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The Guinea Pig: Healing, Food, and Ritual in the Andes
... Ethnographic work carried out by Edmundo Morales in the 1990s represents the most comprehensive and accessible work on cuy's role in modern Andean communities. Morales found the nearly every family in the Andes has cuy, with those who do not have cuy being identified as lazy or extremely poor (Morales, 1995). Cuy are prized for their high protein, low fat content meat and because of their high fertility. ...
... Cuy are traditionally raised in kitchens, where they are kept in cubbyholes, adobe or clay hutches, or small huts, or are allowed to run around the floor. In kitchen settings, they survive mostly on kitchen scraps, although they prefer alfalfa (Morales, 1995). In non-tourist contexts, cuy are sold in rural markets where indigenous farmers gather to sell their products. ...
... In non-tourist contexts, cuy are sold in rural markets where indigenous farmers gather to sell their products. In the mid-1990s, cuy raised in traditional kitchen enclosures were being sold live at market in Peru for between $1.20 and $2.05 (2-3.50 soles) each (Morales, 1995). ...
Dramatic growth in the tourism industry in the Andean region of Peru has created an influx of new economic opportunities in the tourism industry. However, unplanned expansion has led to unequal access to those opportunities, especially for indigenous communities. Southern Andean communities continue to suffer from high rates of poverty and diseases. Work by the Cusco-based non-governmental organization Sierra Productiva has demonstrated that grassroots, people-focused sustainable development program can rectify many of these social ills by building capacity at the individual and community level while also promoting sustainable tourism. This article exploresSierra Productiva’s cuy (guinea pig) farming operations in the Peruvian Andes outside Cusco to demonstrate how small-scale agricultural enterprises can create mutually beneficial relationships that promote cultural and ecological sustainability within the tourism sector without creating relationships of dependency. This example provides a model for sustainable tourism development that can provide a framework for other areas of tourism.
... Cavia porcellus (guinea pig/cuy; subfamily Caviinae) was represented only at Mollo Kontu and by a single element. This species was domesticated as an important food source in the Andes (Morales, 1995) and has since spread throughout the world, primarily as a household pet and for research purposes. ...
... Little direct evidence of human exploitation of rodent taxa, including cuy, was detected at these sites. Direct evidence of cuy consumption, however, need not include cut marks, because they can be dispatched easily by breaking the neck and can be roasted or otherwise cooked whole (Morales, 1995). Domestic cuy breeding, consumption and ritual use have a long history in the Andes and are a common practice today (Hesse, 1984;Miller & Burger, 1995;Morales, 1995;Sandweiss & Wing, 1997;Marcus et al., 1999). ...
... Direct evidence of cuy consumption, however, need not include cut marks, because they can be dispatched easily by breaking the neck and can be roasted or otherwise cooked whole (Morales, 1995). Domestic cuy breeding, consumption and ritual use have a long history in the Andes and are a common practice today (Hesse, 1984;Miller & Burger, 1995;Morales, 1995;Sandweiss & Wing, 1997;Marcus et al., 1999). With little maintenance effort on the part of humans, a ready protein, fat and other nutrient source (Morales, 1995) was stored in the form of an easily dispatched, transported and prepared unit. ...
Paleoecological and taphonomic analysis of the mammalian microfauna from three Bolivian altiplano sites is presented: Khonkho Wankane [Late Formative period; number of identified specimens (NISP) = 1019], Mollo Kontu (Middle Horizon period; NISP = 610) and Pukara de Khonkho (Late Intermediate period; NISP = 165). The following species, all of which are present in this region today, were identified: Akodon boliviensis (Bolivian grass mouse), Andinomys edax (Andean mouse), Auliscomys sublimis (Andean leaf-eared mouse), Cavia porcellus (guinea pig/cuy), Chinchilla chinchilla (chinchilla), Ctenomys leucodon (white-toothed tuco-tuco), Eligmodontia puerulus (Andean gerbil mouse), Galea musteloides (common yellow-toothed cavy), Lagidium viscacia (vizcacha), Neotomys ebriosus (Andean swamp rat),and Oligoryzomys destructor (destructive pygmy rice rat). Some direct human involvement with the deposition of some of the larger species (Cavia porcellus, Chinchilla chinchilla, Ctenomys leucodon and Lagidium viscacia) was noted, although C. porcellus was identified only from a single element from Mollo Kontu. Most deposition was likely due to natural in-burrow deaths and other natural attrition of these species. No significant shift in environment during the occupation of these sites was detected. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
... Cavia porcellus es una especie híbrida de roedor de la familia Caviidae, conocido como conejillo de indias, cuy, cobayo o guinea pig. Originario de las regiones andinas de América del Sur (Perú, Bolivia, Ecuador y Colombia) y domesticado hace 3.000 años aproximadamente, cuya crianza familiar sirve tanto para el consumo alimentario; como su empleo en medicina popular y en rituales religiosos (1) . ...
... La alimentación natural del cuy se sustenta en los recursos forrajeros (pastos, gramíneas, leguminosas); siendo la alfalfa la de mayor índice productivo en la fase de engorde, con un consumo de alimento de 52,00 gramos y un peso final promedio de 833,60 gramos (1,4) . ...
El cuy en el Ecuador es sinónimo de nuestra gastronomía ancestral y de tradición cultural, pero por la alimentación rica en L-canavanina (alfalfa) que reciben; podría limitar su consumo en pacientes con trombocitopenia inmune primaria (PTI). La ingesta de alfalfa en humanos puede propiciar insuficiencia renal y síndrome lupus-like. El centro de Lupus John Hopkins recomiendan evitarla en la dieta de los pacientes con Lupus Eritematoso Sistémico (LES), al agravar la inflamación por estimulación de la actividad inmune (flares). Presentamos dos casos de pacientes con PTI vinculados con la ingesta de cuy. ¿Es probable?
... Today, in the Andes, without discarding the use of animal products (Morales, 1995;Mendoza, 2003) and geophagia (Browman, 1981) for healing purposes, there is a remarkable assemblage of wild plants and crops with great medicinal values (Bastien, 1981(Bastien, , 1987a(Bastien, , 1987bBussmann and Sharon, 2015). According to ethnobotanical studies, the Andean pharmacopoeia combines local resources with products acquired through the establishment of trade routes and the exchange between communities in public spaces such as markets (Morales, 1995;Wilkin, 2014). ...
