﻿THE 
  ARAUCANIANS 
  

  

  By 
  John 
  M. 
  Cooper 
  

  

  NATURAL 
  ENVIRONMENT 
  » 
  

  

  Middle 
  Chile, 
  the 
  earlier 
  habitat 
  of 
  the 
  Araucanians, 
  extends 
  from 
  

   lat. 
  30° 
  to 
  43° 
  S. 
  and 
  falls 
  into 
  two 
  divisions, 
  northern 
  Middle 
  Chile, 
  

   30° 
  to 
  37°, 
  and 
  southern 
  Middle 
  Chile, 
  37° 
  to 
  43°, 
  which 
  correspond 
  

   fairly 
  closely 
  to 
  the 
  accepted 
  tribal 
  division 
  of 
  the 
  Chilean 
  Arau- 
  

   canians 
  into 
  the 
  Picunche, 
  and 
  the 
  Mapuche-Huilliche 
  (map 
  1, 
  No. 
  17; 
  

   map 
  5) 
  . 
  To 
  the 
  east 
  runs 
  the 
  Andean 
  Cordillera, 
  reaching 
  an 
  average 
  

   altitude 
  of 
  about 
  15,000 
  to 
  20,000 
  feet 
  (5,000 
  to 
  6,000 
  m.) 
  through 
  

   much 
  of 
  its 
  length, 
  and 
  toward 
  the 
  ocean 
  the 
  coastal 
  range, 
  averaging 
  

   about 
  1,000 
  feet 
  (300 
  m.) 
  in 
  altitude 
  with 
  a 
  maximum 
  of 
  around 
  

   7,000 
  feet 
  (2,300 
  m.). 
  Between 
  the 
  two 
  ranges 
  lies 
  the 
  great 
  Central 
  

   Valley, 
  extending 
  with 
  few 
  breaks 
  the 
  whole 
  length 
  of 
  Middle 
  Chile. 
  

   There 
  are 
  many 
  passes 
  through 
  the 
  Andes. 
  Those 
  most 
  used 
  in 
  

   Colonial 
  days 
  were 
  the 
  high-altitude 
  Uspallata 
  pass 
  to 
  Mendoza 
  and 
  

   the 
  low-altitude 
  one 
  east 
  of 
  Villarica. 
  Snowfall 
  is 
  unusual 
  in 
  the 
  

   Central 
  Valley, 
  but 
  is 
  abundant 
  in 
  the 
  Cordillera. 
  

  

  In 
  northern 
  Middle 
  Chile, 
  the 
  Picunche 
  country, 
  north 
  of 
  the 
  Bio- 
  

   Bio 
  River, 
  precipitation 
  is 
  light, 
  with 
  a 
  Mediterranean 
  climate, 
  of 
  

   rains 
  in 
  the 
  winter 
  and 
  drought 
  in 
  the 
  summer. 
  From 
  the 
  southern 
  

   limits 
  of 
  the 
  desert 
  proper 
  at 
  Coquimbo 
  to 
  the 
  Bio-Bio 
  River, 
  precipi- 
  

   tation 
  gradually 
  increases. 
  Vegetation 
  is 
  dry 
  forest, 
  of 
  the 
  chaparral 
  

   type, 
  with 
  acacias 
  and 
  laurels 
  typical. 
  

  

  In 
  southern 
  Middle 
  Chile, 
  the 
  Mapuche 
  and 
  Huilliche 
  country, 
  

   precipitation 
  is 
  heavy, 
  and 
  occurs 
  throughout 
  the 
  year. 
  The 
  dense 
  

   temperate 
  rain 
  forest 
  begins 
  rather 
  abruptly 
  at 
  the 
  Bio-Bio 
  and 
  

   extends 
  with 
  only 
  local 
  breaks 
  throughout 
  the 
  area, 
  with 
  a 
  markedly 
  

   humid 
  climate. 
  Typical 
  trees 
  are 
  deciduous 
  and 
  evergreen 
  beeches 
  

   (Notofagus 
  obliqua 
  and 
  N. 
  dombeyi, 
  respectively), 
  and 
  cypress 
  {Libo- 
  

  

  * 
  Since 
  certain 
  Araucanian 
  subtribal 
  names, 
  such 
  as 
  Huilliche, 
  Pehuenche, 
  etc., 
  are 
  so 
  well 
  established 
  in 
  

   anthropological 
  usage 
  that 
  change 
  of 
  customary 
  spelling 
  would 
  look 
  strange, 
  and 
  since 
  most 
  of 
  our 
  sources 
  

   give 
  only 
  imperfect 
  information 
  on 
  the 
  exact 
  pronunciation 
  of 
  native 
  Araucanian 
  words, 
  especially 
  of 
  the 
  

   vowels, 
  it 
  has 
  not 
  proved 
  feasible 
  or 
  advisable 
  to 
  adopt 
  a 
  uniform 
  system 
  of 
  transcription 
  throughout 
  the 
  

   present 
  paper. 
  The 
  chief 
  phonetic 
  equivalents 
  used 
  herein 
  are: 
  ch, 
  as 
  Spanish 
  ch; 
  hu 
  before 
  a, 
  e, 
  and 
  i, 
  as 
  

   English 
  w; 
  qu 
  before 
  e 
  and 
  i, 
  as 
  k; 
  c, 
  as 
  k; 
  11 
  and 
  n, 
  the 
  ly 
  and 
  ny 
  sounds 
  respectively, 
  as 
  in 
  Spanish; 
  q, 
  as 
  

   ng 
  in 
  English 
  ring; 
  &, 
  close 
  to 
  labialized 
  French 
  u. 
  

  

  In 
  scientific 
  identifications 
  of 
  native 
  plants 
  and 
  animals, 
  the 
  writer 
  has 
  in 
  most 
  cases 
  followed 
  Lenz 
  (1904- 
  

   10), 
  Felix 
  Jose 
  de 
  Augusta 
  (1916), 
  Gusinde 
  (1936), 
  and 
  Moesbach 
  (1936). 
  

  

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  46 
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