The Q’ero form a community considered to be the last Ayllu who represented the social organization of the Inca Empire. We take you to discover this people and their daily life.
Who are the Q’ero?
The community has several names: Q’ero, Quero or Q’iru. She lives in the province of Paucartambo, in the department of Cusco. The main city of the Q’ero is Marcapata.
Q’ero once belonged to the Antisuyo region, the eastern part of ancient Tawantisuyo. Lost in the heart of nature, between Andean landscapes and dense forest, this difficult-to-reach community has remained virtually free from the Spanish presence for nearly 300 years.
The last Ayllu
The Q’ero people have known how to preserve their identity over time. Historians consider him to be the last Ayllu.
The Ayllu is an Inca family organization in which all are descendants of a common ancestor. Thus, the chief, or Curaca, is responsible for the distribution of land and the organization of collective work. He also officiates as a judge within the community.
The Q’eros live on agriculture and animal husbandry. They mainly grow maize in the lowlands and potatoes in the middle lands. Llamas and alpacas are raised in the highlands. Construction techniques and agrarian techniques are the same as those of their ancestors long before them.
A vision of the world inherited from ancestors
The Qeros share the same worldview as their Inca ancestors. Thus, they advocate a balanced existence, respecting the Apus (Quechua Apu, god of the mountains) and Pachamama (Mother Earth). According to this vision of the world, Nature, Humanity and Mother Earth form a whole that each living being does not claim to conquer, but in which it takes pleasure in coexisting.
As part of their traditions, the Qeros regard time and space as sacred. The mountains, rivers and snow-capped lakes, also sacred, thus becoming places of worship and celebration. In particular, they house religious cults, during which the Q’eros thank their deities or request divine intervention.
The Q’ero people, far from representing a nation isolated from progress and modern civilization, represent a nation that has preserved a heritage that reflects a very high sense of respect for all that surrounds it and is part of its own existence. Q’ero are a people worthy of respect, who deserve to be recognized as an example, an example we should all follow.
The philosophy of our agency Sacred Inka Trek is to make you discover the different communities and people living in different area.
You can have the great experience to discover the marvelous nature but not only.
We are not only a trekking agency, we considere more us as a communauty. Our Slogan is Nature, Culture and Spirituality.