The politics of language acquisition: Language learning as social modeling in the northwest Amazon

RefereedThis paper considers language acquisition within the greater context of gender-associated norms and practices among the Amerindian speakers of Eastern Tukanoan languages in the northwest Amazon, where descent and language are viewed as manifestations of one another. There, an ideology links linguistic performance to patrilineal descent and prohibits marriage between speakers of the same language. This paper argues that, through linguistic modeling in the northwest Amazon, one language, father's, becomes standard and public; while another language, mother's, non-standard and private

Desire and the Work it Does: Alterity and Exogamy in a Kotiria Origin Myth from the Northwest Amazon of Brazil

In terms of the pan-Amazonian social paradigm that transforms affines into kin and assimilates them into the consanguineal unit, Eastern Tukanoans must be regarded as exceptional. This paper explores a foundation myth that allows us to better understand relations of self and Other, incest and exogamy, and violence and amity among the Eastern Tukanoan-speaking Kotiria. The narrative provides a heretofore-absent foundation for Tukanoan affinity, revealing complications and nuance in Kotiria notions of alterity and the generative role of Desire in its transformation. It is a synthesis not from nature, but from poesis; not from trust, but from theft; not from consensual amity, but from violence

Two anthropologists recall Dominique Buchillet

Dominique Buchillet (Janet Chernela) Dominique Buchillet, the anthropologist who pioneered medical anthropology in the Upper Rio Negro of Brazil, passed away on June 9, 2018 in Brest, France. She was recognized for her tireless research and publication in the field of indigenous health practices as well as her dedication to the people with whom she worked. In 1975 Buchillet received an undergraduate degree in psychology from the Université Paris X, Nanterre, remaining at the same institution ..

O efeito de permanência sobre a prevalência de infecção por Ascaris em duas populações de ameríndios da amazônia brasileira

Studies were made of the intestinal parasites of Amerindian populations of the Uaupes River basin of Brazil. Three groups were sampled1) Tukano fisher-agriculturalists who live in permanent riverine villages; 2) Maku hunter-horticulturalists who live in close contact with the Tukano fishing villages; and 3) Maku who inhabit the forest interior and have little contact with permanent settlements. Fecal samples were collected from 498 individuals of which 220 were from the first group, 135 from de second and 143 from the third. The samples were analyzed by means of microflotation and centrifugal sedimentation. A total of 18 protozoan and helminth species were recorded based on the presence of cysts or eggs. These included five nematode species that could not be identified. The three common pathogenic nematodes were found to be prevalentthe hookworm, Necator americanus(96%); the whipworm, Trichuris trichiura(77%) and the large roundworm, Ascaris lumbricoides(75%). The prevalence of Ascarisamong the villages was found to vary from 56 to 100%. Individuals living in, or associated with, permanent settlements had higher prevalence and intensity rates than those living in the nomadic hunter-gatherer way. This is shown to be directly related to fecal contamination of the environment in and around permanent settlements. The prevalence of Ascarisin a population can be used as an indicator of such environmental contamination.Estudos foram feitos dos parasitas intestinais de populações de ameríndios da bacia do Rio Uaupes no Brasil. Três grupos foram amostrados: 1) Tukano pescadores-agricultores que vivem em aldeias ribeirinhas permanentes; 2) Maku caçadores-horticultores que vivem em contato próximo com as aldeias pescadoras dos Tukano; e 3) Maku que habitam o interior da selva e têm pouco contato com aldeias permanentes. Amostras fecais foram obtidas de 498 indivíduos dos quais 220 foram do primeiro grupo, 135 do segundo e 143 do terceiro. As amostras foram analisadas pelos métodos de microflutuação e por sedimentação centrífuga. Um total de 18 espécies de protozoários e helmintos foram assinaladas com base na presença de cistos ou ovos. Entre estas, cinco espécies de nematóides não puderam ser identificadas. As três espécies de nematóides patogênicas comuns foram prevalentes: Necator americanus(96%); Trichuris trichiura(77%) e Ascaris lumbricoides(75%). A prevalência de Ascarisentre as aldeias variou entre 56 e 100%. Indivíduos morando em, ou associados com, aldeias permanentes apresentaram taxas de prevalência e intensidade mais elevadas do que as pessoas que continuavam vivendo como caçadores nômades. Isto tem uma relação direta com a contaminação fecal do ambiente dentro e ao redor das aldeias permanentes. A prevalência de Ascarisnuma população pode ser utilizada como uma indicadora deste tipo de contaminação ambiental

The UN and Indigenous Peoples: A Process

Non-refereedThis is a draft version and differs from the final published form. For more information on the Declaration, visit http://www.ohchr.org/english/issues/indigenous/