Muisca
Muysca | |
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The Muisca (also called Chibcha) are an
The territory of the Muisca spanned an area of around 25,000 km2 (9,700 sq mi) from the north of Boyacá to the Sumapaz Páramo and from the summits to the western portion of the Eastern Ranges. Their territory bordered the lands of the Panche in the west, the Muzo in the northwest, the Guane in the north, the Lache in the northeast, the Achagua in the east, and the Sutagao in the south.
At the time of the Spaniard invasion, the area had a large population, although the precise number of inhabitants is not known. Estimates vary from 1 million to over 3 million inhabitants. Their economy was based on agriculture, salt mining, trading, metalworking, and manufacturing.
Due to Spanish colonization, the population of the Muisca has drastically decreased and assimilated into the general population. The descendants of the Muisca are often found in rural municipalities including
Much of our knowledge about the Muisca comes from the testimonies of their
History of the Muisca
Knowledge of events up until 1450 is mainly derived from mythological contexts, but thanks to the Chronicles of the West Indies we do have descriptions of the final period of Muisca history, prior to Spanish arrival.
Background
Excavations in the
Muisca era
Scholars agree that the group identified as Muisca migrated to the Altiplano Cundiboyacense in the Formative era (between 1000 BCE and 500 CE), as shown by evidence found at Aguazuque and Soacha. Like the other formative-era cultures of America, the Muiscas were transitioning between being hunter-gatherers and becoming sedentary farmers. Around 1500 BCE, groups of agrarians with ceramic traditions came to the region from the lowlands. They had permanent housing and stationary camps, and worked the salty water to extract salt. In Zipacón there is evidence of agriculture and ceramics. The oldest settlement of the highlands dates to 1270 BCE. Between 800 BCE and 500 BCE, a second wave of migrants came to the highlands. Their presence is identified by multicolor ceramics, housing, and farms. These groups were still in residence upon the arrival of the Spanish invaders. They left abundant traces of their occupation that have been studied since the 16th century, and allow scientists to reconstruct their way of life. It is possible that the Muisca integrated with more ancient inhabitants, but the Muisca were the ones who molded the cultural profile and the social and political organization. Their language, a dialect of Chibcha, was very similar to those peoples of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta (Kogui, Ijka, Wiwa, and Kankuamo) and the Sierra Nevada del Cocuy (U'wa).
Wars
Zipa Saguamanchica (ruled 1470 to 1490) was in a constant war against aggressive tribes such as the Sutagao, and especially the Panche, who would also make difficulties for his successors, Nemequene and Tisquesusa. The Caribs were also a permanent threat as rivals of the zaque of Hunza, especially for the possession of the salt mines of Zipaquirá, Nemocón and Tausa.
Timeline of inhabitation of the Muisca area
Timeline of inhabitation of the Altiplano Cundiboyacense, Colombia | |
Political and administrative organization
The Muisca people were organized in a
Every tribe within the confederation was ruled by a chief or a
The Muisca Confederation existed as the union of two lesser confederations. The southern confederation, headed by the
The northern territory was ruled by the zaque, and had its capital in Hunza, known today as Tunja. Although both areas had common political relations and affinities and belonged to the same tribal nation, there were still rivalries between them. Among the territories there were four chiefdoms: Bacatá, Hunza, Duitama, and Sogamoso. The chiefdom was composed by localities.[6] The tribes were divided into Capitanías (ruled by a capitan). There were two kinds: Great Capitania (sybyn) and Minor Capitania (uta). The status of Capitan was inherited by maternal lineage.[6]
- Confederation (zipa or zaque)
- → Priests (Iraca)
- → Chiefdoms (Cacique)
- → Capitanía (Capitan)
- → Sybyn
- → Uta
- → Sybyn
- → Capitanía (Capitan)
- → Chiefdoms (Cacique)
- → Priests (Iraca)
- Territories of the zipa:
- Bacatá rule: Teusaquillo, Tenjo, Subachoque, Facatativá, Tabio, Cota, Chía, Engativá, Usme, Zipaquirá, Nemocón and Zipacón
- Fusagasugá District: Fusagasugá, Pasca and Tibacuy
- Ubaté District: Ubaté, Cucunubá, Simijaca, Susa
- Suba
- Territories of the zaque:
- Hunza rule: Soracá, Ramiriquí, Samacá, Machetá, Tenza, Tibiritá, Lenguazaque and Turmequé
- Territory of Tundama: Cerinza, Oicatá, Onzaga, Sativanorte, Sativasur, Soatá, Paipa, Tobasia
- Territory of Tópaga
- Autonomous chiefdoms: Charalá, Chipatá, Tinjacá, Saboyá, Tacasquirá
The Muisca legislation was consuetudinary, that is to say, their rule of law was determined by long-extant customs with the approval of the zipa or zaque. This kind of legislation was suitable to a confederation system, and it was a well-organized one. The natural resources could not be privatized: woods, lakes, plateaus, rivers and other natural resources were common goods.
