Tinku, the Tata Wilakruz warrios. Agricultural cycle and celebration of the cross in Macha, Potosí

Abstract

The Tinku ritual, celebrated in San Pedro de Macha, Potosí, Bolivia, alludes to the day of the cross from the Quechua worldview in articulation with the Andean agricultural cycle and a tradition of combat. Different moments of the meeting are addressed with the aim of showing that this is more than physical confrontation. From processual anthropology and the concept of agrarian matrix, the Tinku is analyzed as a festive and ritual encounter through interayllus conflict and alliances. Through the ethnographic record, an account of other elements of the interaction between the ayllus of the valley and the puna is given, which imply giving to the land, circulation of agricultural products, reaffirmation of territory and new family ties between the communities. At the same time, the theme is located in its relationship with the State and its institutions, where the derived implications and the Quechua adaptation are contemplated from the local.