Article published in "Atlas Departmental del Peru: Arequipa - Moquegua, 2003" by La República.
Chronicles say that two very different ethnic groups have inhabited the region since time immemorial. They arrived there from distant places and displaced the first settlers thanks to their military power and their skills in the use of tools and farming techniques.
The “Collaguas" stated that they were children of the volcano “Collaguata” and that they came from the bowels of the earth. The legend says that "they all came out with their weapons, costumes and headdresses, and went down the slopes of the mountain conquering the region." A characteristic feature was the singular form of their heads, which were deformed as newborns to imitate the figure of the volcanic cone which they consider as a guardian “apu”.
It is said that the second group, called the “Cabana”, came from the depths of the mount Hualca Hualca. They also deformed the skulls of their infants, but in a manner contrary to their neighbours, they adopted a flattened shape similar to the outline of their "pacarina" or birth mountain.
An additional difference between the groups of the region was the language. The Collaguas spoke Aymara and the Cabanas spoke Quechua, slightly different from the one spoken in Cuzco.
Despite the presence of the Colca River that crossed their settlements, the ancient inhabitants of the Colca valley were denied the possibility of using these waters to irrigate their fields, the reason was that the river flowed at the bottom of a deep canyon, thousands of meters below land. Their water, which was essential to life and sustenance of their villages, originated in the snows of the mountain, so they decided to put together their ingenuity so they could run this essential liquid through extensive canals and aqueducts, and transport it to their crops.
They learned that they should use many different ecological or altitudinal levels, achieving a diversity of crops and food surpluses that enabled them to establish themselves as the absolute masters of the region.
However, the complex geography of their territory was for the ancient men of the Colca Valley a source of challenge. This encouraged the development of a special system of farms in platforms which still continues to surprise anyone who is lucky enough to see them.
Translated by: Isabella Anne Farrell Abarca
Chronicles say that two very different ethnic groups have inhabited the region since time immemorial. They arrived there from distant places and displaced the first settlers thanks to their military power and their skills in the use of tools and farming techniques.
The “Collaguas" stated that they were children of the volcano “Collaguata” and that they came from the bowels of the earth. The legend says that "they all came out with their weapons, costumes and headdresses, and went down the slopes of the mountain conquering the region." A characteristic feature was the singular form of their heads, which were deformed as newborns to imitate the figure of the volcanic cone which they consider as a guardian “apu”.
It is said that the second group, called the “Cabana”, came from the depths of the mount Hualca Hualca. They also deformed the skulls of their infants, but in a manner contrary to their neighbours, they adopted a flattened shape similar to the outline of their "pacarina" or birth mountain.
An additional difference between the groups of the region was the language. The Collaguas spoke Aymara and the Cabanas spoke Quechua, slightly different from the one spoken in Cuzco.
Despite the presence of the Colca River that crossed their settlements, the ancient inhabitants of the Colca valley were denied the possibility of using these waters to irrigate their fields, the reason was that the river flowed at the bottom of a deep canyon, thousands of meters below land. Their water, which was essential to life and sustenance of their villages, originated in the snows of the mountain, so they decided to put together their ingenuity so they could run this essential liquid through extensive canals and aqueducts, and transport it to their crops.
They learned that they should use many different ecological or altitudinal levels, achieving a diversity of crops and food surpluses that enabled them to establish themselves as the absolute masters of the region.
However, the complex geography of their territory was for the ancient men of the Colca Valley a source of challenge. This encouraged the development of a special system of farms in platforms which still continues to surprise anyone who is lucky enough to see them.
Translated by: Isabella Anne Farrell Abarca
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