European occupation and its impact on local lifestyle: discussing architectural transformations in 20th-century sites in Argentinean Patagonia.

Summary

European lifeways were introduced into  Argentinean Patagonia during the 19th century, thus joining this so-called "empty region" to the realm of the dominant global economic model. By the late 19th century, stockbreeding production started to spread over the area traditionally occupied by local indigenous people, thereby introducing significant changes to their lifestyle. Officially, indigenous peoples were to be settled into circumscribed reserves. However, some chose self-appointed confinement in distant, less-productive areas. Given this scenario, during the early and middle 20th century, a variety of architectural features coexisted in these marginal areas. The settlement type of the stockbreeding society was that of small land units known as estancias. Meanwhile, settlements occupied by indigenous peoples appear to broadly imitate the methods of the incoming settlers, although with characteristics of their own. Architectural features from five different sites exemplify these differences. We propose these are related to social identity.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Another Brick in the Wall: Buildings and Architecture   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2013

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Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 132