Cristina Calderón

Traditional Yahgan basket, woven by Abuela Cristina Calderón, Chile, photo by Jim Cadwell

Cristina Calderón (born 24 May 1928) of Robalo,^[1] Puerto Williams, on Navarino Island, Chile, is the last living full-blooded Yaghan person. By 2004, Calderón (often referred to as simply Abuela, Spanish for Grandmother) and her sister-in-law Emelinda Acuña were the only two remaining native speakers of the Yaghan language.^[2] After Acuña died at 84 years of age (October 12, 2005), Calderón became the last living full-blooded Yaghan person.^[3] With her granddaughter Cristina Zarraga and her sister Ursula Calderon she published a book of Yaghan stories called Hai Kur Mamashu Shis [I Want to Tell You a Story] in 2005.

References

1. Cristian Muñoz Vera. "Cristina Calderón representará a la Región de Magallanes en la elección de la mujer del Bicentenario" (in Spanish). Retrieved 24 May 2011.
2. Jack Hitt (February 29, 2004). "Say No More". The New York Times Magazine (New York: The New York Times). p. 52. ISSN 0028-7822. Retrieved 04/10/2011. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
3. Jackie Hailey (October 14, 2005). "Extinction on the horizon for indigenous tribe in Chile: Second-To-Last Yagana Woman Dies Of A Heart Attack". The Santiago Times (Santiago). Retrieved 04/10/2011. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)

External links

• Cristina Calderón and Japanese man, photo on November 2003 (in Japanese)
• Hai kur mamashu shis Ediciones Kultrún, Validivia, Chile, 2005 (bilingual Spanish/English edition) 80 pages ISBN 956-7291-48-9