Social Organization
Inca society was made up of ayllus, which were clans of families who lived and worked together. Each allyu was supervised by a curaca or chief. Families lived in thatched-roof houses built of stone and mud. Furnishings were unknown with families sitting and sleeping on the floor. The Imperial Incas clothed themselves in garments made from Alpaca and many of their religious ceremonies involved the animal. They wore sandals on their feet.
In Inca social structure, the ruler, Sapa Inca, and his wives, the Coyas, had
supreme control over the empire. The High Priest and the Army Commander
in Chief were next. Then came the Four Apus, the regional army commanders.
Next were temple priests, architects, administrators and army generals.
Next were artisans, musicians, army captains and the quipucamayoc, the
Incan accountants. At the bottom were sorcerers, farmers, herding families
and conscripts.
Inca society continued uninterrupted in this way for hundreds of years.
The royal family formed an educated, governing upper nobility, which at the time of the Spanish conquest numbered around 500. To further increase government control over an empire grown unwieldy, all who spoke Quechua became an "Inca class" by privilege and became colonists. Lesser administrative officials, formerly independent rulers, and their descendants were the minor nobility, or curaca class, also supported by the government.For purposes of administration the empire was divided into four parts, the lines of which met at Cuzco; the quarters were divided into provinces, usually on the basis of former independent divisions. These in turn were customarily split into an upper and a lower moiety; the moieties were subdivided into ayllus, or local communities.
There were four Inca classes:
1. Inca- Sapa Inca
2. Royalty -
Son of the Sapa Inca - The Auqyi
Wife of Spa Inca - The Coya
First generations of royal relatives
3. Nobility-
Nobility of Blood: Other members of Royal realatives - Royal Panacas (las Pañacas).
Nobility of Privilege: They who achieved distinction from educational and training fields.
4.Ayllu
General People - Hatun Runa
Peoples of newly conquered races- Mitamaes
Servers of the Inca and Empire, including prisonars - Yanaconas
The Chosen Women of the Inca
Like the Aztecs, the Incas had a continually increasing demand for cloth, so they created a system where women, the traditional makers of cloth, labored for the state. One was that this system worked was to isolate some women from the household, so that they could devote themselves to serving the state. The acllahuasi, or House of Chosen Women, developed under the Incans in Peru at about 1438-1532 CE. Each major town had one of these houses, staffed with a number of women who remained chaste and served the state and its religion. Every year, a government official would inspect the ten-year-old girls in the town, conscripting those who were extremely good-looking. these girls were then educated in the capital, under full guard. The best looking of the girls were set aside for sacrifice, while others learned trades, like spinning, cooking, or brewing. At the end of four years, these girls would be reassigned as concubines of the ruler, as wives of men the ruler wanted to honor, or as permanent residents of the acllahuasi. Apparently, upper class women were more often given the administrative positions in the acllahuasi, while lower class women handled the labor. This system allowed for some upward mobility by some of the lower-class women, as they might be able to make good marriages. It was not all moonlight and roses, though, for most of the lower-class women: the ones who were not sacrificed and remained in the acllahuasi, were bound to be chaste for their lifetimes. If a one of them was found to be not chaste--i.e., one of them became pregnant--then she and her lover were buried alive.
In Inca social structure, the ruler, Sapa Inca, and his wives, the Coyas, had
supreme control over the empire. The High Priest and the Army Commander
in Chief were next. Then came the Four Apus, the regional army commanders.
Next were temple priests, architects, administrators and army generals.
Next were artisans, musicians, army captains and the quipucamayoc, the
Incan accountants. At the bottom were sorcerers, farmers, herding families
and conscripts.
Inca society continued uninterrupted in this way for hundreds of years.
The royal family formed an educated, governing upper nobility, which at the time of the Spanish conquest numbered around 500. To further increase government control over an empire grown unwieldy, all who spoke Quechua became an "Inca class" by privilege and became colonists. Lesser administrative officials, formerly independent rulers, and their descendants were the minor nobility, or curaca class, also supported by the government.For purposes of administration the empire was divided into four parts, the lines of which met at Cuzco; the quarters were divided into provinces, usually on the basis of former independent divisions. These in turn were customarily split into an upper and a lower moiety; the moieties were subdivided into ayllus, or local communities.
There were four Inca classes:
1. Inca- Sapa Inca
2. Royalty -
Son of the Sapa Inca - The Auqyi
Wife of Spa Inca - The Coya
First generations of royal relatives
3. Nobility-
Nobility of Blood: Other members of Royal realatives - Royal Panacas (las Pañacas).
Nobility of Privilege: They who achieved distinction from educational and training fields.
4.Ayllu
General People - Hatun Runa
Peoples of newly conquered races- Mitamaes
Servers of the Inca and Empire, including prisonars - Yanaconas
The Chosen Women of the Inca
Like the Aztecs, the Incas had a continually increasing demand for cloth, so they created a system where women, the traditional makers of cloth, labored for the state. One was that this system worked was to isolate some women from the household, so that they could devote themselves to serving the state. The acllahuasi, or House of Chosen Women, developed under the Incans in Peru at about 1438-1532 CE. Each major town had one of these houses, staffed with a number of women who remained chaste and served the state and its religion. Every year, a government official would inspect the ten-year-old girls in the town, conscripting those who were extremely good-looking. these girls were then educated in the capital, under full guard. The best looking of the girls were set aside for sacrifice, while others learned trades, like spinning, cooking, or brewing. At the end of four years, these girls would be reassigned as concubines of the ruler, as wives of men the ruler wanted to honor, or as permanent residents of the acllahuasi. Apparently, upper class women were more often given the administrative positions in the acllahuasi, while lower class women handled the labor. This system allowed for some upward mobility by some of the lower-class women, as they might be able to make good marriages. It was not all moonlight and roses, though, for most of the lower-class women: the ones who were not sacrificed and remained in the acllahuasi, were bound to be chaste for their lifetimes. If a one of them was found to be not chaste--i.e., one of them became pregnant--then she and her lover were buried alive.