Tapirapé

The Tapirapé are a Tupi-Guarani speaking indigenous group, originally from the lower stretches of the Tocantins and Xingu Rivers, where they lived until the 17th century. They arrived in the middle region of the Araguaia around the middle of the 18th century, settling north of the Tapirapé River. A series of historical and mythological narratives signal their secular presence in the forests on the left bank of the Araguaia, in areas today occupied by the Karajá. Contact between these peoples, along with the Kayapó, goes back to before the 17th century, always alternating between friendly co-existence and hostility. The Tapirapé total today around 750 individuals. The village comprises houses placed in a circle around the men’s house: the takara. Up to the 1950s, the houses were inhabited by extended families, that is, a group of relatives representing two or three generations. Currently, however, the nuclear family (parents and children) is the most common domestic group. Another important organizational principle of Tapirapé society are the wyra, or "bird societies". In these societies, the male population is divided into two halves, which in their turn are subdivided according to age groups: older men, mature men, and young men. The wyra compete in activities connected to hunting, singing, agricultural tasks, house building, and so on.

Tapirapé villages are traditionally located near forests, on high ground that is not subject to flooding, where the inhabitants keep their crop plantations, but some groups have settled close to open fields for hunting, gathering, and fishing.

Craftwork is currently the most important commercial activity for the Tapirapé, giving them the means to acquire such items as metal objects, clothes, hunting ammunition, salt etc. Among the most common craft pieces are stools, paddles, spears, decorated gourds, feather adornments, basketwork, and the “big face” tawa mask—an enormous face comprising a mosaic of colorful feathers and mother-of-pearl eyes. Tapirapé wooden stools resemble those made by the Karajá, thus reflecting their long history of co-existence and cultural exchange with this neighboring people.