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NATIONALMUSEETS SKRIFTER
Etnografisk Rakke, VIII
Waiwai
RELIGION AND SOCIETY OF AN
AMAZONIAN TRIBE
by
NIELS FOCK
with appendices by
FRIDOLIN WEIS BENTZON AND
ROBERT E. HAWKINS
THE NATIONAL MUSEUM
COPENHAGEN 1963
Denne afhandling er af det matematisk-naturvidenskabelige fakultet ved Keben

havns universitet antaget til offentlig at forsvares for den filosofiske doktorgrad.
Kebenhavn, den 4. maj 1962. T. W. BacHER

h. a. dec.
Printed in Denmark by Andelsbogtrykkeriet i Odense
Cover drawing by Jens Rosing, technical drawings by Henning 0rsnes
Photos by Lennart Larsen, Jens Yde and the author
Blocks by Schmidt & Johansen, Copenhagen
to my teacher
KAJ BIRKET-SMITH
in gratitude
Preface
Recalling the pleasant stay with the Waiwai Indians my mind constantly turns toward
Ewka, the young, able medicine man and village leader of Yakayaka, who became my main
informant. Besides so much valuable information he also expressed what should be the key
words for my further studies. Speaking about cosmology Ewka explained the existence of
three heavenly layers known to the Waiwai and added, that still more distant layers might
exist and contain unknown beings, he was but unaware of them.
Just like Ewka concerning cosmology, I am quite aware, that there might well exist
customs or functions of customs, which I never realized. This uncertainty is due not only
to ordinary human limitations but also to the short time available in the field. The expedi
tion remained with the Waiwai only from October 1954 to January 1955; shortly after,
missionary zeal brought about such profound acculturation that any further adequate
field studies were made impossible. The more weight then has been put on the analysis of
certain important institutions as mythology, natal customs and judicial practices.
This monograph is written on observations and information collected during the first
Danish ethnographical expedition to British Guiana and Brazil in 1954-55. Sponsored by
the Danish National Museum, the head of the expedition was lens Yde, curator at the
Ethnographical Department, to whom I feel much indebted for his brillant leadership and
friendship during the trip. Both before and after the expedition, my professor, Kaj Birket
Smith, Ph.D., D.Sc., has in every way encouraged my work by good advice and continued
interest; to him I have, as a token of my great appreciation, dedicated this work.
In British Guiana most important help was received from Robert E. Hawkins, head of
The Unevangelized Fields Mission in the northern Waiwai area. Mr. Hawkins was an
invaluable interpreter in Waiwai language and he and his wife offered the expedition great
hospitality. In Georgetown many authorities gave important assistance but I will confine,
myself to mention the Danish consul, Major C. M. Bernard for his practical advice in
organizing the expedition and Mr. Vincent Roth, O.B.E., director of the British Guiana
Museum for valuable scientific suggestions. To all these persons I want to extend my
sincerest gratitude.
For financial support I would like to thank first the Danish State Research Foundation,
which enabled not only the expedition as such but also supported me in the preparation of
my collected material; the same foundation has generously defrayed the costs of printing
the two appendices and the illustrations. At the same time I thank the Rask-Orsted Founda
tion for a grant supporting the translation from Danish of this monograph, a work done
meritoriously by Major C. L. Bayliss, and later examined terminologically by Douglas
Anderson, M.A., whose help has been greatly estimated.
Finally, I acknowledge my thanks to the Emil Schou Foundation for financial support
during the expedition, and to the East Asiatic Company, Copenhagen, for free passage to
the Caribbean and back.
The most profound gratitude, however, I want to express to my wife, Bodil Fock, for her
practical help and indefatigable moral support.
Copenhagen, April 1963 NIELS FOCK

Contents
Introduction. . 1
Geographical 1
Historical. . 5
Cultural . . 10
Religious Beliefs . 14
The Soul Concept 14
The Ordinary Soul, Ekati . 14
The Former Soul, Ekatlnho . 18
The Eye-Soul . . . . 19
Spirits, Kworokjam . . 20
Ekatmho-Kworokjam 20
Kakenau-Kworokjam 22
People, Yenna 24
Fathers, Yin . . . . 26
The Sun Cult . . . . . 33
How Yaskomo Procured Sunshine. 33
Invocation of the Sun 34
Other Divine Beings . . . . 35
The Creator, Mawari. . . 35
The Culture Hero, Yawari 36
Myths and Legends . 38
The Creation Myth, Mawari 38
Notes.and Aspects. . . . 43
The Anaconda-People, Okoimo-Yenna 48
Notes and Aspects. 51
The Moon, Nuiii . . 54
The Shodewika Myth 56
The Opossum, Yawari 74
The Forest Deer, Koso . 78
Notes and Aspects . . 78
The Harpy Eagle, Yaimo 79
Notes and Aspects. . 82
The Old Man's Trip to the Sky 82
Notes and Aspects. . . . . 84
The Buzzard-People, Kurum-Yenna 86
The Dragon, Uruperi. . . . . 91
Notes and Aspects . . . . . 92
General Mythological Aspects. 93
Cosmology . 101
Practice Stamped by Religious Concepts. 104
Magic Blowing . . . . . . . . .
104
Fatal Blowing, Tono and Parawa

104
Other Blowing, Eremu .

109
of Laymen . . . . .
110
of the Medicine Man.

113
Analysis . . . . .
116
Various Lay Practices

118
Magic
118
Tabus .
121
Omens .
122
The Medicine Man, Yaskomo .

123
Technique
125
Function
129
Tabus .
131
Payment
132
Life Cycle 133
Marriage. 133
Birth 139
Comparative Aspects of the Natal Custom 145
Childhood . . . . 151
Initiation. . . . . 154
Adolescence, Emasl 158
Menstruation . . 158
Male Adolescence 159
Age Groups of Adults 160
Death . 161
Aspects 168
Dance Festivals . . . . 169
The Yamo Dance . . 170
The Shodewika Dance 172
Animal Imitations 179
Annual Cycle . . . . . 182
Social Organization . . 185
Kinship Terminology 185
Kinship System . . 189
Forms of Address . . 193
Kinship Groupings. . 194
The Village of Yakayaka 195
The Family . . . . 200
Forms of Marriage. . . 202
Descent . 203
The Head of the Village, Yayalitomo . 203
Rights of Property. . . . . . . . 205
Distribution of Work and Position. 206
The Daily Round 211
The Oho Chant . . . . 216
Comparative Aspects 219
Political Organization 231
The Village . . . . 231
Legal Conceptions . 232
The Tribe 233
Communication 238
Acculturation . 241
Phonetic Key . . 243
Glossary of Waiwai Words. 244
Bibliography . . . . . . 246
Dansk Resume . . . . . 249
Appendix I: Music of the Waiwai Indians, by Fridolin Weis Bentzon 262
Appendix II: Translation of two Waiwai Oho Chants, by Robert E. Hawkins. 303
Fig. 1. Into Waiwai-land, upper Essequibo River

Introduction
GEOGRAPHICAL
The Waiwai Indians live within an area that roughly can be stated as lying between 0° and 2° northern
altitude and 58°_59° western longitude, that is to say the frontier tracts between British Guiana and
Brazil. This area is stamped by the east-west running Serra Acarai, a geologically-ancient plateau
that at some places reaches a height of about 1000 metres, but otherwise lies on average at an altitude
of 3-600 metres above sea level. Its surface, greatly eroded, is mainly covered by a red clay resulting
from the laterization of granites. The Acarai mountains which at a good 1° northern latitude divide
the Waiwai area into a northern and a southern part, form the watershed between the north-running
Essequibo River and the south-running Rio Mapuera, a tributary of the Rio Trombetas and the
Amazon. (see Fig 1).
Of the Essequibo's two affluents, the Sipu and the Chodikar, the latter is the more important. It
is more navigable, its banks have earlier been areas of Waiwai habitations, and it leads to the shortest
trail southwards over the Acarai mountains. Among the left bank tributaries of the Essequibo mention
must be made of the Kamo and Kassikaityu, between the mouths of which dwell all the northern
Waiwai. Of the right bank tributaries it is enough to mention the Onoro where there is a clearing
without a village. In former times a track ran from here over the Acarai to neighbours in the south
east, the Mouyenna. The upper Essequibo and the Chodikar have strong currents on account of the
fall of the ground, but most of the rapids and falls can be passed with a loaded canoe.
The geography ofthe Rio Mapuera is made more difficult by the lack of accurate maps. The affluents
of the Mapuera coming from the north-west are joined by the Tarwini from the north. Among the
left bank tributaries of the Mapuera mention must also be made of the Tutum, whose banks earlier
were inhabited by the Waiwai and from the upper reaches of which a track runs eastwards to the
Mouyenna's villages, and the Urucurin, at whose upper reaches the Mouyenna live. Only one of the
right bank affluents of the Mapuera is of any importance to the Waiwai. This is the Kikwo on which
(in 1955) lay their two southernmost villages. Navigational conditions on the Mapuera differ greatly
from those of the Essequibo. The upper Mapuera is like an immense stone staircase where calm basins
are succeeded by frequent rapids and falls, the size of which necessitates frequent re-loading and
arduous canoe transport over land. The biggest of these is Omana Kashin, where the vertical drop
alone is more than 10 metres.
The greater part of the banks of the Essequibo and the Mapuera are so low that they are exposed
to annual flooding. These alluvial stretches are characterized by high palm vegetation, and they are
never used for husbandry, for one thing because manioc's long period of growth. The river banks
1 Waiwai
2 Introduction
constitute everywhere a thick wall of vegetation which almost prevents the traveller from recognizing
the terrain of the hinterland. Even on a three day's tour over the Serra Acarai it was not possible once
to obtain a view to the sides for the purpose of orientation.
The climate in the Waiwai area is determined by proximity to the Equator and the altitude of the
settlements, which is about 100 metres. It is tropical with slight variations in the average temperatures
between the seasons (26°-29°C), but with strong fluctuations between day and night (a difference of
up to 20°). The prevalent wind is the south-east trade, and rather more rain falls on the southern
slopes of the Acarai than on the northern. Precipitation of 2-3 metres annually varies somewhat as
does also the intensity of the rainy season. The big rain period falls in June-August, the small around
December; but precipitation is ample throughout the year. The greatest influence of the rainy season
is the torrent which causes the rivers to rise 4-6 metres over low water at the upper Essequibo and
presumably somewhat more at the upper Mapuera. Precipitation and its distribution is ample for
Waiwai husbandry, and from the point of view of hunting trips they would probably prefer more
sunshine than they normally obtain.
Apart from the flooded and swampy areas where palms like ite, manicol, kokerit, lu, pimpler and
dalibanna prevail, the natural vegetation on the laterized granites is of staggering exuberance. An
expert forester who has investigated the area says of Acarai's tropical forest that "there if anywhere
on this earth exists true virgin forest, undisturbed by man" (Guppy 1953, p. 11). Some of the char
acteristic trees are Ichekele (presumably Pithecellobium sp.) and Kecheke1e (Inga gracilifolia), that
often reach a height of 70 metres. Brazil nut trees are rare in the Waiwai area north of the Acarai;
the bark of this tree, used for menstruation mats, is fetched from the Mapuera area. Strychnos for
the production of curare is found in the district, apparently only on the heights of Acarai, where it is
sought by both the northern and southern Waiwai. Among the very variegated flora a large number
of species are used in Waiwai daily life, particularly as technical plants for the manufacture of im
plements.
Of far greater direct importance, however, is the animal life, particularly that near the rivers. Fish
plays an important role as the most stable form of catch, notably haimara, paku, sunfish and tiger
fish are of nutritive importance. But the rivers also contain pirai, electric eel, otters, anaconda and
cayman, the two last particularly in the Mapuera. In regard to the land animals, mention should
particularly be made of the peccary, the white-lipped type of which, frequently found in large droves,
is an important food animal. This also applies to the collared peccary, tapir, red forest deer, accouri,
paca and capybara. Of smaller game there are the tortoise, opossum, sloth, anteater, armadillo, kibihee,
and on occasion jaguar, ocelot and puma. In the tree tops a quite abundant and noisy animal life is
also to be found; many species of monkey possess nutritive value, for example the bisa, capuchin,
howler, marmoset, squirrel and spider monkeys. Birds such as the curassow, maroudi and mam are
also eaten, whereas the harpy eagle, ara and toucan are mainly shot for the sake of their feathers.
Such, then, is the natural surrounding in which the Waiwai live, a population (on 1/1-1955) of
about 180 individuals distributed over 7 villages. These villages change as regards location and number
of inhabitants owing to the economic, social and political structure of the community. The most
northern village, Aakonioto, lies by a small savannah, Waskarati, 2-3 kms from the Essequibo, and
Geographical 3
2" -1--------------------.---------,.--,---,--------1
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Fig. 2. Map showing the loca

tion of Wai wai villages in 1955.
I;' " ""'"

