Género, emigración y movilidad social en la expansión Atlántica : mujeres Españolas en el Perú colonial (1550-1650)

Abstract

This research focuses on the Spanish women involved in the transatlantic emigration to the Viceroyalty of Peru during the period 1550 to 1650. Through the analysis of passenger records, travel’s licenses and personal correspondence, I study the specific characteristics of women emigration to America, its particular evolution and constrains, emphasizing the role played by women in the family groups of travel. The research uses a transnational approach with documents from both Spanish and American archives. The combination of sources from both sides of the Atlantic allows me to link the evolution of the marriage market in the city of Lima with the process of Spanish female emigration. Moreover, by selecting diverse case studies this thesis analyzes the opportunities that Spanish women had to succeed, and how their options changed over the period due to the appearance of the new Creole elite. The increasing difficulties in the marriage market and the restricted access to the elite motivated the social problem of single Spanish women in colonial Lima. This conflict was already solved by informal ties of mutual help and the creation of formal institutions of charity and convents. By focusing on issues like gender, emigration and social mobility, this dissertation analyzes the social constrains of women both in Spain and Peru and the existence of a family structure that allowed them to participate in the emigration flow. Furthermore, this migration process and the subsequent settlement in America produced the empowerment of women during the first decades of the colony.