The internationalization of the Mapuche: between indigenous people and nation

Abstract

This work starts from the contradiction between the growing call to be a member of a global world and the development of particular identities that are constituted from the possibilities that arise from such integration in the global space. It shows that internationalization, which is divided into a national dynamic of international projection and an international dynamic of national penetration, is key in the construction of Mapuche identity. Its methodology is based on a comprehensive perspective of the phenomenon thanks to the use of several interviews with actors, the consultation of archives and a participating observation within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Chile. The results of this research show that the internationalization of the Mapuche leads to the division of their identity between two referents of identification that are those of “indigenous” and “nation” and that each one implies specific discourses and practices.