INDIGENOUS PERIOD IN COLOMBIA - HISTORY - 2025

The indigenous period of Colombia began when the first inhabitants arrived in these lands, approximately 20,000 years ago. They arrived in Colombia from North America, and before becoming sedentary, they were characterized by being nomads: they consumed food from the trees and hunted prey to eat them at the time.

Later the process of sedentarism began, and the original settlers began to settle in spaces where they began to cultivate; at first the main crops were corn and cassava. This context led to the formation of chiefdoms, a political and social organization that characterized the indigenous Colombians.

The social and political organization of the indigenous Colombians developed through chiefdoms. Source: JuanGris (Lucía Estévez)

Among the main indigenous tribes of Colombia, the Calima, the Taironas, the Muiscas and the San Agustín stand out, among others. Later, when the Spanish arrived in Colombian lands (15th century), the most prominent indigenous families were the Chibchas, the Arwac and the Caribs.

Phases of the indigenous period in Colombia

- First phase: nomadism

The Colombian indigenous people who set foot on these lands for the first time were characterized by being nomads. This occurred in the Paleoindian period, which spanned from 17,000 to 7,000 BC.

The Chiribiquete mountain range, located in the Colombian Amazon, was one of the places where archaeological remains corresponding to this period were found; in fact, on this site are the oldest finds.

Traces of the first Colombian humans were also found in the Bogotá savanna. This region, located in the center of the country, was the center of the discovery of stone tools. In Medellín and Cundinamarca important pieces have also been found that speak of the presence of indigenous people in pre-Hispanic times.

In the next lived period, the Archaic, the natives began to develop sedentary activities, although they still did not fully practice sedentary lifestyle. One of the reasons that influenced this new behavior was that there was a considerable drop in temperatures.

From this moment on, the indigenous Colombians began to cultivate mainly fruits from the region, and their settlements were located near the lakes and the seas.

- Second phase: first displacement and appearance of chiefdoms

Between 1200 a. C. and 500 d. C. the first transfer of the first settlers was carried out. These moved to the areas near the Magdalena River, specifically in the surrounding valley.

From then on, chiefdoms began to develop, as the population had increased and a form of social and political organization was already necessary.

At this time some of the first and most important Colombian indigenous tribes emerged. We will describe the most relevant below:

Calima

The Calimas Indians were avid producers of handicrafts, tools, and tombs. This is demonstrated by the findings found in the excavations of its usual areas; This tribe settled in the Cauca Valley.

Studies indicate that there were other important tribes that made up the Calima. In fact, the Calima culture is considered a group that was formed thanks to the existence of different indigenous families, which did not necessarily coincide chronologically.

Among the most prominent ancestor tribes, the ilama and the Yotoco stand out. It is worth noting that in the Cauca Valley, the place where they lived, no bone pieces have been found that offer more information about these original tribes.

San Agustin

This culture disappeared before the arrival of the Spanish. The vestiges that remain of this can be seen in the many statues and sculptures that have been attributed to them.

Figures of animals and also human beings are reflected in these works, and the technique they used surprises thanks to the quality and meticulousness in the details of each piece.

For the preservation of these sculptures, the San Agustín Archaeological Park has been created, where these pieces are kept. Researchers believe that in this space different indigenous families took their dead to bury them.

- Third phase: more fruitful development

The systems of social and political organization facilitated the implementation of other types of systems; in this case, those related to land production.

In addition, the construction of villages increased notably and centers were also built for the ceremonies of the tribes. The main ethnic groups of this time were the Muisca and the Tairona.

Muisca culture

The Muiscas were one of the most sophisticated cultures of the time. They were mainly focused on agriculture and used hunting and fishing as complementary activities.

They managed to develop communication routes, a religion and even laws that would regulate the behavior of the almost 1 million inhabitants that made up this family, distributed in approximately 30,000 square kilometers.

Most of the Muiscas settled in Bogotá; For this reason, much of the culture of this tribe strongly influenced present-day Colombia, since many researchers and chroniclers lived in the capital of the country since the beginning of colonial Colombia and in this context they recorded several of the Muisca traditions.

They were specialists in the trade of salt, emerald and copper, elements that were essential for the manufacture of handicrafts, goldsmiths and various utensils. They are also considered a fairly religious culture and part of their mythology is still present in Colombia.

Currently there are no speakers of the Muisca language, but there are representatives of this culture; in 2005 more than 14,000 inhabitants had been counted. Most are settled in the municipality of Cota, in the department of Cundinamarca.

Tairona culture

The Tairona culture was influenced by the Chibcha and was characterized by being much more sophisticated than the previous ones. For example, all the tribes of the family were directly connected thanks to some stone paths built by themselves.

In fact, this culture was characterized by building different elements, such as terraces, bases for houses, bridges, aqueducts and retaining walls, all made mainly of stones.

Likewise, they included in their diet the traditional arepas and honey, which they used as a sweetener.

It was a large community, as each city that the Tairona formed was home to approximately 1,000 people.

With the arrival of the Spanish, this indigenous family practically disappeared completely. There were some groups that moved towards the highest areas of the sierra; they managed to stay present, even to the present day. Proof of this is that there are currently more than 7000 people who speak the language of the Tairona culture.

References

1. "El mundo tairona" in the Cultural Network of the Bank of the Republic of Colombia. Retrieved on October 16, 2019 from Red Cultural del Banco de la República de Colombia: banrepcultural.org
2. “Cultura San Agustín” in Wikipedia. Retrieved on October 16, 2019 from Wikipedia: wikipedia.org
3. "Calima culture" in EcuRed. Retrieved on October 16, 2019 from EcuRed: ecured.cu
4. "Muisca" in the National Indigenous Organization of Colombia. Retrieved on October 16, 2019 from the National Indigenous Organization of Colombia: onic.org.co
5. "Colombia, El Dorado?" at the University of Delaware. Retrieved on October 16, 2019 from University of Delaware: udel.edu
6. “Colombia precolombina” in Wikipedia. Retrieved on October 16, 2019 from Wikipedia: wikipedia.org
7. "Colombia in detail" in Lonely Planet. Retrieved on October 16, 2019 from Lonely Planet: lonelyplanet.com