Language
Chibcha, also known as muysca, mosca, or muysca cubun, belongs to the
Many Chibcha words were absorbed or "loaned" into Colombian Spanish:
- Geography: Many names of localities and regions were kept. In some cases, the Spanish named cities with a combination of Chibcha and Spanish words, such as Santa Fe de Bogotá (Chibcha: "Bacatá"). Most of the municipalities of the Boyacá and Cundinamarca departments are derived from Chibcha names: Chocontá, Sogamoso, Zipaquirá, and many others.
- Fruits, such as uchuva.
- Relations: the youngest child is called cuba, or china for a girl;[citation needed] muysca means people.
Economy
The Muisca had an economy and society considered to have been one of the most powerful of the American Post-Classic stage, mainly because of the precious resources of the area: gold and emeralds. When the Spaniards arrived in Muisca territory they found a rich state, with the Muisca Confederation controlling mining of the following products:
- emeralds: Colombia is the primary producer of emeralds in the world
- copper
- coal: the coal mines still operate today at Zipaquirá and other sites. Colombia has some of the world's most significant coal reserves.[8]
- salt: there were mines in production at Nemocón, Zipaquirá, and Tausa
- gold: gold was imported from other regions, but it was so abundant that it became a preferred material for Muisca handicrafts. The many handicraft works in gold and the zipa tradition of offering gold to the goddess Guatavita contributed to the legend of El Dorado.
The Muisca traded their goods at local and regional markets with a system of barter. Items traded ranged from those of basic necessity through to luxury goods. The abundance of salt, emeralds, and coal brought these commodities to de facto currency status.
Having developed an agrarian society, the people used terrace farming and irrigation in the highlands. Main products were
Another major economic activity was weaving. The people made a wide variety of complex textiles. The scholar Paul Bahn said: "the Andean cultures mastered almost every method of textile weaving or decoration now known, and their products were often finer than those of today."[9]
Culture
The Muisca were an agrarian and ceramic society of the Andes of the north of South America. Their political and administrative organization enabled them to form a compact cultural unity with great discipline. In Spanish, it is called cultura muisca
The contributions of the Muisca culture to the Colombian national identity have been many.
Heraldry
Pre-Columbian Muisca patterns appear in various seals of modern municipalities located on the Altiplano Cundiboyacense, for instance Sopó and Guatavita, Cundinamarca.[10][11] The remaining Muisca people in central Colombia also have their own seal.[12]
Sports
The Muisca culture had certain sports which were part of their rituals. The turmequé game, also known as tejo, has survived and became a popular sport of Colombia. Also important were matches of wrestling. The winner received a finely woven cotton blanket from the chief and was qualified as a guecha warrior.
Religion
Muisca priests were educated from childhood and led the main religious ceremonies. Only the priests could enter the temples. Besides the religious activities, the priests had much influence in the lives of the people, giving counsel in matters of farming or war. The religion originally included human sacrifice, but the practice may have been extinct by the time of the Spanish conquest, as there are no first-hand Spanish accounts.
