1.- HISTORICAL CONTEXT AND BACKGROUND
To know who were the Chaskis we have to go back in time to the Inca culture that began its heyday between the XV and XVI centuries in the Andean area of South America and was considered one of the largest and most influential cultures of the time having an extension from the extreme north of Chile to the south side of Colombia to also considering part of Argentina, thus having a mountainous territory in its majority which generated a great challenge for the development of roads that could connect one place from the other.
It is for this reason that it was necessary to find a way to stay connected in some way and ensure the proper administration of each place, this also in order to coordinate in time the military movements, agricultural management and even properly conduct trade, this is how the messaging system of who were the Chaskis was created, this allowed the information to flow quickly through the extensive network of roads that are also considered a marvel of engineering.
For those who seek to understand who were the Chaskis should know that their name comes from a Quechua word meaning “Who gives and receives”, this describing the role they played within the culture permanently transporting information, objects or any order that needed to be carried from one place to another using the extensive qhapaqñan, even there were people who when they discovered who were the Chaskis named them the eyes and ears of the Inca ruler as they always kept him informed of everything.
Among the most representative chroniclers that exist are Bartolome de las Casas and the Inca Garcílaso De la Vega, they wrote about who were the Chaskis, they described them as the Incan runners who underwent a rigorous training to prepare them properly so they could fulfill their role of carrying messages from one place to another. Proof of the existence of who were the Chaskis are the countless Inca roads discovered in many parts of the Andes, roads built with great precision as well as being in excellent condition which greatly facilitated transportation. Another aspect that stands out of this network of roads is undoubtedly the presence of Tambos, these places represented for who were the Chaskis a resting place to spend the night or a moment before continuing their journey.
| “Happiness is not a destination you reach but a way of traveling.” |
2.- WHO WERE THE CHASKIS?
As we have already seen, Chasqui meaning “who gives and receives”, this because they were part of the communication system of the Inca culture, their function was to run through the network of roads at high speeds carrying important messages to keep all places informed about the commands of the Inca ruler. Of course, to be part of who were the Chaskis they had to be chosen since they were children and have especially unique qualities, essentially they had to run quite fast and be able to climb mountains, with strong legs and have developed and extended toes which allowed them to hold on to uneven surfaces, also developed lungs so they could breathe properly even with the physical effort to keep running, this because by the nature of the activity they performed they were also known as Incan runners.
Something peculiar that was typical of who were the Chaskis was undoubtedly that to resist the extreme climate that can have part of the Andes that is the cold, wind, snow or other environments used as a main resource the coca leaf, this gave them energy that quenched thirst and hunger as well as fatigue. Something curious about this is that only people who belonged to the group of who were the Chaskis were allowed to consume the coca leaf apart from the Andean priests and the same Inca ruler, this plant was also highly valued at this time in history and considered as a divine plant associated with religious belief.
3.- REQUIRED QUALITIES OF WHO WERE THE CHASKIS
Another interpretation that could be given for what Chasqui meaning was an emissary of information, since in itself the role that had the people who were part of who were the Chaskis was very important being even one of the vital pieces of the administration of the whole culture effectively facilitating the communication that existed through the entire network of elaborate roads that connected one place with another, the basis of this system was carefully designed to ensure the information sent had almost immediate way.
All the communication equipment was integrated by many people who were the Chaskis aimed to cover the entire network of roads from the main cities to the administrative centers near or far in many cases, although of course this was not done exclusively for the use of who were the Chaskis but on the contrary also for other actions such as trade, visit and even Andean religious movement.
Naturally the chassis could not run indignantly for this reason it was determined that during certain stretches of the Qhapaqñan were established resting places popularly known as Tambos, places where the people who were the Chaskis could rest quietly, these places were always located in a strategic way in the points of interval and at the same time of refuge, food and even relay with other messengers to continue the other part of the eating that was missing, we are not lying when saying that the Tambos played an extremely important role in order to maintain this system of communication in force.
The operation of the operation of this system of communication worked under a program of shifts which in parallel allowed that the efficiency and speed of the delivery of the message is optimal, achieving that a messenger could mail between two places of rest in a continuous way and when arriving he could deliver a message to then be elevated by another check to continue the journey and thus consecutively until arriving at the required destination. Among the messages carried by the people who were the Chaskis existed in all ways, the first one was verbal messages that had to be transmitted with the same precision, they had to be instructions, announcements or reminders. While the second option was considered as non-verbal messages and for this the chassis were used two popular equipment that were also considered as a recording system that was based on strings and knots, each of them could represent quantitative, qualitative information, records or report resources.
4.- THE TRADITIONAL WAY OF TRANSMITTING INFORMATION
“According to many Spanish chroniclers such as Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa, the people who were the Chaskis could run about half a league which is equivalent to 2.5 kilometers, always connecting from one tambo to another until they reached their final destination.”
5.- FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
- What does the word Chaski mean in Quechua?
The Quechua word means “the one who gives and the one who receives” due to the action that this person performed to carry a message from one place to another and during the return trip he could also bring an important message.
- How fast could Chaskis run with messages?
It is believed that due to the great physique that these Incan runners possessed, they were able to travel up to 240 kilometers in one day, they were people who were very well prepared to travel long distances.
- How were Chaskis selected in the Inca Empire?
The selection process was very meticulous, selecting the children with the best physical conditions, ease of running fast and endurance over long distances.
- What was the average distance between Chaski stations?
There were several resting points along the entire network of the Qhapaqñan road, mainly distributed in distances between 2.5 km from each other, depending on the geography that existed in that stretch of the road.
The vestiges that still exist of the Inca culture show us that the ingenuity they had was thanks to the knowledge that was left for generations from the pre-Columbian cultures. When you plan a trip with Auri Peru you make sure that the experience is not only to know the history but on the contrary it becomes a complete journey in time allowing you to live it in a unique way, contact us so that the next experience is yours.
“If you want to know more about yourself, go on a journey and the road will show you.”
