Interconnections between indigenous encomienda and private production unit: The Guambia encomienda of the Belalcázar family, Popayan, 1622-1628

Abstract

The paper focuses on the interconnections between indigenous Guambia encomienda and the Belalcázar production unit, to analyze on the one hand, the participation of the encomienda tribute –exchanged (conmutado) by indigenous labor force subject to salary– within the factor endowment of the Belalcázar unit; a phenomenon that generated 98.15% of the unit’s production in six years. On the other hand, in the light of the Guambia case study, the transformations of the encomienda model in the province and period are investigated. Transformations determined by regional production changes and certified by Crown regulations implemented in situ. Finally, it will be concluded on the dependencies of these units with respect to the permutation mechanism (conmutación) within an economic model in transition, and in relation to the metamorphosis of the Guambia encomienda during the 16th and 17th centuries.