Oral tradition suggests that every family gave up a child for
Deities
- Sué, Suá, Zuhé or Xué (The Sun god): he is the father of the Muisca. His temple was in Suamox, the sacred city of the Sun. He was the most venerated god, especially by the Confederation of the zaque, who was considered his descendant.
- Chía (The Moon-goddess): her temple was in what is today the municipality of Chía. She was widely worshipped by the Confederation of the zipa, who was considered her son.
- Bochica: though not properly a god, he enjoyed the same status as one. He was a chief or hero eternized in the oral tradition. The land was flooded by a goddess, a beautiful and sometimes mean woman, or by Chibchacum, protector of the farmers. Bochica listened to the complaints of the Muisca about floods. With his stick, he broke two rocks at the edge of the Tequendama Falls and all the water came out, forming a waterfall. Bochica punished Huitaca and Chibchacum: He made Huitaca an owl and made her hold up the sky. Chibchacum was tasked with holding up the Earth.
- Chía; in other versions Chia and Bachué are two different figures.
Astronomy
The cult of the Muisca centered on two main deities; Sué for the Sun and Chía for the Moon. They developed a vigesimal (based on 20) calendar and knew exactly the timing of the summer solstice (June 21), which they considered the Day of Sué, the Sun god. The Sué temple was in Sogamoso, the sacred city of the Sun and the seat of the Iraca (priest). The Muisca name of the city, Suamox or Sugamuxi, means "City of the Sun". On the solstice, the zaque went to Suamox for a major festival where ritual offerings were made. It was the only day of the year when the zaque showed his face, as he was considered a descendant of the Sun god.[13]
Mythology
The Muisca mythology is well documented. Many of the writers who contributed to the Chronicles of the West Indies were based in Bogotá. They recorded many of the myths as they were interested in the traditions and culture of the conquered people. The Muisca territory became the seat of the colonial administration for the New Kingdom of Granada (Spanish: Nuevo Reino de Granada).
El Dorado
The origin of the legend of El Dorado (Spanish for "The Golden One") in the early 16th century may be located in the Muisca Confederation[citation needed]. The zipa offered gold and other treasures to the Guatavita goddess. To do so, the zipa covered himself with gold dust and washed it off in the lake while tossing gold trinkets into the waters. This tradition was well known outside the Confederation, as far as the Caribbean Sea; the Spaniards were attracted by stories of a "city of gold" that did not exist. Indigenous people sometimes got rid of the avaricious Spaniards in that way, pointing them in the direction of other peoples. Lake Guatavita was explored by conquistadors who were looking for gold offerings from the zipa to the goddess. The legend grew until the term became a metaphor for any place where great wealth may be found or made.
Architecture
The Muisca did not construct large stone structures. They didn't use the abundant rock to leave monumental ruins as has happened with other American cultures. Their houses were built with materials such as clay, canes, and wood. The houses had a conical form, most of them to the point that Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada, founder of Bogotá, gave the area the name Valle de los Alcázares ("Valley of the Palaces"). The houses had small doors and windows, and the dwellings of the higher rank citizens were different. The Muisca used little furniture as they would typically sit on the floor.
The Spanish conquest
Rivalries between the zaque and the zipa were taken advantage of by the Spaniards as they conquered the heart of what would be Colombia. Some of them, such as
The reaction of the chief leaders and the people did little to change the destiny of the Confederations. The Spanish executed the last Muisca sovereigns, Sagipa and Aquiminzaque, in 1539 and 1540 respectively. In 1542 Gonzalo Suárez Rendón finally put down the last resistance and the territories of the Confederations were shared by Belalcazar, Federmann, and De Quesada. Later the Spanish Crown would elect De Quesada as the man in charge, with the title adelantado de los cabildos de Santa Fe y Tunja.
