PEOPLE | into-the-amazon

In the past there was a time when around 10 million native and indigenous Indians filled up the land of the Amazon rainforest. When Western and European explorers and conquers invaded the land to look for hidden treasures, there were only less than 1 million native and indigenous people left because of this. And today there are only 250,000 people that live in the Amazon rainforest. As the Amazon rainforest is slowly being cut down and the land is being taken by companies, sadly the indigenous and native people and losing their homes and passing away like their home is.

In the Amazon rainforest there are 215 cultural groups that speak 170 different languages on massive piece of land; the size of California doubled! Most of this land is in Brazil and the rest spreads into other places of South America.

One of the largest groups out of the Amazonian native and indigenous people is called 'Yanomami'. 'Yano' in English is translated into 'communal house', meaning 'public house'. The 'yano' is a very big and circular shelter - and umbrella-shaped-type of shelter - built with vines, leaves and straws, and has space to do things in the middle under this shelter.

The people of the Pygmy Tribes, also including Baka and Mtubi Pygmies, are the only remaining people in the Amazon rainforest that are like the the Bushmen of the Kalahari in Africa. These tribes have called the Amazon rainforest their precious home for more than centuries now. There is a tribe called the Huli Indian Tribe and this tribe's people make their homes on highlands with no space in the rainforests of Papua New Guinea. According to their culture, men and women live together in large groups separated into 4 equal smaller groups.

The people of the Amazon rainforest are actually highly intelligent, even though they have never used modern technology or even SEEN modern technology. They have a very strong relationship with nature around them. Their religious ceremonies and beliefs seem to be controlled by the nature around them. They look on the land and up to the sky for signs of celestial activity (space related things), when it is the right time to plant, weather and signs of danger. Each Indian tribe in the Amazon rainforest have unique and different types of ceremonies, symbols, different ways of adoration, and dress codes and clothing.

It is very amazing how there are around 50 Indian tribes that still live in the Amazon rainforest and have never, ever seen the world outside of the Amazon.

The Amazon's Indigenous and Native People

This page will talk about the history, the lifestyle, and contain some facts about the Amazon's Indian tribes and indigenous and native people. Also there will be a few pictures of how some people from different tribes dress following their tribe's dressing code and using the clothing other people in their tribes wear. Hope you learn something new!