Learning from the llama: on the broad contours of cultural contributions and geographic expansion / Aprendendo com a lhama: sobre os amplos contornos de contribuições culturais e expansão geográfica

Abstract The llama (Lama glama) is the largest domesticated animal species from South America and is today found worldwide. Andean peoples have used the llama for millennia for meat, wool, packing, spiritual etc. In order to know the history of the llama, we must learn about the peoples that have known the animal and the ways those relationships have changed over time. While also considering closely related species, including alpaca, guanaco, and vicuña, this article posits three eras of llama/human entanglements: the era of domestication in pre-Columbian Andean sites; the era of dispersal and co-mingling, from 1530s to the 1890s; and finally popular fads and global appeal.

Resumo A lhama (Lama glama) é a maior espécie animal domesticada da América do Sul e atualmente é encontrada em todo o mundo. Os povos andinos a utilizam há milênios para transporte de carga, obtenção de lã e carne, uso espiritual etc. Para conhecer sua história, precisamos aprender sobre os povos que conhecem e se relacionam com esse animal, e como esses relacionamentos se transformaram ao longo do tempo. O artigo considera ainda outras espécies relacionadas, incluindo alpaca, guanaco e vicunha, e apresenta três eras da interação lhamas/humanos: a da domesticação em sítios andinos pré-colombianos; a da dispersão e mistura, dos anos 1530 à década de 1890; e, finalmente, modismos e interesse global.

Learning from the llama: on the broad contours of cultural contributions and geographic expansion.

The llama (Lama glama) is the largest domesticated animal species from South America and is today found worldwide. Andean peoples have used the llama for millennia for meat, wool, packing, spiritual etc. In order to know the history of the llama, we must learn about the peoples that have known the animal and the ways those relationships have changed over time. While also considering closely related species, including alpaca, guanaco, and vicuña, this article posits three eras of llama/human entanglements: the era of domestication in pre-Columbian Andean sites; the era of dispersal and co-mingling, from 1530s to the 1890s; and finally popular fads and global appeal.