Mapuche is an Araucanian language related to Huilliche spoken in south-central Chile and west central Argentina by the Mapuche people. It is also spelled Mapuzugun and Mapudungu. It was formerly known as Araucanian, the name given to the Mapuche by the Spaniards; the Mapuche avoid it as a remnant of Spanish colonialism.
The Mapuche are a group of indigenous inhabitants of present-day south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina, including parts of present-day Patagonia. The collective term refers to a wide-ranging ethnicity composed of various groups who shared a common social, religious, and economic structure, as well as a common linguistic heritage as Mapudungun speakers. Their influence once extended from Aconcagua Valley to 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 particularly concentrated in the Araucanía region. Many have migrated from rural areas to the cities of Santiago and Buenos Aires for economic opportunities.
Neuquén is the capital city of the Argentine province of Neuquén and of the Confluencia Department, located in the east of the province. It occupies a strip of land west of the confluence of the Limay and Neuquén rivers which form the Río Negro making it part of the ecoregion of Alto Valle del Río Negro. The city and surrounding area have a population of more than 340,000, making it the largest city in Patagonia. Along with the cities of Plottier and Cipolletti, it is part of the Neuquén – Plottier – Cipolletti conurbation.
Ruca is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Brittany in northwestern France.
Cañete is a city and commune in Chile, located in the Arauco Province of the Biobío Region. It is located 135 km to the south of Concepción. Cañete is known as a "Historic City" as it is one of the oldest cities in the country. The Battle of Tucapel and Pedro de Valdivia's death happened near the city's current location. Cañete was also an important location in the Arauco War.
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.
The mythology and religion of the indigenous Mapuche people of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina is an extensive and ancient belief system. A series of unique 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 Occupation of Araucanía or Pacification of Araucanía (1861–1883) was a series of military campaigns, agreements and penetrations by the Chilean army and settlers into Mapuche territory which led to the incorporation of Araucanía into Chilean national territory. Pacification of Araucanía was the expression used by the Chilean authorities for this process. The conflict was concurrent with Argentine campaigns against the Mapuche (1878–1885) and Chile's wars with Spain (1865–1866) and with Peru and Bolivia (1879–1883).
The Battle of Mataquito was fought in the Arauco War on April 30, 1557, between the Spanish forces of the governor, Francisco de Villagra, and Mapuche headed by their toqui Lautaro. It was a dawn surprise attack on Lautaro's fortified camp between a wooded mountain and the shore of the Mataquito River. The battle is notable for ending Mapuche pretensions to expulse the Spanish from Santiago, while also avenging the death of former governor Pedro de Valdivia who had been killed by Lautaro's warriors four years earlier.
Cuncos or Juncos 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.
The Mapuche conflict involves indigenous Mapuche communities centred in Araucanía and nearby areas of Chile and Argentina. It is often referred to as a conflict between Mapuche communities and the Chilean government or state. Big forestry companies and their contractors, Chilean police and some non-indigenous landowners have been confronted by militant Mapuche organizations and local Mapuche communities in the context of the conflict.
Mapuche medicine is the system of medical treatment historically used by the Mapuche people of southern Chile. It is essentially magical-religious in nature, believing disease to be caused by supernatural factors such as spells and curable by treatments based on rituals, thermal waters and herbs. Knowledge of medicinal herbs is one of the best-known elements of Mapuche medicine and is still used today.
The Mapuche uprising of 1881 was the last major rebellion of the indigenous Mapuches of Araucanía. The uprising took place during the last phase of the Occupation of Araucanía (1861–1883) by the Chilean state. It was planned by Mapuche chiefs in March 1881 to be launched in November the same year. Mapuche support for the uprising was not unanimous, some Mapuche factions sided with the Chileans and others declared themselves neutral. The organizers of the uprising did however succeed in involving Mapuche factions that had not previously been at war with Chile. With most of the attacks repelled within a matters of days Chile went on the next years to consolidate its conquests.
Ruca or RUCA may refer to:
Estadio Ruca Che is an indoor arena and multi-purpose stadium in the city of Neuquen, capital of Neuquen Province and largest city in Patagonia. It was built in 1995 to host the Americas Basketball Championship.
Pedro César Cayuqueo Millaqueo is a Mapuche-Chilean journalist and activist involved in the Mapuche struggle.
Among the indigenous Mapuche people of Chile, there is those that practise traditional polygamy. In modern Chile polygamy has no legal recognition. This puts women whose marriages to their husbands are not legally recognized at a disadvantage to the legal wife who is in terms of securing inheritance. Polygamy is much less common today, particularly in comparison with the time preceding the Occupation of Araucanía (1861–1883), when the traditional Mapuche homeland was finally brought under control of the Chilean government. It survives as a chiefly rural practice, but has also been reported in the low-income peripheral communities of Santiago. Wives who share the same husband are often relatives, such as sisters, who live in the same community. According to folklore, polyandry among the Mapuche is reputed to exist at least historically, in which case the husbands may have been brothers, but no documentation exists attesting to this phenomenon. It is also in contradiction to the renewal of the warrior ethos (weichan) promoted by militant organizations such as Coordinadora Arauco-Malleco.
Elisa Loncón Antileo is a Mapuche linguist and indigenous rights activist in Chile. In 2021, Loncón was elected as one of the representatives of the Mapuche people for the Chilean Constitutional Convention. Following in the inauguration of the body, Loncón was elected President of the Constitutional Convention.
Wallmapu is a name for the traditional territory of the Mapuche people of southern South America. The term was coined in the early 1990s but gained traction in the 2000s as the Mapuche conflict in Araucanía intensified.
