The Nambikwara (also called Nambikuára) is an
indigenous people of Brazil
Indigenous peoples in Brazil ( pt, povos indígenas no Brasil) or Indigenous Brazilians ( pt, indígenas brasileiros, links=no) once comprised an estimated 2000 tribes and nations inhabiting what is now the country of Brazil, before European con ...
, living in the
Amazon
Amazon most often refers to:
* Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology
* Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin
* Amazon River, in South America
* Amazon (company), an American multinational technolog ...
. Currently about 1,200 Nambikwara live in
indigenous territories in the Brazilian state of
Mato Grosso along the
Guaporé and
Juruena rivers. Their villages are accessible from the Pan-American highway.
Name
The Nambikwara are also known as the Alaketesu, Anunsu, Nambikuára, or Nambiquara people.
[ "."''] The term Nambikwara is an exonym originating from the
Tupi language family. Its literal meaning is 'pierced ear,' from the words ''nambi,'' "ear," and ''kûara,'' "hole."
Language
The Nambikwara speak the
Southern Nambikuára language, which is a
Nambiquaran language. A dictionary and grammar have been written for the language, which is written in the
Latin script
The Latin script, also known as Roman script, is an alphabetic writing system based on the letters of the classical Latin alphabet, derived from a form of the Greek alphabet which was in use in the ancient Greek city of Cumae, in southern I ...
.
[
]
History
The Nambikwara were first contacted in but did not experience prolonged contact with Europeans until the early 20th century, when Brazilian army official Marechal Cândido Rondon
Marshal Cândido Mariano da Silva Rondon (5 May 1865 – 19 January 1958) was a Brazilian military officer most famous for his telegraph commission and exploration of Mato Grosso and the Western Amazon Basin, as well as his lifelong support ...
passed through Nambikwara territory to extend the telegraph lines. He estimated that there were around 10,000 Nambikwara. Shortly after contact with European Brazilians epidemic
An epidemic (from Greek ἐπί ''epi'' "upon or above" and δῆμος ''demos'' "people") is the rapid spread of disease to a large number of patients among a given population within an area in a short period of time.
Epidemics of infectious ...
s of measles and smallpox decimated the population to only 500 around 1930.Claude Lévi-Strauss
Claude Lévi-Strauss (, ; 28 November 1908 – 30 October 2009) was a French anthropologist and ethnologist whose work was key in the development of the theories of structuralism and structural anthropology. He held the chair of Social An ...
, which were later analyzed by French philosopher Jacques Derrida in his work ''Of Grammatology''.
Bands and subgroups
The Nambikuara Nation is composed of many smaller bands which each have their own name.
* Nambikwara do Sararé
** Kabixi do Mato Grosso
* Nambikwara do Campo of Mato Grosso — Rondônia
** Halotesu
** Hithaulu
** Sawentesu
** Wakalitesu
* Nambikwara do Norte of Rondônia — Mato Grosso
** Lakondê
** Latundê, A.I. Tubarão-Latunde.
** Mamaindê, A.I. Pirineus de Souza, and A.I. Vale do Guaporé
** Nambikwara
** Manduka, A.I. Pirineus de Souza
** Negarotê, A.I. Vale do Guaporé
** Tagnani
** Tamaindé
** Tawandê
** Tawitê or Tauite.
* Nambikwara do Sul of Mato Grosso
** Alaketesu
** Alantesu
** Galera
** Hahaintesu, A.I. Vale do Guaporé
** Kabixi
** Munduka
** Waikisu, A.I. Vale do Guaporé
** Wasusu, A.I. Vale do Guaporé
* Sabanê
** Sabanê, A.I. Pirineus de Souza
Notes
References
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*
*
External links
Nambikuára artwork
National Museum of the American Indian
The National Museum of the American Indian is a museum in the United States devoted to the culture of the indigenous peoples of the Americas. It is part of the Smithsonian Institution group of museums and research centers.
The museum has three ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nambikwara People
Ethnic groups in Brazil
Indigenous peoples in Brazil
Indigenous peoples of the Amazon