placed to the north and south
of Serra Acarai, the border 00 ~-~-'--

I
--- - -_._----------
between British Guiana and

Brazil. ... ~='o
o_ _ _ = = ~
70km,
_ __ = = = = __ __ = = = = __ _'
4 Introduction
numbers II inhabitants. Yakayaka lies on the river, immediately above the flood line, with 40 in
habitants. Some of its dwellers have fields and temporary shelters a half day's padding distant up the
Onoro. From Aakoniot6 to Yakayaka requires a half to a day's paddling. The southernmost village
in British Guiana is Mauika, with 19 inhabitants; it lies barely a half day's paddling from Yakayaka,
up the Essequibo. At its landing place 3 persons from Kahri had just moved in. From Mauika to the
now deserted village of Kahri on the southern slope of the Acarai is a four-day journey, 21- of which
are on foot over the Acarai, and from Kahri to Kashimo via the Rio Mapuera takes five days' paddling.
Kashimo is also in process of being abandoned; only 7 remained of the original 30-40 inhabitants,
the rest had gone southwards. The next village is Kukwamiti, about 40 inhabitants, It day's paddling
down the Mapuera. The two most southerly Waiwai villages lie near the Mapuera's right bank tributary,
the Kikwo; You, said to be a two days' journey overland from Kashimo, is the lower, and above it
lies Waukomlti. Each is said to have 20-40 inhabitants.
It is immediately apparent that population density in the Waiwai area is very slight. The only close
neighbours are the Mouyenna on the upper Urukurin, and an enormous area can therefore be said
to be Waiwai territory, for example a 50 km broad belt from 2° northern latitude to the Equator, or
about 10,000 km 2 • Ethnographically, however, an area of this kind does not seem to be relevant.
For one thing it is not regarded as tribal territory by the Waiwai, who incidentally only settled in the
northern section of the area in the present century, and secondly it is not exploited beyond the larger
rivers and their immediate hinterland, plus the communicating track over the Serra Acarai between
the sources of the Essequibo and Mapuera.
The Waiwai always dwell in the vicinity of rivers for several reasons: they must naturally possess
easy access to drinking water, and fishing, as mentioned, plays an important part in their economy.
But that they now always live near the larger, navigable rivers is undoubtedly due to the need for
communications, as the tillable soil is by no means plentiful in the larger river valleys where so much
land is annually inundated. It therefore seems reasonable to regard the area from an isolationary
angle as a stretch, the distance from the most northerly to the most southerly Waiwai village. This,
about 4-500 kilometres, can be covered in thirteen days by canoe and on foot over the Acarai, and
gives a communication index of 14 individuals/day's journey. In the meantime there are 9 days'
journey through an area devoid of human beings between the northern and southern Waiwai groups.
If we regard the three northern villages with a population of 73 and their longest distance between
villages of 11-day's journey we obtain an index figure of 49 individuals/day's journey. In the case of
the southern Waiwai there are four villages with about 107 inhabitants within a 2-!- day's journey,
which gives an index figure of 43 individuals/day's journey. Viewed in connexion with the average
size of the Waiwai village, 25 individuals, these figures express the possibilities of communication,
and also show clearly a division of the Waiwai into a northern and a southern group.
Historical 5
HISTORICAL
Waiwai history has little depth as the first time they were visited and mentioned was by R. H. Schom
burgk in 1837. The archaeological knowledge of their present area is confined to a survey in the area's
most northern section, along the Essequibo north of Chodikar by Evans and Meggers (1960, pp. 247
270); an area that has only been inhabited by the Waiwai for about 40 years. The Waiwai's own
tradition about past events is interwoven in myths and other accounts, but always under so vague a
form that no concrete historical data can be deduced.
The Waiwai belong to the Cariban linguistic stock. Dialectically they lie closest to the northern
Para group of Caribs, but they are also closely linked with the Roroima and the upper Rio Negro
Caribs. In these areas it is customary to name neighbouring tribes on the basis of physical peculiarities
(see p. 234), and consequently it is not unreasonable that the name Waiwai is in reality the Wapishana
nickname for their southern neighbours. In Wapishan a the word "Waiwai" means tapioca, and refers
to the Waiwai's unusually light skin colour (Roth 1929, p. X, Coudreau 1887, p. 378). The Waiwai
also use the word about themselves without suggesting any meaning for it. The Waiwai's nearest
I neighbours to the west are the Arawakan Mouyenna, about 4 days' journey from Kukwamlti, and
to the south the Cariban Shereo, about 7 days' journey from Kukwamlti by the Mapuera. To the
j west there is no contact with neighbours apart from rare meetings with the Cariban Piskaryenna
,i
.j
towards the south-west by the upper Rio Nhamunda, and the Arawakan Wapishana to the north
west on the savannah in British Guiana. But 120 years ago the possibilities of contact both peaceful
j and warlike, were different.
R. H. Schomburgk, the first to visit the Waiwai tribe in December 1837, met about 150 Waiwai,
I
I distributed over one village north and two villages south of the Serra Acarai, separated from each
1 other by a distance of a two-days' journey. These villages lay right under the mountains, high up the
tributaries of the Essequibo and Mapuera (Caneruau = Chodikar). The average size of the villages
1 is said to have been 50 individuals, and the communication index about 75 individuals/day's journey.
One day's journey to the south lay the first Barokoto village with 40 inhabitants. Five days' journey
to the north of the most northerly Waiwai village lived the Taruma, and Schomburgk's guides agreed
that the upper Essequibo was uninhabited (Schomburgk 1841, pp. 313-14). A few years later, 1844,
R. H. Schomburgk touched the Waiwai area (1848 11, pp. 468-72). At that time the Taruma were
declining (about 150 by the Essequibo), and an intermarried Barokoto man was head of one of their
villages. On the other hand about 20 Tarumas had moved to the Maopityan tribe (Mouyenna). Schom
burgk's information about the Waiwai is very haphazard. They are described as lighter than the Taruma,
but unusually dirty. In language and appearance they resembled the Makusi. They were great hunters
and famous for their dogs (Schomburgk 1841, p. 316). They particularly coveted the harpy eagle on
account of its ostrich-like feathers (Schomburgk 1848 II, p. 389).
The next traveller who reached the upper Essequibo was C. Barrington Brown (1876, p. 249). He
mentions a trading expedition consisting of Wapishana and Taruma Indians who then, November
1870, had just visited the Waiwai. The Indians described the journey to the Waiwai area, Which, from
6 Introduction
a landing place a little up the Caneruau (= Chodikar), took a long time over land. This undoubtedly
means that in 1870 the Waiwai lived solely south of the Acarai.
In 1884 H. Coudreau travelled hastily through the Waiwai area near the Acarai (Coudreau 1887,
II, p. 348). His information must be taken with some reservation as he undoubtedly exaggerates the
number of the Waiwai, which is put at 3-4000. Localization of the villages is practically impossible
in regard to the place names and travelling times. In the meantime it is certain that there were Waiwai
villages at the upper Mapuera and Tarwini, and presumably also at the upper Tutum, to judge by
Coudreau's three-day march from the Mouyenna to the Waiwai (Coudreau 1887, II, pp. 370-78).
Near the upper Mapuera Coudreau saw about 300 Waiwai, of which at the locality of Bourecochie
alone some 200 inhabitants of 9 malokas. Coudreau's Bourecochie cannot be identified with Barakuchi
(or Kikwo). It is presumably a matter of a small affluent of the Mapuera above the Tutum. Coudreau
(1887, II, p. 379) finally mentions an eastern Ouayeoue (= Waiwai) village south of the Couroucouri
(Urukurin) mountains, from where there was connexion with the Piannocoto, with whom the Waiwai
were on a friendly footing. However, between these tribes by the Rio Urucurin lived the Paricote
(Parukoto) and other wild tribes who attacked the peaceful tribes. In 1884 all the Waiwai should thus
have dwelt south of the Acaria, the main part - about 7 localities with about 300 inhabitants - on
the southern slopes of the Acarai within a distance of two days' march. However, it seems likely that
Coudreau has over-estimated the population of the Bourecochie village. Separated from this northern
group a single village should be found, about a 7 days' journey towards the south-east, south of
Urukurin. A division was apparently about to take place. At the same time there were signs of the
admission of other groups in the northern Waiwai; thus Coudreau mentions (Coudreau 1887, II,
pp. 381-83) that, among others, the Japii regarded themselves as the Waiwai's clients, and now and
again called themselves Waiwai.
Coudreau's ethnographical notes about the Waiwai are meagre (1887, II, pp. 379-80). They liked
to playa deer-bone flute and made cord of tucum (Astrocaryum sp.) and carata (Bromelia sp.). It is
more remarkable that Coudreau found no canoes, and that the Waiwai kept to their tracks in the
interior. They only went reluctantly to the rivers on which the Canaeme were assumed to be. It should
be mentioned that the Canaeme in Coudreau's sense are synonymous with wild Indian tribes, and that
the Waiwai particularly feared the Paricote and Cara to whom they rendered red head coverings
(Coudreau 1887, II, pp. 321, 348, 356).
When Farabee visited the Waiwai in December 1913, they were found on both sides of the Acarai,
but still close in to the mountains. There was one village in Guiana at Kamacoko (= Chodikar), only
a half day's paddling from the landing place whence a track leads over the Acarai. The southern village
lay only 3 days' journey distant. The chief of the northern village was connected with the Taruma by
bonds of marriage, and friendship prevailed between the two tribes. In the southern village several
Parukoto had recently settled. Farabee (1924, p. 176) states that there were only two pure Waiwai
out of the eight inhabitants of the northern village, and only three pure Waiwai out of the 34 in the
southern, where all the women were said to be Parukoto.
Even if we only accept the main features of Coudreau's and Farabee's accounts, something very
dramatic has occurred in the Acarai area during the 30 years around the change of the century. A
- ...-.--._- -'./"---_.-------.. -- ---- --- ------
Historical 7
small group of Waiwai has gone over the mountains to the sources of the Essequibo where they
established friendly relations with the Taruma. This was possibly a measure of protection, for the
whole of the flourishing Waiwai population by the upper Mapuera, bar about three, has disappeared,
being replaced by Parukoto. It must be assumed that the area was frightfully ravaged, either by an
epidemic or by wild tribes. As no mention is made of epidemics, it was presumably one of Coudreau's
Canaeme tribes that was responsible, and the Waiwai themselves preserved a recollection of this
occurrence (Farabee 1924, p. 170, ego below p. 37) in the story about the Karap folk who long ago
killed or expelled to the north all the Waiwai except a very few who saved themselves by withdrawing
to the steep Mt. Paiufon. The disruption of the Waiwai was complete. The last remnants of Coudreau's
eastern Ouyeoue (= Waiwai), who lived south of the Urukurin, were apparently re-discovered by
Farabee, who found two Waiwe. These when small boys, had been saved by their father, the only
survivors when their village was attacked by enemies. In 1913 they lived 6 days' journey from Coudreau's
eastern village, and from Farabee's photographs (1924, Plate 16) appear to be about 30 years of age.
We have here, perhaps, a basis for dating the massacre of the Waiwai to about 1890-95.
It was apparent that the Parukoto were no longer enemies, as, according to Farabee, they were
made welcome in the southern Waiwai village in 1913. Although greatly decimated, the Waiwai
retained their tribal name although the Parukoto were numerically superior, presumably because the
Waiwai were the original inhabitants of the area. Racially and culturally the Parukoto must have
stamped the Waiwai, the more so as the Waiwai later obtained many marriage partners from the
Taruma and Mouyenna, both of whom had had marriage ties with the Parukoto and with each other
(Schomburgk 1848, II, p. 468; Coudreau 1887, II, p. 351; Farabee 1924, p. 183). Even in 1913 the
Waiwai seemed to avoid canoeing on the Mapuera, preferring overland travel (Farabee 1924, p. 175).
Farabee's information about Waiwai culture deals mainly with trading and material elements.
Incidentally, he furnishes the outline of a dance festival, undoubtedly a Shodewika. The mention of
the quipu as an aid for determining future dates (p. 162) is also interesting. The same writer (p. 171)
gives a short description of the circumstances at death, the fatal magic blowing and cremation. He
provides (p. 172) a very short account of the creation myth (Mawari) and (p. 173) of the story of the
Acarai monster that was only pacified by the sacrifice of the most beautiful Waiwai woman, and
(p. 175) a story about the origin of the first musical instrument (presumably the yamo).
In May 1925 the Essequibo group of the Waiwai was visited by Walter E. Roth, in a single populous
village near Duba-Kaiako creek (south of Kamo). He found that the Taruma people had been virtually
exterminated by an influenza epidemic in the years previous. Of the approx. 8 survivors, 6 had married
Waiwai women (Roth 1929, p. IX).
On the other hand there were now over 100 Waiwai north of the Acarai, and the number of that
tribe had thus risen from 8 in 1913 to over 100 in 1925. This can only be interpreted as a general move
from the sources of the Mapuera to those of the Essequibo around the year 1920, and the reason for
this must surely be the dying-out of the Taruma at that time, whereby new land of recognized value
became available. It is worth noting that at the same time the Waiwai are mentioned for the first
time as a canoe people. They still only used woodskins (Roth 1929, p. X), that are practical on small
rivers.
8 Introduction
Roth's ethnographical work was specially devoted to the Waiwai's technical culture which will
not here be referred to. In addition he gives a short description of cremation, and mentions that the
smoking of tobacco is rare, drinking also, which must mean that he has not witnessed any dance
festivals. Finally, Roth stresses that the Waiwai's light complexion has given rise to their name - Waiwai
being the Indian term for tapioca.
In the years around 1935 an Anglo-Brazilian Boundary Commission worked in the Acarai area.
Unfortunately ethnographical particulars are extremely sparse from this expedition, but it appears
that the northern Waiwai village was now pushed further to the north to the Essequibo itself, to
Mauika, about 50 kms above the mouth of the Kassikaityu.
In Mauika were found the last remnants of the Taruma (3 men) in addition to the Waiwai. There
were more men than women and polyandry prevailed as a result (De Freitas 1944, p. 142). At the
same time the Parukoto were living by the upper Mapuera, and here there were said to be about three
times as many women as men (Guppy 1958, p. 37). There have thus been every possibility that the
intermarriage of Parukoto with Waiwai has continued during the whole of the first three decades of
the 20th century.
That this has really been the case is seen indirectly from the next accounts about the Waiwai, that
come from the Terry-Holden Expedition 1937. The Waiwai Indians had then come from Brazil and
had established two villages near the mouth of the Onoro (that is to say near the present Yakayaka).
Holden (1938, p. 329) found besides four villages south of the Acarai near "Mapuera wau", but before
the "Rio Mapuera", at the sources of which dwelt the Mouyenna. This means that the four villages
presumably all lay above the confluence of the Urukurin and Mapuera. The six Waiwai villages had
each about 25-30 inhabitants; the size of the Waiwai population was thus about the same as it is today.
Holden refers to a mysterious initiation of young warriors, though much suggests that it was a matter
of a Yamo dance festival.
Peberdy (1948, p. 15), who visited the Waiwai area in 1946, found near the Essequibo only four
families, or 27 individuals. Not until the 1950's did the population figure near the sources of the
Essequibo begin to rise, and in 1952 (Guppy 1953) there were thus 52 Waiwai, and during our stay
in 1954-55 there were three villages and 70 individuals. However, on Ifl-1955 the main group of the
Waiwai still lived by the Mapuera, about 100 individuals distributed over 3 villages (plus one partially
deserted). 6-7 villages with about 180 individuals is very typical of most of the small Cariban tribes
that stretch from the Acarai downwards towards the lower Rio Trombetas.
This chronological review of the literature concerning the Waiwai tells us something about Waiwai
history during the last 120 years. In addition it shows how little is known about the social and religious
matters of this small tribe. (In this connexion, however, mention must be made of Guppy's popular
book: "Waiwai", which is full of good and correct - though somewhat fragmentary observations).
The picture formed is that in 1837 the Waiwai lived on the Serra Acarai itself, from where they had
peaceful contact over land with the Parukoto, Mouyenna and Taruma. In 1870 they still lived in the
mountains, but only south of the watershed. By 1884 the Waiwai still remained on the southern slopes
of the Acarai along the upper affluences of the Mapuera. Their travels took place on foot and there
were peaceful relations with, for example, the Pianokoto, who lived a little east of the most easterly
Historical 9
rather isolated - Waiwai village. The Waiwai were about to divide into an eastern and a northern
group, and the latter was in process of absorbing the Japii. Wild tribes like the Paricote and Cara
threatened the Waiwai, who, however, were numerous and pacific. Presumably at the beginning -of
the 1890's the Waiwai were attacked and the whole tribe was uprooted, many were killed, some fled,
and a few survived on Mt. Paiufon. It was apparently the wild Cara (= Farabee's Karap = Frikel's
(1957, p. 536) Karahyana or Karahauyana) who fell upon the Waiwai. In 1913 the remnants of the
Eastern Waiwai were re-discovered as Waiwe (Coudreau calls the Waiwai Ouayeoue) in touch with
Mouyenna further east. A group of Waiwai fled over the Acarai, where they came on a friendly footing
with the Taruma, and the Waiwai remaining round the sources of the Mapuera have held their own
owing to the influx of, and intermarriage with, the numerically far superior Parukoto. The Waiwai
still live close under the Acarai. In the beginning of the 1920's the northern neighbours of the Waiwai,
the Taruma, were almost exterminated by an influenza epidemic, and the Waiwai shifted northwards;
in 1925 there were a good 100 Waiwai at the upper Essequibo, though perhaps not all permanently
as only one village is mentioned. Woodskins are reported for the first time. The years 1933-38 are
stamped by the numerous working parties of the Boundary Commission on Serra Acarai, that may
have been a contributary reason for the Waiwai going down the rivers. For the first time reference
is made to a Waiwai village on the Essequibo itself (Mauika) and in 1937 more Waiwai came to the
Essequibo from the south, so that there were then a good 50 by that river and a good 100 by the upper
Mapuera. In 1954 there were about 70 Waiwai by the Essequibo, of which one village close to the
mouth of the Kassikaityu. The Mapuera Waiwai had now gone further south and were to be found
around the mouth of the Urukurin and at Kikwo to a number of about 100. At the same time dug
out canoes succeeded woodskins. The last Taruma and Parukoto had been absorbed by the Waiwai,
who had peaceful and marital relations with the Mouyenna. The new Waiwai, who were thus largely
Parukoto, were again split, this time into a northern and a southern group. This interesting, ever
repeated process of tribal admixture and division would presumably have continued had the Un
evangelized Fields Mission not got hold of the Waiwai in the latter half of the 1950's. As a result of
this, all the Waiwai and the Mouyenna moved to the banks of the upper Essequibo, where there are
now about 250 Indians whose culture will be altered rapidly and radically.
The Waiwai group of 1955 is thus of mixed origin, racially dominated by the Parukoto, though
linguistically the Waiwai seem to have held their own. Culturally they must be considered as a mixture
of - at all events - original Waiwai, Parukoto, Taruma and Mouyenna. Thus the Waiwai are an
example of the expediency of dividing tropical forest tribes into culture areas rather than by race or
language. The Waiwai and Parukoto have presumably possessed nearly identical cultures, languages
and race. It is true that Coudreau refers to the Paricote as wild, but Frikel (1957, p. 553), who has
specially considered the question of wild versus peaceful tribes, considers them peaceful Caribs. In
the meantime the original Waiwai lived on Serra Acarai itself and possessed no canoes, whereas the
Parukoto came from the south by the Mapuera; in this way they may have introduced Amazonian
elements into the Waiwai culture of today. A gradual acculturation of the Waiwai by means of tribal
mixing is quite in accord with the development suggested by Frikel (1957, p. 533) concerning the wild
Cariban tribes of north Para.
to Introduction
CULTURAL
The religious and social life of the Waiwai can only be understood on the background of their economic
and technical standard, here briefly to be mentioned. The material culture of the Waiwai will be
exhaustively dealt with by Jens Yde in another number of this series. Occupational life is dominated
by slash-and-burn agriculture with bitter manioc as the most important culture plant. Sweet manioc
is not found as at the upper Rio Negro, nor is maize. This gives the agriculture a particularly light
character as no special harvest season is required and storage is unnecessary. Agriculture can thus be
said to be adjusted to man's chief occupations, hunting and fishing, as it does not demand any radical
change of mentality in regard to the stability of work. Farming also takes place on lighter soil than,
for example, with the earlier and present neighbours, the Taruma and Mouyenna, who primarily
cultivated patches of dark soil that were not so quickly exhausted. In consequence, the Waiwai were
less domiciled than their two neighbouring tribes (Guppy 1958, pp. 220, 56, 140; Evans and Meggers
1960, p. 262). The Waiwai also cultivate the textile plants kraua and cotton, but the latter has possibly
been introduced late, as Coudreau only mentions the production of cords of tucum (Astrocaryum sp.)
and carata (Bromelia sp.) in 1884. When Guppy (1958, p. 220) maintains that the Waiwai only cultivate
plants that bear fruit within a year, as opposed to the Taruma and Mouyenna, it is possibly a matter
of former times; today this does not apply, as, for example, anatto (Bixa orellana) is cultivated (Yde
1960, p. 85). In this connexion it can be mentioned that of the 6 Waiwai sites near the Essequibo
investigated by Evans and Meggers (1960, p. 192), the 5 were established on old Taruma sites (sites
Nos. 4, to, 11, 14 and 21). Tobacco is grown specially by the medicine man, but its use in the form
of long cigarettes has been secularized in recent years; as late as 1925 smoking was rare (Roth 1929,
p.lX).
The Waiwai still talk about rare culture plants only known to the Taruma, and they still bring
from the Mapuera Waiwai and the Mouyenna new plants to their fields by the Essequibo. It has often
been a matter of chance whether a culture plant reached the Waiwai, or not. Thus a Waiwai from
the northernmost Essequibo village brought with him cuttings of the calabash tree, the fruit of which
is used, among other things, for dance rattles, when returning home in 1954 from a visit to the Mapuera
village of Kashimo. Unfortunately, his canoe capsized in one of the many Mapuera rapids and all
the cuttings were lost. A small travel accident was thus sufficient to stop the northern Waiwai ever
obtaining the calabash tree as a culture plant. Similar chances can be thought to have limited the
diffusion of cultural elements to so greatly an isolated folk group. The Waiwai of 1837 who lived on
the Serra Acarai must be assumed to have engaged in agriculture, though Schomburgk merely refers
to them as dirty hunters; but the number of culture plants has undoubtedly been less than is the case
today. Presumably bitter manioc and kraua were the most important plants.
In regard to hunting and fishing the most important animals have already been mentioned. Hunting
is by far the favourite occupation of the Waiwai man. It takes place mainly in the early morning hours
by the help of the 21 m long bow and arrows. Curare-treated points are used particularly in the case
of monkeys, but the blow tube is unknown to the Waiwai. For hunting peccary the Waiwai employ
their numerous, highly-trained and beloved hunting dogs that can hold back a fleeing drove or drive
Cultural 11
Fig. 3. Waiwai family of three generations with dogs and parrot on the way home from a fishing expedition on the
Rio Mapuera. Dug-out canoes are the most important means of communication.
an individual animal into a wild pig trap. Much of the fishing has the character of hunting, as it takes
place with bow and arrow from a canoe, cliff or platform. Fish traps are used in small creeks, but
nets and lines are not, presumably on account of the sharp teeth of the pirai. On the other hand fish
poisoning is general in quiet river basins, and here the women and children take part in the collection
of the unconscious fishes. The same applies to the collection of a large number of technical plants,
r edible fruits, honey, and the eggs of iguana, turtle and caiman.
I Most Waiwai traffic now takes place by river with the help of dugout canoes, but, as already
mentioned, this has not always been so. For transport over land the long back baskets, carried by a
strap over the forehead, are used. Simple climbing rings are resorted to when picking fruit etc. from trees.
The village is dominated by the large communal house with high conical roof and low walls. The
house is divided up into uniform sections for the various families, and is thus in harmony with the
principle of equality that characterizes its occupants. Each section is furnished with hammocks made
of kraua, produced by loop technique, and towards the wall behind them are the dog shelves. As a
rule there are more dogs than people in a Waiwai house. Older men have meticulously-carved and
painted stools to sit on, whilst the women use mats. In the centre of each section is the family fireplace
and in the centre of the house a common hearth where the communal meals are prepared.
The daily diet of the Waiwai is tapioca juice, cassava bread and pepper pot, where all kinds of
animal ingredients are made unrecognizable, and presumably also preserved, in a sharp pepper sauce.
For smoking and toasting a barbacue is frequently used. In connexion with dance festivals several
12 Introduction
forms of fermented chicha drink are prepared. The greatest working effort of the Waiwai woman lies
in the household, in the preparation of food where bitter manioc, particularly, is a lengthy process
with peeling, grating, pressing and drying before baking can begin. The secondary production of
grater boards and clay vessels is also her work. Waiwai clay vessels are in the case of drinking vessels
painted with black and red vegetable dye. Other vessels may have engraved decoration that much
resembles that of the technically superior Taruma clay vessels (Evans and Meggers 1960, p. 269).
The larger clay vessels are used as urns or covers over the ashes after a cremation.
Stone axes and knives have completely disappeared in favour of bush knives and axes of iron. This
is the only important change resulting from the Whites. Also conspicuous, however, is the use of
china beads for women's aprons. The white chain of beads worn as an armlet on the upper arm is a
sign of maturity. Men's dress is confined to the cotton lap if we ignore the numerous ornaments, of
which the hair tube for the long pigtail is particularly typical. It is noteworthy that beads and cotton
were apparently not found in Coudreau's day (1887, II, pp. 357, 378-79). Then armlets, lap and apron
were made of coir, and the Waiwai used wild seeds, for example, as ear ornaments. Coir as a dress
material is now only used by the Waiwai for dance cloaks that are decorated with negative painting,
and for the painted masks worn at the Yamo festival. Coir processing and weaving, like wickerwork
come under the special working field of men.
The occupational life and technical plane of the Waiwai is restricted in its development as a result
of their natural and cultural environment. The tropical rain forest limits husbandry to a primitive
slash- and- burn agriculture, and the wish for certain communications still further restricts its effectiveness.
The primitive husbandry of the Waiwai gives no surplus production, which may be traditionally
motivated by the wish to maintain hunting as a relatively predominant occupation. In the meantime
production is responsible for the fact that there is little specialization and also, to some extent, for
the lack of class division. A determinative angle does not, however, seem to be acceptable to illustrate
the inter-relationship between Nature, occupation and community, as primitive views of Nature
modify these relations. In the Waiwai consciousness Nature is not apprehended determinatively as an
occupational basis, nor is it realized that occupation is a factor limiting community development.
On the other hand the Waiwai regard natural environment as consisting of active - to some extent
arbitrary - powers and forces, whose activities can sometimes be limited or promoted in order to
ensure an harmonious existence, both materially and spiritually. The absence of the sun must be
impeded by a sun cult; rain must be driven away by rain magic. Floods, governed by the Anaconda
people, are feared. Threats to the crops must be dispelled, and game summoned, by magic. Thus it
is as much the Waiwai understanding of Nature as Nature itself that affects cultural development.
In this way the religious ideas therefore become the basis stamping the occupational and social
institutions.
This is clearly illustrated by an example: The Waiwai have knowledge of many animal spirits but
hardly any plant spirits, and the helping spirits of the medicine man, which, for example, are summoned
in connexion with illness, are solely animal spirits. The absence of plant spirits stamps the culture, as,
for example, knowledge of plant medicine is negligible both in relation to magical, animal medicine
Cultural 13
and compared with the knowledge possessed by the Coast Arawaks of that branch of medical treat
ment. In connexion with the Waiwai natal custom, it will furthermore be shown how the concept of
animal spirits, by being linked with the male occupation of hunting, has obtained decisive influence
on the details of that custom. In th~se cases it is not Nature herself, but the Waiwai appreciation of
it, that is to say their religious ideas, that limit or shape the cultural development.
Religious Beliefs
THE SOUL CONCEPT. THE HUMAN SOUL, EKATI
When considering as a whole some of the customs and practices most difficult of comprehension
that characterize the spiritual life of the Waiwai, it is quickly discovered that the elements that cause
them to be difficult to understand or to appear "illogical" have as a rule their origin in the soul concept.
A certain basic knowledge of the Waiwai's soul concept is therefore requisite in order that a number
of phenomena should not appear as merely curious examples. Everything that may appear "illogical"
or "pre-logical" with the Waiwai can, in the author's opinion, be cleared up by a logical application
of the soul concept. That here, as in all other cultures, the soul concept evades a logical analysis is
another matter.
However, the conceptions concerning the soul are not only the basis for further understanding
but also for further development, for they form the starting point for the most significant group of
supernatural beings. This is already seen from the words" ekatl (soul), ekatinho (ghost) and ekatmho
kworokjam (spirit). A description will now be given of the ordinary soul that is of such vital im
portance, and thereafter a brief account of the special eye soul, conceptions regarding which appear
extremely vague. It is not possible to furnish a completely unambiguous explanation owing to a but
fragmentary knowledge and also, particularly, because the forming of concepts is based not only on
tradition but also to no small extent on individual experience.
The ordinary Soul: Ekati'
The ekatl of a human being is particularly located in the heart for, as the Waiwai say, "when one is
afraid of losing one's ekati the heart beats strongly, and when the ekati leaves the body the heart
ceases to beat". Incidentally, the ekati appears to extend over the whole body in the form of fluid or
!
I.
soul matter. It reaches, for example, into the hair and the nails, and when these are cut they are care
fully destroyed for fear of an enemy using them for purposes of magic. It was explained that even
remnants of food can be used for fatal magical blowing, as tooth imprints enabled the transition of
some ekati to the food; the same is the case with footprints. Ideas regarding the ekati are in the nature
of things somewhat vague, but in general it is regarded as something substantial, invisible, but not
devoid of weight, which appears from the fact that sick persons, that is to say those who have tempo
rarily lost their ekati, feel themselves much lighter. Similarly, the Waiwai maintain that after they
have had their hair cut they feel a little weaker. It may be mentioned in this connexion that the males
of the tribe hold long hair in high honour, and that this in the form of a heavy pigtail often reaches
The Soul Concept 15
1; ,
Fig. 4. Ewka, village leader and medicine man in Yakayaka; chief informant of the author in 1955. The painted
facial designs are altered daily.
to "the loins. Even though the ekati is especially associated with the heart, breathing also occupies a
special position. For example, when a child sneezes one of the parents blows on its mouth to stop
the ekati disappearing with the sneeze. Furthermore, the ekati has the form of the individual in which
it resides, which agrees with several statements about the ekatr of animals "that was like a dream
and of the same size as the animal in question".
It seems to be the general impression that the ekati spreads like a kind of contagion from the body
over to things with which it merely comes in contact; it thus becomes a divisible fluid. It is this quality
that is frequently responsible for sickness and death as a result of sorcery, for even the slightest divided
part of ekati - if put under a spell - will react on the major part that has remained in the body. The
Waiwai are thus continually diffusing their psychic matter, though there continues to be correspond
ence between the source and the separated portions.
In addition to meaning "soul" ekati can also signify shadow, picture and vital force. For this reason
a woman hid her own and her child's face when a photograph was taken. She explained that she was
afraid of losing her ekati in the camera, as she knew that a picture of it would appear.
16 Religious Beliefs
The Waiwai also imagine a psychic quality linked with names, for which reason they are carefully
avoided in direct conversation, it being maintained that "a spell is placed on a person when ad
dressing him by his name". In addition to ordinary family names a baby is often given a "spirit"
or kworokjam-name. From his special hut the medicine man will then ascend to the heaven and visit
the moon and his brother. He shows the child in spirit form to them, and they give it its kworokjam
name. In a short time the child can actually be called kworokjam, or even yaskomo (medicine man);
two terms that seem closely related. This is perhaps due to the similarity in regard to the untrammeled
nature of both the child's and the medicine man's ekati. Another important quality of the ekati is
that it is able at will to leave the body. Here, however, one must differentiate between 3 categories
of human beings: 1) medicine men, 2) babies and 3) other people.
I) The medicine man, yaskomo can, like ordinary people, dream, that is to say leave his body
during sleep. But in addition he can at night - and only then - from his medicine man's hut, shute
pana - and only there - in a state of wakefulness send his ekati away from his body to one of three
places: a) to heaven in order to secure the assistance of the heavenly spirits, kakenau-kworokjam, in
curing the seriously ill, or to the moon and his brother to be given a kworokjam name for a new-born
child; b) to the cave in the peccaries mountain to persuade the Father of peccaries, poinko-yin, to
give good hunting, c) to the Anaconda-people, okoimo-yenna, who live deep down in the river, to
obtain advice and help. The medicine man's ekati can thus reach the three elements: air, earth and
water, which can be construed as meaning that, cosmically, it can reach everything.
2) As opposed to the conscious soul flight of the medicine man we have that of the baby whose ekatt
during the first three years of its life is very dependent. The baby's ekati often follows the parents,
either sitting on the mother's hip or the father's back, or else walking at their heels.
If the father and mother are not together, the ekati of a baby wanders from the one to the other,
and if whilst so doing it gets lost in the wood or anything happens to it, the baby will fall ill and possibly
die. During this period a baby is actually called "that which can lose its ekan". I once saw a baby's
father who had to undertake a considerable journey alone let the baby rub up and down his back.
This was done in order that the child's ekatl should remain with it rather than risk the many dangers
of a journey. In such a situation the father will also wash his hands thoroughly in order not to leave
with some part of the child's ekatl, which would endanger the whole. After an age of 3 years the ekati
of a baby will no longer follow the father and mother, but goes its own ways and takes up permanent
residence in the body of the child.
3) In the case of other persons the ekati can leave the body during sleep and experience what is
dreamt. As the ekati is regarded as something real, dreams are also considered actual happenings by
which one is very much affected (see also p. 108). But if for any other reason the ekan leaves the body
it means sickness and possibly death. The usual cause of illness is that a kakenau-kworokjam sees
one or enters one's body thus forcing out the ekatt. The medicine man's cure therefore consists in
invoking a helping spirit, who first finds the evicted ekati and then drives out the baleful kakenau
kworokjam, reinstating the ekatl,
With the fatal tono blowing, which will be referred to later, it is as a rule a matter of contagious
or homoeopathic magic over a divided part of the victim's ekatl which then infects the ekati residing
I I
The Soul Concept 17
in him. On the other hand, in the case of revenge blowing it is a matter of soul rape with consequent
fatal results.
Origin: Immediately a child is born it possesses an ekati. This is known "because from the same
day its ekati can get into touch with poyin", that is to say the magical dangers threatening babies
(see also p. 141). No one knows where this ekati' comes from, but the author's head informant, Ewka,
thought that the ekati of a male child came from its father and that of a female child from its mother.
From the following account it will appear that ekati comes into being at conception: A woman
had often been sick during her pregnancy and the medicine man had blown over her on several
occasions. At the giving of the name, when the medicine man saw the monkey-like face of the child,
he discovered the reason for her illness: The woman had conceived whilst an old, dead spider monkey
that they had in the house had its face turned towards her and the man. The monkey's ekati' must
have entered the woman at the moment of conception, for which reason the baby resembled a poroto
(spider monkey). Accordingly the medicine man gave the child the name poroto.
With the material available the problem concerning the Waiwai idea of the ekati"s origin appears
insoluble. The naming custom provides no basis, as the frequent symmetrical cross-cousin marriages
cause a married couple to have grandparents in common (see also p. 192) and thus the two sure cases
T I have found of naming after grandparents cannot be applied. That it should be the father who gave
the child its portion of ekati', as is perhaps faintly suggested by the story, might possibly fit in with
current views on pre-natal customs, but with the Waiwai these apply equally well to both father and
mother (see also p. 142). The Waiwai presumption concerning an ambivalent origin must at all events
be regarded as harmonizing extremely well with the current rule of ambivalent inheritance and bi
lateral descent (see also p. 203).
Disappearance: When a human being dies the ekati' leaves the body; indeed, this is the cause of
death. It is then free to wander at will, and is called ekatinho ("nho" meaning old or former), that is
to say the former soul. The precise term is, however, ekati'nho-kworokjam, "kworokjam" signifying
"spirit". The kworokjam group consists of two categories: kakenau-kworokjam, heavenly spirits,
which includes all those that live in the sky, for example birds, incorporeal spirits and the malevolent
forest spirits; they are all of enormous antiquity, having existed from days prior to the creation of
man. The other category, ekati'nho-kworokjam, is linked with the earth and particularly comprises
animals created from the souls of the dead, i.e. ekati'nho. That ekati'nho were characterized as kwo
rokjam was explained: "for one cannot see them". Invisibility is thus an important feature.
Apparently there is thus a question of reincarnation, though only from a superficial point of view.
Whilst an ekatl becomes an ekati'nho on death, this transistion is not felt by the Waiwai to involved a
personal survival; on the contrary, they are afraid of death, "because one dies for ever". That in
incantations against illness the term "his ekatl died" can be used, was interpreted by the author's
informant as merely being a mode of speech. In the case of reincarnation, ekati' should probably be
given as "life force". The deceased person does not apprehend this form of survival, whereas the
surviving relatives may be confronted by a "reincarnation" of this type.
Example: Two Waiwai out hunting caught sight of a tapir on its way towards an old grave. Its
legs were those of a human being, the rest of it was a tapir. The two men shouted "Who is that, who
2 Waiwai
- -- --- -',-.
is that?" but the animal merely ran on, and they then realized that it was the deceased's ekatmho
that had become a tapir. They immediately stopped hunting the animal, as they were afraid that its
ekatmho-kworokjam would come and devour human beings. In the example about the tapir it is a
question of an animal individual deriving from the ekatinho of a deceased person, but in terming a
majority of animal spirits ekatinho-kworokjam, the idea is apparently extended to comprise whole
species.
The fact that a number of animals like tapirs, deer and opossums are believed to derive from the
ekatinho of deceased persons is possibly the logical background for the phenomenon, frequently
encountered in myths, that these animals are able of their own volition to transform themselves into a
human form. In addition, the circumstance is partly responsible for the Waiwai attitude to a number
of animals who are almost regarded as being of the same character as the human race.
In regard to the ekatinho of the medicine man, there are - as we saw in the case of his ekati - several
exceptions to the rule. When a medicine man dies his ekatinho is not bound to the earth and ordinary
haunting, but can wander either to the Anaconda-people, to the Father of peccaries, or - which seems
to be the most frequent - to heaven, according to wish. This is known to take place in connexion
with the relatively late and only partly introduced burial at which soul ladders (see p. 166) can be
used, but the idea has undoubtedly found expression at the earlier and more general cremations.
Ekatinho (the former soul)
As mentioned previously, at its owner's death the ekati changes character to ekatinho. The ordinary
ekatinho soon leaves the body in order to proceed to its birthplace which is identical with that of the
body. This might also suggest that the ekati is regarded as born or created at the same time as the
body. The ekatinho then returns to the grave which thenceforth becomes its permanent abode; here
it lives on "the worms that consume corpses". As an ekatinho will always try to bring misfortune on
the living, every Waiwai avoids approaching a grave alone; they say: "I am afraid that the leg of the
deceased will speak and bring me misfortune". It is believed that ekatinho of the deceased's shoulder
blade (there is here a question of a part of the general ekatinho) becomes a whippoorwill "that is
often found near burial places"; but this bird can transform itself into a dangerous invisible spirit,
ekatinho-kworokjam, that seizes and abducts enviable surviving relatives.
Incidentally, these Waiwai opinions vary in regard to the manifestations of the ekatinho. At Mapuera
some consider that it can be reincarnated in the big night bird, wawkani, or other night birds, which
in consequence are never shot at (see also the tapir reincarnation above). An individual related that
when the ekatinho leaves the grave it jumps like a frog.
The Essequibo Waiwai believe in general that on its trips from the grave the ekatmho transforms
itself into an opossum, yawari, and moves around in that shape. When it meets a human being, it will
immediately change itself into the invisible ekatinho-kworokjam in order to frighten people. Women
flee from such a spirit, but a man can take up the battle and fight it at the place where he feels it is
grasping him. If the ekatmho-kworokjam does not win the struggle it will change itself into an
opossum and disappear.
The Soul Concept 19
As earlier mentioned, this "reincarnation" is not considered as any personal survival, and the in
dividual appears unable to influence the form he will adopt. A curious exception to this is found,
however, and typically enough in connexion with a medicine man. In his capacity as go-between in
the case of the Father of peccaries, the medicine man must neither kill nor eat peccaries. Should he
break this ban it is thought that the Father of peccaries will punish him with death by leading his
ekati to the peccaries mountain where the medicine man will be reincarnated as a wild pig.
When hearing something rustle in the woods at night without being able to discover a reasonable
explanation for it, it is attributed to an ekatinho-kworokjam, which primarily moves about at night;
there are, however, still more dangerous forms of forest spirits.
The following examples will show various forms that are regarded by the Waiwai as molestation
on the part of the spirits of dead people:
Example 1. An old woman had come to dwell at about 20 metres from an ancient grave, and the
ekatinho of the deceased often came to her at night with meat, saying: "Here is your meat". He said
this merely to entice the woman closer and thus capture her, but she became alarmed and moved
away from the place.
Example 2 is of an almost humorous character, and tells of the ekatinho of a dead man that made
a practice of coming at night and washing its hands in the cassava drink of a young, unrelated woman;
"which is the reason why her drink always has such a frightful smell".
When a Waiwai dies it is customary to destroy all his personal property in connexion with his
cremation (or burial). According to the Waiwai, this is done primarily "in anger" at the painful loss;
but when going so far as to cut all hair from children the deceased has caressed it is probably due to
the idea that the ekatmho, like the ekati, can contaminate, and that its separated part still retains
contact with its origin. The child's hair will thus no longer be the habitation of any of its relatives
ekatl, but of some ekatinho that can cause this child hurt. Accordingly the hair is cut off.
Ekatmho-kworokjam must therefore be regarded as an invisible spirit with permanent residence
at the grave of the originator, but it possesses free will to wander in the forest, particularly at night
and near villages. It can function as an invisible kworokjam or be manifested as an animal; it is always
greatly feared, as it is malicious and revengeful, desiring only to capture and kill human beings.
The eye soul
Compared with the ideas about the general ekatl there is but little knowledge of and vague information
about the eye soul. It is explained as: "the small person one always sees in the others' eye", which
one is tempted to interpret as one's own reflected image, though it may be a matter of a general im
pression of the eye as that which best expresses the soul of a person. The special position accorded
the eyes can also be due to quite different circumstances, namely, as will later be illustrated, that to
see is the same as being seen when it is a matter of supernatural beings. It is dangerous to be seen by
a spirit; one is seen when one sees it oneself, and thus to a special degree the eyes can bring misfortune
to the whole person. Should a child see a dead person, it can lose its eye soul. The child will thereby
contract a fever, but will not die on this account. The eye soul thus has an independent existence,
2'
but is not regarded as an absolute necessity for the individual as is the ordinary soul. On a person's
death his eye soul also goes its own way, for it ascends to kapu (= sky, heaven), more precisely the
first plane over the human layer (see also p. 101). Kapu is regarded as a light and friendly place where
all are happy. Thus a Waiwai might exclaim: "I wish to leave these evil-speaking people, to rise to
heaven and die". The eye soul is subjected to treatment resembling purgatory in kapu (see also the
story p. 82, about The old man's trip to the sky), where the deceased's manifested eye soul was first
stung by giant wasps and later cut up before gaining eternal life. That the eye soul has left the body
after death is realized by the fact that the dead person exposes the whites of this eyes.
KWOROKJAM (SPIRITS)
The word kworokjam, which is best translated as "spirits", is from a European point of view am
biguous, though the Waiwai do not hesitate in their employment of the term and its connotation.
The word kworokjam consists of "kworo", which means the big red macaw, a bird that, like the
kworo-yenna in the Shodewika myth, plays rather a big role in the Waiwai conception of the super
natural. The suffix "yam" means group or majority, and thus the whole word should probably be
understood as representing a more comprehensive group of supernatural beings.
Ekatinho-kworokjam
Kworokjam can most simply be used in connexion with the soul of a living animal; thus just as a
human body has an ekati, so an animal has a kworokjam, Now and then talk can be heard of an
animal ekati, which perhaps best should be interpreted as a parallelisation with the human world and
an admission that the souls of animals are of the same type as the human soul. It can be said that the
term animal-ekati points to its qualities (which resemble those of the ekati), whereas animal-kworokjam
points to its origin with the implied ekatinho-kworokjam, that brings to mind reincarnated persons.
The animals that possess an ekatmho-kworokjam are primarily land animals, for example tapirs,
deer, opossum, though larger fish, such as the haimara and tiger fish are also thus endowed.
It is said of the tapir's ekatinho-kworokjam that it is almost as big as the animal itself; little was
known about it beyond the fact that it was "like a dream". An old man also once saw a wild pig
kworokjam that was over a metre long; that is to say the size of a wild pig. In the same way the
ekatinho-kworokjam of a haimara and tiger fish were of the size of a boy, which corresponds to the
biggest examples of the species.
From myths - which by the Waiwai are regarded as living reality - it appears that animals with an
ekatrnho-kworokjam, for example deer, opossum and anaconda are able in certain circumstances to
re-transform themselves into human form. However, certain typical qualities always betray them as
being in possession of a kworokjam and therefore animals.
The kworokjam of certain animals are especially dangerous to babies from birth to three years of
age, at all events at the moment at which the animal is killed or wounded.
Spirits (Kworokjam) 21
Example: Just as the big Shodewika dance festival started and the guests, dressed in palm leaves,
danced into the village square, one of the local women went round each guest with a torch. The
reason for this was 1) that the woman had a baby, 2) and that one of the guests might have killed or
wounded some big game of which the woman would be unaware before the meal began, 3) that the
kworokjam of a killed or wounded animal would occupy the hunter without thereby causing him
any hurt. 4) At the common meal the kworokjam of the animal would infect the others present; 5) the
baby's ekati would be exposed to the contagion, and 6) the baby's ekati would be pressed by the
animal's kworokjam and possibly completely evicted, which would cause the baby's death. Alter
natively, the ekati would be so terrified by the invading kworokjam that the baby would twitch in its
sleep and contract a fever. If the animal were only wounded, the hunter must not be brought into
contact with the baby because: "the destroyed flesh of the wounded animal would destroy other flesh".
The dangerous contact between the animal kworokjam and the baby would be hindered by the
parents themselves not eating the animal, and by the encirclement referred to which drives away any
kworokjam in the hunter. The danger from an animal kworokjam is particularly great at the moment
of its death when its kworokjam is, so to say, liberated. At the same time it must be realized that for
the Waiwai there is no distinction between an animal kworokjam and the dangerous ekatinho
kworokjam previously referred to, manifested in the form of an animal. Consequently they greatly
fear the opossum and its ekatinho-kworokjam ; this also in another way occupies an important place
in the consciousness ofthe Waiwai, as one of the most important culture heroes. The forest deer, likewise
possesses a powerful and dangerous kworokjam, and many are so fearful of it that they never dare
to eat venison. The dead animal's kworokjam never seems to change its form of existence in the way
as does the ekati of human beings, but, on the contrary, some animals are resurrected within their
own species. In this way the kworokjam of the wild pig (which, be it noted, is not an ekatinho
kworokjam, but a kakenau-kworokjam, as mentioned below) goes after death to the edge of the village
clearing and fetches its flayed hide which it places in a warishi, a pannier. This assertion is a variance
to the usual practice of never flaying game with the exception of jaguars. The Father of peccaries
follows this process "just as the soul follows us", and re-creates a new wild pig out of the hide and
pannier. In this case (see further below under poinko-yin) the species' collective stock of kworokjam
appears to be concentrated in the Father of peccaries, who is at one and the same time origin, ruler
and summoner of the life of the individual, and thus almost becomes identical with the species itself.
It may be mentioned that in the view of the Waiwai the Father of peccaries has a human-like form,
poinko-yin.
It can thus be determined - rather confusingly - that, for example, an animal like the deer (koso),
possesses a kworokjam, or more precisely expressed an ekatinho-kworokjam, which means that the
animal can also appear in human form (as in the myth concerning the origin of the deer), and that
the term kworokjam is sometimes interchangeable with ekati. This strong amalgamation of animal
and human makes unambiguous interpretations extremely difficult.
Kakenau-kworokjam
So far the animal kworokjam has been discussed from the point of view of being derived from re
incarnated human beings; but the animal kworokjam that according to the creation myth engendered
the first human being belongs to another form of kworokjam, the kakenau-kworokjam which - in
addition to certain selected land animals - particularly comprises birds and the immaterial spirits.
Whereas there are signs that suggest that the ekati'nho of some persons - and at all events the eye
ekati'nho - dwell in the first heavenly layer over the earth, it is known definitely that the kakenau
kworokjam live in the highest heavenly stratum. It is consequently natural that all birds belong to the
latter group, "as they fly in the sky which is full of kakenau". The position of birds can thus be due
to the contagious quality in general characteristic of the kworokjam. The Waiwai have no explanation
for the origin of kakenau-kworokjam, often saying merely that is has always existed, at all events
long before Mawari, the creator of mankind, who provided the impulse for the appearance of ekati'nho
kworokjam. "Mawari came not so long ago" according to the opinion of many.
A kakenau-kworokjam is unable to transform itself into man, but on the other hand is far stronger
and more dreaded than an ekatmho-kworokjam. The white heron, wakara, is a kakenau-kworokjam,
people are very frightened of; and when it flys over a village it is a sign either that a medicine man is
about to die or that a new one is shortly to appear.
The medicine man stands in close relationship to the various kakenau-kworokjam, possibly because
they are considered especially dangerous and therefore require a specialist to render them innocuous,
whilst their powerful qualities can be exploited by his magic. The kakenau-kworokjam that in this
connexion particularly are concerned are the otter's (waya-waya), the anteater's (amachi), the bat's
(Ie-Ie), and the harpy eagle's (yaimo), that often act as helping spirits (hyasm), for the medicine man.
When a kakenau-kworokjam of this kind is summoned down to the village as a helping spirit, a number
of other kakenau-kworokjam will come also, particularly if this occurs at night - and even by day
some will come: "they come like a wind". In the meantime, as this is dangerous and cannot be con
trolled, attemps are made in various ways to impede this; for example the sun cult is performed with
a pole, carved with the anaconda pattern and painted red, it being explained that both the anaconda
and the red colour will frighten away the uninvited kakenau. Altogether, the red colour with which
all Waiwai always cover their whole body is said to have precisely this purpose. In addition, a bristly
palm leaf rosette can often be seen tied around tree trunks at head height by the edge of the village
clearing and close to the tracks; this is also though to keep away kakenau-kworokjam. At a Shodewika
dance festival it was also noticed that a portal of palm leaves had been erected over the path the guests
were to use. This was to stop hostile kworokjam from accompanying visitors.
The Waiwai theory about illness is based on kakenau-kworokjam that are so dangerous that if
they merely see a human being he will fall sick and die unless the medicine man quickly saves him.
Kworokjam of this kind are tawa-yenna (common yellow-green butterfly), dragon-fly, that are thought
to cause epilepsy, and wuli (black bird with a wagging tail) that causes fever.
It happened on several occasions that the medicine man, instead of talking of his auxiliary spirit
(for example, the otter) as kakenau-kworokjam, used the expression "yenna" (i.e. people, nation),
Spirits (Kworokjam) 23
without it appearing to him incongruous. For example it was related in connexion with kakenau
kworokjam that Kurum-yenna (buzzard people) and Lele-yenna (bat people), were kakenau-kworokjam
who sang curious, meaningsless songs, like "acholihe ihelihe" etc. The reason for this is best explained
by the ideas about cosmos that are expressed, inter alia, in the introduction to the creation myth.
The Waiwai assume that every animal and every plant has, in addition to its manifested existence
on earth, a form of existence in heaven (presumably in the first and second heavenly layer, respectively,
according to whether it is a question of ekatinho- or kakenau-kworokjam), The heavenly parallel is
indicated by adding "-imo", that is, great, to the name of the species. 'The heavenly parallels are always
greater and have stronger qualities than the mundane, but are only visible in dreams or in trances.
They are thus imaginary. Before the time of Mawari, the creator of mankind, they also lived on earth
and were called yenna, even though they were kakenau-kworokjam - for example, Ratakimo-yenna
from "rataki", grasshopper, "imo", great, "yenna", people, who are said to be Mawari's father.
The sense of "yenna" here is that it is a matter of several individuals - of both sexes - comprising a
stable group (i.e. species), as opposed to the sporadic appearance of a single individual.
However, some kakenau-kworokjam of the immatrial type are still to be found on earth. These
are the so-called "bush spirits" whose speciality is the killing of human beings who venture to go
alone in the forest at night. These kakenau-kworokjam seize their victims and fell them with a club
made of hardwood, payura. A special bush spirit was called makusi; it kills people by hitting them
on the collar bone with its club. It is probable that this name is connected with the Makusi Indians
living to the north. It can be mentioned in this connexion that the Wapishana, who live between the
Waiwai and the Makusi, refer to the latter as Canaemes (canaemes = bush spirit) according to
Coudreau (1887, II, p. 321). The placing of the Makusi Indians to the west of Acarai is mentioned by
Frikel (1957, p. 550), but the Waiwai today seem unaware of any neighbouring tribe of that name.
With reference to the appearance of curare in the Waiwai area (see also p. 240), the author is of the
opinion that the Makusi Indians either on trading expeditions or, perhaps more likely, when searching
for curare have now and again entered Waiwai territory. The rare meetings that have now ceased,
can have caused the Waiwai in his mind to confuse the Makusi (Indian) with the makusi (bush spirit)
possessing kakenau-kworokjam.
Amongst the incorporeal kakenau-kworokjam there are also good and benevolent ones like, for
example, Makama. It can be seen in dreams and resembles a human being. The medicine man uses
it to heal people, but it cannot bear the variety of banana that possesses a strong smell. Should the
medicine man eat this kind of banana, the Makama will cause him to lose his voice. It should be
remembered that, for the Waiwai, the banana is a late culture plant.
If a person becomes covered with sores the Waiwai say that erekiymo (big sore) has rubbed his
sores off onto the person. This ereklymo is "like a kworokjam", which presumably means that it is one
of the immaterial spirits.
Finally, mention should be made of the fact that numbers of trees also have kakenau-kworokjam; for
example the kechekele (Inga gracilifolia), a very high tree, has a kakenau-kworokjam. Anyone felling
this tree will whilst dreaming be forced by the tree's kakenau-kworokjam to drink so much that his
stomach will swell greatly. The lu palm, kumu (Oenocarpus baccaba) also has a kakenau-kworokjam.
It is different with the ite palm, you (Mauritia flexuosa), that grows in swampy surroundings; it
has an apparently independent okoimo-kworokjam, an anaconda spirit, living in it. If anyone dares
to laugh at the palm or to strike its trunk, this jumps out and causes the offender to vomit and get
stomach-ache. This kworokjam's proper name is fiipifiopu, which means "to cause stomach-ache".
Particularly prominent and useful types of trees thus seem to be kakenau-kworokjam, whilst the
ite palm is the dwelling of an independent resident kworokjam. It is not impossible that there is here
a question of an amalgamation of two essentially different interpretations of the supernatural world.
Yenna
After the surrounding nature has been animated and the supernatural world thus populated, there
still remain some categories to describe. They are primarily fable beings that have neither ekatmho
nor kakenau-kworokjam, but are merely described as yenna. As previously mentioned, this means
"people" and in the case of the fable people it is always a matter of animal people which in addition
to having an animal appearance can also take on the human form.
Yenna is the usual designation for a number of neighbouring Indian tribes, for example those in
the south, Mouyenna, Piskaryenna, Shouyenna; "piskari' means savannah deer and "shou", kibihee.
The Piskaryenna have obtained their name "because they have long, thin legs", and the Shouyenna
"because they smell so badly".
The Waiwai had heard accounts of the Karapau-yenna (karapau = the aracua bird) who are said
to be very tall. They live near the Ichawau stream, an affluent of the Kikwo, one of the western trib
utaries of the upper Rio Mapuera. It is related that some Brazilians who had once reached the tribe
were nearly killed, but after threatening with their rifles, the Karapau-yenna became afraid and laid
down their clubs. They have since been on a friendly footing with the Brazilians, but the Waiwai still
dread them for they are apparently arch enemies; from 1913 Farabee mentions that the Karap Indians
(Karap-yenna) to the south-west twice had attacked the Waiwai (Farabee 1924, p. 174).
A tribe does not have to be far away for suspicion and superstition to endow it with supernatural
and inferior qualities. There is a reminder of this in the employment of the word "makusi" for bush
spirits (see above) and in the meaning of Mouyenna (see p. 234). Close to the Karapau-yenna live the
Yaipu-yenna (yaipu = tapir), said to be so big that even a little girl is the size of a tapir. As they are
considered to be very warlike they are much feared by the Waiwai. Further away live the Kamara
yenna, Jaguar-people. No one has seen them, but it was told that some Brazilians who had been captured
by them were smoked and eaten. The Jaguar-people resemble human beings apart from the fact that
their eyes are placed right down outside the wings of the nose; they are all cannibals. In the mind of
the Waiwai the last-mentioned people are all fabulous and take their place amongst their concepts of
supernatural phenomena, for which reason they are referred to here and not with other known tribes
(see also p. 233). Actually, however, the three tribes are real people (see Frikel p. 547-63), whom
Frikel calls Karahauyana, Yaiheyana and Kamareyana. These tribes, which all live near the Mapuera
and over towards the Rio Nhamunda, are all regarded as wild, that is to say isolated hunting and
collecting groups. Some have acquired a material culture corresponding to that of the Caribs, but
Spirits (yenna) 25
their conscious isolation and uncompromising attitude, plus their anthropophagy, have caused the
Waiwai to regard them as fabled people.
In this connexion it should be mentioned that the Jaguar-people also appear in the creation myth
about Mawari. In this their cannibalistic tendencies appear in a symbolical plane, as Mawari's "mother",
the tortoise, is eaten by the Kamara-yenna with all her eggs except two, that hatch out into Mawari
and his twin brother. It is true that in this myth the Jaguar-people are mentioned as having the ap
pearance of jaguars, but their grandmother, chacha, has human form. In the minds of the Waiwai
the Jaguar-people are remembered largely because, according to the creation myth, it was the grand
mother of this people who voluntarily allowed cassava to be produced from her bones.
However, the most important, of the yenna group are the Okoimo-yenna, Anaconda-people. Their
origin is lost in a dim past long before Mawari's arrival, and the Waiwai do not know whether the
greatest age should be attributed to them or to the kakenau-kworokjam, Okoimo-yenna live in the
•
,do
river, but when they surface they can at all events take on human form, but are not kworokjam.
They are greatly dreaded, which appears from the part they play in the two myths in which they
constitute an important element. The creation myth relates how, when desiring a woman, Mawari
fished an Okoimo woman up from the river. She became his wife and the ancestress of the Indians.
In the meantime Mawari paid no bride price for her to the Okoimo-yenna, nor had he a sister to give
in exchange. This must presumably be regarded as the reason for the persecution of young Waiwai
girls since practised by the Okoimo-yenna, which appears in the myth about that people. In this myth
it is the disobedient adolescent girl who by gazing across the river raises the whole of the Anaconda
people who then try in vain to capture her. The anaconda-people comprise not only anaconda but
also most of the animal species that live in the river. In their human appearances there are in the caSe
of each type characteristic features that point to the species to which they can transfer themselves.
However, in the Mawari myth the idea comes to the fore that the Okoimo-yenna are real people who
live down in the river, but only show themselves to young women. The account concludes with the
withdrawal of the Okoimo-yenna, who hand over to the ancient Waiwai grandmother their gay feather
and bead decorations with the remark: "Here is something for poimo". "Poimo" signifies "brother
in-law" and refers to Mawari's marriage with the Okoimo woman and the consequent permanent
brother-in-law relationship that has arisen between the Okoimo-yenna and the Waiwai. This rela
tionship is primarily a burden for the Waiwai, as a man has always a social and economic obligation
to the male relatives of his wife. (See also the washma institution). The Okoimo-yenna thus possess
a real claim on the Waiwai that has never been satisfied, and consequently tension and constant fear
has been created in the case of the debtors, i.e. the Waiwai.
The Okoimo-yenna appear in yet another story: that concerning the origin of the Yamo dance,
which is said to be due to that people. It is here a matter of masked dance of religious content that is
kept secret from the women, whilst during the dance the women demand the yamo dancers as their
wayamnu, i.e. their sexual partners; a circumstance that again points to a brother-in-law relationship
between the groups (see also the wayamnu institution).
Okoimo-yenna can, however, also cause sickness like the kworokjam: for example a man often
dreamt that he was continually travelling around and given good food to eat. The medicine man
interpreted this to mean that the Okoimo-yenna had seen the man, and therefore sang the Okoimo
yenna's song in order to secure the return of his ekati: "ekati is in the depths; the clothes it bears are
in the depths; bring it back from the depths." The medicine man is thus also considered to control
the Okoimo-yenna by his magic songs.
It appears that the term "yenna" has a very broad connotation, from being the correct designation
of a well-known, closely-related neighbouring people to a definitely fabulous one like the Okoimo
yenna, endowed with supernatural qualities. A similar confusion prevails over the question of origin,
where, for example, the Okoimo-yenna are lost in prehistoric times anterior to Mawari, and genuine
neighbouring people have the afore-mentioned Mawari as a basic factor. This confusion is illustrated
in the Shodewika myth, which mainly deals with the division of the animal people into proper animals
and proper people. In this myth, in which the Waiwai already appear, a number of animal people
meet for a dance festival with the Kurum-yenna (Buzzard-people). Here they all have human form,
but after the festival those who return home are changed into the respective animals, whilst the few
who stay and marry Kurum women are transformed into the various Indian tribes who merely retain
the animal name as, for example, the Shou-yenna near the Rio Mapuera.
Yin
To a higher degree more supernatural than the yenna, though with a certain connexion with them, is
the concept "yin", father. Special species of animals and also individual natural phenomena can have a
father, the elucidation of whose character - apart from the Father of peccaries - is extremely incomplete.
The yin concept plays a most important part in the imagination of the ordinary Waiwai, and should
therefore be dealt with here, though it lies solely in the sphere of the medicine man to influence this
category of being.
The Father of peccaries is easily the most important, but there is also a Father of the birds, a Father
of fish, one for the water and one for the sun. It is not impossible that a more thorough study will
disclose still more.
Poinko-yin or the Father ofpeccaries

