El hogar en contextos transnacionales: una reflexión desde la migración de madres/padres colombianos a Santiago de Chile

Abstract

Based on the research work carried out with Colombian migrant families whose mothers and/or fathers — from Valle del Cauca — have migrated to the city of Santiago de Chile, while their children remained in their country of origin, this article is intended to discuss and reflect on the concept of home in a transnational context. An attempt is made to problematize the concept of home based on physical and geographical distancing and the construction or maintenance of ritualized family practices. The methodology used is qualitative and is framed within an epistemological and theoretical current of phenomenology, using techniques such as in-depth interviews, family mapping and family life mapping. Fieldwork was carried out in Santiago de Chile and Valle del Cauca, where migrant parents and their children were interviewed using the family as the unit of analysis. The article concludes that the home is a practiced and symbolic place, laden with affection, care, and memories. In it, migrant mothers/fathers and sons/daughters develop feelings of identity and belonging, as well as family relationships and affective bonds, through the construction and/or maintenance of ritualized family practices that occur in non-physical proximity and that maintain and reproduce kinship ties. Such an approach lends originality to thought and debate on the concept of home in the study of transnational family migration.

Keywords

• colombian migration
• family
• home
• parental migration
• ritualized practices
• transnationality