Men held the important roles in Inca society; they were the priests, village chiefs and high officials. They also did most of the hard labour, like raising llamas, farming and many of the other tasks that were useful to the community. In Inca society, the man was considered the head of the family. It was a patrilineal society.

Men’s tasks

Like women, men were divided into nine age categories. When they were young, they helped their father raise llamas. When they reached 20 years of age, they started to do more difficult work like repairing roads or working as a messenger. Some became soldiers instead. At the age of 25, men officially became adults and thought about starting a family.

Author: Alexandre Lanoix
 
 
 
 


Important concepts and big ideas:

Economic Activities – Activités économiques
Trade – Échange
Barter – Troc
Patrilineal society – Société paritaire

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