A young medicine man-to-be dreamt one night that he saw a very old man whose body, unlike the
Waiwai, was not painted red but instead was soiled with mud. The ancient said to the young man:
"Why do you sing poinko-eremu (eremu = magic song), I am poinko-yin", and then he blew tobacco
smoke down over the young man's head. Next morning the coming medicine man told his teacher
about the dream, and they went together out into the forest where the old medicine man taught his
disciple poinko-eremu.
Only the medicine men of the tribe can get into touch with poinko-yin, and they all seem able to do
so. This is undoubtedly due to the greater importance of the wild pig as game, and this idea results
in it being impossible to go hunting wild pig until the medicine man has summoned them. Poinko
are the big type of wild pig that live in flocks, the white-lipped peccary (Tagassu pecari). The poinko
yin is thus of great importance to every single Waiwai. These ideas can be divided into a theoretical
Spirits (yin) 27
side that depends on the medicine man's as a rule arbitrary nocturnal journey to poinko-yin, and a
more practical magical summoning of poinko in general. The magical hunting songs, poinko-eremu,
only known to the medicine man, are only sung the day after one has dreamt of poinko. A medicine
man related that he once had to persist for five days before the wild pig arrived. It is not remarkable
that only the medicine man can summon them when it is observed that poinko possesses a kakenau
kworokjam. Often it is just this dangerous kworokjam that he sees in dreams; it is described as a
little poinko, about 15 ems high and 30 ems long. Others describe poinko-kworokjam as almost as
big as poinko itself. The men of the village cannot begin the hunting of wild pig until the medicine
man has summoned them. On the other hand, the medicine man must never take part in the hunt,
and must never kill or eat a poinko; if he does he will die.
Even though there are several reports that the use of poinko-eremu alone is sufficient to summon
the wild pig, there is nevertheless a clear tendency on the part of the medicine man to employ a certain
apparatus to call poinko, particularly a poinko-fiukwa (fiukwa = magic stone), on which tobacco
smoke is blown as with the medicine man's other magical practice. The author once succeeded in
seeing a poinko-fiukwa of this kind, but it proved quite impossible to purchase it from the medicine
man. The stone had the shape and size of a pigeon's egg, and the medicine man had found it in a
creek. It was called poinko-kamaswan, However, this name is doubtful, as kamas wan strongly re
sembles kamashu (tobacco), and thus refers to the technique. Similarly, the claws of the armadillo
are frequently used to blow in order to call the wild pig, and one account refers to a flute used in the
same way. A report from Mapuera Waiwai has it that tobacco was drunk from the claws of the
armadillo in order to be able to see poinko-kworokjam in a trance and thus obtain an opportunity
to summon the animals, but unfortunately, the author has been unable to confirm this.
However, the whole of this magical apparatus belongs to the secret knowledge of the medicine man
which he exercises from the shutepana hut; it will therefore be reasonable further to describe this in
connexion with the flight of his soul to poinko-yin to which it is particularly linked.
Under the section concerning yaskomo, the medicine man, there will be a further description of his
functions and psychic qualities; here it will merely be reported that yaskomo is able arbitrarily to
send his ekatl to various places, including to poinko-yin. This can only take place from the shutepana
and only at night. The procedure can be as follows:
Yaskomo can spend half the night in shutepana playing his little flute, kukuwi (which is also the
name for a big hawk that in some way or other is connected with poinko). He holds a poinko-fiukwa
(a stone that belongs to and is connected with poinko-kworokjam) in his mouth whilst he smokes
tobacco, singing from time to time the various poinko-eremu. These eremu may only be a single
word repeated a long time, for example: "kururu nuka (they grunted), or "yawe kururu nuka" ("yawe"
being a subdivision of poinko-kworokjam), alternatively "aoo maya" (another name for poinko
kworokjam) "aoo taishayo mokopa" (come this way) aoo aoo". Yaskomo can also sing another
eremu that will make poinko wild, so that they attack in a flock, whereby the hunters obtain an op
portunity to kill several. Another eremu runs: "tasharoro amoka - anaharl tamko - toail'ipera atamka
anahari - toellpera emashira esko" (poinko come - be not afraid - come closer - right to the edge
of the clearing).
!'~-- ... -~
At a certain moment the yaskomo's ekati will leave the body and go the long journey over the
earth to poinko-yaunyeri (poinko mountain), which is said to lie somewhere south of the upper
course of an eastern tributary of the Rio Mapuera, near the village of Kashiymo (presumably the
Urucurin). A deep horizontal cleft known as kamuspati (old bug) runs into this mountain, and here
dwell all poinko, amongst them poinko-yin and his wife. The yaskomo sees poinko-yin in a trance
or in a dream. He is an old man, different from the Waiwai in that his body is not painted ted but
stained with mud. In addition he has short hair and lacks all decoration with the exception of apomi
(upper armlets, a sign of maturity) and kamisa (loin cloth).
Poinko-yin's lack of red paint seems to be of importance, as an old yaskomo who saw poinko-yin
long, long ago said on his return to the Waiwai: "When you have shot a poinko you must always
paint yourself and your children red with anatto so that poinko-yin cannot see you". The Waiwai
therefore all paint themselves red for fear of poinko-yin, who becomes angry when anyone shoots or,
particularly, maims or wounds his children, poinko. Although no great fear appears to be felt of
poinko-yin, he is at least used to frighten children, who are often threatened with: "Take care that
poinko-yin does not come and take you!" This remark is explained by the following story: A father
once took his small son out hunting. Suddenly espying a flock of poinko he told the boy to remain
standing at a certain spot whilst he killed two poinko. Just at that moment poinko-yin passed by and
caught sight of the lad whom he approached in the thicket. The boy, who thought it was his father,
asked: "Did you shoot anything?" Poinko-yin disguised his voice and replied: "Yes", thus deceiving
the boy into leaving with him. The boy was never seen again; it was poinko-yin's revenge for his own
killed children. Poinko-yin who incidentally is not regarded as having anything against a proper and
orderly hunt of the poinko, can now and again be thought to revenge himself. For example, after
a man had killed several poinko and followed their tracks to the river in order to bathe, he was seized
by violent stomach pains. The yaskomo, who had to blow over him in order to effect a cure, explained
the matter by saying: "Poinko-yin possibly saw you".
To return to the yaskomo and the meeting during a trance of his ekati with poinko-yin; Mtywa,
the yaskomo who lives at Mauika, reports concerning this that poinko-yin had said to him: "Pall
(grandchild), you must never shoot poinko, but you should tell the other men that if they meet a
poinko they must shoot in such a way that it dies on the spot and not merely wound it so that it runs
bleeding into the forest, for then I become angry". The yaskomo's ekati replied and asked: "Pacho
(grandfather) bring many poinko hither", and promised poinko-yin tobacco in return. The two agreed
about this and the yaskomo realizes his part of the bargain by blowing smoke over his poinko-iiukwa,
which is owned by poinko-yin. In regard to the iiukwa and to the red colour, poinko-yin proves to be
related to the term kakenau-kworokjam. It is worth while to stress here that, as opposed to most
land animals, poinko possess kakenau-kworokjam and are thus not considered to be "reincarnated"
souls of human beings. However, poinko kakenau-kworokjam do not dwell in heaven like the other
kakenau-kworokjam but "have always lived in the mountain cave with their father and have been
there eternally". In reality poinko-yin functions parallel with the human ekati at the rebirth of poinko,
as mentioned under ekatrnho-kworokjam.
Poinko-yin's content of soul or life force is clearly indicated by the circumstance that on the killing
~ ~---. -"--- -- -~-
Spirits (yin) 29
of a poinko its former kworokjam follows it to the edge of the clearing. Poinko-kworokjam comes to
fetch its old hide which it brings out of the woods and places in a warishi (pannier) that it has plaited.
From this a new poinko is created. Poinko-yin has followed the whole process "in the same way as
our ekati follows us". This last comparison is important in connexion with what has already been
mentioned, and explains poinko-yin as being practically a common denominator for all poinko
kakenau-kworokjam. At the same time poinko-yin becomes virtually identical with the whole species
or concept of poinko, in addition to being the source of life from which the individual poinko derives
existence and to which it again returns.
In what we have been discussing there has been mentioned a form of soul flight from the medicine
man's hut, but some yaskomo can apparently summon poinko-yin as a helping spirit. This seems to
be done from the communal hut, as the use of the hammock is referred to. Old Miywa related that
he had obtained his poinko-iiukwa from heaven; he blew tobacco smoke over it, and then placed it
in his mouth whilst he sang a poinko-eremu. When lying in his hammock afterwards he saw the poinko
stone change into a man, poinko-yin. In this case it was thus a question of summoning a helping spirit.
The yaskomo's conversation with poinko-yin was stamped by a reciprocal agreement where the
yaskomo had to attend to the fulfillment of certain demands. In the first place he must never kill a
poinko nor eat its flesh. Should he do either, poinko-yin would be greatly angered and kill him. This is
said to be one of the reasons why poinko-yin follows the kworokjam of every killed poinko to the
edge of the village clearing in order to discover whether the yaskomo eats any of the flesh. Should he
find that he does, he takes the yaskomo's ekati back with him to the poinko mountain; deprived of
his ekatl the yaskomo will fall sick and finally die, whilst his ekati will live on in the mountain trans
formed into a poinko. This explanation concludes with the words: "That is precisely what happened
to Parusha" (a dead Waiwai yaskomo). If a yaskomo kills a poinko it is thought that part of his
kworokjam will tell the yin, who in a similar way will kill the yaskomo, and at the same time cause
all poinko to disappear from the area for ever. The contagious quality characteristic of ekatt and
kworokjam thus seems also to apply to poinko-yin and -kworokjam. In the same way that ekati is
always in touch with the ekati whole (in the body), so the isolated poinko-kakenau-kworokjam is
always in contact with poinko-yin. Finally, the yaskomo must see that his villagers do not maim the
poinko but always hunt it in a proper manner, and he must supervise the hunt. However, there is
no question of closed season; but many maintain that the yaskomo must give his permission in each
single case of a poinko hunt, that he must summon them beforehand. He need not go out with the
hunters if he does not want to, but can, for example, be content to blow the armadillo claw at home.
Another yaskomo said, however, that he was not asked to summon the poinko before a hunt, even
though they would come if he did so, as he arranged to keep the flocks in the neighbourhood all the time.
Another rule that must be followed is that emasi, i.e. adolescent girls, must not eat poinko meat.
The old yaskomo, Miywa, thus related that he (that is to say his family) had lived alone long ago near
the source of the Essequibo. At that time there had been a lot of poinko when he summoned them on
his fiukwa as he had been taught to do by his predecessor. But then other men had come with their
magic practices, and the newly-arrived young women had eaten poinko meat during their emasi period.
Poinko-yin became angry at this and all poinko became weak (were infected) and ran away. Emasi
Fig. 5. A Waiwai hunter is bringing a wild pig, killed by bow and arrow, into the village. For fear of magic it will
have to be consumed outside the communal house under an open leaf shelter (seen in the backgrund).
girls no longer eat poinko meat, and I observed myself that this was very strictly adhered to, for one
day when a dead wild pig was brought into the village several of the men at once shouted - directed
towards the hunter's daughter, who was emast: "Do not let her eat it!" Another explanation why
emasi girls must not eat poinko meat was that poinko lived in the earth, i.e. in the mountain cave
with poinko-yin, and that therefore if emasi girls ate their meat, poinko "would bring them down
into the cave". However, this last is hardly the decisive argument as it then would only be a family
and not a social interest that had given rise to the warning.
However, poinko-yin can keep poinko away from human beings for other reasons. It is thus related
of a woman - who had probably learnt the art from her late husband - that with her flute she was
able to bring the poinko within range and make them so wild that they attacked the hunters who
thus obtained an opportunity to kill many more. But after her death no poinko were seen in the neigh
bourhood for several weeks, and people maintained that they had run away as a result of her death.
Spirits (yin) 31
This report agrees with what old Miywa said: that his poinko-stone disappeared on the death of his
wife because it became afraid; in consequence there were no poinko at present. It is interesting to
observe that a yaskomo loses his magical position because his wife dies, and that for this reason he
must hand over his post as yayalitomo, secular leader of the village, to a successor.
It appeared that in conversation with poinko-yin the yaskomo regards him as pacho (grandfather)
and is himself called pall, grandchild. This terminology undoubtedly covers the deferential position
of the yaskomo, but on the other hand not the dependence that characterizes the relationship previ
ously referred to with the Anaconda-people. Sometimes the word parito is used instead of pacho, but
this merely means "old pacho". In the same way it has appeared from the above that "yin" in poinko
yin refers to poinko's designation of their father, whilst poinko-yin similarly regards all poinko as his
children. In the system of relationship thus arising, poinko should thus actually be a generation above
the yaskomo, and consequently it arouses surprise that a yaskomo called the poinko "kuyt" (= km
i.e. male, which is a general term for a male child, instead of "okopuci" (child) used by older people).
Incidentally, the yaskomo use the same term for their magic stones, fiukwa, "because they are his
pets or sons". The yaskomo regards his attendant spirits, represented by their fiukwa, as his pets.
There here appears to be two different ideologies in connexion with poinko: one in which poinko acts
as the yaskomo's helping spirit and is subject to his magical control as is the case with other helping
spirits or kakenau-kworokjam, who are considered as sons, and, originally independent but gradually
mixed up with it, another class characterized by the yaskomo's deferential attitude to poinko-yin, who
is regarded as a grandfather. An important function for the yaskomo is his relationship in regard to
poinko; some Waiwai say that he supervises and owns them, or that he is their master, whilst others
assert that the yaskomo has no special poinko title. That some laymen refer to the yaskomo as master
of the poinko should probably be considered as an identification of the divine (poinko-yin) and its
prophet and earthly contact (yaskomo). Taken all in all the ideas concerning poinko-yin seem to
imply something in the way of a divine being.
Other yin
As mentioned above under the introduction to yin, this term is also linked to things other than poinko,
though the information regarding this is most sporadic.
It should first be mentioned that some weakly-formulated ideas are connected with the other South
American species of wild pig, pzkria, the small collared peccary (Tayassu tajacu). Some medicine
men are able to summon pakria by blowing a small round nut with a large and a small hole, yuknat
moso. Whilst a medicine man's dogs are allowed to drive a pakria into a hole or into a trap, he must
not himself kill the animal and must only eat very little of its flesh. This weaker parallel with poinko
possibly points to the original yin idea about pakria.
One medicine man, Miywa, was also the protector of all birds in addition to wild pig. In consequence
he never shot at birds, though he was allowed to eat them. He related that during a dream his bird
fiukwa fell from heaven, and when he woke up it - a piece of quartz about It ems long - was lying
in his mouth. When he blows tobacco smoke over this stone he sees yaku-yin, the Father of birds, a
small man about 1 metre in height with long hair, decorated as for a festival with feathers and beads.
The birds call yaku-yin "apa", father. Miywa knew of no other medicine men who protected birds.
Similar ideas apply concerning fish. According to one informant, all fish have a father, but others
maintain that only big fish, for example haimara (aimara) and tiger fish (okoropicho) have a father.
Smaller fish like pirai, sting ray and kutmo (small fish) have no father, "for they are too small to
possess a kworokjam". It thus seems that in order to have a yin it is necessary to have a kworokjam;
a feature that emphasizes the confusion of kworokjam with yin that was also found in connexion with
poinko-yin. The Father of fish is said by all to be a particular kind of anaconda that boasts a thick
body and a short tail. A medicine man related that he had once seen it in a dream; it is regarded as real.
As opposed to the Father of wild pig and the Father of birds, the Father of fish is thus not a human
like being, but it should be remembered that the Anaconda-people, Okoimo-yenna, are partly char
acterized bya human-like appearance.
The particular type of anaconda under discussion here is called by the Waiwai "eripoimo" (big
bakestone) which, incidentally, was the name of a now deserted Waiwai village near Essequibo. Also
a former Taruma village had the name Ertpoimo (Evans & Meggers 1960, p. 207).
The medicine man can keep fish in the neighbourhood by singing a special eremu that may run,
for example: "Fish, fish, fish that is on the back of the amama", repeated several times. Amama is
the particular name given by the medicine man to what ordinary folk call eripoimo.
In the event of severe drought, the medicine man can in his medicine man hut practice rain magic
by calling on the Father of water, tuna yin. This is done by blowing into a crab claw. The crab (sakawa)
is regarded as the Father of water as well as a number of different species of frog that all start
croaking when heavy rains occur. Eight of these frogs are called in Waiwai: kwalyakwalya, wekiki,
kura, mawa, sunawi, kanapa, weneko and woi, It is also said that the soul of water, tuna ekati, can
be summoned by blowing into a claw of a crab. Once more there is a certain mingling of the concepts
father and souL
Finally, there seems also to exist a father of the sun. This transpires from the story about the yaskomo
who procured sunshine when, on a flight towards the sun, he first met Warakuimo. Warakuimo was
the sun's Father, kamo-yin, and accompanied the yaskomo on the last part of the journey to the sun.
The sun spoke and looked like a human being but was a kakenau-kworokjam. From an incantation
it appears that the sun itself is addressed as "Father of yaskomo". In direct speech "father" is called
"apa"; "yin" is indirect speech. It is a question whether the sun naturally can be classified under the
concept "yin". It will therefore be treated of separately under sun cult.
The Sun Cult 33
THE SUN CULT
How the yaskomo procured sunshine

