[3][4] Coastal and inland Chilean Diaguitas traded, as evidenced by the archaeological findings of mollusc shells in the upper courses of Andean valleys.

[8] There is notable scarcity of Diaguita toponymy in Norte Chico, including the area of Elqui Valley where most indigenous toponyms has been attributed to either Quechua or Mapuche.

[3][5] The classical Diaguita period was characterized by advanced irrigation systems and by pottery painted in black, white and red.

[3] Mapuche communities in the southern Diaguita lands – that is Petorca, La Ligua, Combarbalá and Choapa – may be rooted in pre-Hispanic times at least several centuries before the Spanish arrival.

[12] Another possibility is that the Incas invaded the relatively well-populated Eastern Diaguita valleys to obtain labor to send to Chilean mining districts.

[12] It is generally accepted that Diaguita incorporation into the Inca Empire was through warfare that caused a severe depopulation in the Transverse Valleys of Norte Chico.

[12] By founding the cities of Santiago del Estero (1550s), Tucumán (1565), Salta (1582), La Rioja (1591) and Jujuy (1593) the Spanish established an effective fence around the rebellious Eastern Diaguita valleys.

[15] During the government of García Hurtado de Mendoza in Chile (1557–1561) Chilean Diaguitas that had rebelled were decimated by the Spanish.