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The Southeastern Inka Frontier against the Chiriguanos: Structure and Dynamics of the Inka Imperial Borderlands

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Sonia Alconini
Sonia Alconini*
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, University of Texas, San Antonio, TX 78249
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Abstract

Recent research on the Inka has documented the strategies and effects of imperial administration at a provincial and household level. Less is known, however, about the structure and dynamics of the Inka frontier and its impact on local and economic processes. The southeastern Inka frontier—according to ethnohistoric record—was the setting for conflict between the Inkas and the Guaraní-speaking Chiriguano groups from the Chaco piedmonts and Amazonian lowlands. In the context of two competing frontier models, one military (a hardened perimeter or in-depth defense) and one cultural (with wide socioeconomic processes), this article evaluates the nature of the southeastern Inka frontier and its effects on local socioeconomic dynamics. Archaeological and ethnohistorical research at Oroncota and Cuzcotuyo, two Inka centers of this frontier, suggest an alternative in the form of a “soft military frontier” formed by outposts and imperial centers disembedded from local socioeconomic processes. While architecture reveals high levels of investment, settlement data, storage capability, and the distribution of Inka imperial materials all suggest a minimal involvement in local socioeconomic processes. The results are relevant to understanding Inka frontier strategies and provide a case study of frontier interaction between a highly organized prehistoric state and tribal populations.

Recientes investigaciones han documentado las estrategias y efectos de la administración Inka imperial a niveles provinciales y domésticos. Sin embargo, poco se conoce sobre la estructura y dinámica de la frontera Inka, y su impacto en procesos locales y económicos. La frontera Inka al sudeste fue—según la etnohistoria—escenario de interacción conflictiva entre los Inkas y grupos Chiriguanos Guaraní del piedemonte Chaqueño y sabanas Amazónicas. En el contexto de dos modelos de frontera imperial, el militar (como perímetro endurecido o defensa profunda) y cultural (con amplios procesos socioeconómicos), este artículo evalúa la naturaleza de la frontera Inka al sudeste, y sus efectos en la dinámica socioeconómica local. Investigaciones arqueológicas y etnohistóricas en Oroncota y Cuzcotuyo, dos centros de la frontera, sugieren una variante alternativa en forma de una frontera militar tenue, formada por puestos de observación y centros imperiales casi desarraigados de procesos socioeconómicos locales. Mientras que la arquitectura revela niveles altos de inversión, datos de asentamiento poblacional, capacidad de almacenaje, y distribución de materiales imperiales sugieren un mínimo nivel de ingerencia en procesos socioeconómicos locales. Los resultados son relevantes para entender las estrategias Inka de fronteras, además interacción fronteriza entre un estado prehistórico altamente organizado y poblaciones tribales.

Type
Articles
Information
Latin American Antiquity , Volume 15 , Issue 4 , December 2004 , pp. 389 - 418
Copyright
Copyright © 2004 by the Society for American Archaeology.

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