Abstract

FARBERMAN, Judith  and  TABOADA, Constanza. Among rivers, marshes, and wells. Water, settlement, and indigenous mobility in the Chaco and the Santiago del Estero plains: ethnographic, historical, and archaeological perspectives. Rev. Mus. Antropol. [online]. 2023, vol.16, n.3, pp.47-64.  Epub Dec 28, 2023. ISSN 1852-060X.  http://dx.doi.org/10.31048/1852.4826.v16.n2.41373.

This article analyzes, from the perspectives of archaeology and history, the settlement and mobility strategies of indigenous societies in the plains of Santiago and Chaco in relation to the scarcity or abundance of water. It focuses on different sectors within this vast area and discusses the use of rivers and wetlands, as well as the implementation of wells and dams. It also explores the relationship between paleoenvironment, socio-political organization, resource control, and the scale of the efforts required to exploit them. The chronological coordinates cover two different durations. The archaeological analysis spans from the year 1000 of the Christian era to the Spanish conquest, a period that experienced two opposite paleoclimatic events: the Medieval Warm Period and the Little Ice Age. The historical account, on the other hand, deals with a shorter and particularly arid period - the first half of the 18th century - during the full expansion of the Jesuit missions.

Keywords : Represa; Mobility; Environment; Chaco; Santiago del Estero.

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