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Umukomasã | |
|---|---|
| Total population | |
| 5,160 | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Brazil, Colombia | |
| Brazil | 1,699[1] |
| Colombia | 3,641[2] |
| Languages | |
| Desano language | |
The Desano (Desano: Umukomasã) are an Indigenous people of Colombia and Brazil who speak Desano, a Tucanoan language. They are divided into around 30 groups and are known for their woven baskets.[1][3]
History
editThe Desano people have faced influence from outsiders when the Spanish and Portuguese explored the region. These people brought outside illnesses, one being measles, which negatively impacted the surrounding communities. These explorers also introduced Christianity into the region. The majority of the history of the Desano people is known through traditional stories told by the Desano people.[4] Tukanoan groups suffered greatly at the hands of the Portuguese; from 1739-1760, the Portuguese arrived in the Upper Rio Negro region where they took indigenous people to market them as slaves.[4] According to Wilson de Lima Silva,[4] within this time frame, about 20,000 indigenous people were displaced from their homes and sold as slaves. From 1761-1829, indigenous people continued to be displaced as the Portuguese established new villages for the indigenous people. From this time until 1920 is when the arrival of missionaries was encouraged by a program run by the government called ‘civilização e catequese’ (civilization and conversion).[4] During this time, after being taken away from their communities, indigenous people involuntarily gathered rubber during a time when natural rubber in the Amazon was being taken advantage of.[4]
In 1916, the Salesians came to The Upper Rio Negro region and gradually released the indigenous people from slavery; however, they proceeded to send the indigenous children to boarding school where they were deprived of speaking their native language and only allowed to speak Portuguese.[4] This system resulted in a loss of many cultural traditions and customs.[4] In modern times, many Desano people live in villages and children study in Portuguese at school. As many Desano people no longer reside in their native communities, and children receive education in Portuguese, their native language is left behind.[4]
References
edit- 1 2 "Desana - Indigenous Peoples in Brazil". pib.socioambiental.org. Retrieved 2026-01-20.
- ↑ https://www.dane.gov.co/files/investigaciones/boletines/grupos-etnicos/presentacion-grupos-etnicos-2019.pdf [bare URL PDF]
- ↑ Buchillet, Dominique (1992). "Nobody is there to hear : Desana therapeutic incantations". In Langdon, E. Jean Matteson; Baer, Gerhard (eds.). Portals of power: Shamanism in South America (PDF) (1st ed.). Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press. ISBN 978-0-8263-1345-4.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Silva 2012.
- Silva, Wilson de Lima (2012). A descriptive grammar of Desano (Ph.D. thesis). University of Utah.