Incas

We explain who were the Incas, how was their religion and architecture. In addition, what are its characteristics, society and more.

Who were the Incas?

The Incas formed the largest and most powerful empire in South America from the thirteenth century until the arrival of Spanish colonizers in the 16th century. They dominated various geographical regions and built citieswith buildings made of stone, roads and bridges that connected the entire empire.

The original capital and region of the Incas was in Cuzco, Peru but over time, the Empire managed to master part of the current territories of Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia, Chile and Argentina.

See also: Inca civilization

Characteristics of the Incas

Some characteristics of the Incas are:

• They inhabited the Andean region between the twelfth and sixteenth centuries and organized an empire led by a sacred monarch called Sapa Inca.
• They had one structured society around communal lifethrough the ayllus (groups of people who recognized a common ancestral origin).
• Differentiated people according to their social status and established rank privileges in relation to its origin and its occupation.
• They developed one Economics highlighted by cultivation techniquesand the state administration of agricultural land and work.
• They implemented a own architectural style in those villages that dominated through military conquests.
• They venerated the gods Viracocha (creator of the world) and Inti (patron of the Inca Empire), among other divinities.
• They developed a notation system of Quipusbased on a knotted string system.

Geographical location of the Incas

The Incas inhabited the current territories of Peru and Bolivia, and came to expand their empire to southern Colombia, western Ecuador, northern Chile and northern Argentina. These territories included mountainous areas, mountains and jungles and coastal areas.

Origin and History of the Incas

The history of the Incas is divided into the following stages:

• Inca Curacazgo (1197-1438 AD). The archaeologists argue that, in their origin, the Incas departed from Lake Titicaca (current Bolivia) and settled in the Cuzco Valley (current Peru) in the twelfth century d. C., where they fought with other peoples for the control of fertile lands. Inca legends say that, around 1250 d. C., Manco Cápac founded the capital of the Incas, called Cuzco, and civilized the peoples of the region with the help of his wife, Mama Ocllo. Historians have managed to trace the existence of Manco Cápac and identified him as the son of King Apuco de Taipicala-Tiahuanaco, a kingdom in the area of ​​Lake Titicaca.
• Inca Empire (1438-1533 AD). From the reign of Pachacuti (1438-1471 DC), the Inca domain of the region was established. In successive stages, the Incas conquered neighboring peoples and formed the largest empire in pre -Columbian America. By 1530, the Spaniards arrived in the region led by Francisco Pizarro and conquered the Inca Empire in 1533.
• Neo-Inca State (1537-1572 AD). In 1537, Manco Inca Yupanqui founded the kingdom of Vilcabamba in the center of current Peru, as heir to the Inca empire and culture. In 1572, after capturing and executing Túpac Amaru I (the last ruler), the Spaniards ended the political authority of the Inca resistance.

Political Organization of the Incas

The Inca Empire It was a strictly centralized state and was divided into four regions. Each region was called his, which means “portion.” The set of regions formed the empire, called Tawantinsuyuwhich means “four portions.”

He Tawantinsuyu I was headed by the SAPA INCAwho was an absolute sovereign whose mandate was transmitted by inheritance. He SAPA INCA He dictated the laws, exercised as a supreme judge, commanded the armies and was the religious leader. The people considered that the SAPA INCA He was direct descendant of Inti, God Sun, through Manco Cápac, founder of the Inca monarchy.

In turn, each his was governed by a Apowhich resided in Cuzco, a city considered by the Incas as the center of the world. In turn, the regions were divided into provinces, each under the command of a boss.

Social organization of the Incas

The basis of the Inca social organization was the ayllu: A group of people who considered themselves descendants of the same ancestors. Each ayllu He kept the mummies of his ancestors in some place and worshiped them. Among several ayllus They formed a community that was governed by a Cuaca.

On the other hand, the Incas had a stratified society that was made up of the following groups:

• PANACA. The real nobility integrated a privileged group that controlled the State and religion. Since childhood, the nobles were educated to be rulers, warriors or priests of the empire, under the guidance of wise teachers called Amautas. The PANACA They could have many wives and wear special clothes that were prohibited for the rest of the Incas. In addition, as distinction symbols, they carried large rates of gold that stretched the lobes of the ears.
• Curacas. The second stratum was made up of curacasthat were the bosses of the ayllus. They were considered noble of less category than the real nobility. As leaders, they had to raise the tax and recruit labor for the work of the State.
• Hatun Runa. Third, artisans and peasants were the ones who performed all production tasks, both food and manufactures. They had to contribute to the construction of public works and provide military service.
• Yanaconas. This group was made up of people separated from their community of origin, who lost any link with their families and worked by giving services to the State.

Inca architecture and art

The Incas gave much importance to architecture. In the time of imperial expansion, The armies carried architects and imposed an official architecture to the defeated peoples. The Inca style was characterized by solidity and sobriety: the buildings were rectangular or polygonal stones, perfectly cut, polished and assembled.