... Today, in the Andes, without discarding the use of animal products (Morales, 1995;Mendoza, 2003) and geophagia (Browman, 1981) for healing purposes, there is a remarkable assemblage of wild plants and crops with great medicinal values (Bastien, 1981(Bastien, , 1987a(Bastien, , 1987bBussmann and Sharon, 2015). According to ethnobotanical studies, the Andean pharmacopoeia combines local resources with products acquired through the establishment of trade routes and the exchange between communities in public spaces such as markets (Morales, 1995;Wilkin, 2014). This exchange has been essential for the acquisition and transmission of an extensive knowledge of the pharmaceutical properties of plants and the relationship between human use of natural resources and environmental health (Bastien, 1978;Wilkin, 2014). ...
Reconstructing plant-based healing treatments of past societies from a dental anthropological perspective is still challenging due to a wide range of plant species, many with both medicinal and nutritional properties, and limitations on plant-taxa identification. Starch grains and phytoliths retrieved in samples from dental calculus and sediment contained in the cavity of dental caries were examined to investigate the supply of a plant-based treatment in an individual buried in the Late Preceramic site of Huaca El Paraíso (2100–1500 BC), whose osteological analysis reported the absence of any pathological condition at a bone tissue level. A variety of starch grains such as pumpkins, manioc, maize, and beans had an important role in the diet of the individual. The starch grains were embedded in their dental calculus, all of which, except for manioc, showed signs of cooking damage. Considering the context and characteristics of the crops, the nutritional properties of maize, pumpkins and beans are evident. However, parallel medicinal properties of manioc and maize could not be entirely denied. Phytoliths morphologically ascribed to the Asteraceae plant family, which suggest the consumption of medicinal plants of Andean vernacular use, were retrieved in the sediment of dental caries. Our results prove that the analysis of sediment obtained from dental caries is as valuable in tracing medicinal plant-based treatments as dental calculus in archaeological populations. There are still several limitations to approach this topic in dental anthropology, which are discussed in this report. The performance of both analyses -dental calculus and sediment of dental caries, is highly recommended.
... Guinea pig care and maintenance requires relatively little infrastructure. They can be kept in pens in either houses or in yard areas or free-ranging within the living area, usually in the kitchen (see Morales 1995). Unprotected guinea pigs can be subject to predators (e.g., raptors, felines); therefore, feral populations of domestic guinea pigs were probably not common in the past. ...
... Because guinea pigs do not provide secondary products (i.e., renewable products over the lifetime of the animal such as milk or fiber) when they are alive, an efficient strategy of keeping a population of breeding individuals and only consuming those that had reached adult size is commonly applied. Modern studies indicate that there is still a preference for eating guinea pigs that are relatively young because of the meat is more tender than when they are older (Archetti 1997;deFrance 2006;Morales 1995); however, older individuals are also consumed, but their meat requires stewing. ...
Following Spanish colonization, the food and symbolic roles of domesticated guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) changed depending on geographic setting and the ethnic composition of inhabitants. I draw on archaeology, ethnohistory, historical imagery, and historical studies to explore how Spanish social perceptions regarding edible food animals and the human body altered the culinary and ritual uses of guinea pigs after the conquest. Zooarchaeological data from Spanish colonial sites in Peru and Bolivia document differential use of guinea pigs depending on site function and who lived there. Contemporary European artistic representations show how people transformed guinea pigs into pets.
... Los cuyes han sido denominados los "rayos X" andinos (Andrews, 1972-74;Bolton, 1979;Archetti, 1992;Morales, 1995). Se dice que cuando una persona está enferma y el diagnóstico es problemático, se llama a un curandero (médico folklórico). ...
... El hecho de que los restos de consumo de cuy sean escasos al interior de las viviendas podría explicarse, nuevamente, por comparación etnográfica. Casi todos los testimonios recogidos por investigadores (Gade, 1967;Andrews, 1972-74;Bolton, 1979;Escobar & Escobar, 1979;Bolton & Calvin, 1981;Archetti, 1992;Morales, 1995) concuerdan en la preferencia de los pobladores rurales modernos por comer cuy sobre todo en determinadas festividades de orden religioso o pagano. Gade (1967) añade que también es costumbre ingerirlos luego de actividades colectivas como la siembra o la cosecha. ...
After doing a review of the main biological, archaeological and ethnographic data related to the species Cavia porcellus in the Andes, we focus in the study of 112 naturally mummified guinea pigs found buried underneath the floor of four residences at El Yaral, a prehispanic village located in the Osmore drainage of the extreme south of Peru. This finding has documented ritual practices involving the sacrifice of these animals. Evidence concerning pre and post-Conquest guinea pig use is presented. These data indicate continuity through time in ritual practices and beliefs related to this animal up to the present day.
... Los cuyes han sido denominados los "rayos X" andinos (Andrews, 1972-74;Bolton, 1979;Archetti, 1992;Morales, 1995). Se dice que cuando una persona está enferma y el diagnóstico es problemático, se llama a un curandero (médico folklórico). ...
... El hecho de que los restos de consumo de cuy sean escasos al interior de las viviendas podría explicarse, nuevamente, por comparación etnográfica. Casi todos los testimonios recogidos por investigadores (Gade, 1967;Andrews, 1972-74;Bolton, 1979;Escobar & Escobar, 1979;Bolton & Calvin, 1981;Archetti, 1992;Morales, 1995) concuerdan en la preferencia de los pobladores rurales modernos por comer cuy sobre todo en determinadas festividades de orden religioso o pagano. Gade (1967) añade que también es costumbre ingerirlos luego de actividades colectivas como la siembra o la cosecha. ...
After doing a review of the main biological, archaeological and ethnographic data related to the species Cavia porcellus in the Andes, we focus in the study of 112 naturally mummified guinea pigs found buried underneath the floor of four residences at El Yaral, a prehispanic village located in the Osmore drainage of the extreme south of Peru. This finding has documented ritual practices involving the sacrifice of these animals. Evidence concerning pre and post-Conquest guinea pig use is presented. These data indicate continuity through time in ritual practices and beliefs related to this animal up to the present day.
... Andes onde ocorreu sua domesticação, este animal é chamado cuy. Tradicionalmente na cultura andina era utilizado como alimento, assim como estava presente em rituais religiosos (MORALES, 1995;DONNELLY;BROWN, 2004). ...
... Cuy (Cavia porcellus L.) is a species that has been bred for its meat for at least 5000 years. It does not exist in the wild [67], and is spread through the Andes. Guatita is tripe, consumed worldwide as a cheap protein source [66]. ...