Once when it had been overcast and rainy weather far too long, one yaskomo said to another: "Come,
let us go up and visit the sun". The other yaskomo replied: "No, it is hot; it will burn us up", but the
other insisted saying: "Let us go!" So they went together into the shutepana where they sang some
eremu whereupon their ekati ascended to heaven. In heaven they first met Warakuimo (from "waraku",
an unidentified bird, and "imo", big celestial parallel), the Father of the sun. The two yaskomo ad
dressed him: "We want the sun to shine". Warakuimo replied: "Go yourselves and see the sun". So
they went with Warakuimo to visit the sun. They soon made themselves a very large mat (wechi) to
save them from being burnt by the heat, but when they approached the sun (a distance of about 2
kilometres was given) it was nevertheless so hot that they were nearly consumed. They then reached
a house in which the sun dwelt. The sun, kamo, talked and looked completely like a human being
though he was a kakenau-kworokjam.
The first yaskomo said to the sun: "We have come to see you", and the sun answered: "I bear a
diadem of feathers from the kuyukoimo bird; go yourself and remove it" (the kuyukoimo is a bird with
black feathers, and the fact that there were black feathers in the diadem was the actual reason why
the sky was overcast). The two yaskomo now stood as though by a big field of fire, a burning clearing,
and they began to go all round it in order to draw out all the black feathers that encircled the fire. In
place of these feathers they affixed the bright red feathers of the toucan, and when they had no more
of these the last part of the circumference was filled in with red macaw (kworo) feathers. When this
work had been completed the ekatt of the two yaskomo returned to their medicine man's hut. The
next day the sun shone from a clear sky.
Fig. 6. Head diadem of toucan feathers, the brilliance of which is supposed to persuade the sun to shine.
(Nat. Mus. Copenhagen, H. 4084)
3 Waiwai
- - ~--- ... --<:.----- -'" ----..-
Invocation of the sun
All yaskomo know how to invoke the sun by magic means. The old yaskomo, Miywa, thus stated
that he placated the sun in cases of prolonged rains.
He erected a red pole carved like an anaconda. Upon this he placed a small piece of cassava bread,
intended for the sun's consumption, in order that the weather should clear up.
The yaskomo then sangthe sun eremu: "Sun, sun, high in the sky, show thy face, oh Father"
(kamoriwa, meyerosa, poko awepatart, apa). He then blew "pu pu" and sang: "Hia hia sunshine, hia
hia to the middle of the river and cause the water to glisten, hia hia from the centre of heaven, hia hia
down over okoropo (balata) leaves, hia hia over the leaves of the kechekere tree, hia hia, clear up sun,
.
,
'. hia hia make dry my field". When the yaskomo has sung this sun eremu he calls a large number of
.
r different birds that are related to the sun, that is to say birds that are kakenau-kworokjam like the sun,
because they all live in the sky. When the sun then shows itself a little the yaskomo lays out on the
open-air cassava drying shelf (churi-apon) his diadem of toucan feathers (aroko), his armlets with red
macaw feathers (apaliake) and various red feather tassels, saying: "Behold sun, here are your adorn
ments so that you can shine".
These adornments remain lying on the cassava shelf for three days, though not in rainy weather or
at night. They are then taken in again, but in the intervening period the sun will have had sufficient
time to have taken to itself the ekati (soul, picture, strength) of the brilliant adornments and will
then itself be as clear and radiant as a diadem. It is said of the sun that it wears the diadem of the
yaskomo.
In the Waiwai area there is ample rainfall for the slash-and-burn agriculture practised, and sun is
often desired, for example for hunting expeditions. In consequence invocation of the sun is known to
!' all yaskomo; indeed, it is assumed that if an undue amount of rain has fallen it is because of the death
somewhere or other of a yaskomo who controlled sunshine and rain.
As the sun is kakenau-kworokjam only yaskomo know the invocation eremu; these are also sung
in the usual way: at night in the shutepana.
Mlywa stated that the pole on which he placed the cassava bread was carved like an anaconda
"because the sun likes to have a nicely-carved pedestal for its bread". At the same time, however, the
anaconda and the red colour used is effective in "frightening away the kakenau-kworokjam that descend
~ with the sunshine", that is to say the kworokjam harmful to man that come down when the sun kakenau
;'\
kworokjam is summoned. It must also not be forgotten that the anaconda plays an important part in
mythology and that it appeared to be Miywa's particular helping spirit.
In the case of the sun there is for the first time in connexion with the Waiwai religion a question of
a supernatural being that can be said to be worshipped. Cassava bread is offered up to it and it is
invoked by song. In return the sun must dry the cassava bread and the fields. On the other hand there
is still a magic stamp about it, as is shown by the magical blowing "pu-pu", which, as will be mentioned
under "blowing", has a binding and compulsive effect.
That this supernatural being, the sun, is personified is not unique in the Waiwai religion. There is
more reason to take note of the fact that the sun song is not so much a magic formula as a prayer
Other Divine Beings 35
and an invocation. The medicine man does not employ any helping spirit to achieve contact with the
sun, and the sun is not mentioned amongst the helping spirits of the Waiwai medicine men.
Finally, the sun, to a higher degree than most of the supernatural beings, is important to the whole
community and is thus not merely an aid to the medicine man in his struggle for prestige. It is per
sonified but not individualised, and must therefore be described as a deity. The next question arising
is more difficult of solution: has the Waiwai sun cult come into being independently, and in that event
how has it developed from the original basis, or, if borrowed from outside, whence it comes?
In regard to the first possibility, it must at once be stressed that there would be nothing unreasonable
about such a genesis in the case of a people living under Waiwai conditions. Sun is something of which
more is wanted; rain one would like to limit. But the dispelling of rain (see p. 112) has remained at a
purely magical level, and is an art that even laymen understand. The cult of the sun might well have
developed into a popular cult had it not been a kakenau-kworokjam, a heavenly spirit dangerous for
men to associate with and whom only the medicine man is able to contact.
It is very characteristic of the medicine man's deference to the sun that whilst he addresses other
kakenau-kworokjam that are his helping spirits as "my child" (ktlt = male child), he uses the term
"apa" (father) in addressing the sun, which stresses subjection or humility; the relationship is thus
strongly reminiscent of the yin concept already referred to that is found in connexion with certain
groups or species of animals. In this case it might seem that the medicine man and with him all the
members of his tribe have the sun as their "yin".
As already mentioned under "yin", there is a tendency also to make divine the yin previously
referred to; this is particularly perceived in the case of poinko-yin. To some degree the same applies
to Okoimo-yenna.
OTHER DIVINE BEINGS
Mawari, the creator
The idea concerning the creator and progenitor of mankind, Mawari, is of a type widespread in the
tropical lowlands of South America. Mawari appears only in the creation myth, and there is no form
of worship, cult or magic connected with him. The whole concept appears to be a loosely-linked super
structure. Mawari started human life and then withdrew into the background in favour of the super
natural forces and beings such as ekatr, kworokjam, yenna and yin that maintain or threaten life.
These are accordingly feared and attempts are made to influence them. With one curious exception,
the Shodewika myth, the creation myth is thus our only source of knowledge about Mawari. In the
Shodewika myth the assistance of Mawari is invoked in connexion with an oho chant, to ensure that
certain guests are persuaded to attend a Shodewika dancing festival. This is the only known case
where Mawari is endowed with an active capacity. At the time Mawari makes his appearance, there
already existed a number of kakenau-kworokjam, and of the yenna beings both the Okoimo-yenna
and Kamara-yenna play an important part.
3'
The most important data in the myth are: from sexual relations between a Wayam woman (a female
tortoise) and a Rataki man (male grasshopper) two eggs were saved by the old Kamara-chacha
(Jaguar grandmother) when the Kamara-yenna killed the Wayam woman. Mawari came from the
one egg, his twin brother, Washi, from the other. They were the two first men. Mawari is described as
being tall (about 190 ems), short-haired but with a beard and plenty of hair on his body; he wore no
kind of clothing or ornaments. He fished his own and his brother's wife, two Okoimo women, from
the water. With the one Washi got many children who in time became the civilized Brazilians. Other
wise Washi is unimportant compared with Mawari.
On the other hand all Indians, first of all the Waiwai, naturally, and Europeans derive from Mawari
and the other Anaconda woman. It is worth noting that the Waiwai do not regard themselves as Ana
conda-people for this reason, but as descended from Mawari. The Waiwai feel themselves as brothers
in-law of the Anaconda-people, so there is a question of paternal descent.
A number of women's articles derive from the Anaconda-people: women's pannier, menstruation
mat, warishi, onomto (= anatto), shewe (yellow onomto), cotton, chipo (onomto colour with howler
oil), women's apron of fish eggs beads and, the spindle. The dog also derives from the Anaconda
people as does the custom of seclusion at initiation. On Mawari's arrival the Jaguar-people also
possessed a number of cultural benefits such as clay bowls and grater boards, tipiti and sifters
used when preparing a poisonous wild root, malya, that is said to be like cassava. According to the
myth it was the Jaguar grandmother who - at Mawari's instance, it is true - allowed the cassava plant
to be produced from her bones. The Jaguar-people were also said to be aware of kraua fibre. Mawari
invented bows and arrows, axes, stone knives, the shika fish trap and, it is believed, the method of
poisoning fish.
Whereas Washi is assumed to live somewhere down in Brazil, Mawari left the earth in anger. He
shot a series of arrows into the air and by their aid he and his wife climbed up into heaven.
The temporal position of Mawari in relation to his surroundings does not engage the Waiwai
particularly. However, it was several times shown that Mawari is regarded as a late element in the
imaginative world. It is said that the world, heaven, the sun and the trees, etc., existed a long, long time
before Mawari, who only appeared on the scene recently. Before him there had existed various kakenau
kworokjam and yenna, of which the Okoimo-yenna and Kamara-yenna played, as already mentioned,
a significant part in his emergence. On the other hand, ekat'inho-kworokjam is naturally considered
to be younger as it presupposes ekati, i.e. the human soul. As, however, poinko-yin is a kakenau
kworokjam, poinko-yin does not presuppose Mawari, but a recognition of yin must presuppose yas
komo.
Culture heroes. Yawari
As mentioned in connexion with Mawari, both the Okoimo-yenna and Kamara-yenna have handed
down a long series of cultural benefits to the Waiwai. The only completely typical example of a cultural
hero with the Waiwai is first found, however, in the myth about Yawari, the opossum. The myth is
naturally divided into a first, narrative, section about how Yawari obtained his appearance, and a
second, interpretive, section concerning Yawari as a culture hero.
Other Divine Beings 37
In the second section of the myth the situation is that the killed opossum is resuscitated magically
as an opossum man of human appearance by the help of the powers of a young Waiwai medicine
man. The opossum man then invites the Waiwai back to his house. Here the medicine man observed
certain cultural benefits hitherto unknown to his tribe. These are the big, round house with conical
roof, miimo, the small round working house without walls, umana, and the rectangular working house,
yawarimta (opossum mouth). In addition he was given yams, napi, to eat. When the Waiwai man
returned home he took with him some fresh yams and knowledge of the three building types, enriching
his village with these benefits. Before that time the Waiwai had only lived under small open three
cornered shelters, powishi-matko (see Fig. 45).
The character of the cultural benefits places Yawari very late in the Waiwai religious system.
! I
"v
Myths and legends
The traditional story material possessed by the Waiwai, that ethnography often divides up into myths,
legends and fairy tales, is exceedingly important as a primary source for the understanding of the
Waiwai culture.
It would seem that the Waiwai do not classify their stories into various fixed categories. Incidentally,
a division of this kind is greatly impeded by the fact that the same account often contains sections
stamped by both myth and fairy tale, and it must often depend upon an estimate whether one is to
regard, say, the mythical as the framework of, or as an insertion in, a story. All accounts deal with
supernatural acts in a distant past, yet only Mawari can in the narrowest sense be considered a myth
though, for example the Okoimo-yenna and the Shodewika lie on the borderline to the mythic. Many
of the animal fables could be said to lie half way between legend and fairy story. In the order chosen
come first accounts of the creation of man, implements, customs and phenomena (Mawari, Okoimo,
Nufii), then stories about the origin of animals (Shodewika, Yawari, Koso, Yaimo), and lastly accounts
of magical content (Sky trip, Kurum and Uruperi).
In regard to the narrative style it should briefly be mentioned that the material falls into two groups.
About half are noted down direct from the narrator, whilst the other half has been tape-recorded and
then translated literally by Mr. Rob. E. Hawkins. The last-mentioned part discloses the curious fact
that the stories in their purest form consist almost entirely of direct speech interspersed with a number
of outbursts of feeling. In regard to the directly noted down section of the stories, it transpired that our
informant himself used a narrative form partly adapted to the occasion and to the level of the listener
(ethnographer).
The tales below are each followed by notes and aspects. The criteria for the views advanced in the
aspects are theoretically justified in the concluding chapter concerning methological aspects, where
questions like motif, actions, and incidental circumstances are taken up for consideration. Apart
from their deeper functions, the immediate importance of these stories as entertainment should be
emphasized.
THE CREATION MYTH. MAWARI
Before any people existed in the world there were some pairs of kakenau-kworokjam; they were mani
fested kakenau and looked like the respective animals 1). There were Mekuimo-yenna, Tawatimo
yenna, Ratakimo-yenna, Porotoimo-yenna, Warakaruimo-yenna, Ushaimo-yenna and Awarkuimo
yenna 2). In addition there were Wayam-yenna, though they were not kakenau-kworokjam but real
animal people; they were like human beings 3).
The figures refer to notes that accompany each myth. 1) see p. 43.
- -- _. -_~ "- --",,"-- -- - ~- ..... ---- - _.-'- ,~ ..... ~-- -- --------
The Creation Myths 39
One day a Wayam man returned home and said to his wife: "There is some karamtu fruit 4) some
distance away. Let us go and collect it". So they went. On reaching the tree after a long walk, the man
climbed half way up it and then fell down. Once more he climbed up, but fell down again. His wife
then became irritated with him and said: "What is the matter with you. Can't you even climb?", and
whilst he lay on the ground she trod contemptuously on his stomach. That is why all male tortoises
now have a depression in the centre of the plastron.
The Wayam woman then climbed up the tree by the help of a bush rope 5), but the man returned
home disgusted. Up in the tree, instead of fruit, the Wayam woman caught sight of all the kakenau
animals previously referred to: meku, usha, warakaru, awarku etc. There was only one male of each
species, no females. As soon as they saw the Wayam woman they all shouted to each other: "Here
is a woman, here is a woman with whom we can lie", but when the Wayam woman heard this she
hurriedly climbed to a fork of the tree and covered herself with branches so that only her head was
visible. The whole flock then came after her and tried to lie with her. They were unable to reach her.
At last the Rataki man came to the place and said: "Woman, woman, woman". With a sharp implement
he split the tree and had relations with the Wayam woman 6). Soon after all the animal men left, and
the Wayam woman, who was now alone up in the tree, began to eat the karamtu fruit. When she was
satisfied she climbed down and began to go homewards. But as she was a woman she did not know
the track very well, and when she arrived at a place where it divided, she said of the track leading to
her village: "This must be the path to the Kamara-yenna village, and as like all others, she was afraid
of the Jaguar people who bite and eat other people, she chose the other track. She went down this
until she reached a clearing and then discovered that she had made a mistake. She said to herself:
"This is not my village. It must be the Kamara-yenna's. I hope they will not eat me." But as everything
looked peaceful she went up to a house. No men were at home except an old chacha 7) to whom she
spoke: "Where is my track; I can't find it?" The chacha replied: "I don't know, but you have certainly
come amongst some bad people; get away quickly so that the men do not see you." The woman then
changed herself into a proper wayam and the chacha placed a big clay vessel over her to hide her.
But in the umana (working house) of the Jaguar people, tethered to the centre upright, was a pet,
a giant wayam. When it saw the other wayam it made an offensive smell. The Jaguar people returned
home from the hunt. They came whistling hwi, hwi, hwi, hwi. Their bag was a pakria (small bush
hog). When they reached the umana house the giant wayam began to say with its suctorial, piping
voice: "Uh, uh, a woman came, a woman came." The Jaguar men at once went to the chacha and
enquired, saying: "The giant wayam says that a woman came here. Where is she?", but the chacha
replied: "No, this is just talk. No one came here". The giant wayam insisted and said: "Uh, a woman
came. She is probably under one of the clay vessels." The Jaguar men went into the house and turned
over many of the vessels without finding anything. But the giant wayam also entered the house and
went straight to the right vessel and began to dig under the edge. Through the channel thus made to
the cavity of the vessel it once more made an offensive smell, but when it put its head under the vessel
the wayam spat on it. The giant wayam withdrew its head to show the proof to the Jaguar men, and
said: "Uh, this is the woman's spittle." Then the Jaguar men went in and found the wayam, took it
out, smashed the shell and killed it. The old chacha shouted after them: "Oh, you killed the woman
40 Myths and Legends
and I thought I was going to have an anton 8), but bring me some wayam eggs to eat instead." There
was in fact a large number of eggs in the animal, but the Jaguar men ate them all except two which they
gave to the chacha. As she was going to eat them raw and broke a little of the one shell, a tiny person,
Mawari, came out of the egg. She then broke the other egg and out came another little person, Washi.
After the first surprise she decided to keep the two manikins, and in order that the Jaguar men should
do them no harm she hid them under a big clay vessel for three years, during which time they became
fully grown. They were then so big that they could remain there no longer. Mawari was very tall
(190 ems), Washi a little smaller; their hair was short (unlike the Waiwai), but they had beards and
hair on loins and chest. They wore neither clothes nor ornament. On leaving the vessel they wished
to go hunting, but as they possessed no weapons the chacha said: "Go and make yourselves bows
and arrows". They did so, and these became the first bows and arrows in the world.
After that they went out hunting and in the forest several times met Jaguar men who each time tried
to kill them. Once they met some Jaguar men who were very friendly and spoke of a tree that bore a
quantity of brazil nuts; they allowed Mawari to climb up into the high tree by a ladder 9), but when
he was high up they took the ladder from beneath him. However, he saved himself by turning into a
squirrel, and thus climbed down again. On many other occasions he escaped in a similar way 10).
Mawari also made the first stone axes. In the first he cut a groove to lash on the handle, but this was
not very successful. The next axe he bored a hole through for the handle, and this was a better one.
He also shaped the first stone knife 11).
In addition, Mawari constructed the first shika fish trap 12); but when he had placed it in a little
creek far away, he sent off the little water lizard, kwokanama, to inspect it and to report when fish
were in the trap. But kwokanama said: "I am afraid to go down there. Can't you go yourself?" Mawari
replied: "No, you go. I'll make you a partner", and he packed some ashes into a dalibanna leaf
saying: "Take this with you. When you get down there the packet will change into your partner".
Kwokanama continued to say: "I don't trust you", but Mawari was full of reassurance: "It's true.
Get along now!" The kwokanama then set off. Down at the shika it opened the package. Instead of
the ashes a swarm of biting flies, mushu, flew out. "Ah, he has cheated me", shouted the little water
lizard, who was so badly bitten by the flies that not a drop of blood was left in his body. This is why
all water lizards are now quite grey. The kwokanama said to itself: "I'll get even with Mawari", and
it wove a mat (wechi) which it threw into the water. Here the mat changed into a sting ray, shpali.
When Mawari next came himself to inspect his shika and entered the water to do so he was stung
by the sting ray.
After that Mawari could not persuade the water lizard to inspect the shika, so he created a little
bird, putka 13), so that it could summon him when it saw fish in the trap; but the putka's voice was
too weak for Mawari to be able to hear it when it called, so he created a karau 14) which he was able
to hear when messages were shouted about catches.
At the time these things were happening, Mawari and Washi had no sexual organs. These grew in
the form of a small plant in the forest. Once whilst the brothers were out gathering malya roots 15)
a little bird told them of the plant the name of which was the same as penis, so they went and found
the plant in the wood. Both brothers tasted and licked it and then lay down to sleep. Whilst asleep a
The Creation Myth 41
Fig. 7. This young woman displays in