The city of Cuzco, capital of the empire, had a planned design: straight, narrow and long streets, ordered from two main places. The streets had paths and ditches, for which the water ran to ensure the cleaning of the city. For homes they used adobe bricks and roofs were straw.

As they expanded their empire, the Incas They built a network of roads and bridges. There were two main roads that crossed the Inca territory: one went along the Pacific coast and another, by the Andean mountains. In addition, there were various paths that crossed these main routes transversely.

As for art, The Inca style could be seen in murals, mantles or geometric designs that adorned ceramics. Bird feathers were used to accompany fans, shirts and other clothing. Its management of metals such as copper, bronze, platinum and iron was disseminated to all populations conquered by the Incas. In addition, evidence of the creation of musical instruments of wind and percussion has been found.

Economic Organization of the Incas

The Inca economy was based on agriculture. In Tawantinsuyu the terrace culture technique was used. These terraces were built on the slopes of the mountains and were sustained by stones that retained fertile land. The water for irrigation was carried through channels and was leaked slowly from the levels higher than the lower ones.

In addition, they practiced the fallow, a technique that allowed to recover the fertility of the soil naturally by establishing periodic breaks of the earth. The most important crops were potatoes, corn, pumpkin, quinoa, tomatoes, cabbage, cotton and different varieties of peppers. Also They raised flames, vicuñas and alpacas To use your wool and make tissues.

The land of the empire were organized as follows:

• Inca lands. They were worked by the peasants for the maintenance of the Inca, the nobles and the army.
• Lands del Sol. They were cultivated by peasants for the maintenance of priests and religious cult.
• Ayllus lands. They belonged to the Ayllus communities and, every year, Curaca distributed the lands among the members of the Ayllu.

Inca culture

The official language of the Inca Empire was the Quechua. As a registration form they used a system of Quipusin which colored laces made with flame wool or plant fibers were knotted and braided. In this way, through the knots they recorded the historical facts, the quantity and type of products saved in the deposits of the empire, the population censuses and the data on the agricultural organization.

They had a 360 -day calendar, with 12 cycles of 30 days. This calendar ruled the order of agricultural tasks, the delivery of taxes and the organization of work.

The Incas They had great knowledge about medicine. They used plants to cure various diseases and their doctors could perform very complex operations, such as transplants, grafts and brain surgeries.

Inca religion

The Incas They believed that the world had four ageseach of which was represented with a different sun. According to them, the first three ages had ended with a cataclysm that ended the existing population. In the fourth age, the Incas had the mission of regenerating humanity.

The religion of the Incas was polytheisticthat is, they believed in various divinities. The most beloved gods were inti and viracocha. According to the Inca myths, Viracocha had created men and had put the sun and the moon in the sky. They believed that this God had granted humanity the gifts of the word, agriculture and fabric. Then, under the promise to return, he had left walking through the waters west.

About Inti, the sun godit was believed that it was the direct ancestor of the lineage of the Incas monarchs. He was venerated as the patron of the Empire and caregiver of the Inca society.

Other important deities were Illapa, god of thunder that caused the rains; Pachamama, mother of the earth; Quilla, the moon, wife of the sun; and Mamacocha, mother of the waters, venerated by the fishermen.

For the Incas, Death was a sacred passage to the next life. They believed in the immortality of the soul after physical death and developed complex mummification techniques. In addition, they believed in the existence of three interrelated worlds:

• Hanan Pacha. The upper world.
• Kay Pacha. Middle world.
• Uku Pacha. Lower world.

The Incas respected certain sacred places and objects, which they called Huacassuch as lakes, volcanoes, hills or peaks of the mountains. There they built small altars and worshiped their ancestors.

On the other hand, The imperial cult was directed by a high priest, called Villac Umuthat presided over the council Hatun Villcacomposed of ten high -ranking priests. The most important religious parties were held in June and December, and were attended by Emperor Sapa Inca. There were rituals that included dances and songs, and offerings were dedicated to the gods: coca leaves, snails, chicha, blood and flame hearts. In these parties, in addition, the curacas (bosses of each ayllu) renewed their oath of fidelity to the Inca Sapa.

References

• Espinoza Soriano, W. (1978). The modes of production in the Incas Empire.
• Rostworowski from Diez Canseco, M. (1988). Andean power structures: religious and political ideology. Peruvian Studies Institute.
• Covey, RA (2008). The Inca Empire. In The Handbook of South American Archaeology (pp. 809-830). Springer, New York, NY.
• Demarrais, E. (2013). Internal colonization, material culture and power in the Inca Empire. Argentine Relations-Society of Anthropology, 38(2), 351-376.
• Favale, RD (2005). The Inca Empire. Foreign Trade University of Barcelona.
• “Inca Civiization” in Ancient History.
• “Inca” in Encyclopaedia Britannica.
• “How much do you know about the Incas? In National Geographic.