Codification of country-of-origin cuisines serves as a powerful tool for the international promotion of a country and the reinforcement of its national identity. Even though there have been efforts in that direction, Ecuadorian gastronomy is not consensually codified. This study aims to compare the perceptions of Ecuadorian gastronomy among inhabitants of coastal and highland cities-where most of the population of the country lives-using free listing as a study technique, to distinguish consumers' demographics through their representations, to define a list of the most culturally salient preparations, and to compare these perceptions with the traditional Ecuadorian dishes set forth by the Ministry of Tourism for the promotion of Ecuadorian cuisine. Data were acquired through face-to-face surveys in the main coastal and highland cities of Ecuador (n = 294) in which participants were asked to list the main dishes of Ecuadorian cuisine. The study identifies 25 preparations that exhibit the highest cultural consensus as determined by B'score. The four most salient dishes are encebollado (tuna, onion, and cassava soup), ceviche (lime-cured fish or shrimp cold soup), hornado, and fritada (roast and fried pork dishes, respectively). The representations of The Coast and Highlands show weak correlation (0.286 in Spearman's test) despite having 60% consensus in the most salient dishes, and other groups show much higher consensus. There is agreement with most provincial dishes selected for the promotion programs of Ecuadorian cuisine, although there is room for improvement. This study is valuable to help codify Ecuadorian gastronomy from a grassroots perspective, to point out promotion and local development practical implications for both domestic and international tourism, and to lay the groundwork for further research.
... The results indicate that, the Spain population represented the highest differentiation (16.67%) and showed the population structure. This differentiation began with the discovery of America; the colonists took guinea pigs to Europe, where they quickly became popular as exotic pets among the upper classes and royalty, including Queen Elizabeth I(Morales, 1995). In Europe and USA, guinea pigs are considered pets, so that, Cavy clubs and associations devoted to showing and breeding guinea pigs have been established worldwide. ...
p>Twenty specific primers were used to define the genetic diversity and structure of the domestic guinea pig ( Cavia porcellus ). The samples were collected from the Andean countries (Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia). In addition, samples from Spain were used as an out-group for topological trees. The microsatellite markers were used and showed a high polymorphic content (PIC) 0.750, and heterozygosity values indicated microsatellites are highly informative. The genetic variability in populations of guinea pigs from Andean countries was (He: 0.791; Ho: 0.710), the average number of alleles was high (8.67). A deficit of heterozygotes ( FIS : 0.153; p<0.05) was detected. Through the analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) no significant differences were found among the guinea pigs of the Andean countries (F ST : 2.9%); however a genetic differentiation of 16.67% between South American populations and the population from Spain was detected. A poor genetic structure was found among the Andean countries with high genetic variability. The results suggest that it is necessary to take urgent measures to prevent further genetic erosion of native guinea pigs in the Andean countries with plans for recovery and conservation of this important genetic resource in South America.</p
... Zabiegi tego typu, nota bene znane także w świecie starożytnym Azji, Afryki i Europy, tylko praktykowane z użyciem innych zwierząt, były stosowane już od czasów przedkolonialnych przede wszystkim w Peru i Ekwadorze (zob.Melchor, Reyna 1994;Morales 1995). ...
Tubylcze praktyki lecznicze zyskały znaczne uznanie w krajach andyjskiej Ameryki Południowej, ulegając profesjonalizacji i instytucjonalizacji. Dzięki akceptacji wielokulturowości, wieloetniczności i prawnego uznania różnorodności tradycyjne praktyki szamanistyczne, zielarskie, lecznicze i magiczne awansowały do kategorii tubylczej medycyny, akceptowanej przez społeczeństwo i publiczną służbę zdrowia. W ten sposób tubylcze tradycje lecznicze i koncepcje choroby i zdrowia wkroczyły także do miast, szpitali, przychodni, szkół wyższych i aptek zyskując szerokie uznanie w środowiskach nie-indiańskich. W rezultacie ukształtował się swoisty dualizm medycznych praktyk polegający na komplementarnym współistnieniu sektora medycyny popularnej o korzeniach tubylczych i sektora akademickiej biomedycyny skierowanego do zamożniejszych kręgów społecznych. Słowa kluczowe: tubylcza medycyna, Ameryka andyjska, instytucjonalizacja leczniczych tradycji.
... Guinea pig (Cavia porcellus) is one member of family Caviidae of rodents (Burnie, 2008).They are used as a source of food; as pets and for medical research (Morales, 1995;Terril andClemons, 1997 andGad, 2013). According to Nagpal et al., (1989) and Ramayya et al., (2012), the histological structure of parathyroid gland of Guinea pig is similar to that of mammals. ...
... Males are generally intolerant of one another and females exhibit a linear dominance hierarchy [12]. Guinea pigs were first domesticated as early as 5000 BC in the Andean region of South America by tribes using them as food and in cultural practices [14]. They were introduced to Europe in the sixteenth century and rapidly became a popular pet [12], though selective breeding that gave rise to some of the domestic breeds found today started in approximately 1200 AD [15], resulting in a behavioral phenotype that today is rather docile and tractable. ...
Special encounters that allow contact between animals and guests are common in zoos and aquariums. Visitors to the Saint Louis Zoo may touch guinea pigs serving as ambassador animals. We evaluated two welfare indicators in ambassador guinea pigs by comparing glucocorticoid levels and body weights between periods when guinea pigs lived in a habitat accessible to the public and while off exhibit. Mean glucocorticoid levels did not differ between sexes or between on- and off-exhibit periods. There was significant individual variation, and females demonstrated greater variation than males. While on exhibit, glucocorticoid levels slightly but significantly increased in males and decreased in females. Moving guinea pigs between habitats only elicited a significant glucocorticoid response when females were moved off exhibit. Temporary closures of the exhibit had no effect on glucocorticoid levels in either sex. Analyses of the impact of handling rates on males found no impact on glucocorticoid levels. Guinea pigs’ body weights were lower while on exhibit. We conclude that guinea pigs serving as ambassador animals at the Saint Louis Zoo demonstrate comparable physiological profiles while on and off exhibit and, when used in a rotational schedule, are a suitable species for animal encounters involving contact with the public.