adornments and through occupation
some of the gifts of the Anaconda
people: facial paint from red and
yellow anatto seeds, a woman's bead
apron and a spindle with cotton.
penis grew out of them, but to begin with it was unnaturally long and big. They then wove some leaves
together to form a loin cloth 16).
But Mawari had become tired of collecting and eating the malya roots, so he asked the Jaguar
chacha to make something better. The Jaguar chacha went out to a clearing where she disposed of
her excrement and from this sprang the cassava plant. However, the people did not like this, so the
chacha went once more to the clearing and this time allowed herself to be burnt. From her burnt
bones other cassava plants shot up of the type used to this very day 17).
When Mawari and Washi had each grown a penis they felt the desire for a woman, but the Karau
bird called to them and told them that there was a catch in Mawari's shika. Both brothers went down
to the fish trap and there found an otter, s{mlra. They both had sexual intercourse with the otter, but
did so through its eye. The otter strongly reproached them for this, saying: "Why do you do this to
me as if I were a woman ?", and added, pointing to the river: "Go and find yourselves wives over
there" 18). The brothers accordingly went down to the river. Washi went upstream and Mawari
downstream. The latter began to fish, sticking his arrow into the water several times. On each occasion
he fished up a feminine article 19). The first time it was a woman's bag 20), the next time a menstruation
mat made of brazil nut bark 21), the third time a whole warishi 22) with onomto seed 23), shewe seed 24),
cotton seed 25), chipo 26), and a woman's apron with beads of fish eggs 27). The fourth time he ob
tained a spindle 28), and on the fifth attempt he drew up a woman from the water. She was a woman
of the Okoimo-yenna (Anaconda-people) and he took her to wife. She had a small child in her arms
and this was a pure Okoimo child. It became Mawari's stepson. Mawari went on fishing and the next
five times obtained exactly the same things up from the water, from the Okoimo people. The last
woman was a little younger, and he gave her to Washi as wife. When she rose up from the water she
had two dogs in her arms 29); these became Mawari's pets, and when later he went up to heaven, he
left them behind for his children and exhorted them to keep the dogs as pets. Before that time Mawari
had had two bush dogs, rakachi 30), as pets; these he then sent back to the forest.
Now that the two brothers had obtained the two Okoimo women they wished to have sexual rela
tions with them, but the women said: "Have no relations with us, it will cut off your penis". So
Mawari obeyed his wife, but Washi could not refrain from enjoying his wife. In her vagina there were
tiny pirai fish 31) and these bit off Washi's penis. He collapsed with pain and nearly died, but Mawari
cured him. Washi even regained his penis, but this time it was of normal size.
Mawari then bathed his wife in strongly-smelling fluids 32) and this caused the pirai fish to fall out
of her vagina so that he was able to have relations with her without risk.
Washi got a number of children by his wife and also took his own daughter as an extra wife; all
his male descendants also had several wives and their progeny became the "civilized Brazilians".
Mawari kept to his one wife, but all his children, except two, a man and a woman, died. These two
married each other and had about 5 children. Their offspring became the Waiwai and all the tribes
related to them (all Indians), and Europeans 33).
When Mawari's one daughter became emasi 34), Mawari asked his wife what they were to do about
it; the Okoimo woman answered: "Place her in wayapa 35), otherwise the Okoimo people will come
and take her, for they are kinsfolk, our poimo" 36).
Mawari's wife told her daughter that the heavens would fall if during her at least one month's
initiation seclusion she looked at it.
In the meantime Mawari was angry because nearly all his children died, so one day he sent his
children upstream with Washi and his family in order to poison fish. He had decided to go to heaven,
and shot one arrow after the other into the vault of heaven until a long, long ladder had been made
which swayed in the wind 37) By this ladder he and his wife climbed up to heaven.
Washi is assumed still to live somewhere down in Brazil; once he passed through on his way from
Brazil northwards.
.. The Creation Myth 43
Notes
1) Kakenau-kworokjam = sky spirits which in the olden days were also to be found on the earthly
plane, but now mainly frequent the second heavenly layer often in the form of birds. The earthly
layer is the next lowest of the five planes of existence.
2) "Yenna" means people and here refers to what one might term the species. At the same time it
refers to a couple, male and female. The various people in question are all animal people with the
suffix "-imo", that means big, but here specially refers to the parallel existence of all living creatures
still found in heaven, which are both stronger and bigger than their mundane parallels. In the olden
days these heavenly parallels were thus also to be found on earth. Meku = presumably marmoset
monkey; tawati = unknown bird; rataki = grasshopper; poroto = spider monkey; warakaru =
presumably capuchin monkey; usha = bisa monkey; awarki = squirrel.
3) Here is indicated a difference in principle between kakenau-kworokjam that can manifest them
selves as animal people, and the proper animal people who, as appears from the Shodewika myth,
hold an intermediate position between and form a starting point for a division into real animals and
real people, respectively. Wayam = tortoise.
4) Karamtu fruit. Yellow, wild forest tree's fruit.
5) Bush rope ring, rami. Used by the Waiwai when climbing.
6) The grasshopper, which is about 10 em long, is said to be able to cut into wood with its sharp
organ, presumably its ovipositor.
7) Chacha = Waiwai kinship term for grand-mother. It is also the general description for an old
woman. She often plays an important part in the action of the myths. The chacha of the Jaguar people
(Kamara-yenna) looked like a human being, but had long claws and was hairy; all her children, the
Jaguar people, were like jaguars and had no ekatl,
8) Anton = a youth or a girl who acts as a general help for elderly people who are not the child's
parents. (See also Anton p. 153).
9) The author has never seen ladders in use; normally a climbing ring is used.
10) It is typical that only Mawari is mentioned. Washi does not play nearly so important a part
in the Waiwai mind.
11) My informant thought that stone knives were once used like stone axes, but that they were poor.
12) Shika fish trap, H metres long, funnel-shaped, is used when obstructing the smaller creeks.
13) Putka = bird with an orange-coloured head and a faint call.
14) Karau = a bird the size of a hen with a strong call, possibly = karapau = aracua.
15) According to my informant the Kamara-yenna used the swollen root of the wild creeper malya
(unknown plant) to make bread. The root is poisonous and is treated exactly the same as cassava.
It is said still to be used on rare occasions when the ordinary field crops fail. Within the Waiwai area
malya is only found near the middle section of the upper Mapuera.
16) It is difficult to decide whether, before the use of cotton was known, loin cloths were made of
woven leaves, as stated in the myth. Another informant told me that in bygone days hammered bast
strips taken from the wauko tree (Couratari pulchra) or (Eschweilera sp.) were used. Such strips are
still used, but only as bast capes in connexion with the Shodewika dance festival. When these bast
strips are drawn from the tree trunk they have the form and size of a loin cloth.
In the meantime a married couple stated that they had heard of loin cloths woven of palm leaves
and not of cotton as now. The myth and the one account thus support each other and suggest at the
same time the relatively late arrival of cotton in the Waiwai area.
Speaking of textile plants, it may be mentioned that my chief informant, Ewka, related in connexion
with the myth that the Kamara-yenna were aware of the use of, and cultivated, kereweti, kraua (Bro
melia sp.) before Mawari's arrival.
17) The period in time of this detail in the creation myth appears somewhat uncertain; thus the
same informant told me on another occasion that the Jaguar-people knew of cassava before Mawari
existed. Already at that time, at all events, the Jaguar-people were aware of clay vessels, grater boards,
tipiti and two types of sieves which were presumably used in the preparation of the malya root.
18) My informant assumed that it was a matter of the Rio Mapuera, but was not certain about this.
19) Fishing with a bow and arrow is still current practice with the Waiwai,
20) No special women's bags were observed with Waiwai of today.
21) Menstruation mat = Titkopicho.
22) Warishi, pannier = Awechi.
23) Onomto = anatto (Bixa orellana).
24) Shewe = yellow onomto (Bixa sp.).
25) Cotton = maure (Gossypium sp.).
26) Chipo = colouring material produced by onomto and brazil nut oil or spider monkey fat.
27) Woman's apron, trapezoid = keweyu.
Beads of fish eggs are also mentioned in the Okoimo-yenna myth; they were very pretty but unfor
tunately were quickly ruined by rot. On the other hand, a married couple informed me that in earlier
days aprons were made from the fruit of the wasato, Job's tears (Coix lacrymae Hiobi) and that they
themselves had seen one or two examples of this. A faint trace in the same direction is suggested by
the fact that earlier generations are said to have preferred larger beads than those used today. Job's
tears are still widely used for necklaces, and the plant is cultivated in all village clearings.
28) Spindle = popaku,
29) Dog, domestic = shapart,
30) Bush dog = rakachi (Icticyon venaticus)?
31) Pirai fish = pone. It is worthy of note that we find here a clear formulation of the mythical
vagina dentata motif, little known from South America though frequent, amongst others, with the
Polar people (Gessain 1956, p. 583).
32) When a strongly-smelling fluid was spoken of, it was as a rule special varieties of banana dis
solved in water that was meant.
33) It is the Europeans who bring good axes, knives etc. to the Waiwai, so they must be the children
of Mawari (the creator); this is also apparent from the fact that the European only has one wife.
34) Emasi = adolescent girl, see further details under "initiation", p. 154.
35) Wayapa = the initiation seclusion hut.
36) Poimo = a Waiwai kinship term for brother-in-law. The Okoimo-yenna are considered brothers
in-law because Mawari, the forefather of the Waiwai, married one of their women. They therefore
want payment of the bride price or a woman in exchange. The remark seems to disclose that the social
system prevailing in the myth was both patrilineal and patrilocal, as Mawari's daughter follows his
relationship in regard to the Okoimo-yenna and his wife is fished up to his sphere of existence. Further
light on the problem is thrown in the myth concerning the Okoimo-yenna. The Okoimo-yenna look
like real people, but show themselves only to emasi; otherwise they live down in the river.
37) The heavenly ladder is a widespread and popular myth motif.
Aspects
As already mentioned (see "divine beings", p. 35), ideas concerning Mawari appear to be a loosely
linked superstructure imposed on the Waiwai religious system. The widespread fame in South America
of this mythical ancestor points in the same direction. It is therefore not to be expected that informa
tion - even of a symbolical nature - of the tribe's earliest history is to be obtained from the main
motif of the myth.
The wider dissemination a motif has, the more uneasy one becomes about allotting to it a specific
importance for the culture in question. We shall therefore merely summarize here some important
motifs from the Mawari myth. The twin motif is found over the whole of tropical South America as
is likewise the Jaguar's killing of the mother of the twins or the culture hero. Also widely-diffused is
the so-called dema idea in the motif about the Jaguar grandmother, who by voluntarily dying allowed
her bones to be resuscitated in the form of new culture plants: through death to new life. The vagina
dentata motif makes a more scattered appearance in South America, but is met with also in Arctic
areas and in the old world. Finally, the anaconda seems to stand as a symbol of the river and sexuality,
particularly in the northern part of tropical South America. Apart from the anaconda, these motifs
play no important part in the religious life of the Waiwai.
It is different, however, when one subjects to analyses the course of action and the incidental
circumstances which means the local interpretation.
That the concept concerning Mawari is a relatively late loan appears to be supported - apart from
'~.,.,
r the direct information - by his position in the myth, where two categories of supernatural being,
kakenau-kworokjam and yenna are referred to as the basis for his appearance. There is little reason
to doubt that this motif basis also covers an historical one.
An historically interesting aspect appears in the way the myth details the cultural benefits derived
from Mawari, the Kamara-yenna and Okoimo-yenna, respectively. Here we find that Mawari, in
addition to mankind, first and foremost the Waiwai, primarily created things belonging to a pure
hunter and fisher culture, such as bows and arrows, axes and knives, fish traps and possibly a method
of poisoning fish.
During his adolescence he comes into close contact with the Kamara-yenna, Jaguar-people and
from them - or rather from the grandmother of the Jaguar-people - derive a long list of agricultural
elements. The most important of these is naturally the cassava plant and the implements connected
with its preparation such as the grating board, tipiti and sieves. The clay vessel also comes from the
Kamara-yenna, as does knowledge of the kraua textile plant. The Jaguar people, who in the myth
and elsewhere are stated to be the greatly-feared enemy of Mawari and the Waiwai and who appear
as wild hunters and cannibals, imparted through their grandmother knowledge of the basic Amazonian
slash-and-burn agriculture to the Waiwai.
Finally, Mawari married an Okoimo woman and thus brought the Waiwai permanently into a
kind of brother-in-law relationship with the important Okoimo-yenna. From the haunts of the Okoimo
yenna in the river Mawari fished up not only his wife but also articles connected with feminine employ
ment or possessing a faint flavour of luxury. There were, for example, cotton and spindle, a woman's
bag and warishi, colouring material for painting and the woman's apron. From the myth concerning
the Okoimo-yenna it appears that most of the bead and feather ornaments derive from this people,
whilst the dog (considered as a pet), the use of the menstruation mat, and the initiation seclusion are
connected with them.
The Okoimo-yenna, whom the Waiwai consider as their brothers-in-law and with whom relations
are strained on account of the washma institution, are feared. It is very tempting to interpret this
myth action as historical development, but the greatest reserve should be evinced in this respect as
the similarities may be purely fortuitous. It should not be forgotten that the most important calling
of the Waiwai man is still hunting and fishing, and that the male Mawari can thus only represent
these sides of occupational culture. Not until his relations with women, his foster mother and wife,
respectively, can he hand down agricultural traditions.
In order to ascertain whether any connexion exists between myth and history, it is necessary to
investigate whether the Kamara-yenna, Okoimo-yenna and, perhaps, Mawari can be identified.
According to Frikel (1957, p. 530 et seq) Kamara-yenna connotes not only an individual tribe (as
mentioned on p. 24). The big Carib groups occupying the area from Acarai down towards the river
Amazon regard all distant wild tribes as Kamara-yenna. That in the myth Mawari grew up with the
Kamara-yenna may refer to a wild tribe of this sort whose culture was based on hunting and the
collection of the wild malya root. Through the Kamara chacha it obtained cassava cultivation, that is
to say became acculturated. This could be exemplified by a wild tribe (Frikel 1957, p. 534) which
possessed agriculture but was unaware of cotton and was anthropophagous. The more highly developed
Caribs like to marry into such partially acculturated Kamara-yenna and thus disseminate a cultural
development.
Okoimo-yenna is also a generic name used by the Parukoto dialect group (see further p. 236) (to
I whom the Waiwai, amongst others, belong), to describe the related dialect group Charuma, which
comprises amongst others the Charuma and Tunayana tribes.
It is said that in former days the Okoimo-yenna slept under-water. That Mawari marries an Okoimo
woman whom he fishes up out of the water agrees with existing conditions where Parukoto (with
Waiwai) and Charuma (= Okoimo-yenna) constitute two related dialect groups which in association
form a Carib major group based on lingual and blood relationship. It should be noted that both the
Waiwai's neighbours to the north, the Taruma, and to the east, the Mouyenna, possess creation myths
that agree with that of the Waiwai in the sense that the ancestress was an Anaconda woman who
--- ~---.,,--.--_. -~~."'-'-~--------"- _.-~--- ..:-- ---
was fished up out of the water (Farabee 1918, pp. 143, 159). Anaconda ideas appear to be even more
developed with the Taruma than with the Waiwai, and legend has it that the Taruma were an am
phibious people (Farabee 1918, pp. 135, 149). In the meantime neither the Taruma nor the Mouyenna
belonged to the Cariban lingual family, though close to the Waiwai in cultural respects.
The Kamara-yenna and Okoimo-yenna represent the cultural influence that Mawari's descendants,
including the Waiwai, benefited from. But who was Mawari?
It should first be mentioned that Frikel (1957, p. 551) refers to a Carib tribe named Mawari, that
was said to live south-east of the Waiwai in an area directly bordering theirs. This tribe may be identical
with the Faranakaru (or Faranakare) of whom Frei Francisco de Sao Marcos makes mention in
1725. If a tribe of the name of Mawari has existed it must long since have become extinct as no Waiwai
seems to have heard of it. Another way to proceed is to consider Mawari's appearance which is described
as follows: short-haired, bearded, ample hair on body, very tall about 190 ems) and without clothing
\ . or ornaments. This description corresponds precisely with that given by the Caribs about the appearance
of the wild tribes. Wild tribes are often said to be relatively light-skinned. This may not have been
mentioned in regard to Mawari as the Waiwai themselves have lighter skins than most of their neigh
bours (see also Farabee 1918, p. 166). The cultural benefits specially created by Mawari roughly
correspond to those of the wild tribes apart from the fact that the club of the latter is replaced by
Mawari's bow and arrow. It should be added that the Waiwai bow is of the long type (up to 2! m)
which seems characteristic of many marginal cultures.
The combination of myth and history with the Waiwai thus seems to agree with current theories
based on studies of acculturation, the creation myth reflecting a development from a purely hunter
and collector culture, via the use of cassava with kraua, to a more advanced agricultural culture with,
amongst other things, cotton. We have so far attempted to provide a historical basis for the action
in the Mawari myth. In the case of certain details, however, it will also be expedient to enquire into
possible social origins.
The myth starts with a Wayam woman, that is to say a female tortoise, contemtuously ignoring her
husband and climbing up a tree. There a number of animal spirits attempt to realize sexual relations
with her, and finally the grasshopper man is successful. The result of this union is as outstanding as
it can be: Mawari himself. The Waiwai have an indirect kinship term, wayamnu, which means an
owned wayam or my tortoise. For a Waiwai "wayamnu" stands for all the persons of the opposite sex
with whom sexual relations are permitted. All persons with whom one can contract marriage, which
primarily means cross cousins and unrelated people, are termed wayamnu. Even though a person
has married one (or more) of these, the remaining wayamnu are retained by him (or her) as socially
recognized lovers even though they also should marry. Like all institutions that have to do with sex,
wayamnu is calculated to arouse jealousy and tension in the community, but on this point the myth
has a stabilizing effect by justifying the practice by a cultural precedence that is based on the sacrosanct
form of the myth.
Two other important social customs in connexion with marriage and initiation, respectively, obtain
in the same way their stamp of established custom. At the end of the Mawari myth mention is made
of the fact that the Okoimo-yenna always pursue the Waiwai girls because they never received pay
ment for the Okoimo woman whom Mawari fished up. This eternal claim is a parallel to the strict
rule about bride price and bride service which, under the name of washma, can make a young
Waiwai man economically dependent for life on his wife's family. To avoid this washma depen
dence the Waiwai often try to arrange a sister exchange, that is to say the bridegroom's sister
marries the bride's brother, so that the one claim balances out the other. It is to this custom that the
myth refers.
In order to protect his daughter from the danger of being abducted by the Okoimo-yenna, Mawari's
wife proposed shutting her up in the wayapa enclosure. Once again the myth creates the cultural
precedence for a social practice which otherwise one would be inclined to ignore on account of the
inconvenience involved.
OKOIMO-YENNA (THE ANACONDA-PEOPLE)
Once very long ago all the people went from one Waiwai village to another in order to dance at a
Shodewika dance festival. Only an old chacha 1) remained behind with a young girl. Shortly before
this the girl had had her first menstruation and was therefore shut in the wayapa enclosure for 1 to
2 months. In this connexion all her hair had been shaved off. The girl had just emerged from this
seclusion, and her hair now reached well down her back again.
When the villagers left they said: "We shall return in about 5 days".
The next morning the chacha asked the girl to go and fetch some water from the river, and as she
left the chacha warned her: "Do not look out in the middle of Yishamna 2), for then the Okoimo
yenna 3) will come and take you; let not your eyes wander, take the straight path". As the girl went
down towards the river she asked herself: "Why did chacha say that I must not look at the middle
of the river. Whatever can be there? I think I shall look, yes, I think I will." When she reached the
river she looked out at the middle, and immediately she saw the whole of the Anaconda-people rise
from the water, men and women. They looked just like human beings but they possessed anaconda
ekati, so they were merely anacondas who had assumed human form 4).
As the girl now stood gaping, all the people out there gave the "visitors whistle" 5) and then "yh
yh-yh-yh-yh" 6). With the Anaconda-people were also the people who lived in the water, for example
the electric eel, the sting-ray, tiger-fish and the small fish 7).
All these people now came above the surface towards the young girl. She became quite frightened
and ran towards the house as fast as she could. She reached it before the Anaconda-people could
catch her and shouted to the chacha: "I saw the Anaconda-people, I saw the Anaconda-people! They
are coming this way. Where shall I hide?" Chacha became angry and scolded her because she had
been so curious, and said: "They are coming after you and you cannot hide yourself from them for
they will find you nevertheless because you smell" 8). But the chacha added: "Come here and sit down.
I shall place a big vessel over you." This was done.
When the Anaconda-people and their party 9) arrived at the clearing they did not enter the house
but danced outside. They danced as though they awaited drinks 10), but in reality they only waited
The Anaconda-people 49
for the girl whom they wanted to take with them as wife. All were clad in ceremonial dress with feather
and bead decorations which the Waiwai had never before seen, the tiger fish with long nose feathers,
and all had tall arm feathers etc.
Whilst they danced in the clearing, the chacha threw some dry ground pepper on the fire and burnt
it in order to drive away the Anaconda-people. However, they remained though they began to cough 11)
and shouted: "What are you burning, wito? 12) You are trying to deny us your pall" 13). Chacha
answered: "It was only me you saw, but you thought it was a young girl", and with the jaw of a pirai
she cut short her hair 14). She thus looked as though she had recently emerged from the initiation
enclosure so that the Anaconda-people should think that it was her they had seen. The Anaconda
people replied: "You are fooling us", and continued to dance all night until dawn, when a Banatbana
man, who was quite small 15), went into the house and changed himself into the corresponding small
fish. It slipped in turn under all the vessels until at last it found the one under which the girl sat. But
when he entered the girl immediately trod on it to disable it. Nevertheless it escaped, but for that
reason all banatbana fish have since been flat. Outside the fish again transformed itself into a small
man and told the Anaconda-people everything. They at once shouted: "Chacha, the girl is under one
of the vessels". She, however, replied: "No, the little fish is lying, it is just talk; I have no daughters.
I myself need someone to run my errands 16). Be off with you, I am alone here."
But the Anaconda-people continued dancing, and whilst they danced they sang their exotic songs.
The electric eel sang: "Ka tu mi pa ra" (repeated) 17), and the Anaconda-people sang: "Ya ra ki ki
yenna" (repeated) 18).
Whilst the Anaconda-people were dancing, the giant armadillo 19) began to dig a tunnel from the
river up under the house; but when it reached the house the young girl heard its scraping and whispered
to the chacha: "Who is that?". The chacha answered: "It sounds like the giant armadillo". Soon
after the floor of the hut began to get damp and soft, and water bubbled up. Just under the girl's
vessel the water trickling in brought with it two small luli fish and two kushpa frogs. The girl whispered:
"Chacha, here are some small luli and kushpa", and the chacha replied: "Give them to me". The
girl then eased up the vessel and handed them to the chacha who immediately threw them on the
fire in order to stop their gossiping.
Finally the Anaconda-people became resigned to the fact that the girl was not there, and prepared
to leave the village. As a last song they sang: "I wanted to lie in the embrace of the old woman's grand
child". They then removed all their feather and bead finery: upper arm and calf bands of beads,
ceremonial hair tubes, chin, mouth corner and nose feathers, women's ear ornaments, bead criss
cross. All these things they put in the roof of the house 20) and left there, saying: "Here is something
for poimo to look at when he returns from the dance" 21), and then they departed.
The girl then hurried out of the vessel, and as the whole floor had become muddy she said to the
chacha: "We are about to be flooded. We must hasten away". So they hurried off into the forest.
But the chacha returned several times to fetch as much as she could of the inhabitants' chattels. The
last time she fetched things the water reached to her waist. About this time the people returned from
their dance festival. Chacha told them: "We were flooded here", and they answered: "Okwe, okwe"
(too bad, what a pity). All the fields were also flooded and the men lamented: "Okwe, okwe, all our
4 Waiwai
;
.'
Fig. 8. According to the myth the vain

