Piaroa
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Piaroa |
|---|
| Total population |
|
12,000 (est.) |
| Regions with significant populations |
| Venezuela, Colombia |
| Languages |
| Piaroa-Maco |
| Religions |
| Animism |
The Piaroa are an indigenous American ethnic group living along the banks of the Orinoco and its tributaries in present day Venezuela, and in a few scattered locations elsewhere in Venezuela and in Colombia. The Piaroa number at a population of about 12,000.
Contents |
[edit] Language
The Piaroa speak a Saliban language. Only within recent years has a written language been developed.
[edit] Lifestyle
The Piaroa Indians look to the jungles to fulfill their every day needs. However, contrary to common understanding, they have little regard for animals or the preservation of the jungles. Often the Piaroa will “fish” a river using a nerve retarding poison mixed with manioc, resulting in a drastic drop in the aquatic life for years. They perform the slash and burn method to prepare the land for farming. However, they do not attempt to put out the fires they initiate. Although murder is infrequent, female abuse by males is common and normally accepted. If murder does take place, the policy of shunning is the normal punishment, often resulting in exile of the murderer. The Piaroa also show no physical affection between the man and the women; kissing is unheard of. Intercourse is seen as a pleasurable necessity while lacking the Western emphasis on romance. The Piaroa pride themselves in showing no pain during injury and do not associate crying with pain. The women tend to perform the manual labor while the men hunt for food. Manioc is the common staple for the Piaroa. This is a starchy tuber with little nutritional value. They also eat tapir, monkey, parrots and other birds, capybara, locust larva, ants, fish, sting ray, etc. The traditional method of hunting for the Piaroa male involves the blow gun with curare-tipped darts. Their cookware is traditionally made of pottery, their loin cloths of cotton, and their ax heads of filed stone. Their spirituality is a delicate balance of fear and payment. One must appease the evil spirits by paying the witch doctor the appropriate fee in goods or service. Demon possession is not infrequent within this culture as well. The people long for spiritual peace in contrast to their traditions. Infanticide is also common among the Piaroa. Twins and albinos are thought to be evil and are left in the jungle to die. Also, normal unwanted children are similarly discarded. Because of intermarrying, (they prefer to marry cousins) approximately one out of every hundred Piaroa is an albino. Albinism is therefore much more common among the Piaroa than in other cultures. The job of rearing the children is often left up to the grandmother and the younger children. It is not uncommon to see a five year-old caring for an infant so her mother can work in the garden. Some have a primitive flood story and believe in an ultimate Creator. Their views of the afterlife consist of an eternal drinking party. (Alcohol within the tribes preexisted foreign influence.) Excluding various charitable and missionary groups, the Piaroa have been largely negatively influenced by the urban culture. However, they have benefited from modern medicine, tools, and clothing which they greatly value. Due to modern medicine, the average life span of the Piaroa has increased from about thirty-five or forty to sixty or seventy. However, urban influence has also introduced STDs and pornography to their culture. Also, homosexuality was unheard of prior to urban influence (they had no name for it) and is still not practiced among the Piaroa within themselves. The Piaroa governmental system is less patriarchal than the surrounding tribes such as the Yanomamo, however the leader of the tribe, the captain, has ultimate control of the tribe. Only the witch doctor or shaman has more control because of his abilities to manipulate the spirits using drugs which allow him to see the spirit world in ceremonies. The Piaroa experience the real affects of the witch doctor and therefore live in fear of him. He is therefore granted ultimate privileges, multiple wives, free laborers, a continuous supply of food, etc. Anyone who opposes him usually ends up dying either by poison or spiritual attack. Although not directly punished for his actions, many times the witch doctor will be exiled from the village and go on to become the shaman of another smaller village. Likewise, rape is not seen as a serious crime but is mildly looked down upon. The Piaroa rarely war among each other. However they will fight when attacked by the Yanomamo Indians for example. The “Piaroa,” meaning “the people” represents a common trend of ethnocentrism among South American indigenous groups. They see surrounding tribes often as sub-human, especially the Yanomamo who often partake in barbaric rituals, child abuse, female disfigurement, and constant war.
[edit] References
L. Bockus, 16 year social worker and anthropologist to the Piaroa Indians on the Paraguasa River, Maraca, Venezuela