... As seen in other cases in the Andes, the domestic guinea pigs have been participants and continue to be part of the ceremonial life of the Andean groups (e.g., Guaman Poma de Ayala, 1956; Morales, 1995;Rofes & Wheeler, 2003). The inclusion of a specimen in a burial could be due to different causes such as fertility rites that were intended to propitiate the rains (Gil García, 2002). ...
In this article, we identified rodent remains found in the Pucará de Tilcara, an archaeological site from the Argentine Northwest that was occupied by humans from 1,100 AD until the Spanish conquest. The zooarchaeological analyses were carried out using anatomical descriptions and geometric morphometric analyses of the dorsal and ventral views of mandibular remains. The results and the archaeological context discussed showed that all the rodent remains could correspond to the Andean breed of domestic guinea pigs. The combination of the methods used here gave us a strong support to the taxonomical assignment. The presence of domestic guinea pigs in archaeological sites of the Northwestern Argentina was never proposed. This approach allowed us to increase knowledge about the distribution of caviines in the region, and their relationship to anthropic processes.
... La sobrevivencia actual del uso ritual de los cuyes permite considerar plausible la vigencia de estas prácticas a finales del siglo XVIII (Morales 1995). No se puede descartar que algunas personas vincularan, al ver el cuy blanco pintado en la Última Cena, los usos locales que involucraban al roedor con la purificación que el bautismo obraría -por los méritos del sacrificio del Cordero-en el niño que pronto recibiría las aguas del bautismo. ...
In the baptistery of the church of Santiago de Curahuara de Carangas, built at the end of the 16th century, a complex mural painting program was executed in the last quarter of the 18th century. The present text intends to establish the links between the scenes painted and the rite of baptism. We do not see a direct or evident relationship in a didactical or performative sense. The images are there to be potentially activated during the liturgical ceremony in order to reveal the efficacy of the sacrament. We have the advantage of working with a set of images that remain in their original location. Therefore, this essay proposes a potential relationship among gesture, words and paintings, as they could have been related in the 18th century. In the analysis, we put into dialogue the resonances intended by the Church and the reception by the indigenous community.
... The results indicate that, the Spain population represented the highest differentiation (16.67%) and showed the population structure. This differentiation began with the discovery of America; the colonists took guinea pigs to Europe, where they quickly became popular as exotic pets among the upper classes and royalty, including Queen Elizabeth I(Morales, 1995). In Europe and USA, guinea pigs are considered pets, so that, Cavy clubs and associations devoted to showing and breeding guinea pigs have been established worldwide. ...
Twenty specific primers were used to define the genetic diversity and structure of the domestic guinea pig (Cavia porcellus). The samples were collected from the Andean countries (Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia). In addition, samples from Spain were used as an out-group for topological trees. The microsatellite markers were used and showed a high polymorphic content (PIC) 0.750, and heterozygosity values indicated microsatellites are highly informative. The genetic variability in populations of guinea pigs from Andean countries was (He: 0.791; Ho: 0.710), the average number of alleles was high (8.67). A deficit of heterozygotes (F IS : 0.153; p<0.05) was detected. Through the analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) no significant differences were found among the guinea pigs of the Andean countries (FST: 2.9%); however a genetic differentiation of 16.67% between South American populations and the population from Spain was detected. A poor genetic structure was found among the Andean countries with high genetic variability. The results suggest that it is necessary to take urgent measures to prevent further genetic erosion of native guinea pigs in the Andean countries with plans for recovery and conservation of this important genetic resource in South America. RESUMEN Se utilizaron 20 cebadores específicos para definir la diversidad genética y la estructura del cobayo doméstico (Cavia porcellus). Las muestras fueron recolectadas de los países andinos (Colombia, Ecuador, Perú y Bolivia). Además, se utilizaron muestras de España como grupo externo de los árboles filogenéticos. Los marcadores microsatélites mostraron un alto contenido de información polimórfica (PIC) 0.750, y los valores de heterocigosidad indicaron que los microsatélites son altamente informativos. La variabilidad genética en las poblaciones de cuyes de los países andinos fue (He: 0.791, Ho: 0.710), el número promedio de alelos fue alto (8.67). Se detectó un déficit de heterozigotos (FIS: 0.153; p <0.05). A través del análisis de varianza molecular (AMOVA) no se encontraron diferencias significativas entre los cuyes de los países andinos (FST: 2.9%); Sin embargo, se detectó una diferenciación genética del 16,67% entre las poblaciones sudamericanas y la población española. Se encontró una estructura genética deficiente entre los países andinos con alta variabilidad genética. Los resultados sugieren que es necesario tomar medidas urgentes para prevenir una mayor erosión genética de cuyes nativos en los países andinos con planes para la recuperación y conservación de este importante recurso genético en América del Sur. Palabras clave: Marcadores de ADN, Cavia porcellus, América del Sur, diversidad genética.
... Se desarrolla principalmente bien en climas templados, aunque puede adaptarse más a climas fríos que calientes. Los animales pueden afectarse cuando las temperaturas son superiores a 30°C, afectando las condiciones productivas por el exceso de calor (Morales, 1995). ...
En línea: http://www.eumed.net/rev/caribe/2017/11/sistema-produccion-ambiental.html
... A nimals and plants were the grocery store, the pharmacy and the church in early cultures. Animals played a key role in ritual and medicine, as well as in the diet and economic life of Amerindians, and were so sought after that they were sometimes traded over long distances (DiPeso, 1974;Gode, 1976;Tyler, 1991;Morales, 1995;Wing & Wing, 1995). For the tropical lowland Maya region in Mesoamerica (Figure 1), preservation and sampling problems, combined with traditional paradigms, have resulted in a limited amount of data on animals and have inhibited our understanding of the relationship between the Maya and animals who shared their environment. ...
... The domestic guinea pig, Cavia porcellus, also known colloquially as the 'cavy' belongs to the Caviidae family of rodents, originating from the grasslands and Andes Mountains of South America [1]. Following its domestication in 500-1000 AD, the guinea pig has been kept as an important source of food and is still eaten in many parts of South America today [2,3]. Since being introduced to Europe by Spanish colonialists in the 16 th century, they have been commonly kept as pets, as well as used extensively in medical research with the first documented experiments performed on guinea pigs dating back to 1780 [1,4]. ...
... The guinea pig (Cavia porcellus), also called cavy, is originally from the Andean regions of southern Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia, where the species was domesticated between 7000 and 5000 BC (Morales, 1995). Today, a stable population of 35 million animals is reared in this area (DAD-IS, 2014). ...
