NATIVE FOOD IN THE PERUVIAN AMAZON

Abstract

In Pre-Columbian cultures of Amazonia , since ancient times, food is the result of humans' adaptation to their immediate environment. In the tropical Forest , the consumption of game and fish, for protein, and vegetables, such as manioc, maize, beans, and bananas, for calories (adding here fermented manioc beverages) were always critical. Archaeological evidence for meals and their preparation was not found; only tools, vessels, and objects were found, from which we can understand the social meaning of food, instead of talking about recipes. Even though, archaeologists have discussed the existence of a relationship between agriculture, which has to do with diet, sedentarism, and the development of complex societies. Ethnohistorical information tells us about large societies, with plenty of food; in ethnographical references, we find myths of origin for both the play and the food, and currently, amidst native peoples there is a culinary richness that is the result of this extensive process that began with agriculture and sedestarism, and the ulterior influence Andean-Quechuan in the diet. Keywords: Diet, adaptation, Peruvian Amazon.