The Mapuche is a group of native indigenous inhabitants of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina, including parts of Patagonia. The collective term refers to a wide-ranging ethnicity composed of various groups who share a common social, religious, and economic structure, as well as a common linguistic heritage as Mapudungun speakers. Their homelands once extended from Choapa Valley to the Chiloé Archipelago and later spread eastward to Puelmapu, a land comprising part of the Argentine pampa and Patagonia. Today the collective group makes up over 80% of the indigenous peoples in Chile and about 9% of the total Chilean population. The Mapuche are concentrated in the Araucanía region. Many have migrated from rural areas to the cities of Santiago and Buenos Aires for economic opportunities.
San Carlos de Bariloche, usually known as Bariloche, is a city in the province of Río Negro, Argentina, situated in the foothills of the Andes on the southern shores of Nahuel Huapi Lake. It is located within the Nahuel Huapi National Park. After development of extensive public works and Alpine-styled architecture, the city emerged in the 1930s and 1940s as a major tourism centre with skiing, trekking and mountaineering facilities. In addition, it has numerous restaurants, cafés, and chocolate shops. The city had a permanent population of 108,205 according to the 2010 census. According to the latest statistics from 2015, the population is around 122,700, and a projection for 2020 estimates 135,704.
The Caleuche, also called The Enchanted Ship, Barcoiche, The Ghost Ship, or The Warlocks' Ship, is a legendary ghost ship from Chilote mythology in southern Chile.
In the traditional Chilote mythology of Chiloé, Chile, the Trauco is a humanoid creature of small stature—similar to a dwarf or goblin—who lives deep in the forest. It has an ugly face and legs without feet.
Lácar Lake is a lake of glacial origin in Neuquén Province, Argentina. It is enclosed in the Andes mountain range, at 630 m above mean sea level. The area around the lake is mostly uninhabited, except for the city of San Martín de los Andes on its northeastern coast. The lake has a surface area of 55 km2 (21 sq mi) and a mean depth of 167 m, with a maximum of 277 m. Its catchment basin comprises 1,048 km2 (405 sq mi). Like many Andean Argentine lakes, it drains across Chile and into the Pacific Ocean, in this case via the Huahum River that flows through Huahum Pass in the Andes. As the northernmost lake on the eastern side of Andes that drains to the Pacific the lake and its catchment basin were claimed by Chile until 1902 based on an interpretation of the Boundary treaty of 1881 between Chile and Argentina. The lake, along with the smaller lake nearby, Lolog, has some sacred significance for the Mapuche people, as it features in their oral tradition as part of a creation myth. Large sections of the lake's shores are made of cliffs.
A machi is a traditional healer and religious leader in the Mapuche culture of Chile and Argentina. Machis play significant roles in Mapuche religion. In contemporary Mapuche culture, women are more commonly machis than men, but it is not a rule. Male machi are known as Machi Weye.
The religion of the indigenous Mapuche people of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina is an extensive and ancient belief system. Legends and myths are common to the various groups that make up the Mapuche people. These myths tell of the creation of the world and the various deities and spirits that reside in it.
The Chilote mythology or Chilota mythology is formed by the myths, legends and beliefs of the people who live in the Chiloé Archipelago, in the south of Chile. This mythology reflects the importance of the sea in the life of Chilotes.
Ten Ten-Vilu or Trentren-Vilu is the Mapuche god of earth and fertility ; he has a generous spirit and is the protector of all life on Earth, and the flora and fauna and according to some Mapuche myths. This snake was a central figure in the origin of the Chiloean Archipelago. In Mapuche mythology, Ten Ten-Vilu is son of Antü.
Coi Coi-Vilu or Caicai-Vilu/Cai Cai Vilu is the Mapuche god of water and, according to Mapuche myths, supreme ruler of the sea and of all sea-dwellers. This snake was a central figure in the origin of the Chiloean Archipelago. In Mapuche mythology, Coi Coi-Vilu is son of Peripillan.