The domestic guinea pig is a valuable genetic resource because it is part of local folklore and food tradition in many South American countries. The economic importance of the guinea pig is due to its high feed efficiency and the quality of animal protein produced. For these reasons, our study is aimed to design a complete dinucleotide microsatellite marker set following international recommendation to assess the genetic diversity and genealogy management of guinea pigs. We selected a total of 20 microsatellites, looking for laboratory efficiency and good statistical parameters. The set was tested in 100 unrelated individuals of guinea pigs from Ecuador, Peru, Colombia, Bolivia and Spain. Our results show a high degree of polymorphisms with a total of 216 alleles and a mean number of 10.80±3.49 for markers with a combined exclusion probability of 0.99.
... The domestic guinea pig (Cavia aperea f. porcellus) belongs to the Caviidae family of rodents (Burnie, 2008) that includes subfamilies covering species closely related to guinea pigs such as the Patagonian cavy, also known as the Mara (Dolichotis patagonum) or the world's largest rodent, the capybara (Hydrochaerus hydrochaeris) (Burnie, 2008). The guinea pig has been kept as an important source of food, and is still eaten in many parts of South America, Asia and Africa (Meredith & Redrobe, 2010;Morales, 1995;NRC, 1991). Peru alone has around 20 million guinea pigs, providing around 17 thousand tonnes of meat per annum, just 4,000 tonnes less than their sheep meat production (NRC, 1991). ...
The domestic guinea pig, Cavia aperea f. porcellus, belongs to the Caviidae family of rodents. It is an important species as a pet, a source of food and in medical research. Adult weight is achieved at 8-12 months and life expectancy is ∼5-6 years. Our aim was to map bone local thickness, structure and dimensions across developmental stages in the normal animal. Guinea pigs (n = 23) that had died of natural causes were collected and the bones manually extracted and cleaned. Institutional ethical permission was given under the UK Home Office guidelines and the Veterinary Surgeons Act. X-ray Micro Computed Tomography (microCT) was undertaken on the left and right scapula, humerus and femur from each animal to ascertain bone local thickness. Images were also used to undertake manual and automated bone measurements, volumes and surface areas, identify and describe nutrient, supratrochlear and supracondylar foramina. Statistical analysis between groups was carried out using ANOVA with post-hoc testing. Our data mapped a number of dimensions, and mean and maximum bone thickness of the scapula, humerus and femur in guinea pigs aged 0-1 month, 1-3 months, 3-6 months, 6 months-1 year and 1-4 years. Bone dimensions, growth rates and local bone thicknesses differed between ages and between the scapula, humerus and femur. The microCT and imaging software technology showed very distinct differences between the relative local bone thickness across the structure of the bones. Only one bone showed a singular nutrient foramen, every other bone had between 2 and 5, and every nutrient canal ran in an oblique direction. In contrast to other species, a supratrochlear foramen was observed in every humerus whereas the supracondylar foramen was always absent. Our data showed the bone local thickness, bone structure and measurements of guinea pig bones from birth to 4 years old. Importantly it showed that bone development continued after 1 year, the point at which most guinea pigs have reached full weight. This study is the first to show the high abundance (100% in this study) of the supratrochlear foramen within the guinea pig humerus and the complete absence of a supracondylar foramen, which is different to many other species and may also affect potential fracture points and frequencies. Understanding bone morphology and growth is essential in not only understanding the requirements of the healthy guinea pig, but also necessary in order to investigate disease states.
... The particular and highly supported node h of creole C. porcellus from southern Peru and Chile, uniquely defined by two shared amino acid substitutions (Fig. 3) suggest that this is an old pre-Columbian lineage (Wing 1986, Morales 1995. Further studies on rural communities should uncover other pre-Columbian breeds along the Andes. ...
... The guinea pig continues to be an animal of economic and cultural importance in the Central Andes (Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia). Guinea pigs are still used for traditional curing and divination (see Archetti 1997;Gade 1967;Morales 1995), although the antiquity of this practice is not known. The culinary role of the guinea pig is also important today, particularly in traditional societies; however, many people of Hispanic and mestizo descent disdain guinea pigs and will not eat them (see deFrance Weismantel 1988). ...
In archaeology, human-introduced animals provide clues about social interaction and movement of past peoples. Zooarchaeological records in the Caribbean show that pre-Columbian people introduced several South American mammals to different islands. This article examines all reported pre-Columbian zooarchaeological records of domesticated guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) in the Caribbean. Thus far, 218 bone fragments have been identified from 18 sites on nine islands. To date, our analysis indicates that guinea pigs were introduced to the islands after AD 500, possibly to the Greater Antilles first. Almost all are recovered from midden contexts. The contexts of guinea pig remains suggest that these animals were consumed as food and not considered an exotic or high-status food source with restricted consumption or other non-food uses such as ritual animals. The spatial and temporal patterns of guinea pigs suggest that the animals may have been linked to social identity and new patterns of trade, interaction, or population movement between the Caribbean and South America during the second half of the Caribbean Ceramic Age. Documenting the distribution and social significance of guinea pigs in the pre-Columbian Caribbean contributes to our understanding of how and why people introduced animals to island settings.
... These were domesticated at earlier times but have a turnover of only one or two generations per year (Herre and Roehrs 1990;Zeuner 1963). Guinea pigs are still used for meat production by Andean people but world-wide they mainly serve as laboratory animals for research or as pets (Mueller-Haye 1984;Morales 1995). ...
Intraspecific allometric calculations of the brain to body size relation revealed distinct differences between 127 (67; 60) ancestral wild cavies and 82 (37; 45) guinea pigs, their domesticated relatives. The dependency of both measures from one another remained the same in both animal groups but the brains of guinea pigs were by 14.22% smaller at any net body weight. Consistent with results in other species the domestication of Cavia aperea is also characterized by a decrease of brain size. Fresh tissue sizes of the five brain parts medulla oblongata, cerebellum, mesencephalon, diencephalon and telencephalon were determined for 6 cavies and 6 guinea pigs by the serial section method. Additionally the sizes of 16 endbrain structures and those of the optic tract, the lateral geniculate body and the cochlear nucleus were measured. Different decrease values resulted for all these structures concomitant with domestication as was calculated from the amount of total brain size decrease and average relative structure values in the wild as well as the domesticated brain. The size decrease of the entire telencephalon (- 13.7%) was within the range of the mean overall reduction as similarly was the case for the total neocortex (- 10.7%) whereas the total allocortex (- 20.9%) clearly was more strongly affected. The size decrease of the olfactory bulb (- 41.9%) was extreme and clearly higher than found for the secondary olfactory structures (around - 11%). The primary nuclei of other sensory systems (vision, audition) were decreased to less extent (lateral geniculate: - 18.1%; cochlear nucleus: - 12.6%). Mass decreases of pure white matter parts were nearly twice as high in contrast to associated grey matter parts (neocortex white versus grey matter; tractus opticus versus lateral geniculate body). The relatively great decrease values found for the limbic structures hippocampus (- 26.9%) and schizocortex (- 25.9%) are especially notable since they are in good conformity with domestication effects in other mammalian species. The findings of this study are discussed with regard to results of similar investigations on wild and domesticated gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus), the encephalization of the wild form, the special and species-specific mode and duration of domestication and in connection with certain behavioral changes as resulted from comparative investigations in ethology, socio-biology, endocrinology and general physiology.
