Inca Dance Culture

Inca Dance Culture: an Introduction

The true indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian residents of the continent, their descendants and many ethnic groups who are associated with those historical civilizations. It is believed that humans did not simply evolve in the Americas, but instead arrived either by sea or with the help of a land bridge that previously linked North America with Asia. These people arrived in North America at least 12,000 years ago. In fact, there is recent evidence to suggest that "humans inhabited North America 50,000 years agoÐ'...long before the last ice age" (Science Daily). Next, these people branched out into hundreds of ethnically distinct nations and tribes. One of these tribes, the Incas, contributed much to what we now know as modern civilization.

The Incas speak Quechua, which is a Native American language of South America. The following are common dances and rituals of the Inca, or Quechuan, culture:

Qamili:

Practiced on a grand scale with a huge chorale and special dresses, the Qamili comes from the cities of Maca and Cabanaconde.

Saratarpuy:

Sara=corn, Tarpuy=sowing. To celebrate the special event of sowing corn, the Incas dance this variation of the Qamili in the hopes of having a good harvest.

Kiyu-Kiyu:

This dance celebrates the rain. People in groups, directed by the the city mayor (varayuq), go along the streets of the town (ayllu) singing and dancing in the rain.

Cesar Villalobos claims that the instruments that the natives use (and/or the different materials with which they make them) are also particular to specific areas, and are directly related to the natural elements at hand for the making of the instruments. He continues: "While in one area the back of a charango might be made with the carcass of an armadillo, in another it might be made with the shell of a tortoise; while in one area the sikus flute (pan flute) might be made from thin and long bamboo, producing a windy sound, in another area it might be made with thick and wide bamboo, producing a full sound, or, while in one area a dried gourd (the Guiro) might be used for percussion, in another a dried bean pod (the Vaina) might serve instead" (Villalobos, 2007). This implies that the natural