The Huni Kuin (also known as: ''Kaxinawá'', ''Cashinahua'', ''Kaschinawa'', ''Kashinawa'', ''Caxinauás'') are an

Indigenous people of Brazil Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention *Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band *Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...

and

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

. Their villages are located along the Purus and Curanja Rivers in Peru and the

Tarauacá Tarauacá () is a municipality located in the northwest of the Brazilian state of Acre. Tarauacá has a population of 43,151 people and has an area . Geography The municipality contains 38% of the Alto Tarauacá Extractive Reserve The Alto T ...

, Jordão, Breu, Muru,

Envira Envira is a municipality in the Brazilian state of Amazonas. Its population was 20,393 as of 2020, and its area is .IBGE The Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (; IBGE) is the agency responsible for official collection of stati ...

, Humaitã, and

Purus River The Purus River (Portuguese: ''Rio Purus''; Spanish: ''Río Purús'') is a tributary of the Amazon River in South America. Its drainage basin is , and the mean annual discharge is . The river shares its name with the Alto Purús National Park a ...

s in Brazil."Kaxinawá: Location."
''Povos Indígenas no Brasil.'' Retrieved 8 Dec 2011. In the Peruvian Amazon rainforest, some Huni Kuin live on the Alto Purús Indigenous Territory with the

Kulina people The Kulina are an Indigenous people of Brazil and Peru. 2,540 Kulina live in Amazonas and Acre The acre ( ) is a Unit of measurement, unit of land area used in the Imperial units, British imperial and the United States customary units#Area ...

Name

The name ''Huni Kuin'' means "true people" or "people with traditions". The alternative name ''Kaxinawá'' means "cannibals", "bat people" and "people who walk about at night". It is still widespread in literature, yet the Huni Kuin reject the name as an insult.Povos Indígenas no Brasil (Instituto Socioambiental): Huni Kuin (Kaxinawá)
/ref>

Language

The Huni Kuin speak the

Kaxinawá language Kashinawa (also spelled ''Kaxinawá, Kashinawa, Kaxynawa, Caxinawa, Caxinawá, and Cashinahua''), or Hantxa Kuin (''Hãtxa Kuĩ''), is an Indigenous American language of western South America which belongs to the Panoan language family. It is s ...

, a

Panoan language Panoan (also Pánoan, Panoano, Panoana, Páno) is a family of languages spoken in western Brazil, eastern Peru, and northern Bolivia. It is possibly a branch of a larger Pano–Tacanan family. Genetic relations The Panoan family is generally be ...

. They call their language Hancha Kuin, meaning "real words." Only 5% to 10% of the Huni Kuin in Peru speak

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

and literacy rates are low.

Economy

Hunting is of paramount importance in Huni Kuin society. Huni Kuin also fish, gather plant foods, and grow crops through

swidden Slash-and-burn agriculture is a form of shifting cultivation that involves the cutting and burning of plants in a forest or woodland to create a field called a swidden. The method begins by cutting down the trees and woody plants in an area. Th ...

, or

slash-and-burn Slash-and-burn agriculture is a form of shifting cultivation that involves the cutting and burning of plants in a forest or woodland to create a Field (agriculture), field called a swidden. The method begins by cutting down the trees and woody p ...

horticulture. Rice has become an export crop."Economy - Kashinawa."
''Countries and Their Cultures''. Retrieved 8 Dec 2011. Women weave baskets, string bead jewelry, create utilitarian

ceramics A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant, and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porce ...

and weave

hammock A hammock, from Spanish , borrowed from Taíno language, Taíno and Arawak language, Arawak , is a sling made of fabric, rope, or netting, suspended between two or more points, used for swing (seat), swinging, sleeping, or Human relaxation, res ...

s and clothing. Men weave certain baskets, carve tools from wood, create featherwork and ceremonial regalia, and make canoes and weapons, such as clubs, spears, and bows and arrows. In hunting, shotguns are popular.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kaxinawa People Indigenous peoples in Brazil Indigenous peoples in Peru Indigenous peoples of the Amazon Hunter-gatherers of South America