Introduction
I have been researching the city of Chan Chan, how it came to exist, its first occupants, their culture, economic activity, weather, and climate. The research is a little bit expensive because of the depth of information that underlies the existence of this city. In the research, it is anticipated that some information will have to be retrieved from the archeological zones of Chan Chan to complement the theory surrounding the data obtained from other sources. The purpose of this writing is to request for financial aid to see the success of the research. It will, therefore, incorporate the major areas that require the most attention financially and in a hierarchical manner.
Justification
The purpose of the research is important as it highlights the milestones ancient cities like Chan Chan have made over centuries. This research digs deep into the history of a small city that came into existence a number of centuries ago, full of culture, and has experienced great revolution to achieve the milestones it has today (Holstein 36). Chan Chan is a city of interest because of many reasons that are evident to date. First of all, the name Chan Chan is derived from the word ‘sun sun,’ a clear indication of the perfect weather the city has been experiencing since time immemorial (Holstein 36). From the archeological books, the city has always been known to experience sunny weather all year round, remaining without rain but still very cool. This perfect weather has made it easy for the occupants to adapt to the environment and support agricultural activities (D’Altroy 65).
Studying ancient cities is not only important to historians, but it also helps preserve the culture of a particular group of people. This knowledge is passed down from generation to generation, and years later, it can be traced clearly (D’Altroy 54). For those willing to undertake studies in the revolution of ancient cities, this research is going to be a foundational source of information to give them an insight into their study and research.
The research aims to fill a gap in the scientific and research world in a number of ways. There have been a lot of theories surrounding the existence and revolution of major ancient cities. In most of the research done previously, there are a lot of omissions in the documentation. The major reason for these omissions is a lack of accurate information attributed to insufficient funding to do deeper research. The aim of my research is to ensure that full and accurate information is captured and correctly documented. This is only possible if there are enough resources to undertake the research.
The sole purpose of my research is to fill the gap in the research world by making accurate information available to the general public and those willing to continue studying the urbanization of ancient cities.
My research has been drawn from a variety of sources. However, there are a number of smaller differences and a lot of similarities. The differences are a result of the different materials used to collect data and the different. The differences, however, are not significant enough to make any major difference in the final result of the different findings. This accuracy is important in authenticating the great research done by most researchers. Most of the research that I used as my reference outlined the major key points such as the different timings in particular activities, the vast culture, economic activities, and social interactions among the occupants of Chan Chan. This has made my research interesting in that I was able to correlate a lot of information from these sources with the information obtained from archeological sources.
Research area
Chan Chan is an ancient city situated about four miles to the west of the city of Trujillo, one of the oldest in the western hemisphere of pre-Columbian times (D’Altroy 56). It remains significant in history and an area of interest for researchers because of the destruction that was done to the city, what is currently called Chan Chan ruins (Holstein 38). Most researchers are actively taking part in studying the city before the last remains are destroyed by rains, earthquakes, and those seeking treasures. The destructions date back to 1925 when the heavy rains occurred, leaving massive destructions. The destructions left an area of interest to geographers and archeologists. Chan Chan ruins covered an area of about eleven square miles, forcing the city to be close to high walls (Holstein 39). With this enclosure, the population was to concentrate and was estimated to be at around two hundred thousand. This figure is, however, said to be an estimate, and the real figure might be three times this figure (D’Altroy 55). This brings us to the surplus, which is the main focus of my research. From the figures that are provided in the various publications, together with the evidence gathered in the archeological works, it is alleged that there was overpopulation after the high wall was built (Holstein 41). The wall also ensured low migration as it was easy to monitor movement in and out of the city.
Research questions and fieldwork
In my research, I am addressing two major questions which I have found to be least addressed by most researchers. The first question is the diverse culture of the community that occupied the city before and after the destruction. As much research focuses on how the city came into existence, I want to capture the detailed, rich culture of the ancient occupants of Chan Chan (D’Altroy 57). What everyone knows is that the walls were closed immediately after the rains in March 1925. It is important to note that the closure of the city walls had an impact on the culture of the people of Chan Chan. For instance, it is said that before the destruction, there were numerous historians in the city (Holstein 37). Their major area of focus was the way of life in this beautiful city that was known to favor agricultural activities. They documented that the area covered by farms was estimated to be more than ten times inhabited by humans. This shows the great love for agriculture supported by good weather and fertile land (D’Altroy 68).
The houses were built with reeds or small uncut stones. The larger structures served as ceremonies and places of burial and were known as huacas (Holstein 40). The occupants of Chan Chan were known for their advanced cotton work and weaving. The art of pottery and textiles has shown different variations over time and was considered among the best in the region (D’Altroy 65). Their pottery was considered one of the best because of their ability to imitate natural objects, animals, and humans (Holstein 42).
The second question I want to address is the origin of the people of Chan Chan. This is a difficult area to research because of the limited data on the origin of the occupants of Chan Chan. It is believed that the inhabitants spoke a language called Yunga or Yunca. Currently, the speakers of Yunca or Mochica occupy an area called Eten (Holstein 53). This is the major evidence that can be linked to the original occupants of Chan Chan. Inhabitants of the Indian Village of Moche currently speak an ancient language of the Chimus, which is similar to the language spoken in Eten (Holstein 56). Much of the origin of the occupants can not be traced any better apart from the language factor. As history dictates, language is one of the best ways of determining the origin of a particular group of individuals or community.
In my research, these two major questions are my main areas of interest. The culture of the people of Chan Chan is vast, and this makes it so interesting to study. Their vast culture has had historians and archeological on the watch of any information they might get from the remains of the destructions witnessed in March 1925.
The nature of the information I am researching can be gotten majorly from the previous publications of historians and archeologists. The ancient historians had wide range of information recorded in their publications, information that has been proved to be accurate and so is very reliable. An example is the information on the origin of the occupants Chan Chan recorded by Dr. Villareal where he compiled a list of words shared by both Mochica and Eten, the latter being the alleged origin of the ancient occupants of Chan Chan (Holstein 49). When tackling the origin of the people of Chan Chan, the publication of Dr. Villareal remains an important tool for my source of information. Also, it is important to visit major archeological sites in an attempt to retrieve the natural pottery, metal work, weaver and cotton work done by the ancient people of Chan Chan. These items will serve as a confirmatory for the theory documented in my research and the previous researches. These items can be found in the museums and archeological sites of the present Chan Chan and parts of Columbia. It is common that some of the items were preserved in different museums. It is therefore important to locate the exact museums and archeological sites where some of these items and publications regarding the history of Chan Chan were preserved and stored.
Conclusion and significance
These areas remain the ideal location to conduct my research since they contain reliable information. The documentations done by ancient historians who lived in Chan Chan most likely have accurate information regarding the city and its occupants. Most of the documentations were done way before the destruction happened. This makes the information more reliable. Visit to archeological sites helps in obtaining first-hand information as I get to see the items stored and preserved exactly as they were collected and obtained. My choice for these methods and locations are therefore driven by the fact that I want to collect and record accurate and reliable information as much as possible. My research aims at digging deep at the information that might have been missed by other researchers. I also aim at providing accurate data as much as possible. This is necessitated by using reliable and accurate sources, materials and items.
Works Cited
D’Altroy, Terence N. The Incas. John Wiley & Sons, 2019.
Holstein, Otto. Chan-Chan : Capital of the Great Chimu. 2020.
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