Kumarumã is an

Amerindian The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples. Many Indigenous peoples of the A ...

village of the

Galibi Marwono The Kalina, also known as the Caribs or mainland Caribs and by several other names, are an indigenous people native to the northern coastal areas of South America. Today, the Kalina live largely in villages on the rivers and coasts of Venezuela, ...

people in the Brazilian municipality of

Oiapoque Oiapoque () is a municipality in the north of the state of Amapá, Brazil. Its population is 27,906 and its area is . Oiapoque is also a major river in the same state, forming the international border with French Guiana. The Oyapock River Bridge, ...

, Amapá. It is the largest village of the tribe. Kumarumã was founded in the 1930s as Santa Maria dos Galibis. Kumarumã is located on an island in the

Uaçá River Uaçá River is a river of Amapá state in Brazil. It is a tributary of the Oiapoque River The Oyapock or Oiapoque (; ; ) is a long river in South America that forms most of the border between the French overseas department of French Guia ...

in the Uaçá Indigenous Territory.

Overview

The Galibi Marworno were originally from

French Guiana French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label=French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic coast of South America in the Guianas. ...

and lived in Jesuit missions. A Portuguese offensive in the late 18th century drove them land inwards where they mixed with the Arua and Marworno Amerindians. They use the self identification Galibi Marworno to distinguish themselves from the Galibis on the

Oiapoque River The Oyapock or Oiapoque (; ; ) is a long river in South America that forms most of the border between the French overseas department of French Guiana and the Brazilian state of Amapá. Course The Oyapock runs through the Guianan moist for ...

. In the 1930s, Santa Maria dos Galibis was established by the Indian Protection Service as means to concentrate the population. The main language of the Galibi was

Karipúna French Creole Karipúna French Creole, also known as Amapá French Creole and , is a French-based creole language spoken by the Karipúna community, which lives in the Uaçá Indian Reservation in the Brazilian state of Amapá, on the Curipi and Oyapock rivers ...

. In 1934, a school was built in the village, and started to teach in

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

. In the late 1960s, CIMI, a Catholic organisation, started teaching Karipúna French Creole. Kumarumã also has a clinic, and a community house. The village consisted mainly of wooden houses built on stilts, however the younger generation has begun to build brick houses. Kumarumã has experienced a rapid growth in the 21st century, and a large part of the island has been deforested. The economy is based on fishing and

subsistence farming Subsistence agriculture occurs when farmers grow food crops to meet the needs of themselves and their families on smallholdings. Subsistence agriculturalists target farm output for survival and for mostly local requirements, with little or no su ...

. The villagers are known for their

canoe A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle. In British English, the ter ...

s which they export to French Guiana. Kumarumã can only be accessed by boat, and is located about 45 kilometres down river from the

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kumaruma River islands of Brazil Populated places in Amapá