File:The islands of Titicaca and Koati, illustrated (1910) (14777194092).jpg

Identifier: islandsoftiticac00band (find matches)
Title: The islands of Titicaca and Koati, illustrated
Year: 1910 (1910s)
Authors: Bandelier, Adolph Francis Alphonse, 1840-1914
Subjects:
Publisher: New York, Hispanic Society of America
Contributing Library: Getty Research Institute
Digitizing Sponsor: Sloan Foundation

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of theceremony. Marriages are, according to the character ofthe parish priest, often expensive. The complaint raisedagainst the clergy on that score is unhappily too well justi-fied. It is true that with the advent of the Franciscans atthe convent of Copacavana, a laudable change has takenplace; still the Indians have remained rather loose in theirmarital relations, and little punishment is meted out to theunfaithful husband or wife. As to chastity, the natives arelike Indians everywhere else, and like the population ofthese countries in general.^^ Not a single marriage hav-ing been performed while we were on the Islands, we cannotgive any details from personal knowledge. We, however,took part as god-father and god-mother in an Indian bap-tism, which was carried out strictly according to the rulesof the Church. As presents, we had to give the mother (notto the father) chocolate, rice, sugar, two skirts—one forherself and another for the baby—and two chemises for the pi Ah O M o M
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THE INDIANS OF THE ISLAND OF TITICACA 85 child. The father being the sheep herder of the Island, wewere excused from adding fresh meat to the gifts, but madeup for it in the number of chemises. We diligently inquired about aboriginal personal names,but were invariably told there were none, many personalnames in Aymara having turned into family names sincethe conquest.^^ That primitive ceremonies are yet secretlyperformed, both at marriage and at the birth of a child, isbeyond all doubt, for we have seen too many evidences ofthe power sorcery and ancient ceremonials still exert overthe Indian in every phase of life. But it is not possible, in asingle years contact, to gain the confidence of so reticent atribe as the Aymara. In regard to burials we were morefortunate. In the first place, we witnessed at least a part ofthe burial of an adult at Challa; but saw only what can beseen, with slight modifications, among the New Mexico pue-blos, in church. The body was wrapped in ponchos; butwh

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