Isonymic relationships among white populations in Cordoba (Argentina) Colonial period

COLANTONIO, SONIA E.; KÜFFER, CLAUDIO F.; FUSTER, VICENTE

Budapest

Congreso; 15th Congress of the European Anthropological Association; 2006

European Anthropological Association

Surnames can be used as genetic markers in the study of human populations. The genetic structure of historical populations in Argentina is poorly known and specially regarding Cordoba province. In the present analysis, relationships among 16 ecclesiastic divisions (“Curatos”) in Cordoba province were analyzed from surnames taken into account only white individuals registered in the Census of 1813. Within-group (Rii) and between-groups (Rij) coefficients were calculating employing random isonymy, and a measure of the degree of micro-differentiation among geographic units (RST) was computed. Laskers’ distance allowed obtain a dendrogram using the unweighted pair group with arithmetic mean (UPGMA). Four main clusters of Curatos’ populations were obtained: Western, Southern, Northern and Cordoba City. This grouping was coincident with the main original migration waves and with the principal routes of trade existing in 1813: one of them leading to Chile, the second to Buenos Aires Harbor, the third to High Peru while Cordoba City appears separated perhaps due to its high immigration from more distant regions. It is concluded that in the area the surname distribution reflects a clear geographic pattern in which the earliest and more isolated populations (those located in the North) remained apart, the regions with new peopling (Southeastern) appeared also differentiated and the most cosmopolitan and mixed group (Cordoba City) kept isolated from the other “curatos”.