by Buddy Herring

Created on: January 10, 2011   Last Updated: January 11, 2011

Around ten thousand years ago, Native Americans began settling in valleys and different coastal areas in what is known as present-day Chili.  While the area was plagued by war between conflicting tribes, Native Americans held control of this land for thousands of years.  However in 1520, a man by the name of Ferdinand Magellan came across Chile while circumnavigating the earth.  Several Spanish conquistadors followed suit the following years, hearing tails of gold and silver.  While they never found any extensive precious metals, the Spanish Empire immediately recognized the agricultural potential.  During this transition between the early agricultural settlement up to the pre-Hispanic period, the northern part of Chile was largely Andean culture.  This was largely influenced by altiplano tradition that had spread to the coastal valleys of the north.  The southern regions were mainly dominated by Mapuche culture.  

Following the conquest of the region, Spanish culture dominated the country, as the Spanish Empire kept a continuous flow of soldiers through the area.  They did this to protect its very distant American colonies.  During the 18th century though a mass immigration of Spanish civilians came into the area.  This was in large part due to trade liberalization being enacted by the Spanish crown.  These civilians were mainly of Basque and Castilian descent.  An aristocracy between these two would form the basis of the Chilean ruling class.  Other European influences began settling in the 19th century with the English, French and the Germans.  Migrants of German ancestry influenced the Bavarian style architecture in the southern part of Chile.  

Most of the music in Chile includes folklore, classical music and pop.  Different musical styles are largely attributed to the large geography of the country, which is expressed differently in the north, south, and center of it.  Also Mapuche music is still prevalent among the ancestors of the indigenous tribe.  A form of traditional Chilean music known as the tonada is also very popular in the country.  This arose from music that was brought over by Spanish colonists.  While the national dance is the cueca, the tonada seems to be the preferred music of the two by most of the Chilean population.  A rebirth in folk music occurred during the middle of the twentieth century led by groups such as Los de Ramon and Los Huasos Quicheros.  In the mid-1960s different forms of native music was brought back to live by the Parra Family, whom associated with different political activists.

Much of the cuisine is an example of a melting pot of influences by different ancestrys over the years. Lemon and onions were brought over by Spanish colonists, and German immigrants introduced the use of mayonnaise, yogurt and beer.  Shellfish and rice bread was taken from native Quechua Andean cuisine.  Minced Llama was also brought over by the Quechua Andean’s, although beef brought by the Europeans is most commonly used in place of it.

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