■ADRIANA VON HAGENVILLAGE LIFE
Reconstructing the daily lives of villagers during Inca times is challenging
because few of the Spanish chroniclers were interested in such mundane details
of life. Yet, the chronicles of Native Andeans, such as those of Garcilaso de la
Vega and Felipe Guaman Poma de Ayala, did include details of daily life.
Archaeology has begun to fill in some of the missing information, and also
evaluate what the chroniclers said. Thus, the combination of ethnohistory and
archaeology provides a more complete picture of the daily lives of both the
conquered and the conquerors.
Village life in the empire revolved around activities associated largely with age
and gender distinctions (see Women), along with the activities required of
households by the Incas. We do not have much information about conquered
peoples from the Spanish sources, but we do know some basic activities of Inca
village life, and at least some of these activities were likely similar in other
communities as well.
Until puberty, male and female children basically learned the tasks that would
be required of them in adulthood. Boys helped in the fields and herded animals,
while girls assisted in the many tasks of the household: cleaning, spinning,
preparing meals, and watching over younger children. Until marriage, young
adults lived with their parents. After marriage, depending on the social norms of
the group, they might have set up a new household in a “trial marriage”
arrangement, or lived with the parents of the bride or the groom.
Both Inca and non-Inca men were eligible for military service, and many
served in that capacity, both as part of their mit’a service and as more permanent
assignments (see Labor Service; Warfare). Males of conquered groups were
expected to serve in the military or corvée labor gangs, as needed, and married
men would often bring their wives and families with them. Younger, unmarried
men served as messengers and cargo bearers, while older men were the actual
warriors.
For Inca boys, a major part of their puberty rituals involved mock battles and
having their legs whipped that served to make them worthy of battle. An elite
corps of a few thousand noble males was trained from adulthood for this task,
and they formed the shock troops of the empire. In addition, the ruler, or Sapa
Inca, also had a personal guard comprised of loyal troops, which could also
include non-Incas. Indeed, late Inca kings had among their retinues warriors