Chilean mythology includes the mythology, beliefs and folklore of the Chilean people.
The wekufe, also known as huecufe, wekufü, watuku, huecufu, huecubo, huecubu, huecuvu, huecuve, huecovoe, giiecubu, güecubo, güecugu, uecuvu, güecufu; is an important type of harmful spirit or demon in Mapuche mythology. The word wekufe comes from the Mapudungun word wekufü meaning "demon, outside being".
The Chiloé Archipelago is a group of islands lying off the coast of Chile, in the Los Lagos Region. It is separated from mainland Chile by the Chacao Channel in the north, the Sea of Chiloé in the east and the Gulf of Corcovado in the southeast. All islands except the Desertores Islands form Chiloé Province. The main island is Chiloé Island. Of roughly rectangular shape, the southwestern half of this island is a wilderness of contiguous forests, wetlands and, in some places, mountains. The landscape of the northeastern sectors of Chiloé Island and the islands to the east is dominated by rolling hills, with a mosaic of pastures, forests and cultivated fields.
The Chono, or Guaiteco were a nomadic indigenous people or group of peoples of the archipelagos of Chiloé, Guaitecas and Chonos.
Cuncos, Juncos or Cunches is a poorly known subgroup of Huilliche people native to coastal areas of southern Chile and the nearby inland. Mostly a historic term, Cuncos are chiefly known for their long-running conflict with the Spanish during the colonial era of Chilean history.
Antu is the name given to the principal Pillan spirit in Mapuche mythology. Antü is the most powerful Pillán, who governs the other Pillans. In Mapuche mythology, Antu represents the Sun, as well as light, wisdom and spirit, and is opposite to darkness and the physical world, and is married to Kueyen, a Wangulén spirit that represents the moon.
As an archaeological culture, the Mapuche people of southern Chile and Argentina have a long history which dates back to 600–500 BC. The Mapuche society underwent great transformations after Spanish contact in the mid–16th century. These changes included the adoption of Old World crops and animals and the onset of a rich Spanish–Mapuche trade in La Frontera and Valdivia. Despite these contacts Mapuche were never completely subjugated by the Spanish Empire. Between the 18th and 19th century Mapuche culture and people spread eastwards into the Pampas and the Patagonian plains. This vast new territory allowed Mapuche groups to control a substantial part of the salt and cattle trade in the Southern Cone.
The Dutch expedition to Valdivia was a naval expedition, commanded by Hendrik Brouwer, sent by the Dutch Republic in 1643 to establish a base of operations and a trading post on the southern coast of Chile. With Spain and the Dutch Republic at war, the Dutch wished to take over the ruins of the abandoned Spanish city of Valdivia. The expedition sacked the Spanish settlements of Carelmapu and Castro in the Chiloé Archipelago before sailing to Valdivia, having the initial support of the local natives. The Dutch arrived in Valdivia on 24 August 1643 and named the colony Brouwershaven after Brouwer, who had died several weeks earlier. The short-lived colony was abandoned on 28 October 1643. Nevertheless, the occupation caused great alarm among Spanish authorities. The Spanish resettled Valdivia and began the construction of an extensive network of fortifications in 1645 to prevent a similar intrusion. Although contemporaries considered the possibility of a new incursion, the expedition was the last one undertaken by the Dutch on the west coast of the Americas.
Millalobo is an important being in Chilote mythology. He is the most powerful being of the sea after Caicai and was chosen by Caicai to be his representative and govern all that resided in the sea.
Nahuel and the Magic Book is a 2020 Chilean-Brazilian animated fantasy-adventure coming-of-age film produced by Carburadores, co-produced by Chilean Punkrobot Studios and Brazilian Levante Films and directed by Germán Acuña Delgadillo. This is the first animated feature that was made in Chile in collaboration with Brazil and this is the first Chilean-Brazilian 2D animated film that entered the Annecy International Animation Film Festival in Annecy, France on June 15, 2020 and in Chile on January 20, 2022.