Waiwai learnt from the Anaconda-people
the use of bead armbands and necklets
and the extravagant nose feathers.
property is now under water", but the chacha calmed them a little: "Some of it I brought into the
forest, but unfortunately I was unable to get it all before the water took it".
When the villagers came with the chacha to the place in the forest where their property had been
brought to safety, they also found all the ornaments that had been left behind by the Anaconda
people. This had been saved. They were very enthusiastic about all the finery, but the fine beads proved
to be fish eggs which soon became soft and rotten, and the beautiful necklace plate was a small, flat
fish which could not keep, either. But the adornments of the Anaconda-people had been so lovely
that the Waiwai never forgot them, but spoke of them from generation to generation, saying: "That
is how the Anaconda-people looked, they really were beautiful. We should very much like the orna
ments, if only we had beads!"
The Waiwai learned from the Anaconda-people the use of feathers for decorative purposes as
employed today. Before that time they had only possessed everyday hair tubes without feathers, their
loin cloths has been undecorated; on their loin cords they had only had teeth 22), as necklets they
had used cotton string, and the same with their criss-cross 23); their calf bands were of woven cotton 24),
their wrist bands of bark 25), the upper arm bands were of bark 26), and ear pegs had only been
embellished with mussel shells 27). After the meeting with the Anaconda-people the Waiwai began
to decorate themselves with feathers at all these and other places, and a desire was felt also to adorn
themselves with beads. Then men came from another world bringing beads with them, so that it
became possible to wear beads on chains and, particularly, on women's aprons 28).
Notes
1) Chacha = old woman or grandmother. This is the classic introduction to a Waiwai myth or
story, corresponding to our "Once upon a time".
2) Yishamna = an unusual Waiwai word for the Rio Mapuera.
3) Okoimo-yenna = Anaconda-people. The anaconda is a large aquatic constrictor, but the concept
of Anaconda-people embraces a large number of fish also (see p. 25).
4) The Anaconda-people, like other animal people, must be regarded as the unspecified origin of,
for example, real people and real animals. Here they appear to achieve their human form of existence
by what the tabu-breaking girl does: looking over the river whilst she is emasi, that is to say, coming
of-age, for a period of about two years after the first menstruation.
5) Visitors' whistle, a number of short, powerful whistles which visitors employ when approaching
a strange village.
6) "A sound made by all men during the Yamo dance when they enter the house in order to drink,
whilst the women sitting there bow their heads and place their hands before their eyes to avoid
seeing them."
7) Electric eel = kashmi; sting ray = shapali; tiger fish = okoropicha; and small fish in general
= kutmo. On the other hand the otters did not belong to the Anaconda-people.
8) That the young girl smelled was explained as meaning that she smelt to the Anaconda-people
(pleasantly, for they wanted her as wife), but not to ordinary folk. However, the smell was presumably
connected with menstruation.
9) As mentioned earlier, the Anaconda-people comprise many different species of fish, but the
anaconda itself (Eunectes murinus) seems to have had a specially dominant position over the other
beings in the river.
10) According to Waiwai technique, dancing whilst awaiting drinks can either be an ordinary ring
dance where "one dances in order to drink afterwards", or a rhythmic stamping without advancing,
which is resorted to during a drinking interval where the bowl is passed from hand to hand.
11) The technique of burning ground red pepper (Capsicum crassum) on the fire in order to drive
away undesired guests, as was the case in the myth, suggests an ancient knowledge of noxious gasses
that is unknown to the modern Waiwai culture. The technique is known from old accounts about
the Tupi and Carib people, amongst others (Metraux 1949, p. 394).
12) Wito is an unusual word for chacha, grandmother.
13) Pall = Waiwai term for grandchild.
14) Pirai jaws are still used to cut hair.
IS) Banatbana is a quite small fish and the man is thus characterized in the same manner.
16) A girl to run errands, anton, is a fixed term with the Waiwai (see p. 153).
17) Katumi = old form for Kashmi = electric eel. "Para" is probably only added for the sake of
euphony. In this way the songs are built up as described in the Shodewika myth where the Waiwai
couple composed the dance songs.
18) Yaraki = a small fish; ki = meaningsless addition; yenna = people.
4'
19) Giant armadillo = kapayuimo; imo = big.

20) The Waiwai frequently store their more valuable property in this way.
21) Poimo = brother-in-law. As descendants of Mawari, the Waiwai are still brothers-in-law of
the Anaconda-people from whom Mawari fished up his wife.
22) The teeth in the loin cord cannot be regarded as ornamentation, being worn on account of their
magical qualities during hunting.
23) Criss-cross work of cotton strings is still used, but bead strings are gaining ground.
24) These are still used by the Piskaryenna Indians who live somewhat south of the Rio Mapuera.
25) Still general in daily use.
26) Upper arm bands of bark are now only used on one occasion, the Shodewika dance festival,
where the ceremonial has acted conservative.
27) Mother-of-pearl from the shuwe mussel found in the rapids of the Rio Mapuera. Now they
are also decorated with toucan down.
28) My main informant, Ewka, assumed that earlier women's aprons had been made of animal
hides, but had heard nothing about this. This is, however, extremely doubtful, because skins are
practically not used in the material culture of the Waiwai. Older people, on the other hand, have seen
aprons where Job's tears were used instead of European beads; this fruit is still used a good deal for
necklaces and criss-cross work, and is cultivated at all villages. This fits in with the fact that previous
generations preferred larger beads than is the case today. In regard to the patterns on the bead aprons,
which are particularly meander borders, it was said that these had been known even before the arrival
of the Anaconda-people. Cloth with such patterns had been seen earlier, and when a Waiwai man
began to weave patterned aprons, the women had quickly learnt this from him. In the same connexion
it was related that before it was known how to make men's loin cloths of cotton, long bast strips,
about 15-20 ems wide, had been used of the same kind of wauko (Eschweilera sp.) as is now - split
up - employed for the bast costumes worn at Shodewika festivals. However, there is not agreement
on this point, as others had heard of loin cloths made of plaited palm leaves. In the same way the fire
fans were also simpler, consisting merely of a single palm leaf instead of the plaited ite spire now used,
which are an exact parallel of the type favoured by the Wapishana tribe to the north.
Aspects
The myth concerning the Anaconda-people is probably the most clearly social of the Waiwai traditions.
Many of the problems it raises have, however, been dealt with above under the Mawari myth.
The main theme is simple and somewhat insignificant: The Anaconda-people see an initiated, un
married girl and attempt to capture her. When abandoning this attempt they deliver up their beautiful
adornments.
As in the Mawari myth the anaconda motif appears in connexion with the river, even with a flood,
which the Waiwai connect with the anaconda (see p. 102). The anaconda as a sexual symbol will be
referred to later under mythological aspects (p. 97).
The course of action is in accord with the Mawari myth on one point, in that certain cultural benefits
such as decorations of feathers and beads, plus, possibly, the custom of secluding girls at initiation, are
brought to the knowledge of the Waiwai by direct contact with the Anaconda-people (see also Farebee
(1918, p. 149) where it is said of the Taruma that the under-water house of the Anaconda woman
contains all the objects later brought to the Taruma by the Whites). On the other hand, in many of
the story's details and incidental circumstances are to be found assessments of what must be considered
correct and incorrect social conduct.
The symbolism inherent in the fact that the Anaconda-people would under no circumstances have
stood up in the middle of the river if the girl had not looked, is noteworthy. The action is stamped by
personal choice between correct and improper behaviour. A touch of "the Fall" is underlined both
by the words of the chacha "Let not your eyes wander, take the straight path", which immediately
calls to mind the "strait and narrow way", by the girl gazing over the river, and by the flood that
results from her incorrect conduct.
The social function of the myth is partly in line with that of the Mawari myth. It is a confirmation
and justification of the customs surrounding the coming-of-age girl; not only the seclusion from one
to two months after the first menstruation, but also a strict demand for industry, modesty and obedience
is imposed on her for about two years.
It is known from the Mawari myth that the Anaconda-people are regarded as brothers-in-law of
the Waiwai. Mawari paid no bride price and even received a number of women's articles smacking of
luxury. The Anaconda-people thus have a permanent claim to a Waiwai woman according to the
sister exchange principle of the washma institution. By the disobedience shown to the elder generation
(and tradition), the girl exposes herself in this myth to the lawful pursuit of the Anaconda-people.
Similarly, during her initiation seclusion she must only answer her parents with a faint mumble in
order that the Anaconda-people may not hear her.
The Anaconda-people occupy a curiously disrupted position in the consciousness of the Waiwai:
they are feared and, as appears from the Mawari legend, they are related; and in the Anaconda myth
they are both feared and felt to be benefactors, culture heroes who in addition to the female articles
mentioned above brought to the knowledge of the Waiwai bead and feather adornments.
There is reason to assume that Farabee's account of the Acarai monster (Farabee 1924, p. 174)
is connected with the Anaconda myth. According to Farabee the Waiwai had a story about an Acarai
monster which killed all who approached. After it had been appealed to, it agreed to kill no more
provided the most beautiful woman in the tribe was sacrificed to it. She was then cast into a lake on
the north slope of the Acarai mountain, which was the abode of the serpent. Here she still lives.The
serpent, satisfied, no longer molests the Waiwai.
Although the story is much altered, it is easy to see that the basic idea is the same in both accounts.
NUNI (THE MOON) 1)
Long ago Nufii (= the moon) had intercourse with his sister, he had intercourse with his own sister.
He came into his sister's bosom at night right after playing a flute. He detached his ekati just like this:
he was ekati and the ekatl played the flute 2).
"I came, darling; I came to your bosom, darling" he said.
"Is that so? All right, get up in the hammock".
"All right."
"Now really who are you?"
"I am one from far away from another village, I came to your bosom."
"I see, all right, get up in the hammock." Then he had intercourse with her.
"I am going back again."
"All right, go along. But why did you come?"
"I just came to you."
"I see."
He was still playing the flute just like an ekati.

The next day dawned and he came again just at sunset. In the same place he still played the flute;
he came many, many times.
"Why is he coming (expression of fear)? It seems as if (you are) one who does not live far away;
it seems as if you are one close to us. Your home is far away (and thus how can you come so often ?)."
"No, it's the truth, but even so I come to you; I just cast off my laziness."
"Maybe it's my own brother who is coming," she thought.
She darkened him with genipa, with great genipa 3). (Exp. of getting light), he came again just as
before.
"All right, come." (Exp. of rubbing), then she darkened his face. (Exp. of rubbing), (exp. of getting
dark), his face got very black then.
"Hey, hey! What did she put on me (exp. of disgust)?" 4).
It would not come off. He then left the woman's bosom; then he went away, he went hunting just
at dawn. He rubbed his face with water, it would not come off, it was there to stay 5). Then he came
back after hunting - but really he had gone to get the genipa off his face - and because he had a black
face he was ashamed. (Exp. of getting dark) (he waited) until after sunset to come in, after sunset he
came in, about midnight he came in just to sleep. He brought no game; he did bring a little curassow
bird, but as for game he did not bring any.
He went hunting again (exp. of shaking) (exp. of sitting down) (exp. of going away), he went away
again for a long time, he hunted up on a hill. He was ashamed before his sister.
"You yourself had intercourse with me (exp. of fear)," she had said (exp. of fear). Therefore he went
away. Then she saw him after daybreak; the sun rose in due time and he did not go because he had
become tired; he did not go then." She will see me, (exp. of disgust)." He had his face covered with
his hands.
"Oh! oh! oh! my eyes are hurting, ouch! oh! oh! my eyes are hurting very badly."
_ _ _. _- __ ~ e· " , _ .• -. _ _ - ' _ . - _-~ ~_----....._. .:":"""0 •. - ..._,._- --....-......-.._
The Moon 55
"What's the matter with you, young one," his sister said then.
"My eyes hurt, sister, ouch!"
"You're fooling," she said then, "you're fooling; you are not really sick. I think it was you your
self who had intercourse with me." She scolded him then, "you yourself had intercourse with me;
I am your blood sister. You had intercourse with me as if I were of another family. I think I will be
your wife," she then said. (Exp. of stopping), then the one who had been his wife stopped talking.
Then he went to the sky; he became changed then. (People) naturally do not want their children to
die; therefore, he did not want his sister for his wife here on earth, and went to the sky 6). (He went)
on arrows; he shot the arrows (exp. of pulling a bow and shooting repeated four times) all the way
to the ground. He shot the arrows next to each other to form a ladder for him; it then went to the
ground. They went away, he and his wife still as people (exp. of climbing repeated three times). They
are there in the sky 7). Therefore, he is in this way like an ekati; yaskomo see him as an ekati 8). Then
later from here we see him with his dark face; as he had intercourse with his sister his face is dark.
Notes
1) Translated by Rob. E. Hawkins from the author's tape recordings.

2) The meaning is that whilst the moon's body was with the sister, its ekati (or soul) sat outside
the house playing the flute. As the sister thought that it was the moon playing the flute, she did not
know who came to her hammock night after night. A clear dualism between body and soul is expressed
here.
3) Great genipa = chanaimo from chana (Genipa americana), a fruit that is shredded and used to
paint Waiwai bodies blue-black. lmo = great, refers to the heavenly parallel found to all earthly
objects, plants and animals. lmo was also found on the earth in the old days. An object qualified by
-imo was bigger and stronger than normal. For example, chana is difficult to wash off the skin, chana
imo stays on for ever.
4) The frequent outbursts of feeling are particularly typical of the narrative style. These expressions
constitute a kind of vivid language that augments the sentimental content and makes the style more
concentrated. The most general in use is: expression of disgust = kicha! also important is: expres
sion of fear = kopi!
5) According to another version the moon man also tried to wash off the chanaimo colour with
clay, but when he looked in the stream he still saw the black stains. At last he rubbed his face· with a
piece of cassava root (which is regarded by the Waiwai as an effective means against chana stains),
but the chanaimo would not come off.
6) The tribe would evict members guilty of incest.
7) According to another version his wife became a star.
8) The yaskomo often visits nufii-ekati, for example in connexion with name-giving. Within the
spirit world the moon is considered as a kakenau-kworokjam (see p. 140).
Aspects
The legend about the moon that married its sister, obtained its special appearance, and ascended to
heaven is one of the most widespread legends to be found. The main motif is thus quite unsuitable to
provide us with any impression of Waiwai ideas. On the other hand, there are certain incidental
circumstances which must be more or less of a local stamp. There is the stressing of the free, pre
marital sexual relations, and the shame felt at incest. In the same way there is reason to note the very
clearly expressed dualism between body and soul. It must be assumed that the special importance of
the moon as name-giver for the new-born ekati has no connexion with that legend, but is based on
magical ideas about the moon being a dangerous kakenau-kworokjam.
THE SHODEWIKA MYTH
There was once a village inhabited by the Kurum-yenna. In addition to them one Shoheli man and
one Wayam man also lived there. The Shoheli man, at all events, was married to a Kurum woman.
All the people looked like real human beings 1). As there were in the village a number of Kurum
yenna women who wished to be married, and being curious to see what their neighbours looked like,
the people from many villages roundabout were invited to a dancing festival 2).
First the Wayma-yenna were summoned and with them came the Shou-yenna and Yawari-yenna
in addition to various types of monkey people like, for example, uruwa, wicharu, poroto and meku 3).
All these animal people looked like humans, but were both broad and ugly. In order that the local
women should not notice this they wore long dresses of bast 4). On the back of their bast dresses were
various drawings and, for example, the Wayma-yenna had a drawing of a paski wrist (Fig. 9,1), the
Yawari-yenna probably had a drawing of the wayma arm (Fig. 9,2), other animal people used drawings
of the warakaka barb (Fig. 9,3) or the warakaka fish (Fig. 9,4), and some, finally, drawings of an old
double hook (Fig. 9,5) 5).
1 2 3 4
JL 5 6
Fig. 9. Drawing of the 6 patterns, mentioned in the myth, on the bast dresses used at the first Shodewika dance festival,
representing: I. paski (agouti) wrist; 2. wayma (big sloth) arm; 3. warakaka (fish) barb; 4. warakaka fish; 5. old double
hook; and 6. wayma (big sloth) design.
In addition the various animal people were made up to represent the animals in question. The
Wayma-yenna had a very long pigtail, the Uruwa-yenna were painted black all over with the exception
of the forehead, that was white. The Poroto-yenna were also painted black but had red anatto colouring
all over their faces; they had long arms and their pigtails were like tails. The Wicharu-yenna had
black faces and yellow hands. The Meku-yenna, who were regarded as a particularly happy and
magnificent people, were completely unpainted apart from a white band on each upper arm 6). The
Yawari-yenna had very long pigtails, but their hands and feet were wrinkled and bad and they smelt
dreadfully.
All these animal people now approached the host village and when they got near they blew on a
long bark horn to let the locals know of their arrival 7). They then danced into the village clearing.
However, they had but few songs to their dances and these were not very good.
In the meanwhile the women of the host village stood and selected men for themselves whom
they caught hold of 8). When the animal men went with the Kurum women to the hammocks they
took off their dancing capes and the characteristic animal features became apparent; the woman who
had gone with the Wayma man said: "No good, no good" 9).
A Waiwai 'man and his wife who lived near the Wayma-yenna had also been invited. But before
the Wayma-yenna went to the dance, the men went out into the forest and made their dancing dresses.
The Waiwai man lay in his hammock asleep and did not go with them. When the Wayma-yenna
returned he asked them if they had made his dress. They had not, and he became offended, wishing
to remain at home.
The Wayma-yenna went to drink (and thus of course to dance); they were invited a long time ago.
Going, going, going, going, gone; everyone went 10).
"Did they tie a costume for me, wife?" the Waiwai man asked his wife. "Did they tie a costume
for me?"
"Not at all, they did not tie one for you at all," she answered, "they did not tie it at all. 'Evidently
they do not tie their own costumes,' is what they said peevishly (about us)."
"Is that so! Well, let them go to drink (by themselves); let these who can sing songs go (instead of
us), those who can make them up," he said then a long time ago.
"Oh, is that so? Then you are not going to take me now?" his wife asked. "I believe I will go and
tie his old costume," his wife then thought.
Then she went to tie it; tie, tie, tie, tie, she tied it, in the (design of) an aguiti wrist she tied it, tie,
tie. She wet it, she untied it (sound of untying), then it was very nice, it was well designed 11).
"Hey, husband, I tied your old costume," she said then, "I tied your old costume, husband."
"Did you really? Well, where is it?"
"Here. Go along anyway; let us go," she said then, but only after the other people had been gone
for several days.
"All right, go along, and I will come too." Then they went. Pull, unloose, pull unloose, thus they
untied their hammocks then.
"Now what will we make up for our songs," they queried while still there.
"Aaa, I became vexed, I became vexed, (expression of disgust), I became vexed, wife, (exp. of dis
gust); whatever shall we sing? Eee, I became vexed, (repeated three times) (exp. of surprise) (exp. of
disgust), it is bad (exp. of disgust)," he said then. "Whatever shall it be (exp. of surprise)? Nnn, I
became vexed (exp. of disgust), it is no good at all. I got vexed, po kati po heye" he said to himself.
"That is really it, wife," he said then. "Keselenamay po kati po heye, hena maruya kati po heye. That
is what we will sing, (exp. of delight)" they said then, just as they were leaving 12).
--
Fig. 10. Waiwai dance costume of bast

