Narratives and discourses on the Formative period: Reflections and new epistemologies from the South Central Andes

Almost ten years ago, L.G. Lumbreras stated that the concept of “Formative” was unable to account for the diversity of social processes occurring in the Central Andes during the last three millennia BCE. Through a genealogical review of the concept and a critique of its use in different contexts throughout South America, he argued for the existence of multiple “formatives” with different characteristics and timelines. Nevertheless, this periodization has remained a key device for organizing archaeological data and for characterizing sociocultural transformations in the Andes, even while many archaeologists are aware of its implications. Often, modern notions of progress, evolution, adaptation, technological development, nature and culture —among others— serve as conceptual foundations upon which grand narratives about the past are constructed. These teleological accounts presuppose the existence of a universal rationality, firmly rooted in modern capitalism, engendering totalizing discourses that obscure local histories.The purpose of this session is to critically explore new approaches to the study of the “Formative” process in the South Central Andes. We encourage papers that offer alternate views to this phenomenon, reassessing the role of agriculture, technology, sedentism, and domestication in the history of these groups, while proposing other epistemological possibilities for constructing effective narratives.