Indigenous peoples in Brazil

Before the arrival of the Portuguese in Brazilian territory, the indigenous peoples in Brazil they were quite numerous, the villages were large and their dwellings were busy.

About 3 to 5 million indigenous people lived in the country. Of these, currently, only 817,000 natives remain grouped into 231 peoples, according to data from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE).

Index

Knowing Indigenous Peoples
Division of work - Women's tasks
Division of Labor - Men's Tasks
indigenous children
indigenous teenagers
indigenous adults
Names of indigenous peoples in Brazil today
Indigenous cultural heritage

Knowing Indigenous Peoples

Each indigenous people has its own culture, that is, beliefs, language and its way of thinking, working and relating to nature and other peoples.

With that, it is important to keep in mind that there are several ethnic groups, each one with its own peculiarities.

THE indigenous culture intensely marked our way of being, influencing our habits and language. However, we know little about their contribution to the history and culture of our country.

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Now, let's look at some differences and similarities between indigenous peoples:

differences

Some differences that can be pointed out are the physical features and the spoken language.

There are about 180 indigenous languages spoken in Brazilian territory. The two main linguistic branches in Brazil are Tupi and Macro-Jê.

similarities

There are some common traits that differentiate them from non-indigenous people. The first to be mentioned is the domain of the land. For indigenous peoples, the land belongs to the people who live in the villages.

As long as a group of individuals is working in an area, everything produced there, including the land itself, belongs to them.

With this, land ownership becomes collective. Unlike what happens in society capitalist, where the land,mostly, it is a commodity that serves to generate wealth.

Services are divided according to the strength and ability of the individual. Thus, some tasks are performed by men and others by women, the elderly and children.

Division of work - Women's tasks

Female tasks consist of:

Making baskets, vases and articles used in festivals and rituals;
Plant and harvest;
Harvesting fruits;
Prepare food;
Produce flour;
Transporting products.

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Division of Labor - Men's Tasks

Men's tasks, on the other hand, focus on:

Hunt and fish;
Cut down the forest and prepare the soil for planting;
Ensure the safety of the village;
Build houses, canoes and weapons.

indigenous children

At indigenous children they live, not only with their mother and father, but with the whole family.

According to Aracy Lopes da Silva (1998), the place of small children in villages is always close to their mother.

Furthermore, she states that: “Children's lives take place in a 'real' setting. […] Really and not a 'little lie'. They really cook, really hunt, really collect, even transport the products harvested in the fields. […]”.

indigenous teenagers

The same author, referring to indigenous adolescence, says that: “From an individual point of view, it is time to experience major changes in the body, to expand […] their relationships with other people, getting to know the wisdom of their people, having their first loves, starting to participate […] in social life […]”.

indigenous adults

For Aracy Lopes da Silva, “being an adult also means being able to have special positions and functions. They may be linked to rituals: the singer (the one who 'pulls' the corners), the player of some instruments, the 'master of ceremonies', the person in charge of representing a particular character in a ceremony".