The Wayuu Side of La Guajira La Guajira is a department of Colombia located in the northernmost part of the country and even the continent. Its population is of 681,575 people of which 86% of them are indigenous population. Because of this, the department has two capitals. The political capital assigned by the government, Riohacha, and the indigenous capital, Uribia (which is also the indigenous capital of Colombia). These two cities are key to for the social organization of the department because this way the indegenous cultures of the region have a place were they can call their own capital. This region is full of exitment, and is a perfect place to visit. The new cultures you can meet and the different ecosystems you visit make this department a great place to visit.
As we mentioned before, Uribia is the indigenous capital of La Guajira. This city is located in the middle of the department, and it is 92 km away from Riohacha. To get there you can take two routes, one through el Cerrejon, or one through Manaure. Both ways are spectacular, but the one by Manaure is shorter. Besides this, Uribia is a key place strategicly because it is the midpoint between Manaure (salt producing city), Maicao (hub of smuggling market of La Guajira), El Cerrejon (Coal Mine), and Riohacha (political capital of the department. The importance of this city is pivotal because of the quantity of Wayuus in the region. This means that their culture is expressed in several ways in the city. The Wayuus are the most important tribe in the department and compose a large part of the population in it. In the next paragraph I we will explain a little about them.
The Wayuu tribe is one dispersed all around the Guajira department of Colombia. They are all followers of the same law system, even though they might live hundreds of kilometers away. They have traditional policies which they feel express justice. To introduce their political views of the Wayuu you must understand that the base of their ideals is the exchange of goods. Also their social structure is a matriarchal, which means that the last name is given by the mom and not from the dad, as it is done in our society. Besides this, you might say that the political organization in this culture is “every man for himself”. Otherwise there is no strict politic structure, besides there being a leader and a shaman (the shaman is their spiritual leader) there are no other important positions.
Antonio Giraldo
Alejandro Vargas
The Wayuu Side of La Guajira
La Guajira is a department of Colombia located in the northernmost part of the country and even the continent. Its population is of 681,575 people of which 86% of them are indigenous population. Because of this, the department has two capitals. The political capital assigned by the government, Riohacha, and the indigenous capital, Uribia (which is also the indigenous capital of Colombia). These two cities are key to for the social organization of the department because this way the indegenous cultures of the region have a place were they can call their own capital. This region is full of exitment, and is a perfect place to visit. The new cultures you can meet and the different ecosystems you visit make this department a great place to visit.
As we mentioned before, Uribia is the indigenous capital of La Guajira. This city is located in the middle of the department, and it is 92 km away from Riohacha. To get there you can take two routes, one through el Cerrejon, or one through Manaure. Both ways are spectacular, but the one by Manaure is shorter. Besides this, Uribia is a key place strategicly because it is the midpoint between Manaure (salt producing city), Maicao (hub of smuggling market of La Guajira), El Cerrejon (Coal Mine), and Riohacha (political capital of the department. The importance of this city is pivotal because of the quantity of Wayuus in the region. This means that their culture is expressed in several ways in the city. The Wayuus are the most important tribe in the department and compose a large part of the population in it. In the next paragraph I we will explain a little about them.
The Wayuu tribe is one dispersed all around the Guajira department of Colombia. They are all followers of the same law system, even though they might live hundreds of kilometers away. They have traditional policies which they feel express justice. To introduce their political views of the Wayuu you must understand that the base of their ideals is the exchange of goods. Also their social structure is a matriarchal, which means that the last name is given by the mom and not from the dad, as it is done in our society. Besides this, you might say that the political organization in this culture is “every man for himself”. Otherwise there is no strict politic structure, besides there being a leader and a shaman (the shaman is their spiritual leader) there are no other important positions.