
The Social Life of Numbers
A Quechua Ontology of Numbers and Philosophy of Arithmetic
Gary Urton(Author)
Primitivo Nina Llanos(Primary creator)
University of Texas Press
Published on 1. November 1997
Book
Paperback/Softback
285 pages
978-0-292-78534-2 (ISBN)
Description
Unraveling all the mysteries of the khipu-the knotted string device used by the Inka to record both statistical data and narrative accounts of myths, histories, and genealogies-will require an understanding of how number values and relations may have been used to encode information on social, familial, and political relationships and structures. This is the problem Gary Urton tackles in his pathfinding study of the origin, meaning, and significance of numbers and the philosophical principles underlying the practice of arithmetic among Quechua-speaking peoples of the Andes. Based on fieldwork in communities around Sucre, in south-central Bolivia, Urton argues that the origin and meaning of numbers were and are conceived of by Quechua-speaking peoples in ways similar to their ideas about, and formulations of, gender, age, and social relations. He also demonstrates that their practice of arithmetic is based on a well-articulated body of philosophical principles and values that reflects a continuous attempt to maintain balance, harmony, and equilibrium in the material, social, and moral spheres of community life.
Reviews / Votes
"This is an extraordinary book. It is easily readable even for the non-mathematically inclined and non-Andeanists. It deals with issues of why one counts, what is counted, and how arithmetic operations are used in social life." * Hispanic American Historical Review *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Austin, TX
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
8 b&w photos, 9 figures, 25 tables
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 152 mm
Weight
765 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-292-78534-2 (9780292785342)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
A recipient of both MacArthur and Guggenheim fellowships, Gary Urton is the Dumbarton Oaks Professor of Pre-Columbian Studies and chair of the Department of Anthropology at Harvard University. He is the author of numerous books and edited volumes on Andean/Quechua cultures and Inka civilization, including Signs of the Inka Khipu: Binary Coding in the Andean Knotted-String Records.
Content
* List of Figures and Tables * Acknowledgments *1. Anthropology and the Philosophy of Arithmetic *2. The Cardinal Numbers and Their Social Relations *3. Ordinal Numerals: The Reproduction and Succession of Numbers *4. Yupay: Counting, Recounting, and the Fabric of Numbers *5. Quechua Arithmetic as an Art of Rectification *6. Numbers and Arithmetic in Pre-Hispanic and Colonial Andean Societies *7. Conclusions * Appendix: Quechua Number Symbols and Metaphors Notes * Bibliography Index