The Trumai (or Trumaí; native name: Ho kod ke) are an
indigenous people of Brazil. They currently reside within the
Xingu Indigenous Park, in the state of
Mato Grosso
Mato Grosso ( – lit. "Thick Bush") is one of the states of Brazil, the third largest by area, located in the Central-West region. The state has 1.66% of the Brazilian population and is responsible for 1.9% of the Brazilian GDP.
Neighboring ...
. They have a population of 258 in 2014.
[ They were 97 in 2011 and 120 in 2006,][ up from a low of 26 in 1966.
]
Background
The Trumai are one of the last groups to have settled on the upper Xingu River, moving there in the 19th century[ from the region between the Xingu and ]Araguaia River
The Araguaia River ( pt, Rio Araguaia , Karajá: ♂ ''Berohokỹ'' eɾohoˈkə̃ ♀ ''Bèrakuhukỹ'' ɛɾakuhuˈkə̃ is one of the major rivers of Brazil though it is almost equal in volume at its confluence with the Tocantins. It has a total ...
s, as a result of attacks from another people. They currently live in four villages in the Xingu Indigenous Park, Terra Preta, Boa Esperança, Steinen and Terra Nova, situated halfway from the Leonardo Villas-Bôas Post and the Diauarum Indigenous Post, where some families also live.
The Trumai are one of the ethnicities included in the standard cross-cultural sample.
They are considered the ones who introduced the jawari ritual ("hopep" in the Trumai language), that is, along with the kwarup, one of the most important inter-tribal festivals in the Upper Xingu cultural complex.
Subsistence
The Trumai are farmers, growing primarily manioc, peppers, and beans.[
]
Language
The Trumai language
Trumai is an endangered language isolate of Brazil. Most Trumai are fluent in languages of wider communication, and children are not learning it well.
Background
Trumai is a language spoken by the indigenous community of the same name located ...
is not closely related to other languages, and it is considered a language isolate
Language isolates are languages that cannot be classified into larger language families. Korean and Basque are two of the most common examples. Other language isolates include Ainu in Asia, Sandawe in Africa, and Haida in North America. The num ...
.[ It is severely endangered, as children are becoming native speakers of Awetï, ]Suyá
The Suyá, self-denomination Kisêdjê, are indigenous people in Brazil, at the headwaters of the Xingu River.
Historically, they were known for their lip plates, an unusual form of body modification which they practiced. After marriage, Suyá m ...
, or Portuguese.
Notes
Further reading
* Robert F. Murphy and Buell Quain. "The Trumai Indians of Central Brazil." ''American Anthropologist'', New Series, Vol. 58, No. 4 (Aug., 1956), p. 747
*Quain, Buell; Murphy, Robert F. (1955). ''The Trumai Indians of Central Brazil''. Locust Valley, N.Y.: J. J. Augustin
* Anne Sutherland Louis. "Alliance or Descent: The Trumai Indians of Central Brazil." ''Man'', New Series, Vol. 6, No. 1 (Mar., 1971), pp. 18–29
External links
Trumai language dictionary online from IDS
(select simple or advanced browsing)
Socioambiental page
by Raquel Guirardello (Rice University)
Trumai on the Documentation of Endangered Languages
Trumai - 10.5281/zenodo.1008781
{{DEFAULTSORT:Trumai
Xingu peoples
Indigenous peoples of the Amazon
Indigenous peoples in Brazil