Objective: to understand the meaning that the Mapuche user subscribed to the Programa Salud Cardiovascular 2016, Makewe Clinic, Temuco, Chile assigns to arterial hypertension. Methodology: the research was performed under the qualitative paradigm, based on grounded theory. The nonprobabilistic sample was made up of twenty-two users. The cases were chosen by convenience, following inclusion criteria. The information was collected through focal groups and eight in-depth interviews, until saturation happened, and all participants were required to sign consent forms. Validity was ratified using standard criteria and researchers triangulated the data. The Ethics and Scientific Committee of Universidad de La Frontera authorized the study. Results: four categories for arterial hypertension appeared: "Meaning" (concept's definition), "Cause" (perception), "Living with the condition" (chan