... La agricultura es productiva can buen manejo del agua de riego (Guillet 1992), can practicas que limitan la erosi6n de los suelos (Treacy 1994) yean el empleo de especies leriosas (Reynel y Felipe-Morales 1987). Adernas, tiene larga historia can el desarrollo y usa de miles de variedades de cultivos natives, especialmente de tuberosas como las papas (Zimmerer 1996), mas la domesticaci6n del cuy (Morales 1995), la alpaca y la llama (Wheeler 1995). La agricultura tradicional se hace en relaci6n estrecha can los facto res fisicos y biol6gicos que producen condiciones variables (Tapia 1996, Tobin et al. 1998. ...
... All this is also valid for the guinea pig, an especially "classical" domesticated form. It once derived from the wild cavy in South America and is still used there for meat production by Andean people but mainly it serves as a laboratory or pet animal elsewhere in the world (Müller-Haye 1984;Morales 1995). According to the archaeological report cavies appeared in human deposits from pre-columbian times at high altitudinal locations in the Andes of nowadays Peru and Bolivia as long as 9000 years ago. ...
Bivariate allometric calculations were performed to quantitatively compare skulls of wild cavies with domesticated guinea pigs. Descendents of wild caught Cavia aperea from eastern regions of the species’ distribution area were used, as well as unselected domesticated breeds of guinea pigs differing in outer appearance. The individuals of both groups were kept under similar environmental conditions. Altogether 19 parameters on the skulls and the body weights were used for the analyses. These parameters were studied in relation to greatest skull length and to body size. As a general result the diverse parameters are in most cases significantly different between both groups which is interpreted as a special result of unconsciously selected and genetically determined intraspecific changes concomitant with domestication. The skull does not change in total under the domestication process but in a mosaic manner. However, for the mosaic changes of the diverse parameters in relation to skull length a different picture is valid as related to body weight. This is caused by the fact that the skull of guinea pigs is around 5% shorter independent of the body size, a common effect of domestication also described for other species. Thus, skull length is not an appropriate parameter for body size with respect to such intraspecific investigations, although normally used for the characterization of species in interspecific comparisons of museum materials.
... Cultural anthropologists in the Andes have documented the changing status and niches of food items in relation to ethnic, class, and racial inequalities (e.g., Morales 1995;Weismantel 1988). Historical archaeologists have used this approach to examine colonial period social divides through the complex patterns of consumption of indigenous and European foods. ...
A comparative examination of food practices is useful for assessing the nature of diverse forms of social inequality. This article examines three key contexts in which to evaluate the relationship between social differentiation and food practices in the Andes: early complex societies, pre-Columbian states and nonstate complex societies, and colonial societies. A review of these distinct contexts suggests that social and subsistence change may follow different rhythms and that food-related differentiation, just like other forms of social differentiation, is neither consistently augmented in a scalar fashion in relation to “degrees” of social complexity, nor is it in all cases a direct indicator of economic inequality.
This datasheet on Cavia porcellus covers Identity, Overview, Distribution, Dispersal, Diagnosis, Biology & Ecology, Environmental Requirements, Natural Enemies, Impacts, Uses, Further Information.
Ativo no terceiro quartel do século XVI, Simon de Myle constitui um verdadeiro enigma, pois sua vida e carreira permanecem totalmente desconhecidas até os dias de hoje. A “Arca de Noé sobre o Monte Ararat” é seu único quadro assinado e datado ("Simone de Myle inventor et fecit 1570"), figurando o desembarque dos animais após o dilúvio. Levando em conta mesmo as representações demasiado precárias, essa composição inclui nada menos de 228 monstros, voláteis e quadrúpedes, isso sem considerar as carcaças e as espécies aquáticas deixadas para trás com o recuo das águas. Entre as fontes iconográficas utilizadas destacam-se vários tomos da “Historia Animalium” de Conrad Gesner, além da “Warachtighe Fabulen der Dieren” de Marcus Gheeraerts. Ao contrário de outras pinturas quinhentistas acerca do mesmo tema, essa “Arca de Noé” retrata um número inesperado de animais do Novo Mundo, elenco composto por dois mamíferos, pelo menos três aves e dois “seres prodígiosos”. Nesse particular, o quadro de Simon de Myle inadvertidamente evoca as dúvidas sobre a verossimilhança da passagem bíblica relativa à Arca de Noé, reflexo da descoberta de um número cada vez maior de espécies zoológicas em terras distantes. Colocada já em 1502 por Amerigo Vespucci, essa questão atravessaria os séculos XVI e XVII, levando autores como Joseph de Acosta (1590) e Athanasius Kircher (1675) a buscar uma improvável conciliação entre a realidade factual observada no outro lado do oceano e a verdade revelada contida no livro do Gênesis.
New scientific discoveries, technologies and techniques often find their way into the space and equipment of domestic and professional kitchens. Using approaches based on anthropology, archaeology and history, Cooking Technology reveals the impact these and the associated broader socio-cultural, political and economic changes have on everyday culinary practices, explaining why people transform – or, indeed, refuse to change – their kitchens and food habits.
Focusing on Mexico and Latin America, the authors look at poor, rural households as well as the kitchens of the well-to-do and professional chefs. Topics range from state subsidies for traditional ingredients, to the promotion of fusion foods, and the meaning of kitchens and cooking in different localities, as a result of people taking their cooking technologies and ingredients with them to recreate their kitchens abroad. What emerges is an image of Latin American kitchens as places where ‘traditional’ and ‘modern’ culinary values are constantly being renegotiated.
