Ranquel

Ranquel is an ethnic tribe of South America, part of the mapuche, with puelche origins, pehuenche and also patagones from the günün-a-küna group.

Between 1775-1790 a group of pehuenche advanced from the side of the Andes mountains east to the territory they called Mamül Mapu (mamül: kindling, woods; mapu: land, territory) as it was covered by dense woods of caldén, algarrobo y chañar. They settled along the Cuarto and Colorado rivers, from the south of today's Argentine provinces of San Luis, Córdoba, to the south of La Pampa.

The name ranquel is the Spanish name for their own name of rankülche: rankül -cane-, che -man, people- in Mapudungun; that is to say "people from the cane lands".

They were hunters, nomads and during a good part of the 19th century they had an alliance with the tehuelche tribes, with whom they traveled east into the western part of today's Buenos Aires Province and southern end of Córdoba Province, and also to Mendoza, San Luis and Santa Fe. Their last chief was Pincén, who was confined to the prison at Martín García island (1880).

They allied themselves with the forces of Felipe Varela during the rebellion against the War of the Triple Alliance and the Central Government in Buenos Aires. After Pincén's capture, the Ranquels were further reduced in population during the Conquest of the Desert, with their lands being occupied by the army. A colony was established for them (Colonia Emilio Mitre) in today's La Pampa province, where their descendants lived today.

On 14 August 2007 the government of San Luis province returned 2,500 ha (6,178 acres) to the Ranquel people, including two small lakes, about 124 km (77 mi) south of the town of Fraga.

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