During Native American Heritage Month, why don’t we include all the native peoples of the Americas? We are all familiar with the Incas, the Aztecs, the Mayas, etc. But very little is known about the indigenous peoples of South America that lived outside the Incan empire. I could start by naming los picunches, los pehuelches, los onas (Selkman), etc. However, one of the groups that stands out the most are the Mapuches, located in the center-southern part of Chile and Argentina.
Read this post in Spanish on my blog!
The Mapuches have a rich history of battles, wars, beliefs, traditions, and food. To give an overview, I’ve compiled 10 important facts about this ethnic group.
- They were located between the Valley of Aconcagua to the Island of Chiloé in southern Chile, and in Argentina, in the region of Neuquén and the Patagonia.
- Mapuche means “people of the land” in the mapudungún language.
- Their lives are filled with ceremonies. One of the ceremonies is called machitún and is presided by a machi, or mujer curandera, a woman priestess.
- They have a religious feast called ngiñatún or kamaruco. During this feast they thank the earth for the gifts it has given them.
- Their homes are called ruca.
- Merkén is a condiment made from a hot pepper that is dried and smoked (ají cacho de cabra), that is ground with toasted cilantro seeds and salt.
- We Tripantu is a celebration of the Mapuche New Year that takes places during the winter solstice (the shortest day of the year in the Southern hemisphere) which happens between the 21st and 24th of June.
- Trarilonco is a headpiece worn by Mapuche. It can be made from wood or silver.
- Trapelacucha is a chest piece design traditionally used by Mapuche women, generally created from silver.
- The Mapuche also have their own flag, and every color and shape has a special meaning.
Here is a FREE project for kids about the Mapuche:
Welcome to our third annual celebration of Native American Heritage Month! All month long we’ll be sharing posts about sharing these rich cultures with kids. Find our full schedule of posts below, and don’t forget to link up your own as well! We’re also having a giveaway (see below for details and to enter!) You can find even more ideas on our Native/Indigenous Cultures Pinterest board:
Follow Multicultural Kid Blogs’s board Native/Indigenous Cultures on Pinterest.
Open Wide the World on Multicultural Kid Blogs: Native American Heritage Month and Free Trilingual Printable
November 9
Kid World Citizen: Learn about the Seminole Indians
November 11
Colours of Us: 32 Native American Children’s Books
November 14
Crafty Moms Share: Native Americans of Cape Cod and Massachusetts
November 16
Crafty Moms Share: Review of Some of the Prizes
November 18
LarabeeUK: FUN|native American Small World Play
November 21
La Clase de Sra. DuFault on Multicultural Kid Blogs
November 23
Gianna the Great
November 25
Kelly’s Classroom
November 28
All Done Monkey
November 30
Creative World of Varya
Giveaway
Grand Prize
From MotherTongues: Himdag Walk in Balance T-Shirt (women’s or unisex, S-XL) US & Canada shipping only
From Quarto Knows: Native North Americans by Joe Fullman & History of Indian Tribes of North America, 3 Volume Set by McKenney and Hall US shipping only
From Abrams Books: Sitting Bull: Lakota Warrior and Defender of His People by S.D. Nelson, In the Footsteps of Crazy Horse by Joseph Marshall III, & Hiawatha and the Peacemaker by Robbie Robertson & illustrated by David Shannon US shipping only
1st Prize
From Firefly Books: Ojibwa: People of Forests and Prairies, Iroquois: People of the Longhouse, & Encyclopedia of Native Tribes of North America all by Michael G. Johnson US & Canada shipping only
From Daria Music: Set of 2 Dance Whistle Kits from Crazy Crow Trading Post US shipping only
From Wisdom Tales Press: Red Cloud’s War: Brave Eagle’s Account of the Fetterman Fight by Paul Goble & Indian Boyhood: The True Story of a Sioux Upbringing by Charles Eastman (Ohiyesa) US shipping only
2nd Prize
From Wisdom Tales Press: Indian Boyhood: The True Story of a Sioux Upbringing by Charles Eastman (Ohiyesa), Custer’s Last Battle: Red Hawk’s Account of the Battle of Little Bighorn by Paul Goble, & Horse Raid: The Making of a Warrior by Paul Goble US shipping only
From Interlink Books: Pocket Timeline of Ancient Mexico by Penny Bateman US shipping only
From Kid World Citizen: Machu Picchu Lesson: Teach about the Incas in Peru! Reading, Crossword, Coloring (English & Spanish versions)
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Carolina DuFault
Latest posts by Carolina DuFault (see all)
- 10 Interesting Facts About the Mapuche People - November 21, 2016
- All About Chile - July 29, 2016
- Holidays in Chile: Christmas and New Year - December 16, 2015
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Thanks for sharing!