Andean Ontologies: An Introduction to the Substance

Summary

In the last decade a number of studies have been published focusing on the way Andean peoples both in the past and present, describe and define their world and its relational elements. These ontologies are derived from anthropology, ethnohistory and ethnography. Most of them intend to reconstruct the worldview of these social groups with different results. In this paper I summarize the main trends related to ontologies developed for Andean societies, especially those used to explain pre-Hispanic societies. I draw a cautionary note with such interpretations as there is the danger to correlate them directly with ontologies from the historical period. In addition, I outline future directions that research regarding Andean ontologies may follow in an effort to understand Andean peoples in their own historical milieu.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 81st Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL (2016)   •
• Andean Ontologies: New Perspectives from Archaeology, Ethnohistory and Bioarchaeology

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