Guane people
| File:Alfarería guane 1.JPG
Guane doubled-chambered, ceramic, stirrup-spout vessel, 10th–16th century CE, exhibited at Chicamocha National Park
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| Regions with significant populations | |
|---|---|
Santander, Boyacá,  Colombia |
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| Languages | |
| Chibcha, Colombian Spanish | |
| Religion | |
| Traditional religion, Roman Catholicism | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Lache, U'wa, Muisca, and Muzo people |
The Guane people were a South American people that lived mainly in the area of Santander and north of Boyacá, both departments of present-day central-Colombia. They were farmers cultivating cotton, pineapple and other crops, and skilled artisans working in cotton textiles. The Guanes lived north of the Chicamocha River, around the Chicamocha Canyon in an area stretching from Vélez in the south to the capital of Santander; Bucaramanga in the north.[1] Other sources state their territory did not extend so far north.[2] Guane, a corregimiento of Barichara, Santander, is said to have been the capital of the Guane people.
Description
The Guanes made their own weapons, including arrows and spears. They interchanged plants for the stewpot with the Chitareros on the east and the Muisca to the south of their territories. The mantle making of the Guanes was well-known in pre-Columbian Colombia. Mantles made from cotton have been dated back to the 11th century AD.[3] The Guanes cultivated tobacco and made products of fique.[1]
Like the Mayas and many other civilizations in the world, the Guanes deliberately deformed the skulls of their children.[4]
In 1586 there were still some Guanes left but there were no further references found after that date; nevertheless, the local archives indicated that they did not disappear completely. They mixed heavily with the Spanish colonizers, as the Guanes were said to have European traits and very light skin.[5]
Like the Muisca and Lache people, the Guanes spoke a Chibchan language.[2] They adored Bochica, the messenger god in the Muisca religion.[6] The Guanes traded with their neighbouring indigenous groups; Laches to the east, U'wa to the northeast, Muzos to the south and Muisca to the southeast.
Rock art produced by the Guanes have been found around the Chicamocha Canyon and on the Mesa de los Santos, Santander.[6]
The Guane people chewed coca combined with calcitic grains, using poporos.[6]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 (Spanish) Guane people and their territories
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 (Spanish) Reconstruction of the Guane people - El Espectador
- ↑ (Spanish) Guane people and their mantle making
- ↑ (Spanish) Craneal deformation of the Guanes and other cultures worldwide
- ↑ (Spanish) Physical aspects of the Guane people
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 (Spanish) Description of the Guane people and their culture
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Guane culture. |
