas, & shores (thus much from turtles, fish and shellfish)

•Main agricultural system (especially for Taíno), conuco agricultureNot shifting ag – rather, fields of large

mounds 2’-3’ high, 10+’ acrossDrainage, soil depth, aeration, forStarchy tubers (manioc, sweet

potato), fruitsPeanuts, some maize (less), squash,

etc …

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Conuco agriculture•More calories per acre (manioc 3x

calories than maize!)

•Root crops demand less from soils

•Roots “stored” in ground => less rot in humid environment

•Manioc very pest resistant – but poisonous if not treated

•Very low protein – but with fruits, turtles, fish, birds, shellfish = excellent diet

Manioc (or yuca, cassava…)

© T. M. Whitmore

South American Lowland moist tropics (Amazonia)

•Population: ~ > 5-6 m but very uncertain

•Livelihood: Old (outdated) view is of semi-nomadic, small bands practicing long fallow swidden (slash and burn) with a limited material culture

© T. M. Whitmore

South American Lowland moist tropics (Amazonia)

•New more complex view posits at least 3 distinct livelihood systems in AmazoniaSemi-nomadic hunting-gathering in

the terra firme “inter-fluves”High density sedentary ag along

rivers and in varzeaAlso terra mulato and terra prieta

do indio along rivers (see web site)Raised/drained field agriculture

Terra preta Oxisol

Neighboring oxisolTerra preta do Indio

Ancient raised fields in the Llanos de Mojos (© C. Erickson)

New raised fields in Llanos de Mojos, Bolivia (© C. Erickson)

© T. M. Whitmore

Southern Cone societies•Low population ~ 2 million tops•Livelihood: no evidence for

agriculture in 1491hunter-gatherer societieslike North American Plains Indians

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Andean Societies I•Inca (or Inka) empire

•Ancient cultures, recent empire (at time of Spanish conquest)

•Quechua and Aymara languages (both still spoken by millions)

•C. Andes population ~ 11-15 m in 1490s

Inka core

© T. M. Whitmore

Inka wallsIn Cusco

© T. M. Whitmore

Dr Barbara Williams at Saqsaywaman

The Sacred Valley, outside Cuzco. © Andrys Basten

© T. M. Whitmore

Andean Societies II•Resource management

problemsLittle land in any eco zone (but multiple opportunities as well)

Different agriculture needed in different zones

Altitude => frost a problem extreme diurnal temp differences

© T. M. Whitmore

Andean Societies III•Resource opportunities

The only large domesticated animals in the Americas (llamas & alpacas)“Camelids”

•Andean solution Murra’s “vertical archipelago”

Use of all major altitudinal zones – at the same time

Special food storage: charki and chuña (chuñu)

© T. M. Whitmore

“tame” alpaca

© T. M. Whitmore

Charki & chuña = freeze dried meat and tubersTaclla = foot plow/hoe

© T. M. Whitmore

Verticality!Note irrigatedterraces

© T. M. Whitmore

Colca ValleyNear Ariquipa, Peru(irrigated maize terraces in Inka times)

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Coastal Desert Societies

•Seat of sophisticated high cultures long before the Inka Moche (~100-700 AD) and Chimú (immediate pre-Inka)

© T. M. Whitmore

Coastal Desert Societies•Resource opportunities and limitations

Coastal fishing excellentNo frostNo rain except in El Niño yerrs

•Water management problems are severe

•Agricultural strategiesCanal irrigationSunken plotsGathered foods

Irrigated ag

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Columbian “Encounter” or “Exchange”

•Amerindian domesticated crops & animals

•Impacts of Amerindian crops

•Old World crops and animals to the Americas

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• Maize (corn) (Zea mays) • Potatoes (Solanum tuberosum) (so-called

“Irish” potatoes) & other tubers (e.g., Oca & olluco)

• Sweet potatoes (Ipomoea batatas) (including what we usually call ‘yams’)

• Manioc (Manihot esculenta and M. Dulcis) (or yuca; you know it as tapioca)

• Amaranth (Amaranthus spp.) (grain & greens)

• Beans (Phaseolus spp.) (most all types except soy, mung, & etc.)

• All squashes (Cucurbita spp.) • Tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicon)• Peanuts (Arachis hypogaea)

Foods I

© T. M. Whitmore

• Chilies (Capsicum spp.) (not true ‘peppers’)• Vanilla (Vanilla planifolia)• Avocado (Persea americana) • Papaya• Cashew• Chocolate (Theobroma cacao) ‘food of the

gods’)• Pineapple• Guava• Brazil nut• Agaves (Agave spp.) • Chenopodium species (both for grain and

greens) – including quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa)

• Cactus (prickly pear)• and many others, especially fruits

Foods II

© T. M. Whitmore

•Cotton (Gossypium spp.) (Most commercial types)

•Tobacco•Rubber (latex)•Coca (as in cocaine)•Indigo (also Old World, blue dye for

jeans)•Sisal/hemp (gunny sacks)•Copal (incense)•Cochineal (brilliant red dye from

crushed insects)•and many others

NON - FOODS

© T. M. Whitmore

•Guinea pig (Cavia porcellus) (Food)•Llama (Lama pacos) (food, fiber,

transport)•Alpaca (Lama Glama) (fiber)•Turkey •Dog (food)•Muscovy duck•Bee - only source of sweetness•Cochineal insect•and a very few others

ANIMALS

A sample of the diversity represented in the corn crib of one farmer in the highlands of central Mexico.

(photo by Hugh Iltis)

© The Potato Research Program of the National Agrarian University

OLLUCOOCA

International Potato Institute

(Centro International de la Papa)

http://www.cipotato.org/index2.asp

© T. M. Whitmore TODAY Pre-Columbian societies Lower Central America Caribbean Lowland South...

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