Food as a Cultural Practice among the Mapuche in Santiago de Chile

Abstract

This article highlights the role of food as an essential tool for immigrant Mapuche families to reinforce their ethnic identity and pass it on to the younger generations in Santiago de Chile. Food and food-related practices were a topic that many Mapuche referred to when they were invited to talk about their culture and life in Santiago; this simultaneously revealed their relation to ‘others’ (Chileans) and their connectedness to their ancestral lands in the Araucania region in the south. Staying attuned and connected to the south through Mapuche food strengthens feelings of cultural continuity and belonging, such that Mapuche ethnic identity does not surrender to the city, but rather is re-created in a new environment.

Notes

1 The current Mapuche population has increased to 1,183,102, out of the total Chilean population of 18,123,444—a statistic reported by the CASEN (National Socioeconomic Characterization) survey for 2013. This survey reveals that the indigenous population in Chile represents 9.1% of the country’s population, comprising nine indigenous groups: Aymara, Rapa Nui, Quechua, Mapuche, Atacameño, Coya, Kawéskar, Yagán, and Diaguita. The Mapuche population is the largest of all indigenous groups (at 84.4%). The survey, conducted every second or third year, reveals the households and demographic situation of the most deprived populations in Chile, and also assesses the impact of social policies.

2 The word for land itself includes not only its physical form, but also the spiritual dimension of the world of the ancestors and spirits (Sierra 2000, 73–85).

3 Social and territorial organization of the Mapuche people consists of a familial clan or lineage that recognizes the authority of a lonko (chief). The lof or caví is formed of diverse families that share the same territory and are considered mutually related by descent from a common ancestor.

4 Its etymology derives from the Mapudungun we ‘new’ and ingka ‘Inca people’ who were the first invaders into Mapuche territory before the Spaniards. Therefore we+ingka resulted in the Spanish word for ‘new Incas’ and then huinca. Ahuincado is applied to Mapuche who have migrated to urban areas and have adopted the Chilean style of living.

5 Kimün means Mapuche knowledge and essential wisdom.

6 This article is based on the lead author’s Master’s thesis, funded by Fondecyt grant number 1140500 (for 2014–2016). The director of this Fondecyt grant (National Fund for Scientific and Technological Development, Chile) is co-author of this article.

7 The Evangelical church in Chile forbids its Mapuche members from practising their cultural rites and in some cases from speaking the Mapudungun language.

8 This daily conversation around the family table in Mapuche culture is referred to as ngütram. It involves talking and telling others about one’s recent dreams and their interpretations, in which everyone participates, and also learning about the others’ plans for the day, their concerns and how to solve them.

9 Wheat ‘coffee’ is widely consumed in rural areas of Chile for its healthy nutrients. It is made of ripe grains of wheat toasted and browned in a callana—a flat metal vessel used over a wood fire. A callana is rectangular with holes on both sides connected by wires to form a triangle. Its handle is a stick (koliwe) over two metres long.

10 A batea is a wooden trough, circular or oblong in shape and usually without handles, used for washing or for kneading bread.

11 A ruka is a traditional Mapuche dwelling house.

12 Purun is a Mapuche dance performed in religious ceremonies. It consists of zoomorphically inspired steps involving soft jumps. For example, choyke pürun (dance of the rhea), mara pürun (dance of the hare), rere pürun (dance of the woodpecker), tregüll pürun (dance of the queltehue [southern lapwing]), among others.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Maija Väätämöinen

Maija Väätämöinen holds a Master’s degree in Social Sciences (Cultural Policy, University of Jyväskylä, Finland) and is a Master’s student in Folklore Studies at the University of Helsinki. She also works in research administration at the University of Helsinki.

María Eugenia Merino

María Eugenia Merino is Senior Professor of Linguistics and Discourse Analysis at the School of Teacher Education, Faculty of Education, Universidad Catolica at Temuco, Chile. Dr Merino holds a PhD in Human Sciences with specialization in Discourse Analysis. Her research area is inter-ethnic and intercultural relations with particular focus on racism, discrimination, and ethnic identities.