The Sirionó are an
indigenous people of Bolivia
Indigenous peoples in Bolivia, or Native Bolivians, are Bolivian people who are of indigenous ancestry. They constitute anywhere from 40 to 70% of Bolivia's population of 11,306,341, depending on different estimates, and belong to 36 recognized e ...
. They primarily live in the forested northern and eastern parts of
Beni and northwestern
Santa Cruz department
Department may refer to:
* Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility
Government and military
*Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...
s of
Bolivia
, image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg
, flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center
, flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...
.
["Sirionó."]
''Encyclopædia Britannica.'' Retrieved 25 Nov 2013. They live between the
San Martín
San Martín or San Martin may refer to:
People Saints
* Saint Martin (disambiguation)#People, name of various saints in Spanish
Political leaders
*Vicente San Martin (1839 -1901), Military, National hero of Mexico.
*Basilio San Martin (1849 ...
, Negro Rivers, and the
Machado River
Machado is a surname of Portuguese origin meaning the word "axe" or "hatchet" dating back to approximately 2nd century Europe. It is commonly found in Portugal, Spain, Brazil and Latin America, and India (Southern Tamil Nadu and Southern Kerala) ...
.
[Olson 337]
Name
"Sirionó" comes from a neighboring language, in which ''síri'' means "
tucum palm". Their autonym is Miá, meaning "the people." They are also known as the Chori, Ñiose, Qurungua, Tirinié, or Yande people.
[ The Sirionós are tall and strong, although thin, due to the continuous movement and hardships of wildlife.
"Their strength is extraordinary because Herzog tells us that they shoot arrows up to 80 meters with their bows, while the Guarayos could not shoot the same weapons more than 30 meters away."
Their complexion is dark, although somewhat lighter than that of the Guarayos, probably because of their life in the shade of the trees. Some are said to have almost white skin, brown hair and light eyes. Its aspect is rather Arauco than Guarani.]
Language
The Sirionó language is a Guarayú language
Guarayu is a Tupian language of Bolivia that is spoken by the Guarayo people who number 23,910 in 2012.
The name ''Guarayu (Gwarayú)'' is a variant of '' Guarayo'', which when used in a pejorative sense refers to several indigenous peoples in t ...
of the Tupí-Guaraní language family, written in the Latin script. The language is taught in primary schools. A whistled language has been observed among Sirionós.["Sirionó."]
''Ethnologue.'' Retrieved 25 Nov 2013.
History
Sirionó people originated in the Gran Chaco and moved north in the Amazon rainforest
The Amazon rainforest, Amazon jungle or ; es, Selva amazónica, , or usually ; french: Forêt amazonienne; nl, Amazoneregenwoud. In English, the names are sometimes capitalized further, as Amazon Rainforest, Amazon Forest, or Amazon Jungle. ...
.[ First contact with Spaniards was in the 1690s. Later Jesuits tried to missionize them and convince them to lead sedentary lives. Sirionó people died from diseases introduced by Europeans, and by the dawn of the 20th century, only 500 survived. They lived either in remote forests or worked as ranch or farm hands.][
]
Culture
Sirionó traditionally were semi-nomadic and fished, hunted, gathered wild plants, and farmed. They cultivated maize, sweet potato
The sweet potato or sweetpotato (''Ipomoea batatas'') is a dicotyledonous plant that belongs to the Convolvulus, bindweed or morning glory family (biology), family, Convolvulaceae. Its large, starchy, sweet-tasting tuberous roots are used as a r ...
es, and sweet cassava. They brewed beer from maize.[
Traditional Sirionó houses were often only temporary structures with wooden supports and palm leaf roofs that could house up to 120 people at a time. Families were matrilineal and matrilocal, that is, young married couples would live in the wife's community.][
]
Notes
References
* Olson, James Stuart
''The Indians of Central and South America: An Ethnohistorical Dictionary.''
Greenwood Publishing Group, 1991. .
{{DEFAULTSORT:Siriono People
Indigenous peoples in Bolivia
Indigenous peoples of the Amazon
Beni Department
Santa Cruz Department (Bolivia)