The Encomienda System

After the arrival of the Spanish in the Americas, a political, social, and economic system was setup to spread the word of Christianity and help bring the lands and people to profitable labor. Similar to subjugation or slavery, the Spanish Crown would designate certain persons, of Spanish decent of course, to control large tracts of land found in the Americas. The Encomienda System allowed for the Conquistadors to force the Native Americans to follow Spanish sociopolitical norms. Or in other words, the Native Americans were forced to abandon their faith and practice Catholicism, forget their native tongue and learn Spanish, and work according to the Conquistadors commands. As a result, large segments of native populations were systematically transformed into loyal subjects of the Catholic faith, and to a further extent, subjects of the Spanish Empire.

Using the phrase "to civilize" became the underlying principle motive behind the establishment of the encomienda system. The Conquistadors would stake a claim to their territories and bring the Natives to labor by force. Often times this harsh rearrangement of cultural expectations caused conflict between the Spanish newcomers and the natives. As a result, the encomienda system had transformed millions of Natives to Spanish Speaking Catholics, but cultural institutions of the natives were abandoned and lost forever.