The Chaco Skies

A Socio-cultural History of Power Relations

in Religion and Society
Author:
Alejandro Martín López CONICET astroamlopez@hotmail.com

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Agustina Altman FLACSO Argentina agustina.altman@gmail.com

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DOI:
https://doi.org/10.3167/arrs.2017.080104
Keywords:
celestial space; Chaco; ethno-astronomy; Guaycurú; indigenous people; non-human beings; religion
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ABSTRACT

This article looks into notions of the sky among the Guaycurú aboriginal groups in the Argentine Chaco within the context of the socio-religious changes they have undergone since the eighteenth century. By using ethno-astronomy and anthropology of religion perspectives, and based on our own ethnographic and documentary work, we have analyzed both the continuities and the ruptures in the Guaycurú skies. In doing so, we have found that social relations between humans and non-humans shape the Guaycurú experience of celestial space. These bonds have a strongly political character as they are structured around power asymmetries. The colonial experience, including Christian missions, has imposed modernity on these groups as an overall horizon of possibilities. However, the Guaycurú have sought to redefine modernity, creating their own ‘modernity paths’.

Contributor Notes

ALEJANDRO MARTÍN LÓPEZ has a PhD in anthropology (Universidad de Buenos Aires), a master’s degree in anthropology (Universidad Nacional de Córdoba), and a graduate degree in astronomy (Universidad Nacional de La Plata). He is a Researcher at CONICET (Sección de Etnología, ICA, UBA), a Professor of Political Anthropology at FLACSO Argentina, and President of the Sociedad Interamericana de Astronomía en la Cultura. Since 1998, he has conducted research on ethno-astronomy and the anthropology of religion in the context of inter-ethnic relations in the Argentine Chaco, especially among the Moqoit people. He explores the links between identities, territory, and the social construction of cosmologies and also studies evangelical and Catholic missions in the Chaco region. E-mail: astroamlopez@hotmail.com

AGUSTINA ALTMAN is a PhD candidate and has received a graduate degree in anthropology (Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina). Currently, she is a Professor of Social Anthropology at FLACSO Argentina and a Researcher at the Sección de Etnología (Instituto de Ciencias Antropológicas, FFyL, Universidad de Buenos Aires). Since 2009, she has studied the Christian evangelical experiences among the Moqoit people of the Argentine Chaco and their links with missionary enterprises, specially those of the Mennonites. She also investigates the Moqoit projects of local modernities. E-mail: agustina.altman@gmail.com

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Religion and Society

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Cover Religion and Society
Article Category:
Research Article
Page Count:
17
Keywords:
celestial space; Chaco; ethno-astronomy; Guaycurú; indigenous people; non-human beings; religion
Print Publication Date:
01 Sep 2017
Online Publication Date:
01 Sep 2017
Copyright:
© Berghahn Books 2017

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