The Tembé, also Timbé and Tenetehara, are an
indigenous people of Brazil, living along the
Maranhão
Maranhão () is a state in Brazil. Located in the country's Northeast Region, it has a population of about 7 million and an area of . Clockwise from north, it borders on the Atlantic Ocean for 2,243 km and the states of Piauí, Tocantins and ...
and
Gurupi Rivers,
[ in the state of Amazonas and ]Pará
Pará is a Federative units of Brazil, state of Brazil, located in northern Brazil and traversed by the lower Amazon River. It borders the Brazilian states of Amapá, Maranhão, Tocantins (state), Tocantins, Mato Grosso, Amazonas (Brazilian state) ...
.[ Their lands have been encroached and settled by farmers and loggers, who do so illegally, and the Tembé are working to expel the intruders from their territories.][
]
Name
The Tembé call themselves Tenetehara, which means "people," or more specifically the Tenetehara people, of which the Tembé are the western subgroup and the Guajarara are the eastern subgroup. "Tembé" is thought to come from a neighboring tribe's word, ''timbeb'', which means "flat nose."[
]
Language
Tembé people speak the Tembé language
Tenetehára is a Tupi–Guarani language spoken in the state of Maranhão in Brazil. Sociolinguistically, it is two languages, each spoken by the Guajajara and the Tembé
The Tembé, also Timbé and Tenetehara, are an indigenous people ...
, a Tupi-Guarani language. It is mutually intelligible with the Guajajára language
Tenetehára is a Tupi–Guarani language spoken in the state of Maranhão in Brazil. Sociolinguistically, it is two languages, each spoken by the Guajajara and the Tembé
The Tembé, also Timbé and Tenetehara, are an indigenous people o ...
.[
]
Notes
External links
Tembé headdress
collection of the National Museum of the American Indian
Ethnic groups in Brazil
Indigenous peoples in Brazil
Indigenous peoples of the Amazon
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