Anhangá or Anhanga (

tupi Tupi may refer to: * Tupi people of Brazil * Tupi or Tupian languages, spoken in South America ** Tupi language, an extinct Tupian language spoken by the Tupi people * Tupi oil field off the coast of Brazil * Tupi Paulista, a Brazilian municipalit ...

: ''Ahiag̃''; maué: ''Anhang'', "spirit"), is a figure present in the

cosmovision A worldview or world-view or ''Weltanschauung'' is the fundamental cognitive orientation of an individual or society encompassing the whole of the individual's or society's knowledge, culture, and point of view. A worldview can include natural p ...

of several native groups from Brazil and indianist literature.

In the tupinambá culture

The tupinambá people believed that Anhangá could take many different forms. Despite being a bigger threat to the dead, he would be seen often by the living, who could also have their bodies and souls punished. The mere memory of the suffering inflicted by Anhangá was enough to torment them. The tupinambás were said to fear this malignant spirit more than anything else. This spirit would be one of the biggest concerns when it came the time to prepare the dead for their journey to Guajupiá, the "Land Without Evils". Food offerings would be made alongside a fire to warm the body. Food was offered to sustain the dead as well as to ensure Anhangá would eat the food instead of the dead. The fire, meanwhile, had the goal of not only providing warmth, but also protection to the dead, as it would keep Anhangá away. The living would also encourage the dead who had already reached Guajupiá as to not let their fires go out.

In the Mawé culture

To the Mawés, Anhangás are portrayed as demons, followers of Yurupari (). These creatures are known and feared for being able to take various forms to fool people, curse, possess, kidnap, kill and eat them. Anhangá either can't swim or is afraid of entering the water out of fear for Sukuyu'wera, the water protecting spirit, his enemy.

Protector of animals

Anhanga is described as a "genie of the forest and protector of the fauna and flora in tupi mythology", who " ..doesn't devour nor kill. He avenges animals victimized by insatiable hunters". It is said Anhangá takes the form of a white deer with fiery eyes and that he is the protector of the hunt in the forests, protecting animals against hunters, especially females with babies. When the prey was able to escape, the indigenous said Anhangá had protected it and helped it escape.

Tonicity

Regarding the variable pronunciation:

Colonialism, Sincretism and Indianism

In Jesuit missionaryism

The missionary José de Anchieta, in his auto ''Tupi-Medieval,'' gives the name Anhangupiara, word created from the agglutination of the nouns ''anhangá'' and ''jupiara'', to an angel, whose meaning in the Latin translation of the anchietan tupi would be the enemy of the anhangás. Another jesuit, António Vieira, described "Añangá" in the Sermon on Incontinences, as a duplicitous entity worshiped by the indigenous folk.

Bantu false cognate

Another hybridization took place with banto:

In modern literature and contemporary missionaryism

Anhangá is present in the indianist works of Brazilian novelist Gonçalves Dias (1823–1864). In " O Canto do Piaga" and " Deprecação" Anhangá is characterized as a cruel and merciless entity, allied with the colonizers. In " Caramuru", the author presents Anhangá or Anhangás taking the roles of demons, as well as presenting Tupã taking a creator role in the creation of a colonialist myth paralleled to the creaton myth of the catholic doctrine. Neo-Pentecostal churches with a strong presence in the mawé communities reinterpret Anhangá as an announcement of evil and a demonic manifestation, to be fought by prayers and chants.

References

Bibliography

* * * {{Cite book , last=Houaiss , first=Antônio , title=Dicionário Houaiss da língua portuguesa , last2=Villar , first2=Mauro , last3=Franco , first3=Francisco Manoel de Mello , publisher=Objetiva , year=2001 , language=pt , oclc=260092175 Deities Guaraní mythology