Beyond the Written Word: How Andean Peoples Redefined Literacy Under Colonial Rule
Uncovering the hidden history of indigenous resistance through expanded forms of literacy
Introduction: Uncovering a Hidden History of Resistance
What comes to mind when you think of literacy? For most of us, it's the ability to read and write. But for the indigenous peoples of the Andean region during Spanish colonial rule, literacy became something far more complex and powerful—a tool for survival, resistance, and cultural preservation. In their groundbreaking work, Beyond the Lettered City: Indigenous Literacies in the Andes, anthropologist Joanne Rappaport and art historian Tom Cummins uncover a fascinating story of how native communities confronted, adapted, and subverted European systems of communication to protect their identities and worldviews 1 .
This isn't just a story about learning to read Spanish—it's about how people with entirely different cultural traditions engaged with foreign symbolic systems and turned them to their own advantage.
The authors take us on a journey through colonial archives, religious artworks, urban designs, and everyday objects to reveal a hidden history of what they call "indigenous literacies"—a broad spectrum of skills that included interpreting paintings, wax seals, gestures, and even city layouts 1 . By expanding our understanding of literacy beyond the written word, Rappaport and Cummins show us how colonized peoples found creative ways to navigate and resist domination, leaving behind a rich legacy that challenges conventional historical narratives.
Visual Literacy
Interpreting and creating paintings, sculptures, and visual representations that communicated complex ideas beyond written language.
Spatial Literacy
Understanding and navigating urban designs, architecture, and ritual spaces to maintain cultural practices under colonial observation.
Redefining Literacy in a Colonial World
From "The Lettered City" to Indigenous Agency
The theoretical starting point for Rappaport and Cummins is Uruguayan writer Ángel Rama's concept of "The Lettered City"—the idea that Spanish colonial power was built on the primacy of the written word 2 . In this framework, urban spaces and bureaucratic systems were designed around literacy, creating what amounted to an exclusive club for Spanish and creole elites who used documents and laws to control subjugated populations .
But Rappaport and Cummins push beyond this concept to reveal a more dynamic and surprising reality. They demonstrate that indigenous communities—particularly in the northern Andes (modern-day Colombia and Ecuador, regions less studied than the Inca heartland)—did not simply remain outside this "lettered city" 2 . Instead, they entered it, mastered its conventions, and repurposed them for their own needs 1 . Native elites and commoners alike learned to produce legal documents, commission religious art, and navigate administrative systems to protect land rights, assert political claims, and preserve cultural traditions 2 .
Colonial architecture in the Andes represented both Spanish power and sites of indigenous negotiation.
This research is particularly revolutionary because it challenges the traditional separation between "Spanish" and "indigenous" colonial histories, showing instead a world of complex cultural exchange and adaptation 3 .
A Broader Vision: What Counts as Literacy?
One of the most significant contributions of Beyond the Lettered City is its radical expansion of what qualifies as literacy. The authors argue that if we limit ourselves to reading and writing alphabetic text, we miss most of the story 1 . Instead, they propose a more inclusive understanding that encompasses:
This expanded framework allows us to see how indigenous peoples who never mastered Spanish reading and writing nonetheless developed sophisticated ways to engage with colonial systems of knowledge and power.
Decoding the Evidence: A Multidisciplinary Investigation
The Researcher's Toolkit: Unconventional Historical Sources
Rappaport and Cummins employ an unusually diverse set of sources to reconstruct their history of indigenous literacies. Rather than relying solely on traditional archives, they assemble evidence from multiple domains, creating a rich tapestry of colonial life that reveals perspectives often omitted from conventional histories 1 .
| Source Category | Examples | What It Reveals |
|---|---|---|
| Administrative Documents | Wills, land disputes, legal petitions | How indigenous people used written documents to advocate for their rights 1 2 |
| Religious Materials | Catechisms, sermons, church murals | Complex blending of Catholic and indigenous spiritual traditions 1 3 |
| Artistic Works | Paintings, painted cups (keros), textiles, feather art | Visual strategies for expressing identity and worldview 2 3 |
| Urban Design | Town plans, architecture, public spaces | How spatial organization imposed colonial control and was subverted 1 |
| Everyday Objects | Drinking vessels, seals, clothing | Incorporation of European symbols into daily life 2 |
The Indigenous Toolkit: Materials of Cultural Fusion
Just as the researchers used diverse sources, indigenous artists and creators employed a range of materials and techniques that blended European and native traditions. These material practices formed the physical dimension of indigenous literacies—the means through which new cultural forms were literally constructed 2 3 .
