﻿Vol.2] 
  ANDEAN 
  HIGHLANDS 
  — 
  BENNETT 
  47 
  

  

  Ecuador 
  although 
  all 
  may 
  not 
  have 
  been 
  distinct 
  cultural 
  entities. 
  

   Most 
  authors 
  agree 
  on 
  the 
  five 
  major 
  groups 
  in 
  the 
  Highlands 
  before 
  

   the 
  Inca 
  conquest: 
  the 
  Pasto, 
  largely 
  in 
  the 
  Colombian 
  State 
  of 
  

   Narifio 
  and 
  the 
  basin 
  of 
  Tulcan; 
  the 
  Cara, 
  centered 
  in 
  the 
  basin 
  of 
  

   Ibarra 
  and 
  once 
  credited 
  with 
  organizing 
  most 
  of 
  Ecuador 
  into 
  a 
  

   single 
  Empire; 
  the 
  Panzaho, 
  or 
  Quito, 
  around 
  the 
  basin 
  of 
  Quito; 
  the 
  

   Puruhd, 
  around 
  Biobamba; 
  the 
  Canari, 
  in 
  the 
  Cuenca 
  Basin; 
  and 
  the 
  

   Palta, 
  in 
  Loja. 
  The 
  Palta 
  seem 
  linguistically 
  related 
  to 
  the 
  Jivaro 
  and 
  

   may 
  have 
  originally 
  been 
  part 
  of 
  that 
  upper 
  Amazonian 
  group. 
  The 
  

   Highland 
  basins 
  are 
  still 
  densely 
  populated, 
  and 
  the 
  Indian 
  percent- 
  

   age 
  of 
  the 
  population 
  is 
  high. 
  

  

  The 
  Coastal 
  plain 
  of 
  Ecuador 
  varies 
  greatly 
  in 
  environment. 
  In 
  

   the 
  north, 
  like 
  the 
  Pacific 
  Coast 
  of 
  Colombia, 
  it 
  is 
  mostly 
  covered 
  

   with 
  a 
  tropical 
  jungle, 
  supported 
  by 
  a 
  heavy 
  double 
  rainy 
  season. 
  As 
  

   previously 
  mentioned, 
  the 
  Indian 
  groups 
  which 
  occupied 
  this 
  region 
  

   are 
  assigned 
  to 
  the 
  Amazonian 
  rather 
  than 
  to 
  the 
  Andean 
  pattern, 
  

   although 
  their 
  proximity 
  to 
  the 
  Highlands 
  was 
  not 
  without 
  influence. 
  

   South 
  of 
  the 
  tropics 
  in 
  the 
  Departments 
  of 
  Esmeraldas, 
  Manabl, 
  

   and 
  Guayas, 
  the 
  Coastal 
  plain 
  is 
  broken 
  by 
  low 
  hills, 
  and 
  there 
  is 
  but 
  

   a 
  single 
  rainy 
  season 
  from 
  December 
  to 
  June. 
  The 
  vegetation 
  is 
  

   described 
  as 
  park 
  land 
  and 
  scrub 
  forest, 
  and 
  today 
  this 
  region 
  is 
  

   ideal 
  for 
  the 
  raising 
  of 
  cacao. 
  Farther 
  south, 
  are 
  the 
  desert 
  condi- 
  

   tions 
  so 
  typical 
  of 
  the 
  Coast 
  of 
  Peril. 
  Sparse 
  settlement 
  is 
  possible 
  

   on 
  the 
  few 
  available 
  oases. 
  

  

  Among 
  the 
  tribes 
  said 
  to 
  have 
  occupied 
  the 
  Coastal 
  region 
  from 
  

   south 
  to 
  north 
  are 
  the 
  Puna, 
  Huancavilca, 
  Manta, 
  and 
  Esmeralda. 
  

   Scattered 
  remnants 
  of 
  these 
  Indian 
  groups 
  still 
  survive, 
  although 
  

   for 
  the 
  most 
  part 
  they 
  have 
  been 
  replaced 
  by 
  a 
  Mestizo 
  population. 
  

  

  THE 
  HIGHLAND 
  AND 
  COASTAL 
  CULTURES 
  

  

  A 
  picture 
  of 
  the 
  cultural 
  patterns 
  of 
  Ecuador 
  in 
  pre-Inca 
  times 
  is 
  

   difficult 
  to 
  reconstruct; 
  first, 
  because 
  the 
  period 
  of 
  Inca 
  occupation, 
  

   although 
  relatively 
  brief, 
  was 
  intense; 
  and 
  second, 
  because 
  the 
  Spanish 
  

   chroniclers 
  made 
  little 
  effort 
  to 
  distinguish 
  between 
  the 
  imposed 
  Inca 
  

   customs 
  already 
  familiar 
  to 
  them 
  and 
  local 
  variants 
  that 
  might 
  have 
  

   been 
  earlier. 
  Thus 
  knowledge 
  of 
  prQ-Inca 
  Ecuador 
  depends 
  largely 
  

   on 
  archeological 
  evidence 
  and 
  the 
  occasional 
  statements 
  which 
  can 
  be 
  

   gleaned 
  from 
  the 
  chroniclers. 
  

  

  Large 
  parts 
  of 
  the 
  Highlands 
  have 
  not 
  as 
  yet 
  been 
  systematically 
  

   explored 
  by 
  the 
  archeologists, 
  but 
  on 
  the 
  basis 
  of 
  present 
  knowledge 
  

   it 
  is 
  clear 
  that 
  each 
  major 
  region 
  of 
  population 
  concentration 
  has 
  a 
  

   long 
  and 
  distinct 
  cultural 
  history. 
  Collier 
  (see 
  pp. 
  769-780) 
  sums 
  up 
  

   the 
  evidence 
  in 
  terms 
  of 
  five 
  major 
  Highland 
  sections, 
  namely 
  Carchi, 
  

   Imbabura, 
  Tungurahua-Chimborazo, 
  Azuay-Cafiar, 
  and 
  Loja. 
  At 
  

   the 
  present 
  time, 
  each 
  of 
  these 
  has 
  from 
  three 
  to 
  seven 
  chronological 
  

  

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