Chono people

 ( Hunter-gatherers Of South America ) 

Study of Chono bones reveal they were prone to suffer joint problems, infectious diseases and in some cases Injury. These diseases were associated with their lifestyle.

The Chono people are believed to be Chiloé Archipelago's first ethnically identifiable inhabitants.Daughters, Anton. "Southern Chile's Archipelago of Chiloé: Shifting Identities in a New Economy." Journal of Latin American and Caribbean Anthropology Vol. 21, No. 2, July 2016 This has led to the assumption that the Chono were the people who left behind most of the abundant shell middens () of Chiloé Archipelago, yet this claim is unverified.Trivero Rivera 2005, p. 39. There are various place names in Chiloé Archipelago with Chono language despite the main indigenous language of the archipelago at the arrival of the Spaniards being Mapudungun. A theory postulated by chronicler José Pérez García holds the Cunco people settled in Chiloé Island in pre-Hispanic times as a consequence of a push from more northern Huilliche people who in turn were being displaced by the Mapuche.Alcamán 1997, p. 32.Alcamán 1997, p. 33. As such, some historians consider that places as far north as the coast of Osorno and Llanquihue Lake were once within the range of Chono nomadism.

Archaeologist and ethnographer Ricardo E. Latcham built upon these notions and held the Chono arrived to Guaitecas Archipelago from Chiloé Archipelago after these were invaded by groups of Mapuche culture (Huilliche, Cuncos, etc.) from the mainland in the 13th century.Cárdenas et al. 1991, p. 34

In the late 16th-century and early 17th-century there were various Spanish incursions aimed to bring Chono to the Spanish dominions of Chiloé.Urbina Burgos 2007, p. 327.Urbina Burgos 2007, p. 328. These incursions turned into outright Slave raiding following the 1608 decree of King Philip III of Spain that legalized slavery of "indigenous rebels". This was an abuse of the law since the Chono, in contrast to the Mapuche who had destroyed seven Spanish cities in their 1598–1604 uprising, had never rebelled. The Chono people were not the only ones to suffer from the slave raids organized by the Spanish from Chiloé; so did also the Huilliche people of Valdivia, Osorno, and indigenous groups from Nahuel Huapi Lake across the Andes. Some Chono slaves may have been exported north to the Spanish settlements of Central ChileUrbina Burgos 2007, p. 329. which was becoming a melting pot for uprooted indigenous peoples. The Spanish not only obtained the Chono people as slaves during raids but also from other Chono people who sold their own people. While some Chono people were turned into outright slaves, others ended up in the encomienda system of servitude.Urbina Burgos 2007, p. 330.

Spanish interest in the lands of the Chono appear to have declined after the 1675 Antonio de Vea expedition. Nevertheless, in 1710 a large group of Chono arrived voluntarily at the Spanish settlement of Calbuco escaping from internal conflicts. The Spaniards decided to settle this group in Guar Island.

Interest in the Chono lands arose again in the 1740s when the Spaniards learned about the wreck of the British warship on Wager Island in western Patagonia. As a result of a corsair and pirate menace the Spanish authorities were ordered to depopulate the archipelagos of Chono and Guaiteca to deprive their enemies of any eventual support from the native populations. This then led to the transfer of population to Chiloé Archipelago in the north while some Chono moved south of Taitao Peninsula, effectively depopulating the territory. The Chono in Chiloé ended up being absorbed by the mestizo and indigenous Huilliche population there.

Chono served as in many of the expeditions undertaken by the Spaniards to the Patagonian archipelagoes. Yet it was noted by some Spaniards like José de Moraleda y Montero that the Chono did not always tell the truth and sometimes misled the navigators. Indeed, the Chono managed to keep Spanish explorers away from Presidente Ríos Lake so effectively that it became officially known to Chileans only in 1945.

As a consequence of their proximity to the Spanish settlements in Chiloé, the Chono were the canoe-faring peoples of Patagonia with the most intense contact with the Spaniards. Anecdotal evidence shows that the Chono became increasingly acculturated into Spanish culture over the 17th and 18th centuries. For example, Cristóbal Talcapillán, who was interviewed by the Spanish authorities in the 1670s, understood the difference between the Spaniards and the English. In the 1740s Martín Olleta was able to understand the importance of the Wager Mutiny and profited from it by handing over the survivors to the Spanish authorities while keeping valuable metal objects obtained from the wreck. The proficiency in Spanish of the Chono led by Martín Olleta was good enough to communicate with the Spanish-speaking surgeon of the British party.