The thirteen chapters feature case studies of areas in Mexico, the American-Mexican border, Cuba, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, and Brazil. With contributions from an international range of leading experts, Cooking Technology fills an important gap in the literature and provides an excellent introduction to the topic for students and researchers working in food studies, anthropology, history, and Latin American studies.
El Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Agropecuarias (INIAP)ha ofrecido por más de
40 años al palmicultor ecuatoriano, el híbrido mejorado INIAP-Tenera de palma de aceite
(E.guinensis Dura xE. guinensisPisífera), el cual se destaca por su alto rendimiento (INIAP,
2003). En la actualidad la estación cuenta con un banco de germoplasma de plantas
E.guinensis Dura y E. guinensisPisífera, progenitores de este híbrido. La edad de estas
plantas supera los 25 años y a mediano plazo existe el riesgo de perder materiales únicos
fruto de la selección y el mejoramiento genético, por lo que la propagación vegetativa
sería la única solución para conservar y replicar este valioso germoplasma envejecido.
Sin embargo, debido a que esta especie no produce retoños como otras especies de palma,
solo a través de la biotecnología se podrían obtener plantas clonales (Muniran et al.,
2008). En este sentido, existen protocolos en la literatura internacional que describen la
regeneración de plantas de palma de aceite a partir de segmentos de hojas de la flecha
(Mondjeli et al., 2015) y de inflorescencias masculinas inmaduras (Jayanthi et al., 2015).
No obstante, no existe un protocolo universal para el cultivo in vitro de la palma de aceite
porque la respuesta está influenciada por el genotipo, el estado fisiológico de la planta
y el origen del explante. A medida que la planta envejece se hace más difícil lograr la
respuesta positiva al cultivo in vitro de los explantes que proceden de ella. Por lo que es
necesario en la mayoría de los casos, estudiar la respuesta del material vegetal ajustando
los protocolos existentes. El presente trabajo tuvo como objetivo establecer un protocolo
de propagación clonal a partir de plantas progenitoras del híbrido INIAP-Tenera de palma
de aceite mediante la selección de un explante inicial que respondiera positivamente al
cultivo in vitro y el ajuste de un protocolo referido en la literatura internacional para este
tipo de explante.
During ethnographic research on the biopolitics of culinary nationalism in Peru, I visited a guinea pig breeding farm north of Lima. Guinea pigs are considered “food animals” in the Andes. That encounter with pregnant guinea pigs—and with one guinea pig in particular who was tossed out of her enclosure and left to die—led me to a visceral questioning of my methodological and political approaches to and commitments in multispecies ethnography. I found myself uncomfortably close to the deaths of these female bodies yet unable to voice my dismay or grief. This essay is a modest effort to theorize what grief has to offer the practice of multispecies ethnography. I explore how writing about the ethnographic encounter as one of tragedy and loss might open up the productive possibilities of mourning and grief in connecting human and nonhuman worlds.
población mundial alcanzará los 9700 millones de habitantes, y que se considera que el
mayor aumento se producirá en los países en desarrollo, se prevé que los alimentos deben aumentar en un 70% en relación a la producción actual. Por otro lado, Sumpsi (2012) sostiene que las predicciones maltusianas que manifiesta que la población aumentará y que el alimento posible de producir no será suficiente para el abastecimiento, aún no se han cumplido debido a dos fenómenos: a) las políticas demográficas para el control de la natalidad; y, b) la revolución tecnológica agraria que logró aumentar la producción y la productividad.
Faunal assemblages offer rich data for exploring domestication, subsistence, ritual practice, and political economy. Issues of equifinality, however, frequently complicate interpretations because different agents and processes may create similar archaeological signatures. Analysts are often forced to make interpretations based on qualitative observations, which can be difficult to justify or replicate. I present an alternative method for classifying Andean assemblages by using ethnographic, ethnohistoric, and archaeological data to construct a Bayesian network model. The model is assessed using specifically constructed test datasets and archaeological case studies. Bayesian models can lead to explicit and quantifiable probabilistic interpretations of faunal assemblages.
Desde que inició el siglo pasado, el campesinado ha sido un sujeto de estudio importante para las disciplinas que lo abordan por tener un rol que se destaca en economías constantemente cambiantes. Sin embargo, su lugar ha sido tan destacado como marginal en las sociedades de las que hace parte. Si a esto se suma la relevancia de sus prácticas, generalmente agroalimentarias, el estudio que hago de los campesinos de Chivatá, Boyacá, no se aparta de las pretensiones generales de aquellos que se han enfocado en este tipo de comunidades.
Así, este texto tiene la intención de entender al campesinado de la vereda de Ricayá Norte en el municipio de Chivatá partiendo de la forma en la que se alimentan diariamente. Además, mi objetivo fue identificar cierta equivalencia significante entre elementos del sujeto campesino que percibí en la literatura y durante mi trabajo de campo a lo largo del 2017 y del 2018, y elementos/alimentos que se hallan comúnmente en la dieta de los chivatenses. Este objetivo se enfocó tanto en la identificación de dichos elementos, como en el reconocimiento de las relaciones que estos mantienen, ya sea en la realidad relacional de los campesinos dentro de la estructura que ayudan a formar, o en el contexto de consumo y servicio de los alimentos que pueden y quieren ingerir.
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Since the beginning of the past century, the peasantry has been an important study subject for the disciplines that approach to it because it has an outstanding role for economies that are constantly changing. However, its place has been both outstanding and marginal in its society. The relevancy of its praxis, which is generally related to agri-food production, supports the research regarding peasants in Chivatá, Boyacá. This study doesn’t draw away from the old purpose of the researchers that have always focused on such communities.
This text has the purpose to understand the peasantry from a small part of the municipality of Chivatá called Ricayá Norte considering its daily meals. Besides, my objective was to identify some meaning equivalence between the elements of the peasantry that I read and saw during my 2017 and 2018 field trips, and the elements/food which shape the diet of the people at Chivatá. The objective was to identify such elements and to spot the relations between them. Furthermore, it was to identify those situations in the relational reality of the peasants’ rural structure and in a context where the food was chosen and preferred, a context in which it was served and eaten.
