Historia y Sociedad (Jul 2018)
Guilds, Castes and Migrations in four Colonial Latin American Cities
Abstract
This paper looks into the role of craft guilds in the ethnic integration or segregation of labour in the migration fl ows that took place in Latin America during the Colonial period. It analyses the guilds of the capital cities of two viceroyalties, Mexico and Lima, and contrasts them to those in the nearby towns of Puebla de los Ángeles and Cusco. The empirical evidence comprises 1200 mastership charts, which allow us to know which corporate caste regulations came into force. It is also the purpose of this paper to relate the geographical origins of new artisan masters to the broader Latin America’s urbanization process and the ethnic composition of migration fl ows from countryside to the cities and towns.
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