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This is a rich ethnographic study of the emergence of the neo-Indian movement -- a new form of Indian identity based on largely reinvented pre-colonial cultures and comprising a diverse group of people attempting to re-create purified pre-colonial indigenous beliefs and ritual practices without the contaminating influences of modern society. There is no full-time neo-Indian. Both indigenous and non-indigenous practitioners assume Indian identities only when deemed spiritually significant. In their daily lives, they are average members of modern society, dressing in Western clothing, working at middle-class jobs, and retaining their traditional religious identities. As a result of this part-time status the neo-Indians are often overlooked as a subject of study, making this book the first anthropological analysis of the movement. Galinier and Molinie present and analyse four decades of ethnographic research focusing on Mexico and Peru, the two major areas of the movements genesis. They examine the use of public space, describe the neo-Indian ceremonies, provide analysis of the ceremonies symbolism, and explore the close relationship between the neo-Indian religion and tourism.
The Neo-Indians will be of great interest to ethnographers, anthropologists, and scholars of Latin American history, religion, and cultural studies.
About the author
Jacques Galinier and Antoinette Molinie are research directors at the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique's Laboratoire d'Ethnologie et de Sociologie Comparative, Universite Paris Ouest Nanterre La Defense.
