18th and 19th centuries conceptions of indigenous South American territoriality and borderlands are analysed firstly in relation to the idea of "nation" present in the Portuguese colonial discourse. Secondly, thos e conceptions are examined in the contexts of Independence and Nation-State formation processes in Western Amazonia. The paper is produced in the theoretical framework provided by the dialogue between Anthropology and History and proposes approaching those notions of territoriality and borderlands as cultural categories.
Western Amazonia; 18th and 19th centuries; territoriality; borderland/frontier; indigenous peoples; lowland South America