Margarita R. Ochoa and Sara V. Guengerich, "Cacicas: The Indigenous Women Leaders of Spanish America, 1492-1825" (U Oklahoma Press, 2021)

New Books in Indigenous Studies · Jul 26, 2022 · 1h 3m

The term cacica was a Spanish linguistic invention, the female counterpart to caciques, the Arawak word for male indigenous leaders in Spanish America. But the term’s meaning was adapted and manipulated by natives, creating a new social stratum where it previously may not have existed. This book explores that transformation, a conscious construction and reshaping of identity from within.

Cacicas feature far and wide in the history of Spanish America, as female governors and tribute collectors and as relatives of ruling caciques—or their destitute widows. They played a crucial role in the…