Quechua+Culture

Quechua Culture

There are various Quechua ethnic groups, despite ethnic diversity and linguistic distinctions they have numerous cultural characteristics in common. Many of these characteristics are shared with the Aymara and other indigenous groups of the central Andes mountain region. Quechua identity is based on agriculture in the lower altitude regions and in the higher regions it is based on pastoral farming. Quechua identity is locally known and linked with the established economic system. In almost all Quechua ethnic groups, traditional handicrafts are an important of material culture. Handicrafts are a particular skill of making decorative objects by hand. This includes a tradition of weaving handed down from Inca times using cotton, wool from llamas, alpacas and others. They also use a multitude of natural dyes and incorporate numerous woven patterns. Houses are usually constructed using air dried clay bricks or branches and clay mortar, the roofs are covered with straw, reeds or puna grass. Many indigenous women wear the traditional colorful costume, including the bowler style hat. The traditional dress worn by Quechua women today is a mixture of style from the pre Spanish days and Spanish colonial peasant dress. Younger Quechua men generally wear western style clothing, synthetic football jerseys and track suit pants being the most popular. Older men still wear dark wool knee length hand woven boyetta pants. A woven belt, called chumpi, is also worn and provides protection to the lower back when working in the fields. The most distinctive part of men’s clothing is the hand woven poncho. Nearly every Quechua boy and man has a poncho, mostly red in color, decorated with intricate designs. Each area has it’s own distinctive pattern. Most men use their poncho on special occasions, such as village meetings, festivals, weddings to name a few.