with the "agouti's wrist" design produced
by the resist-dye-method. The design and
technique is as mentioned in the myth
(p. 57).
"All right, that must be it; get started." Thus they went along; step, step, step, step. There a water
haas jumped out; hop, hop, hop, hop, splash. Surprisingly it jumped with its legs spread apart.
"What shall we sing?"
"Eee, it jumped with its legs spread apart (two expo of surprise). The water haas jumped; (repeated)
(exp. of disgust), it is no good at all," they said. "The water haas jumped, (repeated) (exp. of disgust),
it is no good at all," they said. "Yiwiri tapay-ha, yiwirl-hee 13). That is what we will sing, wife (exp.
of delight), that is it," he said with his wife. "All right, that is what we will sing," they said.
They went on, they went on, they went on, they went - totow - then a haka tiger was there - (exp.
of sliding down).
"This is a haka tiger, wife (exp. of surprise)," he said. (Exp. of sliding down).
Fioo, fioo, fioo, fioo, fioo, fioo (this is the song of a small bird).
"Did you happen to be here?" (The tiger) had roused up a kind of small bird.
"Nnn, (it is) a song for us a little bit, a song for us a little bit (exp. of delight)."
"But whatever can we sing (exp. of disgust)?"
"Nnn, a haka tiger jumped down; (exp. of disgust), that is no good at all," he said.
"Well, what shall we sing?"
"It slid down, (exp. of surprise). Whatever can we sing, (exp. of disgust)? Or should we sing like
this: he shururu tafie ?"
"Perhaps that way."
"He shururu tafie, he shu shururu tafie, he shururu shururu taiie, he pipiw piw tafie ; 14) evidently
that is what we shall sing, wife (exp. of delight)".
"Evidently that is it," she answered.
Well, thus they went along, they went along, they went along, they went along, they went along.
They stopped and there was something else; it was a dead toad which had been struck and killed. Its
stomach was up and its legs were stretched out (exp. of surprise).
"Whatever shall we sing next; it is a toad, husband, (exp. of fear, repeated)," she said, "(exp. of
surprise) whatever shall we sing?"
"Nnn, whatever shall it be (exp. of surprise)?" he asked then, "whatever shall it be? There was a
toad with its legs stretched out in the path - - (exp. of disgust) it is no good at all."
"Whatever shall we sing?"
"Nnn, ya porod, ya porod; (exp. of disgust) it is no good at all. Ya porod yapotufie pa, that is it,
wife. Ya porod yapotufie pa, ya porod yapotufie pa he 15), is what we shall sing, wife, (exp. of delight),"
he said then.
"That is evidently it, husband."
They went along, they went along, they went along,4hey,wental()fig.(E*p. ef-stiokingintosomething),
the woman next got a thorn in her foot, a maru thorn, ouch!
"Hey, I have a thorn in my foot, husband, what shall we sing, what shall I sing?"
"Nnn, whatever shall it be (exp. of disgust)?"
"A maru thorn stuck in my foot, a maru thorn stuck in my foot; (exp. of disgust), it is no good at
all," she said. "Ekashi maru yati yan: evidently that is it. Ekashi maru ya he, ekashi maru ya," the
woman then sang 16).
They went along, they went along, they went along, they went along, (exp. of sticking into some
thing).
"An insect bit me, ouch! (exp. of disgust), an insect bit me (exp. of disgust). Whatever shall we sing?"
"Nnn, whatever shall we sing?"
"Tarapi bit me, tarapi bit me (exp. of disgust); it is no good at all," they said. "Tarapi, tarapi yaya
tira, is possibly it. Tarapi tarapi piyaya, yafiiki, pali wira wirali, pali wira piyaya 17), we shall sing,"
he said then.
"Yes, husband, it is good."
They went along again, they went along again, they went along; there in turn they saw some wild
hogs.
"Here are some wild hogs, wife." They were just on the edge of the clearing. - "Wild hogs, hus
band! (Exp. of growling); wild hogs! What shall we sing?"
"Nnn, old wild hogs, (exp. of surprise), but they were thin ones," he said, "but they were thin ones."
"Is that right? Whatever shall we sing?"
"Nnn, they came toward me, wife, and they were growling (exp. of surprise)."
"Poinko nukururuna heye he he he, yirapomra haye chetaw heye he he 18), is all I shall sing, hus
band" said the woman.
"All right," he said, "what shall I sing?"
"Nnn."
"What shall I sing (exp. of disgust)? They were thin (exp. of disgust), thin people, they were thin,
alas! The wild hogs were thin (exp. of disgust); it is no good at all," he said again for the time being.
"Pifiipichi yana he," (he said) then; they got it correct. "Pifiipichi yana he he, pifiipichi yana kururu
nika he he, tukurufiemi he he, pifiipichi yana kururu nikale heee 19), we shall sing evidently, wife."
Later they went again, and there the dogs in turn found (exp. of surprise) an anteater.
Bow, wow, wow, wow! "It is an anteater, wife (exp. of chasing something)," he said then, "(exp.
of chasing something), go away anteater; (three exprs. of chasing something)," he in turn went after
the anteater.
(Exp. of a cord breaking), (exp. of small things falling), his arm band broke and then scattered
(exp. of surprise).
"What shall I sing; my arm band came undone (exp. of disgust)?"
(Exp. of cord breaking), he left it there, alas! His arm band decorations.
"Hey, wife, my arm band came undone (exp. of disgust); it came undone (exp. of disgust), my
arm band."
"Is that so 1"
"Whatever shall I sing?"
"Nnn, what can we sing (exp. of disgust)?"
"My arm band came off, it broke. (Exp. of disgust), it is no good at all, no good at all. My arm
band, my arm band; (exp. of disgust), it is no good at all," he said. "My arm band came undone,
I shall sing instead."
"Evidently that is it, husband."
"Oyapomchi fietarirka wa he, amachi wenali fietarlrka wa hee, evidently we shall sing, wife 20)."
"Evidently that is it," she answered then.
(Exp. of stopping), right up to the edge, to the edge (of the clearing they went), these (who had
been left behind).
"Wife, shall we stay here until after sunset?"
"All right."
They stayed there until after sunset (exp. of becoming dark).
"Nnn, we stayed until past sunset (exp. of surprise) working with ite palm leaves, we stayed until
past sunset."
"What shall we sing? (exp. of fear)."
"I stayed past sunset working on costumes, we can perhaps sing."
"All right, evidently it will be that way."
"I stayed past sunset working on a costume, I stayed past sunset working on a costume. (Exp. of
disgust), it is no good at all; however shall we sing it?"
"Pono poko klkokomaml, yow yarl poko kikokomaml, meye kikokomami 21), evidently we shall
sing."
"Evidently that is it, husband (exp. of delight)," she said then.
They finished then (exp. of stopping), that is the way it was then.
"Shall we go?"
"Go ahead."
Then they came out into the clearing (exp. of stopping).
"Go ahead."
"Nnn, whatever shall it be as we arrive? We arrived (exp. of surprise)."
"Nnn. (Exp. of largeness), (this is) the clearing, wife (exp. of surprise)," he said then. The clearing
seemed large to them long ago.
"They certainly have a large clearing for dancing (exp. of surprise)."
"That is evident" he answered.
"Nnn, I arrived at the chief's clearing, evidently like that."
"I arrived at the chief s clearing (exp. of disgust), it is no good at al1."
"Kayalitomo roron pona kepataka pa hehe, okoyiye, okoyiye hehe, kayalitomo mirnonl pona
kepataka pa hehe 22)," they sang as they arrived.
"Evidently that is what we shall sing."
"All right, evidently that is what I think too," he said then.
Then they came on; tuuu, tuuu, tuuu (sound of blowing trumpets), all by themselves, alas! They
went along only holding on to each other's costumes, alas! "Tuuu, tuuu, tuuu; kayalitomo roron pona
kepataka pa, kayalitomo roron pona kepataka pa," she sang then, the woman, his wife.
"Listen, songs," they said then, the ones who lived there and knew no songs. These were the ones
who sang. "Kayaritakwa, takwa taakwa, taakwa," (exp. of disgust). Yari peru peru peeru peeru,"
they sang, alas! 23).
(Exp. of catching each other repeated seven times), they all caught hold of each other; they all
caught hold of each other then after learning the songs.
Thus the man in his turn sang, the man in turn sang another way.
"We are going into the house, wife, (exp. of surprise); what shall we sing?"
"Nnn," they said; "whatever shall we sing (exp. of surprise)?"
"We are going into the house (exp. of fear)," he said then.
"Nnn," they said just to themselves for the time being. "Whatever shall we sing (exp. of disgust)?
Shall we sing while we are still far away? Shall we sing thus, 'Away in there, away in there I am going
to enter'?"
"Evidently that is it," they said then.
"Kewomyani he, yarl yarl kewomyani he, kewomyani kayalitomo mimonl yaka he. Evidently that
is that we will sing".
"All right," they said then.
Then they sang it: "Kewomyani he, kewomyani kayalili mimonl yaka he, kewomyani ekowachili
i'
'I
I,
mimoni yaka he, kewomyani woku mitin mimon yaka he, kewomyant kayalili mimoni yaka he kewo
myani," they sang then 24). "Eee!"
Then they stopped; then again (they thought of) another one.
"What shall we sing? Eee!"
"We are going around the house posts, (exp. of fear, repeated twice)," they said next.
"Whatever shall we sing (exp. of surprise)?"
"Nnn, I went around it, I went around it," they sang just to themselves for the time being.
"(Exp. of disgust), it is no good at all," they said, "whatever shall we sing?"
"Nnn" 25).
"All right, evidently that is it," he said then.
"You sing that," (he said), and the woman sang her own song, and the man sang his own song next.
"We are going around the house posts, listen curassow, listen marmoset monkey," he sang.
"Mapatan yekomitopo hee, entakl pawiyo ka hee, yemawrmr yekomitopo hee, entaki wicharu ka
hee," they sang then 26).
(That is the way it was) then for all time to come.
They sang (the songs) completely all night long, they passed the night with songs.
The local people prepared a great deal of cassava beer so that dancing could continue for several
days, as the Wayma-yenna and the other people wanted to learn all the Waiwai songs 27).
Some of the animal people married some of the local Kurum women and settled in the village; but
all the other people went home again, and as they did so they were transformed into their respective
animal types: Wayma, yawari, the apes: uruwa, wicharu, poroto, meku etc.
Whereas the animal men who remained in the village appear to have married Kurum women, the
Yawari men married some Waiwai women. Their offspring are known by the fact that they are very
skilful in shooting the mam bird 28).
The Shou-yenna had also been with the Wayma-yenna to the dance in the village, but on the way
home in company with several other people, one of them shot a big yaimo 29), and when they had
eaten it they all lay down to sleep.
Suddenly a voice was heard from within the forest a voice that said: "You ate yaimo liver, you ate
yaimo liver". It was the yaimo-kworokjam 30) that spoke, but all the people were asleep and heard
nothing. The yaimo-kworokjam came nearer and shouted again: "You ate yaimo liver"; but still the
Shou-yenna did not wake up. At last some of the people with them did and heard the voice. They
then began to awaken the other people, but the Shou-yenna could hardly be roused. Their hammocks
were shaken and they were told: "Yaimo-kworokjam says that we have eaten yaimo liver". At last
they seized some red-hot sticks and pricked the Shou-yenna on the cheek with them. They woke up
then sure enough, jumped out of their hammocks and ran away, shouting "sho, sho, sho, sho, sho",
exactly as the kibihee does. When the other people heard this one of them said: "Become shou animals l"
and so they did. That is why the shou have a white spot on each cheek. However, some of the Shou
yenna had married local Kurum women, and their children became Shou-yenna, that is to say (Indian)
people who still live near the Mapuera.
Whilst the Waiwai were still in the village, but after the dancing was over, they asked the chief of
the Kurum-yenna 31) to invite the Kworo-yenna 32) whom they wished to see. The Kworo-yenna
lived far away 33). Messengers were despatched to them, but returned saying that only a few Kworo
yenna would come and that their chief would not be amongst them. "What a shame, what ashame",
said the Kurum chief and he began to blow a long, long bamboo flute 34); some others did likewise.
The flutes spoke, saying: "Mawari will lead you up here (repeated). Mawari will persuade you (re
peated)" 35). And the Kworo-yenna heard this from afar, and all came. Even when they approached
quite near the flutes continued to be played, so some of the men of the village said: "They are quite
close now, we can almost see them. Let us stop playing". But the chief and the other men still went
on blowing, and at last their arms had to be held and the flutes taken from them 36). The Kworo
yenna then entered the clearing and with them came all kinds of bird people: Pakako-yenna, Wanatu
yenna, Waraku-yenna and so forth, including the Paski-yenna 37). All these people looked like human
beings 38) and all were beautiful. They wore no dresses, nor did they know how to make them 39).
The Kworo-yenna were painted red all over and the Paski-yenna were red-haired. They stayed for
some time in the village in order to learn the songs, and some of the men married local women and
remained resident there. The children of the Kworo men and Kurum women became Yawi-yenna, a
proper people who still exist, living east of the Mou-yenna 40). When all the bird people returned home
from the dance they were transformed into their respective species: Kworo, Wanatu, Waraku, and
Paski etc. However, only a few of the Paski-yenna were so transformed; the remainder lived on as
human beings, heard of but not seen. They are said to be wild and cruel 41).
Just as the Kworo-yenna had left the village the Kamara-yenna 42) appeared on the other side of
the river, also summoned by the sound of the flutes. As they had to cross the river they called for a
bridge; a number of turtles at once came swimming and formed a long chain stretching across the
river. The Kamara-yenna then laid planks over them thus obtaining a good bridge over which they
crossed to the Kurum-yenna village. But the Kurum-yenna did not like them for the Kamara-yenna
were bad people who always bit them. When the Kamara-yenna were nearly across the river, the
Kurum-yenna told the turtles to throw off the planks, and when they did so all the Kamara-yenna
fell into the water. They were all devoured by gigantic pirai fish except for a little boy who only got
half his foot bitten off. The lad was nearly dead, but the Kurum-yenna applied hot water to the wound
and healed it. There were those who wished the boy to be killed, but others wanted to train him so
that he could be sent out to shoot meat when he grew up. Accordingly he was allowed to live.
When the Kworo-yenna again reached their home village one of the men had with him a Waiwai
woman as wife 43). This woman had an anaconda by the name of Petali as a pet. She kept it in an
enclosure which consisted of a broad basin in the Mapuera river 44). The anaconda lived on the meat
brought to it by the woman, and her husband shot a lot of meat. All she brought the anaconda, how
ever, was a small agouti each time she herself ate big animals.
Someone or other told the anaconda of this and it became angry. When the woman next came with
a little agouti and called "Petali, Petali", the anaconda did not answer at all, being angry with her.
The woman went on calling, and at last Petali jumped out of the water and swallowed her. It then
swam far, far away down the river.
The Kworo-man soon heard of his wife's disappearance, and one of his relatives, an awale 45) of
.~
the woman who was a great yaskomo 46) heard of it also. When he came he placed some stones
(fiukwa) in his mouth and went down towards the river. He sang a song (eremu) and called the otters:
"Waya-waya", let us go to the Anaconda house, waya-waya". He then jumped into the river taking with
him his basket with medicine man things and his hammock round his neck. All the people standing
on the bank said: "I wonder where he will come up?" (repeated). He soon reappeared, but shortly
after dived down again. The second time he came to the surface he had with him an otter, and each
time he dived he brought back an otter. Thus he continued until there were so many otters that the
river could not be seen.
Followed by this army of otters the yaskomo started off down the river to find the serpent. Whilst
engaged in so doing he asked everyone he met: "Where is Petali, where is Pet ali ?", and they all an
swered: "It has just passed by". He also went down into the water to the Anaconda-people, but they
also told him: "It has just passed by". At last he came to a people who said: "Yes, Petali is here".
When the yaskomo heard this, he and the otters moved in an arc round the anaconda, and below the
place the otters cut up the river into a number of whirlpools and falls which became the Wakritulu
Falls of the Mapuera 47).
Petali soon discovered the trap that had been laid for him, and being unable to pass up the falls
it turned round furiously and shouted to the otters: "I'll eat up the lot of you!". But a number of the
otters sprang voluntarily into its jaw. Down in its stomach they found the bones of the woman who
had been swallowed, and they continued on out of Petalt's tail-end bringing with them the bones.
Then the yaskomo and all the otters returned the long way to the village bringing with them the
woman's bones 48), calling on all the peoples to help. Amongst these was an old chacha 49) called
lJmawa. Together they all returned to the serpent. There they carefully washed the hands and arms
of the chacha over a clay vessel, and this being done the chacha said: "Cast the water in the river".
They did so and all the fishes died, but a little kingfisher hurriedly snapped up two small fish and
brought them safely into the sky, saying: "Is all my food to die?" Petalt then began to sense the poison
and began jumping to the surface. Whilst it was doing this they were able to shoot it, and everybody
helped in pulling it ashore. All the Kworo-yenna were then summoned, a great many people, and the
anaconda was cut into two pieces. However, the tail still had enough strength to jump into the river
again and from this derive all anacondas.
When Petal'i had been cut in half the river bank swam with blood. All the Kworo-yenna and many
of the bird people bathed in this with the result that they were transformed into proper birds. The
transformation took place as a result of one person giving the order: "Kworo-yenna become kworo's!",
and the same thing happened to other animals after returning from the dance 50).
After the bath in the serpent's blood a heavy shower took place (the transformation took place
slowly), so the Kworo-yenna hastily began constructing a house in which to shelter. Some bird people,
however, did not build houses and therefore lost the red colour they had acquired. The Mutu-yenna
and the wood-peeker people hurriedly placed some leaves over their heads, and consequently these
birds now have red heads; but the Muwa-yenna all the time rubbed the rain from their faces and thus
lost all the feathers on their foreheads 51). The Shafi-yenna 52) arrived before the rain began, but
after the others, and asked: "Have you used up all the blood so that we cannot bathe?". However,
,
V
I
,
.

r some gall was left and they bathed in that instead. For this reason they became yellow, but where
,J the rain fell on them they turned blue. As the rain also dripped through the roof blue patches likewise
appeared on the wings of the kworo.
When the Kworo-yenna began to be transformed into birds, they first obtained wings, and one of
them flapped them and flew up into a high kechekele tree 53). One of the others peered up at him and
said: "It doesn't look too good; you need a tail." So the kworo flew down to earth again and another
stuck a tail into him. It was the small black tail of the mutu bird that was used, and at the same time
the mutu bird was given the gaudy red tail of the kworo. The kworo then flew up in the tree again,
but the others shouted: "Kicha, it is not good" so once more it returned to the ground. The kworo
then asked the mutu to fly up into a little tree, and when kworo saw it he said: "Ah, no. It does not
look well. Your body is all grey but you have a long red tail." So they decided to exchange the two tails.
When the kworo again flew up into the high tree ah the others said: "Now it looks well. You must
always remain in the kechekele trees".
Whereas all those bird and animal people who returned home became changed into animals, those
who married local women became proper people. None of the bird people with the exception of a
very few Kworo men married into the village. Their children are regarded as very beautiful, but as
there were so few Kworo men there are not many Yawl still living (see note 40).
The previously-mentioned yaskomo of the Kworo-yenna was not transformed, but died. His
numerous children and descendants live as human beings downstream on the Mapuera river. They
are umaino, that is to say the various tribes south of the Waiwai.
After Petali had been killed, in part by the aid of the water in which the chacha Umawa's arms and
hands had been washed, she felt very weak, and one day she said: "I am going to some other relati ves,
farewell". She then entered the forest. In there she divided her body herself into several pieces. With
her torso and head as the trunk and her arms as branches a plant grew up from the earth. This plant,
yarpochichi, had a sap that kills all fish very quickly. At a certain stage it is also called emaraka and
can become very thick. Both the bark and the wood is hammered out but it always remains soft
"because it is, you see, a former human being". One of the chacha's legs became another fish poison,
watwayumawan, which is only of medium strength and is used in the smaller creeks. Out of the other
leg grew chewaukuma, a weaker poison that only kills small fish. In this manner fish poison appeared 54).
After the Kworo-yenna had returned home from the dance, only the Shoheli and Wayam man and
the Kurum-yenna remained 55). The Kurum-yenna did not like the Shoheli man because he had such
a beautiful wife that everybody wanted her for his own. They therefore sent the Shoheli man out alone
to make a big clearing. When he had done this they went out themselves and burnt the field, but then
discovered that the field consisted almost entirely of rocks. They then sent the Shoheli man out again
to dig and plant the whole field.
This he also did, but when he reached the first big rock that he could not dig in, he poured out his
troubles to the ants, matarara and yauku 56), who said: "We will arrange that for you". They did so
and the rock became soft immediately. Assisted in this way he soon planted the whole field, only two
or three days were necessary, without the help of anybody. It was a very large field.
When the Kurum-yenna saw what had been done they were astonished saying: "He really can do
S Waiwai
things". They became so pleased with the Shoheli man's work that they decided to go after some meat
in order to reward him. They went to a small creek that was almost dried out, and here they poisoned
the water, catching a lot of fish which they brought home. They told the Shoheli man: "It ~as only
a tiny water hole, and yet there was a lot of fish". "I will go out there myself next time", he replied,
and some time after did so. In the meantime it had rained, and so much water had come that it formed
a huge lake. When the Shoheli man saw this he said: "I want the water to fall" (repeated), and he
summoned a little frog, kushpa, saying: "Chacha get the water to fall." Chacha began to drink and
continued until there was scarcely anything left. Then he took a very big hollow trunk of a manicol
palm and planted it with all his force in the middle of the water. The water remaining then ran through
the trunk deep down into the earth, and everything became dry. There were a great many fish, and he
hit and hit 57) and began to carry them back to the house in order to fetch more baskets to put them
in. All this time the frog sat with the water in its mouth and when it tried to ask when it could spit
out the water again all it could say was "mh, mh". And the man shouted: "Wait a moment, chacha,
until I have taken some more fish". When he had been many times to the village and fetched big
baskets, he at last said: "Neshi" (finished), and then kushpa let all the water gush out of its mouth so
that a great lake was formed.
Once more the Kurum-yenna were amazed when they saw so many fish, and when they saw the
big lake they asked themselves: "How can he manage? He really can do things".
The Kurum-yenna were still angry with and envious of the Shoheli man because his wife was so
beautiful, and decided to try to kill him even if he was a great yaskomo.
Accordingly they went out and cleared a big field and then asked the Shoheli man to burn it for
them. But whilst he walked in the middle of the field in order to set it alight, the Kurum-yenna moved
all round the edge of the field and set light to it. When the Shoheli man discovered that he was closed
in by flames he began to shout: "Ah, I shall burn to death, I shall burn to death". But he was a yaskomo,
and at the same moment a shukurwa lizard appeared out of its hole behind him and said: "What is
the matter? Ah, you will be burnt to death. Come down into my hole". The Shoheli man had certainly
summoned the lizard. At all events he jumped down into the hole at the last moment, for the fire was
then so close that the hair on his neck was singed. This is the reason why the shoheli always have a
reddish-brown spot in the fur of the neck. Down under the earth he followed a passage that took him
far, far away, and at last emerged from another hole near the house.
Here the Shoheli man took some dried tobacco leaves and began to pound them in a mortar 58).
In the meanwhile the Kurum-yenna had returned from burning the field, and said to each other:
"Let us not tell his wife that we burnt him to death, but merely that we asked him to help us to burn
the field and do not know where he is". But then they heard the sound of a mortar being pounded
and said: "Who on earth can that be?" When they saw the Shoheli man they were extremely surprised
and said to each other: "He will certainly reproach us strongly, but let us go in and see him". They
went in and asked: "You came? How did you come", but he made no reply.
At last the Shoheli man said: "You tried to burn me to death, but now I am going to transform
you". With these words he took some of the pounded tobacco in his hand and rubbed it over the heads
of all the Kurum-yenna, which is why the heads of all kurums are now red.
Then the Shoheli man commanded: "Eat rotten meat!", and with these words the whole Kurum
yenna were changed into real kurum 59).
After the Kurum-yenna had been transformed into kurum birds, all that remained in the village
were the Shoheli man, the Wayam man, and a few Waiwai who saw the whole thing and have since
passed on the story.
The Shoheli man and the Wayam man then said to each other: "Shall we transform ourselves, too T'
"Yes, let us do so". So the Wayam man went into the forest first and from there shouted: "Can you
see me?". "No, I cannot", answered the Shoheli man. The Wayam man then changed himself into a
wayam, and when he had done so shouted: "Now its your turn!" The Shoheli man then climbed up
into a tree and changed himself into a shoheli.
The people now left in the village decided to leave the place, and moved far away 60).
Notes
1) That is to say they were real animal people (see note 3 in the creation myth), who constituted
the original starting point for the later division into real animals and real human beings, respectively.
Kurum = buzzard, shoheli = little sloth, wayam = tortoise.
2) The Waiwai admit that the purpose of the Shodewika dancing festival is still, amongst other
things, to bring young people together with a view to marriage. Particularly when there is a number
of marriageable girls in a village a Shodewika is resorted to in order that they can pick out a man.
Such relations are promoted by the increased choice provided and the sexual atmosphere worked up
during the dance. This often leads to great sexual liberty.
3) Wayma = big sloth; shou = kibihee; yawari = opossum; wicharu = sakiwinki monkey; meku
presumably marmoset; uruwa = black huruwe monkey; poroto = spider monkey.
4) Bast of the wauko tree (Couratari pulchra or Eschweilera sp.). The Waiwai of the present day
usually have simpler dance capes of the leaves of you = ite (Mauritia flexuosa) which are made
quicker and are therefore used by people coming to the Shodewika from the neighbourhood. Bast
dresses are used by people coming from afar who make more out of the visit.
5) Paski = little agouti; warakaka = unknown fish with spines on the neck and back. The infor
mant explained, however, that these markings were not linked to special people, but that all could
use them freely. When the Waiwai make a bast dress, a process I witnessed, they use the paski
wrist pattern (Fig. 10). The colouring technique is interesting in that it is negative colouring produced
by binding. The fields to appear as patterns were bound over and the whole dress dipped in a manicol
swamp. The dress was then black as compared with the preserved light red colour of the pattern.
Amongst Waiwai of the present day there appears to be no knowledge of religious or any other signif
icance in connexion with the patterns.
6) It was from the Meku-yenna that the Waiwai learnt the use of the upper arm bands that are
now made of white strings of beads. Fer both men and wemen the upper arm bands are a sign of
maturity, and must first be worn after puberty or initiation.
7) Long bark trumpets are still used in connexion with the first dancing entry of guests to the village
S·
Fig. 11. Tightning the arrow foreshaft this

