Kimberly Theidon > Quotes

“Spanish speakers will already have noted that recogiado is really not a word. However, we must remember that these villagers are Quechua speakers and at times unknown Spanish words are heard in such a way that people can make sense of them. Prior to the political violence, there were no refugees (refugiados) in the highlands. Certainly people moved about, and not always of their own volition. However, the category ‘‘refugiado’’ was a product of the war: the term figured in the state discourse, that of the soldiers and on the radio. ‘‘Refugiados’’ was heard as ‘‘recogiados,’’ making sense both of the word as well as its meaning.31 Recoger – to gather up, to take in, to shelter. Precisely what villagers were doing with the arrepentidos. ‘‘Recogiados [the gathered up ones, the taken in ones, the sheltered ones] and others’’ were in fact those who had come from other places seeking refuge; they were also those unnamed people who came in search of redemption.”
― Kimberly Theidon