The present study was carried out to elucidate the grooming behavior under clean and dust environmental condition in domestic American guinea pig (Cavia porcellus). The domestic guinea pig was allowed to provide all necessary food items and water prior to the initiation of experiment in order to minimize physiological stress and the present study was carried out in residential place at Homagama during the period of December 2015 to January 2016. The guinea pig was placed for 1 hour in the clean environment and allowed another 1 hour in dust environment. Wood shavings were applied to the cage in order to make cage as dust environment. Then number of grooming and time taken for each grooming in seconds in each environment were recorded. As this manner recordings were taken for 10 days. Data were analyzed statistically using Microsoft Excel 2013 for Chi-Square test. Results revealed that the Grooming behaviour of Guinea pig was significantly high in dust environment in comparing with the clean environment (χ 2 test; p<0.001).
Cavies (Guinea pigs, Cavia porcellus) are one of the species used as food and nutrition security guarantee for low-income households in many areas of sub-Saharan Africa. This review presents a synthesis of the characteristics of their production systems, their phenotypic and genetic diversity as well as the factors affecting production performance. Cavy farming systems are a secondary activity for farmers and they are varying from one region to another. Cavies are usually kept in free range on the kitchen floor or in cages, but without breeding equipment. There is no control of their diet mostly based on grasses, herbaceous Asteraceae, legumes, kitchen remnants and crop residues. With little hygienic management, the most frequent diseases are coccidiosis, pneumonia, salmonellosis, helminthiasis and ecto-parasites. Substantial phenotypic variability and genetic diversity exist within and between cavy populations in different African countries. Productive and reproductive performances vary and are influenced by factors both exogenous and endogenous to cavies. The main factors are sex, breed, physiological state of the animal, inbreeding level, parity of the mother, litter size, rearing system; type, physical state and palatability of the feed, presence or absence of anti-nutritional factors, supplement type; and the breeding environment.
URL: http://www.lrrd.org/lrrd30/6/ayagi30105.html
Although gastronomy has a strong territorial component, the link between territorial products, their perception and evaluation by residents and visitors is a topic which has been barely studied. This article discusses these issues for such a product as territorially rooted in Andean culture as it is controversial: the Guinea pig. Following the application of a methodology that combines the use of structured surveys with in-depth interviews, the results show a very different valuation among residents and tourists in the city of Cuenca (Ecuador).
Spanish settlement of the southern Peruvian coastal river valleys and the introduction of new agricultural and industrial enterprises such as wineries and livestock haciendas altered indigenous systems of production and subsistence. A unique pattern of Spanish colonial animal use emerged as a result of introductions of Old World domesticates in combination with the faunal resources of the Central Andes. Zooarchaeological data from four Spanish colonial wineries from the Moquegua valley and the late prehistoric/colonial site of Torata Alta indicate that colonial economy and subsistence combined Old World domestic mammals and South American camelids?llamas, alpacas. In comparison to Spanish settlement in Florida and the Caribbean, the pattern of animal use that developed in the south Central Andes reflects little reliance on local resources. Colonial Andean foodways more closely parallel those of the Iberian peninsula than other areas of Spanish settlement.
Adaptive variation refers to the lock-and-key type relationship between an organism and its ecological niche. This includes a patterned relationship between human behavior and societal variation. As societies become more complex, for example, our capacity to process a great deal of information quickly increases (the Flynn effect). Such adaptive processes illuminate societal variation because there is a reliable pattern in comparative research whereby behavioral differences are predicted by ecological and demographic differences. This pattern cannot be explained in terms of genetic adaptation but reflects changes mostly occurring in the lifetime of the individual. It involves an evolved capacity of humans (and other species) to adapt their behavior developmentally to local challenges. The resulting phenotypes are ecologically predictable (or “adaptive”) but may not maximize reproduction (e.g., low fertility in modern urban cities). This innovative theoretical approach is scientifically valid and heuristically useful based on comparisons across species and between societies.
En 1954 Francis A. Riddell, en compañía de Dorothy Menzel, realizó los primeros trabajos arqueológicos
en el valle de Acarí. Después de una interrupción por 30 años, Riddell reanudó sus estudios en 1984. Desde
entonces llevó adelante un sin número de trabajos arqueológicos en Acarí, los mismas que sólo culminaron
con su fallecimiento en marzo del 2002. Este trabajo tiene por objetivo resaltar el legado del trabajo de Riddell en el valle de Acarí. Lo poco que a la fecha se conoce de la arqueología de dicho valle se debe efectivamente al esfuerzo de aquel hombre que dedicó gran parte de su vida al estudio del pasado de Acarí. En la segunda parte de esta contribución se presentan las evidencias más recientes de las investigaciones arqueológicas
This essay argues that bringing animals into the study of Latin American and Caribbean environmental history could serve several purposes. It would forge a point of entry into the phenomenology of everyday life in rural societies, since animals stand at the nexus of the relationship between man and the land, hence nature and culture. It is through caring for beasts that one interacts with the environment in ways that get the historian one step closer to what Bourdieu termed the habitus of rural labor; beasts also shed light on women’s domestic work as they are transformed from raw to cooked. In Latin America, the animal is also an important symbolic vehicle which is charged with meaning as evidenced in jokes and tall tales, and as the preponderance of narratives of demonic creatures across Latin America indicates, can also serve as a window into popular conceptions of evil.
La tecnología moldea la cultura, la cultura a su vez produce
ciencia, y la ciencia proporciona la base epistemológica para el
desarrollo de la tecnología. Muchos antropólogos han ubicado claramente
a la tecnología como parte fundamental del sistema cultural.
En la tensión cambio – continuidad del sistema cultural, la tecnología
ha sido más bien un factor de cambio, mientras que la lengua, por
ejemplo, uno de continuidad. La tecnología y lo humano, sin embargo,
han estado en cierta forma claramente diferenciados. El artículo propone que en el mundo contemporáneo esta diferencia se ha acortado sustancialmente.
Culinary descriptions in Quechua oral narratives often emphasize the important role food plays in the construction and maintenance of vital kinship and community bonds. References to the culture's foodways signal important plot twists, establish the tone of a scene, foreshadow impending doom, or allude to the intentions and personality of a character. In Southern Peruvian Quechua narratives, food-related aberrations frequently emerge as a result of inappropriate or unsanctioned sexual relationships, and a character's blatant disrespect for the culture's food decorum signals the impending disintegration of family relationships. Supernatural cooks often adulterate meals in order to punish family members for these violations of food etiquette. Through an analysis of four Quechua narratives, this article demonstrates the ways in which narrators use food symbolism to instill and reinforce cultural mores.
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