Abstract
Armed violence in Colombia forces people to leave their territory to safeguard life. Four case studies with displaced populations - women heads of household, Afro-descendants, indigenous peoples, and peasants - were undertaken to approach understanding of two main processes in which are immersed the migrants aiming to overcome the loss of its place in the world: deterritorialization and reterritorialization. The research showed among the multiple effects that befall these people, the dynamics of reconstruction of a territory for themselves requiring them to adapt to high precarious conditions in a spiral of poverty and dependence that holds them to the social and economic State assistance. Understanding the process they go through involves approaching to a symbolic dimension: meanings and relationships with the place of origin and place of resettlement; and a material dimension: housing, work, social relationships and leisure.
Keywords:
deterritorialization; reterritorialization; forced displacement; identity