Skip to main content
  • Book
  • © 2021

The Southernmost End of South America Through Cartography

Tierra del Fuego, the South Atlantic Ocean and Antarctica from the 16th to 19th Century

  • Discusses the first territorial incorporation of the southern lands and seas in modern cartography
  • Analyzes the role of maps in the processes of territorial construction and shows the representations and imagination of the identities
  • Investigates the ways in which cartographic language expresses power relationships, explaining the specific rationality of a space of growing geostrategic and economic importance
  • Visualizes the convergence of international interest in the South Atlantic Ocean and a portion of the Antarctic Peninsula in combination with rivalry genesis and territorial disputes which are still active

Part of the book series: The Latin American Studies Book Series (LASBS)

Buy it now

Buying options

eBook USD 129.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check for access.

Table of contents (6 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-viii
  2. Introduction

    • Luis Ignacio de Lasa, María Teresa Luiz
    Pages 1-8
  3. The First Territorialization of Southern Lands and Seas in Modern Cartography

    • Luis Ignacio de Lasa, María Teresa Luiz
    Pages 9-42
  4. Cartographic Construction of a South Atlantic Region

    • Luis Ignacio de Lasa, María Teresa Luiz
    Pages 43-83
  5. Cartographic Representations of Indigenous Territoriality

    • Luis Ignacio de Lasa, María Teresa Luiz
    Pages 85-116

About this book

This volume describes the construction of the territorial identity of the southern end of South America and analyzes the cartographic territorialization of Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego and the “Terra Australis” continent. Different spatial representations and territorial nature coexisted in this process as a result of the spatial interpretation and value modes as well as the projects and strategies of various actors.

The book discusses the formal and symbolic incorporation to the Spanish dominion and its inclusion in the imperial design built over a new image of the world. Examining Jesuit cartography it considers both the indigenous territoriality and the dynamics of relations between natural and social components in the continental hinterland. The process of cartographic differentiation for this southern Atlantic region is analyzed in the framework of early Antarctic exploration and competing use of navigation routes and maritime resources. The book emphasizes the role geopolitical and economic interests play in these developments.

The formation of territorialities of various origins has particular contents and logic, which are built upon imaginary subordination to political and economic interests. Cartographic language in the 19th century, associated with political and commercial motivations and the (British) imperial ideology, stimulated the territorial expansion. The book argues why in the late 1800's this was an important factor in the integration process of the southern indigenous territories and the national territoriality.

Authors and Affiliations

  • Instituto de Cultura Sociedad y Estado, Universidad Nacional de Tierra del Fuego, Ushuaia, Argentina

    Luis Ignacio de Lasa, María Teresa Luiz

About the authors

Luis Ignacio de Lasa is professor and researcher of Geography in the Universidad Nacional de Tierra del Fuego, Antártida e Islas del Atlántico Sur, Argentina since 2012. He has been the Director of the Institute of Culture, Society and State (UNTDF) since 2015. His published contributions deal with the territory as a social construction and territorial history.

María Teresa Luiz has a Doctorate Degree in History and has been a professor and researcher in the Universidad Nacional de Tierra del Fuego, Antártida e Islas del Atlántico Sur.since 2012. Her published contributions focus on the southern territories issue, as an area of convergence of several states' interests and inter-ethnic contact during the colonial period and the 19th century.

Bibliographic Information

Buy it now

Buying options

eBook USD 129.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access