Comechingón (plural Comechingones) is the common name for a group of people indigenous to the
Argentine
Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...
provinces
A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...
of
Córdoba and
San Luis. By the end of the 17th century, most Comechingones had been killed or displaced by the
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas
**Spanish cuisine
**Spanish history
**Spanish culture
...
conquistador
Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (; ; ) were Spanish Empire, Spanish and Portuguese Empire, Portuguese colonizers who explored, traded with and colonized parts of the Americas, Africa, Oceania and Asia during the Age of Discovery. Sailing ...
es.
The two main Comechingón groups called themselves
Henia (in the north) and
Kamiare (in the south), each subdivided into a dozen or so tribes. The name ''comechingón'' is a deformation of the pejorative term ''kamichingan''—"cave dwellers"—used by the
Sanavirón tribe.
They were sedentary, practiced agriculture yet gathered wild fruits, and raised animals for wool, meat and eggs. Their culture was heavily influenced by that of the
Andes
The Andes ( ), Andes Mountains or Andean Mountain Range (; ) are the List of longest mountain chains on Earth, longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range ...
.
Several aspects seem to differentiate the Henia-Kamiare from the rest of amerindians. They had a rather Caucasian appearance, with beards and quite a few of them with greenish eyes. Another distinctive aspect was their communal stone houses, half buried in the ground to endure the cold, wind and snow of the winter.
Their language was lost when Spanish policies favoured
Quechua, an indigenous language they transplanted from
Upper Peru
Upper Peru (; ) is a name for the land that was governed by the Real Audiencia of Charcas. The name originated in Buenos Aires towards the end of the 18th century after the Audiencia of Charcas was transferred from the Viceroyalty of Peru to th ...
. Nevertheless, they left a rich pictography and abstract petroglyphs.
A cultural contribution is the vowel extension in the
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas
**Spanish cuisine
**Spanish history
**Spanish culture
...
of the present inhabitants of Córdoba, but also not uncommon in San Luis and other neighbouring provinces.
According to the 2010 census there are 34,546
self-identified Comechingón descendants in Argentina.
Censo Nacional de Población, Hogares y Viviendas 2010
Division
*''Kamiare'' (mainly north of San Luis Province
San Luis () is a Provinces of Argentina, province of Argentina located near the geographical center of the country (on the 32° South parallel). Neighboring provinces are, from the north clockwise, La Rioja Province (Argentina), La Rioja, Córdo ...
)
**''Saleta'' (western Sierra de Comechingones and Villa de Merlo)
**''Nogolma'' (west of the ''Saletas'', Valle de Conlara)
**''Michilingüe'' (the best-known within San Luis; west and south of the previous groups)
*''Hênia'' (mainly the Sierras of the Córdoba Province)
**''Mogas'' (Sierras de Ambargasta)
**''Caminigas'' (south of the ''Mogas'')
**''Gualas'' or ''Guachas'' (south of ''Caminigas'')
**''Chine'' (west of ''Gualas'')
**''Sitón'' (Valle de Punilla, eastern Sierra Chica)
**''Aluleta'' (western Sierra Chica, Valle de Paravachasca, and southern Valle de Punilla)
**''Naure'' (southern and central Valle de Traslasierra; north of ''Saleta'' and ''Nogolma'')
**''Macaclita'' (Valle de Calamuchita, eastern Sierras de Comechingones down to Río Cuarto)
See also
* Indigenous peoples of Argentina
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Comechingon
Indigenous peoples in Argentina
Córdoba Province, Argentina