Last Muisca sovereigns
- Zipas of Bacatá:
- Meicuchuca (1450–1470)
- Saguamanchica (1470–1490)
- Nemequene (1490–1514)
- Tisquesusa (1514–1537)
- Sagipa (1537–1539)
- Zaques of Hunza:
- Hunzahúa (?-1470)
- Michuá (1470–1490)
- Quemuenchatocha (1490–1537)
- Aquiminzaque (1537–1540)
Under the colonial regime
When the Muisca structure disappeared under the Spanish Conquest, the territory of the Confederations of the zaque and zipa were included in a new political division within the Spanish colonies in America. The territory of the Muisca, located in a fertile plain of the Colombian Andes that contributed to make one of the most advanced South American civilizations, became part of the colonial region named
Independent Colombia
20th century
After independence in 1810, the new state dissolved many of the indigenous reservations. The one in Tocancipá was dissolved in 1940.[14] The one in Sesquilé was reduced to 10% of its original size. Tenjo was reduced to 54% of its original size after 1934, and the indigenous lands in Suba, a northern region in modern-day Bogotá, which had been recognized and protected by the crown, were taken away by the republican governments following a strategy of supression of the native culture and ethnic presence in the country’s largest urban centres. The Reservation of Cota was re-established on land bought by the community in 1916, and then recognized by the 1991 constitution; the recognition was withdrawn in 1998 by the state and restored in 2006.
In 1948 the state forbade the production of chicha, a corn-based alcoholic drink.[15] This was a blow to the culture and economy of the Muisca. The ban remained until 1991. Since then, the "Festival of the chicha, maize, life, and joy" is celebrated every year in Barrio La Perseverancia, a neighborhood in Bogotá where most of the chicha is produced.
21st century
Since 1989, there has been a process of reconstruction of the indigenous councils by the surviving members of the Muisca Culture. Muisca Councils currently working are Suba, Bosa, Cota, Chía, and Sesquilé. The councils had an Assembly in Bosa on 20–22 September 2002, called the First General Congress of the Muisca People. In that congress, they founded the Cabildo Mayor del Pueblo Muisca, affiliated to the National Indigenous Organization of Colombia (ONIC).[16] They proposed linguistic and cultural recuperation, defense of the territories nowadays occupied by others, and proposed urban and tourist plans. They support the communities of Ubaté, Tocancipá, Soacha, Ráquira, and Tenjo in their efforts to recover their organizational and human rights.
The Muisca people of Suba opposed the drying up of the
The community of Bosa made important achievements in its project of natural medicine in association with the Paul VI Hospital and the District Secretary of Health of Bogotá. The community of Cota has reintroduced the growing of quinua, and regularly barter their products at market.
Toward the end of 2006 there was a report on the Muisca population:
- Three Muisca councils: Cota, Chía, and Sesquilé, with a population of 2,318 persons
- in the Capital District 5,186 people are registered as belonging to the Muisca ethnic group
- in the localities of Suba and Bosa, 1,573 people are registered
- the report does not include the number of people of the Muisca ethnic group in the entire territory of the ancient Muisca Confederation or outside that territory. It does not include Muisca Creole persons, it is to say, those of mixed Muisca ancestry.
Muisca research
Studies of Muisca culture are abundant and have a long tradition. The first sources come from the Chronicles of the West Indies, which work lasted for three centuries during the existence of the colonial New Kingdom of Granada.
After the independence wars in 1810, there was a surge of interest in the study of the Muisca culture. Indigenous Colombians established the capital of their republic in Bogotá, the former viceroyal city, which was the capital of the confederation of the zipa, and was known as Bacatá. Research shows that this site was the cradle of an advanced society whose process of consolidation was cut short by the Spanish conquest.[17]
This search for an identity resulted in giving emphasis to the Muisca culture and overlooking other native nations, which were seen as wild people. Researchers wrongly concluded that the Muisca culture inhabited a previously empty land and that all archeological finds could be attributed solely to the Muisca. In 1849 president
Miguel Triana, in his work La Civilización Chibcha[21] suggested that the rock art symbols were writing. Wenceslao Cabrera Ortíz was the one who concluded that the Muisca were migrants to the highlands; in 1969 he published on this[22] and reported about excavations at the El Abra archaeological site. Those publications opened a new era in the studies of the pre-Hispanic cultures in Colombia.[17]
Recent archaeological work has also concentrated on the creation and composition of Muisca goldwork, with this data being made available for wider research.[23]
Named after the Muisca and their culture
Several (fossil) flora and fauna found in Colombia in the area of the Muisca have been named after the people. Two volcanoes on Jupiter's moon Io have been named after the Muisca religion and mythology.
