﻿916 
  SOUTH 
  AMERICAN 
  INDIANS 
  [B. 
  A. 
  E. 
  Bull. 
  143 
  

  

  ture, 
  with 
  only 
  slight 
  differences 
  in 
  dialects 
  and 
  customs. 
  Some 
  

   authorities 
  affirmed 
  that 
  these 
  Indians 
  had 
  no 
  kind 
  of 
  religion; 
  others 
  

   gave 
  details 
  which 
  reveal 
  a 
  highly 
  developed 
  religion 
  and 
  an 
  organized 
  

   cult. 
  In 
  spite 
  of 
  these 
  contradictory 
  statements 
  and 
  in 
  spite 
  of 
  the 
  

   fact 
  that 
  today 
  only 
  the 
  Moguex 
  (Guambia) 
  and 
  Pdez 
  Indians 
  retain 
  

   indigenous 
  cultures, 
  it 
  is 
  possible 
  to 
  sketch 
  the 
  cultural 
  picture 
  of 
  these 
  

   Indians 
  at 
  the 
  moment 
  of 
  their 
  first 
  contact 
  with 
  the 
  Spanish 
  soldiers 
  

   by 
  reexamining 
  the 
  chroniclers 
  of 
  the 
  Conquest 
  according 
  to 
  ethno- 
  

   logical 
  criteria, 
  by 
  utilizing 
  modern 
  linguistics, 
  and 
  by 
  studying 
  the 
  

   ethnology 
  of 
  the 
  present-day 
  peoples. 
  3 
  It 
  is 
  also 
  possible 
  to 
  trace 
  the 
  

   acculturation 
  during 
  the 
  Colonial 
  Period, 
  when 
  new 
  European 
  usages 
  

   were 
  introduced, 
  and 
  to 
  depict 
  the 
  social 
  and 
  cultural 
  conditions 
  of 
  

   the 
  present 
  day. 
  The 
  modern 
  penetration 
  of 
  highways 
  into 
  the 
  

   Indian 
  territory 
  and 
  the 
  official 
  policy 
  of 
  changing 
  the 
  indigenous 
  com- 
  

   munities 
  are 
  likely 
  to 
  bring 
  an 
  end 
  to 
  these 
  few 
  remaining 
  examples 
  of 
  

   primitive 
  Andean 
  societies, 
  which 
  have 
  survived 
  in 
  spite 
  of 
  a 
  poor 
  

   economy, 
  bad 
  sanitary 
  conditions, 
  and 
  missionary 
  efforts 
  to 
  eradicate 
  

   their 
  traditions. 
  

  

  A 
  fertile 
  field 
  for 
  future 
  research 
  lies 
  in 
  continuing 
  anthropological 
  

   studies 
  in 
  the 
  central 
  mass 
  of 
  the 
  Colombian 
  Andes. 
  The 
  region 
  is 
  as 
  

   important 
  for 
  physical 
  geography 
  as 
  for 
  ethnology, 
  as 
  its 
  mountain 
  

   chains 
  run 
  in 
  various 
  directions 
  to 
  form 
  valleys 
  and 
  diversified 
  en- 
  

   vironments. 
  

  

  It 
  also 
  contains 
  the 
  archeological 
  remains, 
  known 
  as 
  San 
  Agustin 
  and 
  

   Tierradentro, 
  which 
  long 
  antedate 
  the 
  Conquest 
  and 
  which 
  have 
  an 
  

   undetermined 
  origin 
  and 
  relationship 
  to 
  cultures 
  in 
  other 
  parts 
  of 
  

   America. 
  The 
  present 
  article, 
  however, 
  does 
  not 
  deal 
  with 
  these, 
  but 
  

   is 
  limited 
  to 
  ethnology. 
  

  

  GEOGRAPHY 
  

  

  The 
  tribes 
  considered 
  in 
  this 
  article 
  occupied 
  the 
  eastern 
  halves 
  of 
  

   the 
  present 
  Departments 
  of 
  Nariflo 
  and 
  Cauca, 
  almost 
  all 
  of 
  the 
  De- 
  

   partment 
  of 
  Huila, 
  the 
  southern 
  part 
  of 
  Tolima, 
  and 
  the 
  eastern 
  zone 
  

   of 
  the 
  Department 
  of 
  the 
  Valle 
  del 
  Cauca, 
  which 
  embraces 
  the 
  western 
  

   spurs 
  of 
  the 
  Cordillera 
  Central 
  as 
  far 
  as 
  Calarca 
  in 
  Caldas. 
  The 
  region 
  

   lies 
  between 
  1° 
  and 
  4° 
  40' 
  N. 
  lat. 
  and 
  1° 
  and 
  3° 
  40' 
  west 
  of 
  the 
  meridian 
  

   of 
  Bogota. 
  The 
  country 
  consists 
  of 
  high 
  mountains 
  of 
  the 
  Andean 
  

   system, 
  which 
  bifurcate 
  at 
  the 
  Ecuadorean 
  border 
  to 
  form 
  the 
  Cor- 
  

   dillera 
  Occidental, 
  which 
  runs 
  to 
  Panama, 
  and 
  the 
  Cordillera 
  Central, 
  

   which 
  approaches 
  the 
  Atlantic 
  coast 
  of 
  Colombia. 
  Each 
  branch 
  has 
  

   high 
  plains 
  (altiplanos) 
  , 
  small 
  valleys 
  with 
  rivers 
  which 
  are 
  tributaries 
  

   of 
  the 
  Patia 
  Kiver 
  to 
  the 
  west, 
  and 
  high 
  mountain 
  peaks, 
  some 
  of 
  

   which 
  are 
  volcanoes, 
  like 
  Pasto, 
  Galeras, 
  and 
  Cumbal. 
  The 
  area 
  of 
  

  

  s 
  For 
  the 
  languages, 
  see 
  especially 
  Jijon 
  y 
  Caamafio, 
  1940-41; 
  Castillo 
  i 
  Orosco, 
  1878; 
  and 
  CastelM, 
  1934. 
  

   For 
  ethnology, 
  see 
  Douay, 
  1900; 
  Pittier 
  de 
  Fabrega, 
  1907; 
  Ortiz, 
  1935; 
  Guerra 
  F., 
  1942; 
  Jijon 
  y 
  Caamafio, 
  

   1936-38- 
  Otero, 
  1938; 
  Albis, 
  1934. 
  See 
  also 
  Languages, 
  pp. 
  921-922. 
  

  

  