Araweté people

Araweté

Araweté children, 2005, photo by Avidd
Total population
(398 (2010)[1])
Regions with significant populations
 Brazil (Pará)
Languages
Araweté[2]
Religion
traditional tribal religion

The Araweté people (also Araueté or Bïde) are an indigenous people of Brazil.[2] They are hunter-gatherers.[1]

Territory

They live on the Igarapé Ipixuna, a tributary of the Xingu River, near Altamira and have one large village,[2] surrounded by llana forests. They lived on the Araweté/Igarapé Ipixuna Indigenous Land.[3]

History

The tribe could be the remnant of the Pacajá people, who fled into the rainforests to avoid missionaries. In 1950, the Araweté lived at the headwaters of the Bacajá River, but were pushed out by newly arrived Kayapó-Xikrin. They moved to the Xingu River and displaced the Asurini. During the 1960s European-Brazilian hunters ventured into their territory. In 1975, the Parakanã moved into their lands forcing the Araweté to find more a secluded homeland.[4]

The Trans-Amazonian Highway cut through the Xingu region in the early 1970s. Fundação Nacional do Índio (FUNAI) found the Araweté in 1976, suffering from introduced diseases and clashes with the Parakanã. The government agency relocated the tribe in a march through the thick jungle, resulting in 30 deaths. In 1978 they settled on their current homeland, where they cope with incursions by gold miners and timber companies.[4]

Culture

Unlike their Eastern Amazonian neighbors, the Araweté's primary crop is not manioc but a rapidly maturing maize. Ancestors are very important in their religion.[4]

Language

Araweté people speak the Araweté language, a Tupi-Guaraní language. It is similar to the Asuriní do Tocantins, Parakanã, and Tapirapé languages.[2]

Notes

  1. 1 2 "Araweté: Introduction." Povos Indígenas no Brasil. (retrieved 5 Dec 2011)
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Araweté." Ethnologue. (retrieved 5 Dec 2011)
  3. "Araweté: Location and Population." Povos Indígenas no Brasil. (retrieved 5 Dec 2011)
  4. 1 2 3 "Araweté." Countries and Their Cultures. (retrieved 5 Dec 2011)
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