Maruranau (

Wapishana The Wapishana or Wapichan (or Wapisiana, Wapitxana, Vapidiana, Wapixana) are an indigenous group found in the Roraima area of northern Brazil and southern Guyana. Location Currently the Wapishana are located in the State of Roraima, Brazil, nort ...

: Marora Naawa; also: ''Maruranawa'') is an indigenous village of

Amerindians in the Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo Region of Guyana. It is located in the

Rupununi savannah The Rupununi savannah is a savanna plain in Guyana, in the Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo region. It is part of the Guianan savanna ecoregion of the tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome. Description The Rupununi Savan ...

near the

Kwitaro River The Kwitaro River is a tributary of the Rupununi River in Guyana. The Kwitaro is a part of the Rewa River Basin, which is a tributary of the Rupununi River in the larger Essequibo drainage system and within Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo. It lies at ...

on the edge of the Kanuku Mountains. A minority of Taruma also inhabit the village.

History

The Wapishana used to live in small settlements. They were concentrated in larger settlements by the Catholic missionaries. In 1919, it was decided by the village leadership and the priest to relocate north to the present location of Maruranau due to frequent flooding. The name of the village means "Giant Armadillo Hill".

Overview

In October 1947 the first primary school was established in Maruranau. The village has a health centre and shops. There is no electricity, internet or mobile phone. In 2018, water wells were drilled as part of a joint exercise of the Guyana Defence Force and the Brazilian Army. The economy is mainly based on

subsistence agriculture 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 ...

, ranching, hunting and fishing. Balata bleeding, a natural latex, used to be part of the economy. The main religions are the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

and the

Open Brethren The Open Brethren, sometimes called Christian Brethren, are a group of Evangelical Christian churches that arose in the late 1820s as part of the Assembly Movement within the Plymouth Brethren tradition. They originated in Ireland before spreadi ...

Languages

is the primary language in Maruranau, and English the secondary language. It is one of the few villages which has kept their language alive. Maruranau is also home to three speakers of the Taruma language. They were formerly regarded as its only speakers, but another family has since been discovered in Lethem.

Transport

Maruranau can be reached by road from Lethem which takes about 4 hours by bus. The village can be accessed by air via the Maruranawa Airport.

References

{{Settlements in Guyana Indigenous villages in Guyana Populated places in Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo