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Alejandro Flores 00071157

Prof. Carmen Anhalzer

Atlantic History

April 1, 12

All countries of the continent have gone through several processes of

“mestizaje”. These series of events have made important changes in the cultures of

all nations. But to fully understand our societies we must go back to the conquest

itself and contrast the cultures involved. In this case we will highlight the differences

between Europeans and Amerindians. Both places have never had any kind of

exchange. They consolidated in the colony, a mixture that has left its mark to actual

days. Indians and Europeans were very different in terms of technology, society and

religion.

While Native Americans, were behind in many aspects, it should be

emphasized that they had very advanced techniques, and certainly were in a

process of evolution. In the Andes, natives had such advanced textile techniques

and even came to produce very resistant armors made of wool, which helped them

to establish their empire. Another remarkable breakthrough is that the Incas had

terraces and very advanced irrigation systems that enabled them to supply their

nutritional needs and trade surpluses.[ CITATION Pri08 \l 1034 ]. Mesoamerican

cultures had very advanced calendar with which calculated the best times for

planting and harvesting. Some of these cultures also had knowledge of navigation.

The Aztecs, for example developed a network of canals in Tenochtitlan, which

protected them from invasion. With regard to medicine, these civilizations managed
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knowledge about plants, to cure existing diseases effectively. [ CITATION Có r12 \l

1034 ].

The pre-Columbian knowledge was pretty advanced by the arrival of

Europeans; but maybe these developments were overshadowed by the new

technology brought by the inhabitants of the old world. We cannot guarantee in any

way that Amerindian technology was more advanced than European, because if it

was, the conquest had not been given under the same context. In fact the Native

Americans were behind this new civilization in many aspects such as navigation,

weapons, the management of an easier method of writing and numbering, use of

animals such as horses for war, etcetera. All these aspects allowed the Europeans

to easily get to America and start the conquest process. During the colony,

Europeans introduced new crops like wheat, barley, rice and other cereals with new

techniques as carving, introducing the cattle to America. They also brought, sheep,

poultry and unknown species by the Indian. This enabled the colonies to produce,

flour, meat, dairy and textile products.[ CITATION Igl \l 1034 ].

Before the conquest, there were several hierarchies, social classes and

castes established by the various indigenous groups. As in the conquest, these

systems of castes were introduced through bloody wars. Both native European and

had a similar distribution, with a ruling elite that was related to the sacred and had

the full power of the kingdoms. Both benefited from taxes and labor. Also in the two

cultures, religious leaders were part of a privileged group. Native Americans and

Europeans benefited from the work of other peoples through slavery as well. But

undoubtedly the biggest change for Indians in the colony was that all of them

became part of the same breed, with the exception of the elite groups that remained

privileged in comparison with most of the Amerindians. Obviously the Europeans

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became the top of the caste pyramid, and the racism and classism were widely

spread. In theory the law protected the Indians, but they were regarded as little

children, always in need of a European tutor to take charge.

As for religion, both cultures differed seriously about their beliefs on the one

hand we have a culture that worshiped polytheistic deities related to the nature and

on the other we have a monotheistic religion which by then had unified faith in much

of Europe. For both cultures, religion was very important in the daily life of each

person. Amerindian cultures often looked for advice on priests who interpreted

religion to make political decisions. For Europeans religion also constituted a major

part of their lives, reaching even to start holy wars in the middle Ages. Anyone who

does not venerate their God was condemned for heresy. And this is exactly what

happened with several Indians who refused to accept this new religion as their own.

It is here that the figure of the encomienda, which sought to evangelize the people of

the new world, in which the encomenderos were in charge of a group of natives that

should pay back with tributes or labor. Not all the encomenderos committed

injustices, but certainly it was unfair to force people to pay for something they did not

request. [ CITATION Ave95 \l 1034 ].

Indeed, the two cultures differed greatly on very basic but important features.

With respect to technology both cultures had their own in their area. Societies were

made in much the same way, but there were definite changes especially for Native

cultures with the arrival of Europeans. But undoubtedly the religious differences were

great and made a big impression in our culture. All these elements I mentioned are

components of our actual culture and we should accept and recognize that we are

the result of this process

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Works Cited
Prieto Osorno, A. (2008, april). Ómnibus. Retrieved april 2012, from La nueva historia de
América: http://www.omni-bus.com/
Có rdova, M. Á . (n.d.). Ciencia y tecnología prehispánicas. Retrieved April 1, 2012, from
http://www.cienciayreligion.org/america
Iglesias Gó mez, L. M. La transferencia de tecnología agronómica de España a América de
1492 a 1598. Madrid, Españ a: Ministerio de industria, turismo y comercio.
Avellaneda, J. I. (1995). The Conquerors of the New Kingdom of Granada. Albuquerque,
New Mexico, United States of America: University of New Mexico.