Pastoral Quechua

The History of Christian Translation in Colonial Peru, 1550–1650

Alan Durston

Pastoral Quechua explores the story of how the Spanish priests and missionaries of the Catholic church in post-conquest Peru systematically attempted to “incarnate” Christianity in Quechua, a large family of languages and dialects spoken by the dense Andes populations once united under the Inca empire. By codifying (and imposing) a single written standard, based on a variety of Quechua spoken in the former Inca capital of Cuzco, and through their translations of devotional, catechetical, and liturgical texts for everyday use in parishes, the missionary translators were on the front lines of Spanish colonialism in the Andes.

The Christian pastoral texts in Quechua are important witnesses to colonial interactions and power relations. Durston examines the broad historical contexts of Christian writing in Quechua; the role that Andean religious images and motifs were given by the Spanish translators in creating a syncretic Christian-Andean iconography of God, Christ, and Mary; the colonial linguistic ideologies and policies in play; and the mechanisms of control of the subjugated population that can be found in the performance practices of Christian liturgy, the organization of the texts, and even in certain aspects of grammar.

ALAN DURSTON is assistant professor of history at York University, Toronto, Canada.

“Durston combines several areas of expertise in a fluid text that allows the reader access to very complex concepts and their historical roots. The study focuses on the practice of translation, as the author states, but it is much more than that. I believe the book will find a broad readership in anthropology, history, linguistics, and religious studies.” —Thomas B. F. Cummins, Dumbarton Oaks Professor of the History of Pre-Columbian and Colonial Art, Harvard University

Reviews

“. . . An indispensable and original tool for those in the field of Spanish and Portuguese linguistics, colonial Latin American history, and the history of the Catholic Church. . . . Although this is a complex and scholarly work, Durston’s close examination of the unusual subject matter and his transparent writing make the work very interesting, even for the non-specialist.” — Catholic Library World

“ Pastoral Quechua is a remarkable new addition to the interdisciplinary studies of colonial Peru. Combining the fields of history and linguistics, Alan Durston’s study develops a holistic understanding of Christian translation into Quechua, the principal language family of the former Inca Empire. . . . His many discussions about the institutional struggles for colonial power through the use of the written language open new avenues of analysis for all those interested in colonial history and historian and anthropological linguistics, and for literary critics of this period.” — Colonial Latin American Historical Review

“In this careful study of Quechua pastoral texts Durston’s research is fundamental, opening up news ways of understanding how decisions about translation affected the growth and development of Christianity in South America. Pastoral Quechua is a ‘must-read’ for all scholars of the colonial Andes.” — Journal of Ecclesiastical History

“The volume is worth the effort of even the non-specialist. Few have the skills to reach this level of analysis. Durston has made a major contribution to Andean studies with this well-written and carefully researched analysis.” — American Historical Review