What are the indigenous peoples of the Amazon

The Amazon is the name of largest river in South America and that gives name to the entire jungle that grows around its surroundings: The Amazon jungle. However, when talking about the Amazon jungle, which is actually referring to is an immense geographical region that extends through different countries, and which is called Amazonia, in reference to both the river and the jungle.

The Amazon It is a region that extends throughout some areas of countries such as Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Bolivia, Guyana, Surinam and French Guyana. It is a region of an incalculable ecological wealth, since the Amazon jungle constitutes the largest jungle in the world, which has earned him the nickname of “the lung of the planet.”

Talk about the Indigenous peoples It is talking about the peoples that inhabit a certain territory since almost immemorial times. In some cases, these villages are also called isolated peoplesreferring to the fact that both their people and their cultures have remained without contact with modern civilization since their beginnings to the present or that, at least, the contact has been minimal.

This constitutes a fundamental element, since it allows the immaterial wealth of the cultural tradition of isolated and indigenous peoples From its original lands it has been possible to keep unchanged to this day, which, in addition to having great value as an immaterial wealth, also constitutes a study opportunity for anthropologists.

The isolated and indigenous peoples that exist are still located both in the Region of India, Oceania and, above all, in the Amazon region. To this has contributed, how could it be otherwise, the jungle itself, which constitutes a natural barrier between the Amazon tribes and modern civilization.

Many of the indigenous peoples of the Amazon jungle differ very little from each other. In this way, anthropologists have grouped the Amazon Indians In various groups formed by several tribes that, although they have differences from each other, the similarities are important enough to consider them in the same group (for example the language). This is one List of indigenous peoples of the Amazonyou will see some of those who have been most studied:

Isolated indigenous people in Peru

• Nahua
• Cashibo-Cacataibo
• Pascos
• Nanti
• Matsigenkas

Indigenous isolated in Brazil

• Piripkura
• Kawahiva
• Korubos
• Kuikuro
• Kalapalos
• Yanomanis
• Piripkuras

Indigenous isolated in Colombia

• Yurí
• Nukak

Currently, it is unknown for sure how many of these indigenous peoples live inside the Amazon jungle. Despite this, it is estimated that the figure of isolated peoples in the Amazon It could be around the 400 villagesof which at least more than 80 that have been studied and described by Anthropologists. Of all the countries where we find indigenous peoples, Brazil is by far where they are located, reaching more than 100 different villages, and followed by Peru with 25 peoples.

These human groups that They live in the Amazon jungle They have maintained their unaltered customs and lifestyles for thousands of years. In fact, they constitute a reference without comparison when understanding how man’s first lifestyles could be during the Paleolithic (before the invention of agriculture).

In this way, we are facing villages that are hunters and collectors In most cases, whose groups do not usually exceed twenty people, and that They live in harmony with nature that surrounds them, which they identify in most cases as a kind of “mother nature”, in a form of religion of each people and that is approaching, according to anthropologists, to a belief that combines pantheism and animism at the same time.

In this other ecology article, we talk more about how the Amazon tribes live.

However, despite the fact that these peoples have survived in the Amazon ecosystem for thousands of years, the reality is that Modern civilization is assuming real danger For your survival. One of the most pressing problems they face is the survival of the jungle itself that, due to Deforestation Motivated by the wood, agriculture and livestock industry, every year loses more and more square kilometers of extension. In fact, between the 70s of the twentieth century and 2014, 19% of the Amazon surface has been talked, which represents highly and unprecedented environmental damage to this scale. In this other article you can learn more about the deforestation of the Amazon: causes and consequences and, in addition, in the video below you can learn more about this topic.

On the other hand, beyond the destruction of the environment, indigenous peoples have to face situations of violence that lead to another threat to their survival. In this sense, the violence exercised by agents such as some local governments, companies with economic interests in the area, or drug trafficking, constitute a real ballast when guaranteeing their survival.

However, actions from some governments that are aware of the problem of the Survival of the indigenous peoples of the Amazonas well as actions promoted by some NGOs, they are helping to stop the destruction of both the Amazon and the people that still inhabit it. In this sense, some initiatives such as declare protected areas, provide rights to indigenous peoples and fighting corruption and drug trafficking, constitute invaluable help when ensuring that these indigenous peoples, and the Amazon jungle itself, have a future.

If you liked to discover What are the indigenous of the Amazon And several aspects about them, you may want to learn more about them and other indigenous people with these other articles of ecology see:

• American Indians: Names of Tribes and their customs.
• 16 African tribes: names, meanings and customs.
• Australian aborigines: names of peoples and their customs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qek9kd3-qhg

If you want to read more articles similar to What are the indigenous peoples of the Amazonwe recommend that you enter our category of indigenous peoples.