Yawanawa
Encyclopedia
The Yaminawá are an indigenous people
who live in Acre
(Brazil
), Madre de Dios
(Peru
), and Bolivia
. Their homeland is Acre, Brazil.
s including Bashonawá (basho = "opossum"), Marinawá (mari = "cutia", an agouti
), Xixinawá (xixi = "white coati
", a Brazilian aardvark
), or Yawanawá (yawa = "wild boar").
code is YAA. Very few Yaminawá people speak Spanish or Portuguese, and their literacy rate is extremely low.
The Yawanawa community and their allies are developing a new model of sustainability that allows the Yawanawa to protect the rainforest and engage with the outside world on their own terms, without losing their cultural and spiritual identity.
Indigenous peoples in Brazil
The Indigenous peoples in Brazil comprise a large number of distinct ethnic groups who inhabited the country prior to the European invasion around 1500...
who live in Acre
Acre (state)
Acre is one of the 27 states of Brazil. It is situated in the southwest of the Northern Region, bordering Amazonas to the north, Rondônia to the east, Bolivia to the southeast and the Ucayali Region of Peru to the south and west. It occupies an area of 152,581.4 km2, being slightly smaller...
(Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
), Madre de Dios
Madre de Dios Region
Madre de Dios is a region in southeastern Peru, bordering Brazil, Bolivia and the Peruvian regions of Puno, Cusco and Ucayali. Its capital is the city of Puerto Maldonado. The name of the region is a very common Spanish language designation for the Virgin Mary, literally meaning Mother of...
(Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
), and Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
. Their homeland is Acre, Brazil.
Name
The Yaminawá translated to "people of the axe." They are also called the Iaminaua, Jaminawa, Yaminawá (in Brazil), and Yaminahua (in Peru and Bolívia), as well as Yuminahua, Yabinahua, Yambinahua, Yamanawa, and other variants. The Yaminawá name was given to them by outsiders. They have several autonymAutonym
Autonym may refer to*Autonym, the name used by a people to refer to themselves or their language, synonymous with endonym*Autonym, the true name of an author disclosed by resolving a pseudonym...
s including Bashonawá (basho = "opossum"), Marinawá (mari = "cutia", an agouti
Agouti
Agouti refers to a number of species of rodents as well as a number of genes affecting coat coloration in several different animals. Agouti fur contains a pattern of pigmentation in which individual hairs have several bands of light and dark pigment with black tips.* When referring to a rodent,...
), Xixinawá (xixi = "white coati
Coati
Coatis, genera Nasua and Nasuella, also known as the Brazilian aardvark, Mexican tejón, hog-nosed coon, pizotes, crackoons and snookum bears, are members of the raccoon family . They are diurnal mammals native to South America, Central America, and south-western North America...
", a Brazilian aardvark
Aardvark
The aardvark is a medium-sized, burrowing, nocturnal mammal native to Africa...
), or Yawanawá (yawa = "wild boar").
Language
The Yaminawá language belongs to the Panoan language family. Linguists estimate 1244 people speak the language. Its ISO 639-3ISO 639-3
ISO 639-3:2007, Codes for the representation of names of languages — Part 3: Alpha-3 code for comprehensive coverage of languages, is an international standard for language codes in the ISO 639 series. The standard describes three‐letter codes for identifying languages. It extends the ISO 639-2...
code is YAA. Very few Yaminawá people speak Spanish or Portuguese, and their literacy rate is extremely low.
Current affairs
The Yawanawa community is currently led by Tashka and Laura Yawanawa. Tashka Yawanawa had served as Chief of the Yananawa since 2001. In just a few years, Tashka and his wife Laura (Mixteca-Zapoteca) have worked to increase Yawanawa territory, reinvigorate Yawanawa culture, and establish economically and socially empowering relationships with the outside world.The Yawanawa community and their allies are developing a new model of sustainability that allows the Yawanawa to protect the rainforest and engage with the outside world on their own terms, without losing their cultural and spiritual identity.
Further reading
- Yawanawá in the Encyclopedia of Indigenous Peoples in Brazil
- Video of Yaminawa mourning songs