The Huni Kuin (also known as: ''Kaxinawá'', ''Cashinahua'', ''Kaschinawa'', ''Kashinawa'', ''Caxinauás'') are an
indigenous people of Brazil
Indigenous peoples in Brazil ( pt, povos indígenas no Brasil) or Indigenous Brazilians ( pt, indígenas brasileiros, links=no) once comprised an estimated 2000 tribes and nations inhabiting what is now the country of Brazil, before European con ...
and
Peru
, image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg
, image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg
, other_symbol = Great Seal of the State
, other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal
, national_motto = "Fi ...
. Their villages are located along the
Purus and Curanja Rivers in Peru and the
Tarauacá
Tarauacá () is a municipality located in the northwest of the Brazilian state of Acre. Tarauacá has a population of 43,151 people and has an area .
Conservation
The municipality contains 38% of the Alto Tarauacá Extractive Reserve
The Alto ...
,
Jordão,
Breu,
Muru,
Envira,
Humaitã, and
Purus River
The Purus River (Portuguese: ''Rio Purus''; Spanish: ''Río Purús'') is a tributary of the Amazon River in South America. Its drainage basin is , and the mean annual discharge is . The river shares its name with the Alto Purús National Park and ...
s in Brazil.
["Kaxinawá: Location."]
''Povos Indígenas no Brasil.'' Retrieved 8 Dec 2011.
In the Peruvian Amazon rainforest, some Huni Kuin live on the
Alto Purús Indigenous Territory with the
Kulina people.
[
]
Name
The name ''Huni Kuin'' means "true people" or "people with traditions". The alternative name ''Kaxinawá'' means "cannibals", "bat people" and "people who walk about at night". It is still widespread in literature, yet the Huni Kuin reject the name as an insult.Povos Indígenas no Brasil (Instituto Socioambiental): Huni Kuin (Kaxinawá)
/ref>
Language
The Huni Kuin speak the Kaxinawá language, a Panoan language
Panoan (also Pánoan, Panoano, Panoana, Páno) is a family of languages spoken in Peru, western Brazil, and Bolivia. It is possibly a branch of a larger Pano–Tacanan family.
Genetic relations
The Panoan family is generally believed to be relat ...
.[ They call their language Hancha Kuin, meaning "real words." Only 5% to 10% of the Huni Kuin in Peru speak ]Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...
and literacy rates are low.[
]
Economy
Hunting is of paramount importance in Huni Kuin society. Huni Kuin also fish, gather plant foods, and grow crops through swidden
Slash-and-burn agriculture is a farming method that involves the cutting and burning of plants in a forest or woodland to create a field called a swidden. The method begins by cutting down the trees and woody plants in an area. The downed vegeta ...
, or slash-and-burn horticulture. Rice has become an export crop.["Economy - Kashinawa."]
''Countries and Their Cultures.'' Retrieved 8 Dec 2011.
Women weave baskets, string bead jewelry, create utilitarian ceramics
A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain ...
and weave hammock
A hammock (from Spanish , borrowed from Taíno and Arawak ) is a sling made of fabric, rope, or netting, suspended between two or more points, used for swing (seat), swinging, sleeping, or Human relaxation, resting. It normally consists of one ...
s and clothing. Men weave certain baskets, carve tools from wood, create featherwork and ceremonial regalia, and make canoes and weapons, such as clubs, spears, and bows and arrows. In hunting, shotguns are popular.[
]
Notes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kaxinawa People
Indigenous peoples in Brazil
Indigenous peoples in Peru
Indigenous peoples of the Amazon
Hunter-gatherers of South America