Indigenous Literacy Forms Distribution
This visualization represents the diverse forms of literacy employed by indigenous communities in the colonial Andes, demonstrating how communication extended far beyond alphabetic writing.
Case Study: The Church Murals of Sutatausa
Discovering a Visual Archive of Cultural Exchange
One of the most compelling examples detailed in Beyond the Lettered City comes from the small town of Sutatausa, near Bogotá 3 . Here, early seventeenth-century church murals provide a remarkable visual record of how indigenous communities engaged with and reinterpreted European literacy and religious concepts.
These murals are particularly significant because they survive in a region that lay outside the heartland of the Inca Empire, reminding us that colonial experiences varied greatly across the Andes 2 . The northern Andes, with its different cultural traditions and political history, developed distinct patterns of engagement with Spanish colonial rule—patterns that have received less scholarly attention until recently 2 .
Colonial religious art often contained layers of indigenous interpretation beneath European Christian themes.
Methodology: Reading the Walls
Rappaport and Cummins approach the Sutatausa murals not merely as decorative art but as complex documents that require sophisticated interpretive strategies. Their methodology involves:
Visual Analysis
Carefully examining the paintings' composition, symbols, and artistic techniques to decode their layered meanings.
Historical Contextualization
Situating the murals within the specific historical moment of early 17th-century colonial society.
Cultural Interpretation
Reading the images for evidence of both European influence and indigenous perspective.
Comparative Study
Relating the murals to other cultural productions from the same period 3 .
Results: A Hidden Dialogue in Paint
The analysis of the Sutatausa murals reveals several fascinating patterns that illustrate the broader concept of indigenous literacies:
Hybrid Symbolism
The murals combine traditional Catholic imagery with elements that likely held specific meanings within indigenous worldview 3 .
Narrative Appropriation
Biblical stories are presented in ways that may have resonated with local historical experiences and cultural traditions 3 .
Spatial Positioning
The location of certain images within the church building suggests how indigenous congregants might have experienced and interpreted them during worship.
What makes these murals particularly significant is that they weren't merely copies of European models but creative adaptations that expressed a distinct perspective on the colonial encounter 3 . They represent what the authors call "transculturation"—a process where subordinate groups select and invent from materials transmitted by dominant cultures 2 .
| Interpretive Approach | Application to Sutatausa Murals | Scholarly Significance |
|---|---|---|
| Hybridity Analysis | Identifying European and indigenous elements in same image | Reveals creative cultural blending 3 |
| Spatial Analysis | Considering placement within architectural space | Shows how meaning changes with context 1 |
| Agency Recognition | Viewing indigenous artists as creative interpreters | Challenges passive victim narrative 2 |
| Genre Examination | Understanding mural painting as distinct communicative form | Expands concept of literacy beyond documents 3 |
Conclusion: Literacy as Liberation
Beyond the Lettered City offers a powerful reframing of both literacy and colonialism. By expanding our understanding of what counts as literacy, Rappaport and Cummins recover the agency, creativity, and resistance of indigenous peoples who have often been portrayed as passive victims of colonial domination 1 2 .
The broader implication of this research is that cultural domination is never absolute. Even in the most unequal power relationships, people find ways to preserve their identities, assert their dignity, and shape the world around them.
The indigenous communities of the Andes didn't just receive Spanish literacy—they transformed it, combined it with their own traditions, and used it for their own purposes 1 .
This historical insight feels particularly relevant today, as communities worldwide continue to navigate complex cultural encounters and power imbalances. The story of Andean indigenous literacies reminds us that communication takes many forms, and that even the most oppressive systems can be negotiated, adapted, and resisted through creative engagement with the tools of power itself.