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Kixiri and the Origin of Day and Night: Ethnoprimatology among the Waimiri Atroari Ameindians of the Central Amazonia, Brazil

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Neotropical Ethnoprimatology

Part of the book series: Ethnobiology ((EBL))

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Abstract

Primate species are an integral part of the lives of many indigenous groups living in Amazonian lowlands. Primates are not only important as food, but they are also present in Amerindian cultural symbolic traits. In this chapter, we describe the cultural uses of primate species as food, including preferences, avoidances, and taboos as well as the role of monkeys in myths and folklore among the Waimiri Atroari Amerindians of the Central Amazonia, Brazil. Three cebid species represented 24.5% of the total vertebrates, and 35% of all individual mammals hunted in a 1-year study. Alouatta macconnelli ranked first followed by Ateles paniscus and Sapajus apella. Alouatta macconnelli and Ateles paniscus are the largest of the 10 monkey species reported for the area. The same species are also subject to temporal use restrictions during postpartum and figure in the songs during Bahinja Maryba male initiation ritual. Primates participate in important myths with multiple symbolic significances for the social and cultural order of the Waimiri Atroari. Saguinus midas was a Kinja (people) in mythical times, but it was transformed into monkey with golden hands as a punishment by a superior being for breaking the sun giving origin to the observed natural astronomical phenomena of day and night.

Resumen

Las especies de primates son parte integral de las vidas de muchos grupos indígenas en las tierras amazónicas. Los primates son importantes no solamente como alimento sino que están presentes en los rasgos simbólico-culturales amerindios. En este capítulo se describe la utilización cultural de los primates como alimento, incluidas preferencias y situaciones en las que se evita esta práctica, además de los tabúes sobre el rol de los monos en los mitos y el folclor de los indígenas Waimiri Atroari de la Amazonía Central del Brasil. Tres especies de cébidos representaron un 24.5% del total de vertebrados y un 35% de los mamíferos individuales cazados durante un estudio con duración de un año. Alouatta macconnelli ha sido el preferido, seguido por Ateles paniscus y Sapajus apella. Las especies Alouatta macconnelli y Ateles paniscus son las más grandes entre las diez especies de monos encontradas en el área. Estas especies también están sujetas a restricciones temporales de utilización después del parto, además de aparecer en canciones durante el ritual de iniciación masculina conocido como Bahinja Maryba. Los primates están presentes en importantes mitos con múltiples significados simbólicos para el orden social y cultural de los Waimiri Atroari. Saguinus midas ha sido un Kinja (gente) en tiempos míticos, pero ha sido transformado en un mono con manos doradas por un ser superior como castigo por romper el sol, dando origen a los fenómenos astronómicos naturales del día y la noche.

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Acknowledgments

We thank the Waimiri Atroari people for their support during Souza-Mazurek’s field studies and data collection on subsistence hunting. The Waimiri Atroari Program provided logistical support in the indigenous area. Souza-Mazurek was supported by a PCI grant from the Brazilian National Research Council – CNPq. We thank Robert P. Miller and Louis Forline for their comments and for the English revision.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Coordenação de Biodiversidade, Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia, Manaus, Brazil

    Rosélis R. de Souza-Mazurek

  2. Local Heritage, Environment and Globalization Laboratory – IRD MNHN, Paris, France

    Rosélis R. de Souza-Mazurek

  3. Takahi Socioambiental, São Paulo, SP, France

    Rosélis R. de Souza-Mazurek

  4. NPA-Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia, Manaus, Brazil

    Ana Carla Bruno

  5. Coordenação de Sociedade, Ambiente e Saúde – COSAS, Manaus, Brazil

    Ana Carla Bruno

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  1. Rosélis R. de Souza-Mazurek
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  2. Ana Carla Bruno
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Correspondence to Rosélis R. de Souza-Mazurek .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Centro de Antropología, Instituto Venezolano de Investigaciones Científicas, Caracas, Venezuela

    Bernardo Urbani

  2. Department of Botany and Environmental Studies Program, Connecticut College, New London, CT, USA

    Manuel Lizarralde

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de Souza-Mazurek, R.R., Bruno, A.C. (2020). Kixiri and the Origin of Day and Night: Ethnoprimatology among the Waimiri Atroari Ameindians of the Central Amazonia, Brazil. In: Urbani, B., Lizarralde, M. (eds) Neotropical Ethnoprimatology. Ethnobiology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-27504-4_10

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