Lo Que Cuentan Los Mapuches / What the Mapuches Tell

"Mapu´ llama este pueblo a su tierra, que se estira a los dos lados de la Cordillera de los Andes, en la Argentina y en Chile, entre bosques espesos y lagos verdes y azules, montañas nevadas, volcanes y llanuras interminables.

Durante siglos, los mapuches defendieron su patria contra incas, españoles y criollos. Su tradición supo sobrevivir aun en reservas, tierras pobres y ciudades, y esta tradición, donde la palabra es algo especialmente valioso, guarda una gran cantidad de poesías religiosas y de amor, y muchas narraciones. Hay entre ellas "historias verdaderas" o nütram que explican por que el mundo es como es, leyendas de héroes y recuerdos históricos y "cuentos inventados" o epeu, hechos por el placer de divertirse."

ENGLISH DESCRIPTION

'Mapu' is what its people call their land, which stretches on both sides of the Andes Mountains, in Argentina and Chile, between thick forests, green and blue lakes, snow-capped mountains, volcanoes and endless plains.

For centuries, the Mapuches defended their homeland against the Incas, Spaniards, and Creoles. Their traditions have been able to survive even in reservations, non-arable lands, and cities, and this tradition, where the written word is something especially valuable, brings together many religious and love poems, and also many stories. Among them are “true stories” or “nütram” that explain why the world is the way it is, legends of heroes, historical memories, and made-up tales or “epeu”, created for the pleasure of having fun.