See also
References
- ^ a b (in Spanish) Total population of Muisca in Colombia: 14,051[permanent dead link] – Ministry of Internal Affairs – accessed 21-04-2016
- ^ Ministerio de Cultura (2010) "Muiscas, los hijos de Bachué". Bogotá
- ^ (in Spanish) Muysccubun, the language of the Muisca – Muysccubun dictionary online
- ^ Wiesner García, 1987
- ^ (in Spanish) Muisca culture – Historia Universal – accessed 20-04-2016
- ^ a b (in Spanish) The place of religion in the Muisca social organization Archived 2007-01-25 at the Wayback Machine – Museo del Oro – Biblioteca Luís Ángel Arango
- ^ Izquierdo Peña, 2009, p.43
- ^ (in Spanish) Ministerio de Minas y Energia – Proexport Colombia
- ^ P. Bahn, Archaeology, p. 317
- ^ (in Spanish) Official website Sopó Archived 2016-02-21 at the Wayback Machine – accessed 05-05-2016
- ^ (in Spanish) Official website Guatavita Archived 2016-01-30 at the Wayback Machine – accessed 05-05-2016
- ^ Seal of the Muisca people – Commons
- ^ Ocampo López, 2013, Ch.13, p.80
- ^ Decree of August 14, 1940, Republic of Colombia.
- ^ Law 34 of 1948, Republic of Colombia.
- ^ Abbreviation in Spanish: "Organización Nacional Indígena de Colombia"
- ^ a b Argüello G., Pedro María; History of the Investigation of the Rock Art in Colombia
- ^ Ancízar, Manuel; Peregrinación Alfa (Alpha Travels), Bogotá, 1889: Comisión Coreográfica Agustín Codazzi
- ^ Uricoechea, Ezequiel; Memorias sobre las Antigüedades Neogranadinas (Memoirs of the Ancient Neogranadian Cultures), Berlín, 1854
- ^ Restrepo, Vicente; Los chibchas antes de la conquista española (The Chibcha people before the Spanish Conquest), 1895
- ^ Triana, Miguel; La Civilización Chibcha (The Chibcha Civilization), 1924
- ^ Ortíz, Wenceslao Cabrera; Monumentos rupestres de Colombia (Colombian Rock-art Monuments) in Cuaderno primero: Generalidades, Algunos conjuntos pictóricos de Cundinamarca, 1969
- ISSN 2049-1565.
Bibliography
- Fernández-Alonso, José Luis; Groenendijk, Jeroen P. (2004). "A new species of Zephyranthes herb. S.L. (Amaryllidaceae, Hippeastreae) with notes on the genus in Colombia" (PDF). Rev. Acad. Colomb. Cie. 28: 177–186. ISSN 0370-3908.
- Olivares, Tania S.; Burckhardt, Daniel (1997). "Jumping plant-lice of the New World genus Calinda (Hemiptera:Psylloidea:Triozidae)". Revue Suisse de Zoologie. 104. Geneva, Switzerland: Société Suisse de Zoologie: 231–344. ISSN 0035-418X.
- arXiv:0812.0574 [physics.hist-ph]. Université de Montréal.
- Pérez, Sandra; Wolff, Marta; De Carvalho, Claudio J.B. (19 November 2012). "A new species of Brachygasterina Macquart from Colombia, and description of the males of B. stuebeli Röder and B. muisca Soares & Carvalho (Diptera: Muscidae) – Abstract" (PDF). Zootaxa. 3554: 45–57. ISSN 1175-5334.
