REVALORIZACIÓN DE LA IDENTIDAD ÉTNICA EN UN CONTEXTO DE RECLAMO TERRITORIAL: LA QUEBRADA DE MATANCILLAS, PUNA DE LA PROVINCIA DE SALTA (ARGENTINA)

In the highlands of the Argentine Northwest a series of processes manifest the revalu-ation of ethnic identities in the context of a set of communal demands, highlighting the territorial claim against the provincial government. In this paper we use the con-cepts of ethnogenesis and aboriginality to analyze the ascription to the ethnic group of "atacama" –and the regarding unmarking to the category of “colla"– in the indigenous community of Quebrada de Matancillas, municipality of San Antonio de los Cobres, Los Andes department of the province of Salta.