Andean Ontologies: New Perspectives from Archaeology, Ethnohistory and Bioarchaeology

The goal of this symposium is to reflect and discuss the ways in which the Andean worldview contributes to the humanities and social sciences. The main objective is to analyze deeply imbedded Andean concepts such as pacha, runa, camaq, huaca, minka, ayni, ayllu, hannan, hurin, etc through archaeological, ethnohistorical and bioarchaeological lenses. By doing this, we intend to identify aspects of the indigenous view point, most likely hybrid perceptions, and thus offer emic interpretations of the Andean world. By no means do we hope to reproduce immutable and common definitions of these concepts but rather offer interpretations that complement pre-existing Western perceptions.