Ethnos

Yanomami

The Yanomami (also spelled Yanomamö and sometimes written with an ogonek under the first 'a' as Ya;nomamö) are an indigenous people of Brazil and Venezuela. They were studied by Napoléon Chagnon, who called them "the Fierce People" in his first edition of The Ya;nomamö, but later changed his title after spending more time with them and coming to a better understanding of their culture. Chagnon also described, among many other things, their use of a hallucinogen called ebene.

The name generally refers to a people who live in an area that spans parts of the northwest Amazon Rainforest and southern Orinoco, share the culture, and who speak languages from the Yanomami group of languages. Traditionally, a Yanomami village is a relatively temporary wood and thatch house called a shabono. The shabono is circular in shape and surrounds a central open space. Each family has their own area within the shabono. The Yanomami are known as hunters, fishers, and horticulturists, cultivating as their main crops plantains and cassava in "gardens," areas of the forest cleared for cultivation. As with many other native Americans of tropical South America, the Yanomami traditionally wore essentially no clothing. The sole exception to this was a string-like belt worn by the men, into which the foreskin of the penis would be clamped. As with many other tribes, body hair was considered repugnant and would usually be plucked out.

Gold was recently found in Yanomami territory and the inevitable influx of miners that arrived soon after have brought with them disease, alcoholism, and violence. Yanomami culture is in a real threat of disappearing from Earth entirely unless more measures are taken to protect it. ***