Omagua

The Omagua are a native South American tribe now virtually extinct. It once dominated northeastern Peru and most of western Brazil. The Omagua culture thrived along the Amazon River.

Omagua was once a huge tribe before the Spanish conquest of South America in the sixteenth century. Due to lack of resistance to western diseases, persecution and warfare, the Omagua and other Brazilian tribes slowly diminish. Forty villages of Omagua converts were constructed along the Amazon River in the seventeenth century. These villages were established by Jesuit missionaries and suffered repeated attacks by Portuguese slave hunters. The mission settlements eventually broke up due to the expulsion of the Jesuits from the Spanish colonies in 1767. The Omagua returned to their native way of life. By the twentieth century, the Omagua were nearly extinct in Peru and had been swallowed up into the mestizo population of Brazil. In 1900, two hundred and thirty Brazilian tribes were estimated to exist, but by 1957 only one hundred and forty-three tribes remained. Currently, the Indian population in Brazil has been reduced to 100,000-150,000 people. The native cultures of the Yanomamo and the Kayapo are among the only tribes existing.

The Omagua economy, like most other cultures that thrived in the Amazon basin, was primarily based on agriculture, hunting, and fishing. The forest provided them with all the necessities of life, including food, medicine, cooking and lighting oil , arrow and fish poisons. It also supplied bark and fibers for clothing, ropes, and baskets. Forest management was essential to the Omagua way of life. They wanted to protect the forest not destroy it, and many of their beliefs and practices were aimed at that.

A diversity of species and a variety of plants supported their agriculture. The staple food of the Amazon is manioc, also known as tapioca, a good source of carbohydrates. The maniocs root is filled with cyanide poison, but the root can be soaked, grated, squeezed or pressed to remove the deadly juices. The result is a gritty flour called 'farinha' that is mixed in with other food. The Omagua took advantage of the forest by eating many of the plants that it provided. Pupunha was a favorite breakfast dish, the large pods of the caucau tree were a sweet treat, and guarana was a favorite sweet drink. Guava, macambo, mamao, cupuacu, the cashew pear were commonly used at Omaguan meals.

In the Omagua culture, all members of the tribe went fishing together. The men did the hunting, primarily with bows and arrows (which is a skill boys mastered at a very young age). Women were the primary cultivators of the fields. Women also went on collecting parties to gather fruits and nuts, especially the Brazilian nut, which could be traded for supplies.

The Omagua had many features that made them unique. In the sixteenth century, a report stated that the Omagua had large stores of gold. In 1536, 1541, and 1560, the Spanish made attempts to conquer their lands for this reason. These attempts proved unsuccessful. Another special feature of the Omagua was adornment which was a ritual in Omaguan culture. They often wore feathers or leaves in their ears, and beads around their neck. Women often wore a series of thin sticks in holes around their mouths. Men were known to wear disks in their lower lips. Body paint was not a sign of vanity. Rather, it represented an important part of their culture. It was meant to be deeply symbolic and tells a story of their history.

Though this page has been carefully researched, the author does not claim expertise on the Omangua.

If you are a descendant of the Omangua, your feedback is much appreciated.

References:

Cunningham and Prance. Out of the Amazon. United Kingdom: HMSO, 1992.

Stoddard, Theodore. Indians of Brazil in the Twentieth Century. Washington D.C.: Cross-Cultural Research, 1967.

Written by: Jessica Trudeau