Further reading
- Bahn, Paul (1991). Archaeology, Theories, Methods and Practice. Vol. 2nd edition. London, UK: Thames and Hudson. ISBN 978-0-500-27867-3.
- Bonnett Vélez, Diana (1999). "El caso del altiplano Cundiboyacense: 1750–1800". La ofensiva hacia las tierras comunales indígenas" [The Case of the Cundiboyacense Highland: 1750–1800. The challenge toward the communitarian Indian lands]. Universitas Humanistica (in Spanish). 48.
- Broadbent, Sylvia (1964). Los Chibchas: organización socio-política [The Chibcha People: Social and Politica Organization]. Série Latinoamericana (in Spanish). Vol. 5. Bogotá: Facultad de Sociología, Universidad Nacional de Colombia.
- Friede, Juan 1961: Los chibchas bajo la dominación española (tr.en. The Chibcha People under the Spaniard Rule). Bogotá: La Carreta
- García, Antonio; Jiménez, Edith; Ochoa, Blanca (1946). "Resguardo Indígena de Tocancipá" [Tocancipá Indian Shelter]. Boletín de Arqueología. 6 (1).
- González de Pérez, María Stella 1987: Diccionario y Gramática Chibcha (Chibchan Dictionary and Grammar). Manuscrito anónimo de la Biblioteca Nacional de Colombia. Bogotá: Instituto Caro y Cuervo
- Enciclopedia de Colombia a su alcance Espasa Siglo (Colombian Encyclopedia within reach – Espasa Century). Tomo 1 Bogotá, Colombia 2003
- Hernández Rodríguez Guillermo 1949: De los Chibchas a la Colonia y la República (tr.en. From the Chibcha People to the Colony to the Republic). Bogotá: Ediciones Paraninfo, 1991
- Historia de Colombia (tr.en. History of Colombia). Tomo 1 Zamora Editores, Bogotá, Colombia 2003
- Gran Enciclopedia de Colombia Tematica. Tomos 1 y 11 Círculo de Lectores, Bogotá, Colombia 1994
- Fundación Misión Colombia: Historia de Bogota, Conquista y Colonia. Tomo 1 Salvat-Villegas editores, Bogotá, Colombia 1989
- ISBN 978-958-9028-40-7.
- Londoño, Eduardo 1998: Los muiscas: una reseña histórica con base en las primeras descripciones. Bogotá: Museo del Oro
- Llano Restrepo, María Clara y Marcela Campuzano 1994: La Chicha, una bebida fermentada a través de la historia. Bogotá: Instituto Colombiano de Antropología
- Lleras Pérez, Roberto (1990). Diferentes oleadas de poblamiento en la prehistoria tardía de los Andes Orientales. El simposio 'Los chibchas en América' del II Congreso Mundial de Arqueología. Barquesimeto, Venezuela.
- Posada, Francisco (1965). El camino chibcha a la sociedad de clases (in Spanish). University of Texas. pp. 1–42.
- Rozo Guauta, José (1978). Los Muiscas: organización social y régimen político (in Spanish). University of Texas. pp. 1–216.
- Suescún Monroy, Armando (1987). La Economía Chibcha (in Spanish). Bogotá: ISBN 978-958-601-137-2.
- Tovar Pinzón, Hermes 1980: La formación social chibcha. Bogotá. CIEC
External links
- The Art of Pre-Columbian Gold: The Jan Mitchell Collection – The Metropolitan Museum of Art exhibition catalog – available online as PDF
- Muisca Indigenous Heritage – development cooperation story of the Wikibook Development Cooperation Handbook
- Muisca: "Chibchan Indians" – Online Books Page
- Books on the Muisca[permanent dead link] – Ibero-American Institute – Berlin
- (in English and Spanish) Nicely animated video about the Muisca and their religious origin
- (in Spanish) Animated video about the Spanish conquest of the Muisca – Tisquesusa, Quemuenchatocha and Aquiminzaque
- New International Encyclopedia. 1905.
.
- Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. .