Companion for Your Spanish Course: History of Chile Part 1 of 4
Early indigenous people are divided into different groups- there were the northern people, the Araucanian culture, and the Patagonian culture. The Northern people had much in common with pre-Incan civilization. The Araucanian were the largest group in Chile and lived predominantly off of agriculture. They were based in various small villages and had a common language. Many of these people used irrigation to support their agricultural work. The Patagonian people were largely nomadic hunters and gatherers.
Although the Incan Empire was strongly represented in Northern Chile, they did not have much of a foothold in the South. They managed to set up forts in the Central Valley, but did not colonialize the area. In the late 1400’s, there was a 3-day fight called Battle of the Maule, where Incans tried to fight to gain authority.
When the Spaniards came into the region in the 1500’s, there may have been as many as a million Araucanian people. These people were impacted by disease and also beaten down by the pressure from the Spaniards. Impressively, there were still Araucanians fighting off Spaniards until the late 19th century.