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Yanomamö

Location: Amazon rainforests of Brazil and Venezuela

History: The Yanomamö people of Central Brazil are one of the oldest examples of the classic pre-Columbian forest footmen. The Yanomamö live in almost complete seclusion in the Amazon rain forests of South America and, according to many anthropologists, are perhaps the last culture to have come in contact with the modern world.

Language: Yanomamö -various dialects. No writing system.

Daily Life: The Yanomamö live in small bands or tribes and live in round communal huts called shabonos, which are actually made up of individual living quarters. Clothes are minimal, and much of their daily life revolves around gardening, hunting, gathering, making crafts and visiting with one another. These small tribes hold their men in high ranks. Chiefs are always men who are held responsible for the general knowledge and safety of the group’s women. They practice polygamy.

Yanomamö people rely heavily on a system of political alliances based upon kinship. As part of that system, they have incorporated an intricate feasting and trading system into their culture. The Yanomamö live in a constant state of warfare with other tribes and even within their own groups. Marriages are often arranged according to performances of one's relatives in battles. Ideal marriages are thought to consist of cross-cousin marriages and the males of the family and the religious leaders of the tribe perform all marriages. In addition to their strong kinship ties and political alliances, the Yanomamö have a detailed religion, based on the use of hallucinogenic drugs and the telling of mythical tales.

The religious beliefs of the Yanomamö are quite complex. According to Yanomamö wise men, there are four levels of reality. Through them, the Yanomamö belief that things tend to fall or descend downward to a lower layer is demonstrated. The uppermost layer of the four is thought to be "pristine" and "tender". It is called duku ka misi and the Yanomamö believe that many things originated in this area. This layer does not play much of a role in the everyday life of the Yanomamö. It is considered to be just "there", once having some vague function.

The next layer down is called hedu ka mis" and is known as the sky layer. The top surface is supposedly invisible, but is believed to be similar to earth. It has trees, gardens, villages, animals, plants and most importantly, the souls of the deceased. These souls are said to be similar to mortals because they garden, eat and sleep. Everything that exists on earth is said to have a counterpart on this level. The bottom surface of the layer is said to be what the Yanomamö on earth actually see: the visible sky. Stars and planets are attached to this bottom surface and move across it on their individual trails.

Humans, or Yanomamö, dwell on what is called "this layer", otherwise called hei ka misi. "This layer" was created when a chunk of hedu broke off and fell down. This layer has jungles, hills, animals, plants and people who are slightly different, variants of the Yanomamö who speak a dialect of Yanomamö that is "crooked", or wrong.

Finally, there is the surface below "this layer" which is formally called hei ta bebi, which the Yanomamö say is almost barren. They believe a variant of the Yanomamö live here. These people originated a long time ago when a piece of hedu broke off, crashed down to "this layer", creating a hole and eventually falling through to become it's own layer. Here, they have no game animals and have ruthless cannibals. They send their spirits up to "this layer" to capture the souls of children, which are carried down and eaten. In some Yanomamo villages, the shamans contend with the people on the bottom layer, attempting to discourage their cannibalistic ways.

In recent years, the influence of gold miners, lumber companies and missions have altered traditional Yanomamö life. Some Yanomamö have become fluent in Spanish and have become Christians. Others have developed relationships with miners or lumberjacks and have entered the cash economy. The introduction of rifles and other western devices have influenced the way the Yanomamö live. Western diseases and medical methods have made the Yanomamö dependant on missions to survive.

Best Known Features: The work of Napoleon Chagnon has made the Yanomamö a common topic in anthropology classrooms around the world. Much of the activism which revolves around saving the indigenous peoples of the Amazon had its root in studies on the Yanomamö.

Sources

Chagnon, Napoleon. Yanomamö, Fifth Edition. Harcourt Brace College Publishers: Fort Worth 1997.

Additional Reading

Yanomamo
Native Language of Brazil
Amazon Forest Tribes

Yanomamo [archive]

Yanomamö

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Additional Reading

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