When the Alps Met the Andes: German Migration to Chile in the Mid-Nineteenth Century
Abstract
This thesis analyzes how the Chilean nation-building politics of the mid-nineteenth century enabled German immigration and sustained its subsequent influence in Chile. It explores the origin of Germans in Chile starting in the mid-nineteenth century, acknowledging how the Chilean government distanced itself from Spanish imperialism in their newfound independence and filled the infrastructural gap with immigrant activity from German-speaking Europe. The analysis of the German settlements in Chile reveals how the Chilean government valued Germans as the ‘ideal immigrant’ in their growing country. The Chilean state’s receptivity toward wealthy German migrants granted Germans societal mobility in Chile. Understanding how the Chilean state supported and welcomed multiple waves of German immigrants illuminates the process of German presence becoming ingrained in Chile, from the geopolitics of the south and relations with the native Mapuche people to the establishment of German institutions and business relations in metropolitan cities. This background provides a possible explanation regarding how Germans obtained and maintained a privileged position in Chilean society, securing a status that would withstand the onset of world wars and the related stigmas that followed. By tracking the origin of these German migration movements and relating them to the political motives of the Chilean state, this research allows for a better view of how German immigrants were instrumental in the formation of Chile as a nation-state.
Citation
Guidry, Katherine Grace (2023). When the Alps Met the Andes: German Migration to Chile in the Mid-Nineteenth Century. Undergraduate Research Scholars Program. Available electronically from https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /200285.