Waiwai at the same time displays the typical
pigtail and the festival armbands made from
bark and, as always, decorated in the meku
-rnatko (marmoset monkey tail) design. The
marmoset is supposed to have taught the
Waiwai the use of armbands.
clearing and immediately before this when the guests - still~unseen - are assembled in the thickets.
A trumpet of this type is called Iatik (the same name is given to flutes), and is produced from the
spirally-twisted bark of the sarai (Sterculia pruriens) stiffened with ribs of the ite leaf and secured by
strips from the spires of the ite palm. The mouthpiece is fashioned out of leaves.
8) In principle the locals never take part in the dance itself at a Shodewika, but only act as hosts
who attend to the food and particularly the drinks, which they naturally also consume themselves in
quantities. Later in the festival, on the 2nd or 3rd day, one can often observe several local people
taking part in the round dance, dressed in possibly borrowed dancing capes.
9) In another version of the Shodewika myth, scarcely as convincing, it was a Waiwai village that
was visited by the various animal people, and after the dance the animal men exchanged wives with
the Waiwai men. At a Shodewika I witnessed in 1954 there was no obvious tendency towards pro
miscuity, but my informant observed regretfully that "there were too many folk around".
10) The following section (p. 57-62) is a literal translation by Robert E. Hawkins from the author's
tape recordings.
11) See note 5 concerning negative dyeing.
12) One here follows the construction of a strophe for a dance festival. "I got vexed" (= keselena
may) is first pronounced rhytmically, afterwards in a singing tone, and finally with a number of
meaningless syllables added out of consideration for rhythm and suitable strophe length. During the
many - partly unsuccessful - attempts several characteristic expressions of feeling were uttered, such
as: expression of disgust = kicha! expression of surprise = okyo! expression of delight = okre!
The main parts of the strophe - here two sentences - are each repeated several times. The method is
exactly the same in the examples of dance texts given below.
13) The same method as with 12) Yiwirf = waterhaas (capybara); tapay-ha = legs spread apart;
hee = meaningless syllable.
14) Shururu = slide down; tafie = ? haka tiger (perhaps, however, a great marten); piw = song
of a little bird; he = meaningless syllable.
15) Porori = toad; yapotufie = legs stretched out; ya, pa and he = meaningless syllables. In
connection with this strophe the expression of fear = kopi! was also used in addition to those mentioned
under 12).
16) Ekashi = ?; maru = a kind of thorn vine; yati = a vine; ya and he = meaningless syllables.
Here there is an example that a woman can also compose dance texts.
17) Tarapi = name of some insect; pali = sweet potatoes; the rest is composed of incomprehensible
words or syllables.
18) Poinko = wild pig; nukururuna = they are growling; chetaw = while going; yirapomra = ?
19) Pifiipichi = thin; yana (= yenna) = people; kururu mka = they roared; the remainder consists
of incomprehensible words or syllables.
20) Oyapomchi = my arm band (from apomi); fietarirka = came undone; amachi = ant-eater;
wenali = on the trail.
21) Pono = costume; poko = busy; yow (= you) = ite palm; yari = leaves; meye = far away;
kikokomani = I stayed past sunset.
22) Kayalitomo (= yayalitimo) = chief; roron = clearing or arena; pona = at; kepataka = I
arrived; mimonl = his house (from miimo).
23) These words are incomprehensible; they must presumably be considered a distorted rendering
of the previous song. Although it is not mentioned at this place, the village to which the Waiwai
couple arrived singing is identical with the Kurum-yenna host village to which the other animal people,
including the Wayma-yenna, had long since arrived.
24) Kewomyani = I shall enter; yari = away in there; kayaliri (= kayalitomo) = chief; mimoni
= his house; yaka = into; woku mitln = the one serving drinks; ekowachili = ?; eee = a quavering
cry often given during the dancing and drinking.
25) Here follows a song that the Waiwai woman sings. It is completely incomprehensible on account
of the poor recording.
26) Mapatan = house posts; yekomitopo = going around; hee = a cry; entaki = listen; pawiyo
= the black-crested curassow bird; ka = for the time being; yemawrini = his cotton; wicharu =
marmoset monkey.
27) At the Shodewika dances of the present day the dance leader still sings a short rhytmic sentence
which is repeated for some time by the whole row of dancers. At all events two elderly Waiwai men,
Miywa and Chikima, used the songs from the above-mentioned story; there are, however, many other
stories with other songs. Each story has songs sufficient for a whole evening; the songs here quoted
are thus merely a small selection. The story should merely be regarded as a frame around a group of
songs, and it is not unlikely that they have been composed in order to afford relief to the memory
during the turmoil of the dance - a mnemonic aid. The Waiwai of today regard the story as a myth
showing how Waiwai poetry was created and the <esthetic principles involved.
28) There are here various special - in part contradictory - elements in the account: firstly, that
the Yawari men married some Waiwai women, whereas it has appeared from the myth hitherto that
there was only one Waiwai woman at the dancing festival. This is undoubtedly a case of mixing up
two versions of the myth, the one quoted here and the one in which it was a Waiwai village that
invited the animal people to a dance festival (see above, note 9).
It is also interesting to note that it is the Yawari men who occupy a special position by marrying
Waiwai women (see myth about Yawari). That the children of Yawari-Waiwai are clever at shooting
the mam bird was explained as being due to the fact that the Yawari very much like eating mam.
The grandfather of my informant, Ewka, was regarded as being a descendant of this kind and was recog
nized as such on account of being a very capable hunter of mam.
29) Yaimo = harpy eagle.
30) Kworokjam is used in the sense of animal spirit and animal soul.
31) On some occasions it was suggested that the Shoheli man was the chief of the Kurum-yenna.
This may be due to a mixing up of the myth motives.
32) Kworo = red macaw.
33) Here the distance to the village of Kashimo was given. It lies about 14 days distant.
34) The long bamboo flute was described as being over one metre long and blown from the side.
My informant told me that otherwise it is only played in the early morning in order that the performer
may become strong and happy.
35) When inviting another village to a dance festival the oho chant is always employed (see oho
in connexion with invitations to dance festivals, p. 218). In the same way as in the account here
quoted, the chant is continued interminably until the invited persons submit and say "yes". Incidentally,
it is extremely interesting that Mawari is appealed to for assistance. This active role is in strong con
trast to the otherwise passive part alloted to Mawari in the religious conceptions of the Waiwai.
36) It was later explained that this was done because it was desired to hear when those invited yelled
as they approached, as is the custom at a Shodewika.
37) Pakako (Xipholena punicca); wanatu (Cotinga cayana); wararku = a gaudy bird, the skin
and feathers of which were used like the two afore-mentioned on the ceremonial hair tubes. Paski =
a small agouti.
38) It was later specified in regard to this that the people had ekati, which normally signifies a
human soul.
39) As the Waiwai and Wayma did.
40) It was merely stated of the Yawi-yenna that they were considered to be very strong, even stronger
than the Waiwai. They liked rising early in the morning and wrestling, and always won over other
people.
_-<""_->- - , - . . .... _ - ~_ __
~-~_'. • _ _• L _ _ "_- - . _ _
41) Regarding the Paski-yenna see Frikel (1957, p. 552), who refers to a wild tribe of the same
name near Rio Paru de Leste.
42) Kamara = jaguar. The Kamara-yenna were painted with spots in the same way as the various
cat species.
43) Just as was the case above (see note 28) there must here be a case of confusion with another
version of the Shodewika myth, where it is a Waiwai village which invites to a dance festival. So far
in the myth there has only been talk of one Waiwai woman who attended with her husband. The other
version has it that the Kworo-yenna did not like the drink prepared by the animal people because it
had a bad smell, amongst other things of opossum. They would only drink what had been made by
the young Waiwai woman and a young Waiwai man. When the Kworo-yenna departed one of their
men and one of their women each married a Waiwai woman and man, respectively.
In addition the account here is contrary to the general rule about matrilocality that stamps the
course of the myth's other action and, incidentally, that of the Waiwai of the present day.
44) The position of the basin of the Rio Mapuera is given as being a half day's paddling below the
confluence of the Urukurin and the Mapuera.
45) Awale = in-law, relationship by marriage.
46) This is the first time that a yaskomo (medicine man) is referred to in the myth. He belonged to
the Kworo-yenna, but whether this was by chance cannot be decided.
47) The Wakritulu Falls were said by the Waiwai to be on the Mapuera, near the equator.
48) No more is later heard of the woman. "Her bones were cast away" it was said. That they were
brought back to the village suggests a burial, however.
49) Chacha is a name for a grandmother or any old woman in a village.
50) For the first and only time in the myth there is here talk of a person who ordered the trans
formation from animal people to animals. Unfortunately, there is no information concerning the
identity of this person.
51) Mutu = unknown grey bird, presumably with a red calotte; further down a black tail is
mentioned. It lays its eggs on the ground, and at night sings "mu-tu". Muwa = unknown bird half
the size of marudi, calls like a cow.
52) Shafi = the blue and yellow macaw.
53) Kechekele (Inga gracilifolia) is one of the highest trees in which macaws are often seen.
54) Fish poison: yarpochichi,
watwayumawan
chewaukuma = katobar (wapishana).
Chacha's name, Umawa, is also the Waiwai name for a strong fish poison, aishara (wapishana) or
haiari (Lonchocarpus sp.).
55) Plus the Waiwai couple who here seem to be a bit out of place.
56) Matarara and yauku are two species of ant. Yauku is possibly the kuchi ant, leaf-cutting ant.
57) When poisoning fish the anaesthetized fish are hit on the head and killed as they are collected.
58) Ground tobacco or tobacco powder, called "mali" in the Waiwai language, is now only used
when installing a new yaskomo.
59) It appears from all this that the Shoheli man was a great yaskomo. The power of his magic,
yasi, was strong enough to transform the Kurum-yenna into real kurum, buzzards, like the mysterious
personage referred to above (see note 50).
The reason why the Kurum-yenna could demand various tasks executed by the Shoheli man was
because he was married to a Kurum woman and thus in a brother-in-law relation to the Kurum
yenna. According to the washma institution, (see concerning this p. 201) the father and brother of the
wife possess certain rights in regard to her husband.
60) The people remaining must have been all the human mixtures composed of Kurum women
and various animal men who formed the origin of the various adjacent tribes, and some Waiwai.
Aspects
Whereas the Mawari myth dealt with the origin of the Indians, particularly the Waiwai, the Shodewika
myth primarily concerns the origin and division of neighbouring people. It provides an explanation
of the exterior world of the Waiwai. The position at the commencement of the Shodewika myth is
that a long list of animal people, yenna, exists. They can be regarded as still unclassified types of
beings from which animals and human beings, respectively, can derive. However, at this juncture there
were already human beings, to wit the Waiwai, though the story lets it be understood that they were
extremely few in number. The course of the myth must therefore be laid to shortly after Mawari's
appearance and the creation of mankind. The myth furnishes the Waiwai with an explanation for the
division into isolated, more or less related, tribes of the people surrounding them on all sides. Mawari
is actually mentioned in the myth and appears in remarkable circumstances as an active divinity to
whom appeal is made to further one's plans. Nowadays his role is a completely passive one. His name
is mentioned in connexion with what was possibly an oho chant, which is thus endowed with a certain
antiquity, which for the Waiwai makes it the more sacrosanct and socially stabilizing. In several
sections of the myth the presence of the Waiwai is referred to, but always as something loosely tacked
on, which is illustrated by one of the explanations: "plus Waiwai who must have been present in order
to be able to recount the story to others". Only in one place do the Waiwai play any important part in
the action, namely where the Waiwai couple is on the way to take part in the dance festival of the
animal people. The Waiwai composed all the songs that were sung there, songs which, according to
the myth, were far better than those used by the animal people. The dance festival itself had begun
before the Waiwai couple arrived, and the myth thus suggests that the Shodewika festival and dance
are a loan from outside, a loan that acquired a Waiwai stamp on account of the fact that the new
version employed song texts in the Waiwai language.
This assumption is supported by the information that the animal imitation dances frequently
performed at Shodewika festivals are regarded by the Waiwai as a loan from the Mouyenna Indians,
a neighbouring Arawakan tribe living to the south-east.
In the action the most important of the animal people is undoubtedly the Kurum-yenna, the Buzzard
people. Events primarily take place in their village; it is they who issue the invitations to the Shodewika
festival in order for some of their women to be married, and, most important of all, it is from the
marriages arranged between the local Kurum women and various animal men that a long list of
purely human people appear, for example:
Kurum women and Shou men created the Shou-yenna (Indian tribe on the Mapuera),
Kurum women and Kworo men created the Yawi-yenna (Indian tribe east of the Mouyenna),
Kurum women and Paski men created the Paski-yenna (Indian tribe further east).
Of the Indian tribes thus arising only the Paski-yenna can be identified with certainty, as Frikel
(1957, p. 552) refers to the Pachkiyana as a Carib-speaking wild tribe near the Rio Paru de Leste.
Near the same river the tribe Kurumyana (= Kurum-yenna) is also given.
Similar circumstances appear to have applied in regard to the Wayma, the Yawari and men of
several of the monkey people and also, possibly, to the Wayam man who was in the Kurum village
from the beginning and to the Shoheli man who is said to have been married to a Kurum woman.
The Shoheli man's assumption of human form is shown particularly by his ability as a medicine man,
. yasi, something which, according to the Waiwai, was first evinced after the arrival of Mawari and
the creation of mankind. The positions of the Wayam and Shoheli man are, however, uncertain as
they finally allow themselves to be changed into animals. Exceptions to this rule about marriage
between Kurum women and various animal people are found in the reference to some Yawari men
who married Waiwai women and became a human category specially skilled in regard to shooting
the mam bird. Here it is probably a case of confusion with another myth version which describes the
dance festival as taking place in a Waiwai village, so that the Waiwai women should properly be
corrected to Kurum, that is to say local, women.
The Kurum-yenna also playa certain part in the cosmological ideas of the Waiwai. It is assumed
that the world is divided up into five layers, human beings inhabiting the next lowest. The Kurum
yenna, who look like ordinary Waiwai, inhabit the uppermost layer.
The Kworo-yenna (Macaw people) occupy a special position in the myth in that a Kworo man
married and took home a Waiwai woman, which evinces a patrilocality as opposed to the matri
locality otherwise in the myth and temporarily found with the Waiwai of the present day. Altogether,
I so many new features appear in the myth in the Kworo section, for example the whole story about
f
t the medicine man and the serpent, Patali and chacha Umawa, that it is reasonable to regard this
section as a piece worked into the rest of the Shodewika myth.
Altogether there are many points of resemblance in the action of the Shodewika story both with
the Mawari and Okoimo-yenna stories. The various tribes result from mixed marriages which, with
great brevity, suggest an acculturation process similar to that already referred to. The background
for the revenge on the Jaguar people must also be sought in the Mawari myth where the Jaguars
killed the ancestress, Wayam, of the Waiwai.
In regard to motifs only one will be mentioned here:
The old woman, chacha Umawa, who allows her body to be consumed in order to allow various
fish poisoning plants to make their appearance, is a typical form of the culture heroes of the tropical
South American lowlands (see also the 'origin of cassava in the creation myth p. 41).
An interesting detail in the myth from a social point of view is the description of the Shoheli man's
trials and revenge. The Shoheli man is married to a Kurum woman, and consequently the Kurum
'.-
men, in virtue of the rules governing the relationship of brothers-in-law can demand various tasks
performed by him. However, they exaggerate their demands to the point of the superhuman, and are
filled with anger and dismay that the Shoheli man is able to comply. They therefore decide to burn
him, but he is saved by his medicine man craft and he punishes them for their treachery by turning
them into the respective animals, buzzards.
By pursuing this idea in the Shodewika myth an interesting assumption is reached: It is a punish
ment to be turned into an animal, but this happens to all the animal people except those who marry
Kurum women. Only those animal people who at the Shodewika marry local women are rewarded
with human dignity. The myth - particularly its conclusion - thus contains a moral evaluation of the
correct conduct at a Shodewika festival: that the unmarried male guests discover suitable spouses
amongst the unmarried local women (see also note 2). The myth thus interprets the actual purpose
of the Shodewika festival as an opportunity for the young people of various villages and possibly
tribes to meet each other, and this appears to be the primary social function of the Shodewika.
YAWAR1 (THE OPOSSUM)
Once long ago some Waiwai men went to a dance festival in a neighbouring village. The only person
remaining behind was an old chacha. After the others had left she sat later in the evening eating toasted
tawana 1). As she sat there a yawari 2) came along and calling in a low voice from outside said:
"Give me some food, give me some food". At first the chacha was frightened and said: "Who is that,
who is that 1", but the yawari merely answered: "It is I, it is I" 3). Then the chacha said: "Here you
are", and handed out some of the toasted tawana over towards the wall. The yawari stuck in a paw,
seized it and ate it quickly. When this was done it said: "I will eat you, I will eat you", but the chacha
shouted: "Oh, no! Wait a moment, I will toast a little more tawana for you". But she decided to boil
it, as then she could put some of her son's okorupu 4) in the pot instead. With her knife she cut up a
lot of small pieces of the okorupu lump and placed them in an old used pot 5) over the fire. The
okorupu became hotter and hotter as she stirred it, drew it out with a stick and let it fall back again
until it was all melted. Then she went to the wall outside which the yawari was standing, saying:
"Here is your food, stick in your paw!". The yawari did so, and she cried: "Stick your paw still further
in!" When the yawari did this the chacha emptied all the hot, melted okorupu over its paws and legs.
The yawari screamed "Aah, aah" and withdrew its paws. It waved them frantically in the air and in
so doing greased itself in the face and on the tail. This is why all opossums have such bad, wrinkled
paws, such curious eyebrows and no hair on their tails 6). After that the yawari died of pain, and the
next morning the chacha went out to view the dead body, which she carried far out into the field. It
was heavy to carry, for it was a very, very large yawari.
A little later the men returned home from their dance festival, and the chacha related what had
happened, saying: "I burnt the yawari's paws, I burnt the yawari's paws". She told them all the details
and that it layout in the field. When her son heard this he said: "Let it lie there and rot. I can then
get its teeth for my loin cord" 7). When some time had passed he went out to the place to take the
The Opossum 75
teeth. But when he took his knife and began to cut out one of the teeth, all the parts of the rotten
body, portions of which had been taken away by buzzards and other carrion eaters, suddenly began
to assemble from all quarters. The young man looked round and was terrified, but after some time
began once more to cut out the teeth. But then all parts of the yawari came together again into a whole,
and it rose like a human being 8).
The Opossum man spoke to the young man, saying: "Palt 9), long ago I rotted, long ago I rotted.
You are a real yasi 10). Truly, you blew upon me 11). Come now to my house." So the two went to
the house of the Yawari man, and when they arrived the young man asked: "Did you build this house?"
It was one of the big round conically-roofed communal houses, miimo. The man replied: "Yes, I
built it". The Waiwai man also saw for the first time the little umana, an open round house for working
in with a conical roof, and the rectangular working shed, yawarimta 12). He learned the technique
which he brought home with him. Prior to the young man's visit to the Yawari man the Waiwai lived
in huts constructed of birds' feathers. These were cunningly obtained. A tapir or such like was shot
and left to rot. All the buzzards and such like that came for the body were shot down from ambush.
The same was done in the case of other birds, for example, marudi and powis. From the feathers
,
J
,
~
obtained from these birds the huts were built 13)..'f.he Yawasi man -shen -called his wife who was
cooking some bell yams 14), and the two men ate together. This was the first occasion on which the
Waiwai man had eaten this. He was given some fresh yams to take home, and in this way the Waiwai
acquired this plant 15).
Notes
1) Tawana = the fruit of a big forest tree (Inga sp.).

2) Yawari = opossum.
3) Incidentally, the Waiwai always answer "owl, owi" (it is I); they are averse to mentioning their
own name.
4) Okorupu = balata (Manilkara huberi).
5) Nowadays also old, used clay vessels are used to melt down rubber and balata.
6) This part of the myth is a good example of the explanatory animal legend.
7) Loin cords with animal teeth are used by all Waiwai men and children. They must be regarded
as pure occupational magic (see Fig. 15).
Normally, the teeth of jaguar, otter and monkey are used (see p. 118).
8) Yawari, like most land animals, possesses an ekatinho-kworokjam (see Kworokjam p. 20), and
in consequence is able to transform itself into human shape, as ekatlnho-kworokjam is a human
being reincarnated as an animal.
9) Pall = a Waiwai term of kinship for grandchild.
10) Yasi = first syllable of yaskomo, medicine man. Yasi means magical power, supernatural gift
and medicine man.
11) The most commonly employed practice of the medicine man is blowing, curing or averting.
There is no example amongst the Waiwai of today of blowing being able to create life, as is the case here.
12) Yawarimta = opossum's mouth.

13) The explanation of this myth motif must presumably be found in the name given to the simplest,
and probably the oldest, building type of the Waiwai. This, a three-cornered lean-to with a sloping
roof of palm leaves, is known as powishi-matko, powis' tail. The roof of the hut resembles a powis'
tail, three-cornered, broader at the back, but the Waiwai do not allow this resemblance to explain
the name. Incidentally, the round conically-roofed house could be explained as being a building
together of several three-cornered lean-to shelters lying in a circle, which points to the greater age
of the latter type. The oldest in type is, however, undoubtedly the medicine man hut, shutepana, which
merely consists of a conical erection of posts without a door opening; an extremely primitive form in
view of its dissemination over South America.
14) Yam (bell yam) = napi.
15) The chief, Miywa, related somewhat different stories concerning opossums and yams. Altogether,
the Waiwai often seem to have several variants of the same myth.
Aspects
As already mentioned, the first part of the Yawari myth is a typical example of an explanatory animal
story. There is no deeper spiritual content until the second part.
It is worth noting first the description of the young man, whose yasi, medicine man power, was so
strong that merely by touching the dead yawari with his knife he was able to bring it to life again in
human form, the one of its two possible forms of existence. According to the Yawari man's account,
however, it was a magic blowing that had caused the transformation from death to life and from animal
to human form.
Another local incidental circumstance about the legend is the - incidentally characteristic - employ
ment of kinship terms for ordinary humans and super-natural beings. Status with the Waiwai is always
- and solely - expressed by kinship terms, and the relationship grandchild - grandfather between the
young man and the Yawari man must be assumed to indicate a relationship of respect and affection
in regard to the latter.
Unfortunately the motif of the account is not clear. Apparently, however, it is a matter of the idea:
through death to new life. The opossum must die in order that the Waiwai can learn of the yam and
the improved house constructions. In this there is a certain similarity with the mythical appearance
of manioc and fish poison with the Waiwai.
In regard to the action of the legend it is said that the Yawari man was regarded as a culture hero,
a mythical being, who brought knowledge of the three more developed types of houses to the Waiwai.
On account of the name, opossum mouth, given to the rectangular house, it is not surprising that it
is linked with opossums, but as the myth becomes an explanatory one it is unlikely that there is any
real connexion between the culture hero and the rectangular house type.
In connexion with the Waiwai's ideas about the reality of the legend, there is reason to mention the
magic songs sung by parents about fourteen days after the birth of their child when they return to
the circular communal house. In the song, the eremu, they exorcise the opossum whose ekatinho
The Opossum 77
Fig. 12. It is not only the name of the rectangular house type (yawarimta = opossum's
mouth) that refers to the opossum; from both myth and magic practice it appears in origin
to be connected with the culture hero, Yawari (= opossum). In front are seen a man and
a youth, the latter recognizable by the lack of armbands (which are a sign of maturity) and
by the boy's clumsy hair tube.
kworokjam is dangerous for the child. The opossum is thus shown to be actually linked with the
communal house in the minds of the Waiwai, and the legend helps to maintain and justify this idea
(see also p. 94).
KOSO (THE FOREST DEER)
Once long ago some Waiwai men went from their village to another in order to dance. Only an old
grandmother, chacha, remained behind in the communal house. When the men 1) left they said:
"We shall be back early tomorrow morning, you can remain here".
After nightfall, koso 2), who looked just like an ordinary human being 3), came to the house,
entered it, and said: "Chacha, let us dance". Chacha replied: "Very well", and the deer led her to a
baby sling made of the skin of the acuri snake 4). It wore the baby sling as a strap over the forehead
and down the back, and then they danced. Whilst so doing the deer sang: "Lungs, lungs, lungs, liver,
liver, liver". They danced until early morning, when the deer finally returned to the forest with his
baby sling.
Later in the morning the men returned from their dance and said: "We have returned, chacha",
but she only answered: "There was a deer here. It danced with me. You should shoot it, but wait until
the night and shoot it in the side". So they all waited until it became dark and the men hid themselves
behind one of the big clay vessels. When night fell the deer came again and repeated its invitation:
"Chacha, let us dance". Once more she got into the baby sling. In the middle of the wild, rocking
dance chacha began to sing: "Shoot it in the side, shoot it in the side". The deer stopped and said:
"What are you saying, you will bring me misfortune", but the chacha only said: "No, no. I am only
singing my song". So they went on dancing until she suddenly said: "Stop just here", and the deer
did so. The chachabraced her hands and feet against its body to remove herself as far as possible
from its back, and at that moment the men shot their arrows into the side of the deer. It gave a great
jump and cried "ao, ao", cast the chacha from its back, dashed outside the house and dropped down
dead.
Here the deer remained lying for a time and then the men bore it into the forest. Here the deer's
ekatinho changed into a real live deer, which had its animal spirit (koso-kworokjam) as well as its
body. This animal was the first deer 5).
Notes
1) By "men" both men and women are meant.
2) Koso = the red forest deer.
3) It has probably not looked completely like a human being. Reincarnated ekat'inho-kworokjam
in their human forms usually have some characteristic features reminiscent of the animal in question.
Another narrator, Chikima, even maintained - quite contrary to the spirit of these stories - that the
chacha knew it was a deer because it came to the village in that shape. This, however, must be regarded
as a wrong, forced explanation.
4) Acuri snake = unknown species.
5) As opposed to the transformation mentioned in the Shodewika myth, the way here passes through
death. In reality this is merely a figurative description of the ideas held about people who at death
are reincarnated as animals and the continued existence of the ekati, via ekati'nho to ekatinho
kworokjam (see p. 20).
The Harpy Eagle 7Q
Aspects
The tale about Koso link naturally with the Shodewika complex: the deer-man attempts to dance
with chacha, which figuratively can be taken as a prelude to marriage, exactly as with the Shodewika.
The attempt fails, and the deer-man becomes the deer animal. In this another motif has entwined
itself: that the origin of the deer type is bound up in the death of the deer-man.
The deeper ideas of the Waiwai can be glimpsed in connexion with the Shodewika story. The stranger
animal people can be accepted through marriage and live like proper people; otherwise they must
die and thereby be reincarnated as animals.
The change that takes place is that the soul of the deer-man, ekati, becomes on death ekatmho,
which again becomes both the deer body, koso, and the deer spirit, ekatinho-kworokjam. The Waiwai
always greatly fear an ekatmho-kworokjam, as it is regarded as being evil and revengeful, the deer's
and opossum's particularly so. In consequence many Waiwai do not venture to eat venison.
YAIMO (THE HARPY EAGLE) 1)

Flap, flap, flap, flap!
"An eagle! He is frightening a baboon," they said.
"Is that so! I will go and see," he answered. He ran.
Tok, tok, tok, tok yelled the baboon. He arrived right underneath him, and he was surprised at
seeing an arrow.
"Why! this is an arrow! My brothers-in-law are the ones making the baboon cry," he said fear
fully. "Oh! I am going back. I would be ashamed to be seen by my brothers-in-law," he said fear
fully 2).
Cheero, cheero, cheero it whistled above the baboon.
"Say! However do my brothers-in-law change themselves into eagles? Can it be that they have
eagles' clothes?" he said. "Let me go back again." Then he came back home.
"What happened, husband?"
"Brother-in-law's group 3) are the ones bothering it; somehow they are turned into eagles maybe
they have eagles' clothes and are wearing them. I stopped there when I saw their arrows. It was a
giant eagle," he said. "Because he is a person that is why it is big," they said.
After that he said to his wife; "do not tell this all around; brother-in-law's group will surely get
angry. They are bad people," he said.
"All right," she said.
But afterwards she did tell eagle-man's wife; women always tell things, therefore, she told it. "Look,
over there is the child's father." The child was crying. "Over there is the child's father chasing a baboon;
he is in the form of an eagle. He is in an eagle's clothes," she said.
"Is that right?" asked the woman, "so that is why he brings meat covered with spittle. We eat meat
covered with mouth foam," she said in disgust. "He just bites it, he does not shoot it, he just catches
it," she said.
Well, after that her husband came up after overhearing the conversation.
Then the woman spoke angrily to the child, "your father brought meat covered with mouth foam."
That then made him angry, "whatever are you saying," answered the man. "I suppose you must
have seen me, I suppose you must have seen me. Well, I will go away for ever to be an eagle; now
I am going for good and your child will be carried away for ever also," he said. "Let me take my
child away; this is my own child."
Then they had a quarrel; his wives spoke very angrily. They talked; talk, talk, talk. Then they got
angry, and they struck each other. "Let the old thing stay there," and they did not take the hair off
the game he had brought. The baboon just stayed there and rotted behind the house.
"I am going away," he said. "Son 4), come along or your mother will scold you," he said.
"All right," then said his son. He was still small, about size of Kurunaw 5).
"Here are some clothes 6) for you, son," he said.
Kweeshee, kweeshee, kweeshee he went.
"That is right, son, just be that way." Then the old father put on his clothes. Flap, flap, flap, flap.
Out in the visitors' house his brother-in-law was feathering arrows, and hearing the noise wondered
what his brother-in-law was doing.
Flap, flap, catch; flap, flap, catch, and they alighted on the cassava squeezer stick. They had wings
then. He waited for his former wife. Then after hearing that she came in and slammed the door.
"We are just widows," she then said, "we are just widows."
"Cheero, cheero," they whistled, flap, flap, flap, flap, and they flew out of the house, the man with
his son right behind him. They had wings.
Flap, flap, flap; "my little son, alas! my little son, alas! He is carrying away my little son, alas! alas!
"Alas!" they all cried then. Then his mother cried.
"Why did you all have a quarrel?" asked her brother. "You just talk, I suppose. Brother-in-Jaw's
group is different, they have clothes," he said then. They talked very much because of the man
getting wings..
Flap, flap, flap, flap low over the forest they flew; catch, they settled on an oromamye tree. Kwee
shee, kweeshee, kweeshee begged his son. Then it became dark.
The next morning they looked for them but could not find them. But on that day the eagle-man
returned; the child was hungry for meat. Swoop! catch! and he carried away a child. Then after two
days he came again; catch! he caught a grandmother and carried her away. Another day, another
day, another day passed, and on that day he came again. Catch! He caught a dog, and just like that
he went about catching everybody.
"What shall we do? He may catch us all!"
"Hmm, maybe we should make a string for him," they decided.
Then they spun, they spun a rope, an exceedingly long rope piled up in a large pile.
"All right, that is enough; wait until he comes again. Say, grandmother, I believe we should tie
you over there to be bait for the eagle," they said to his own grandmother.
"I understand, alas!" she responded unwillingly, "All right" 7).
"We will avenge you later on," they said.
The Harpy Eagle 81
"All right."
Then they carried her over there, and she sat down. Then the eagle came to that same place, swoop!
"There he is again."
He came with his talons outstretched; catch! he picked up grandmother. Out, out, out, out! the
rope uncoiled, it swung low over the forest. It went out of sight. Catch! He alighted on the oromamye
tree again.
"All right, let us all go, friends," they said, "let us all go, sons, let us all go to look for her," they
said.
The rope had uncoiled almost to its end; just a little of it remained. Then they went to look for him
until they found him. Cheero, cheero, cheero he went; kweeshee, kweeshee, kweeshee went his son.
"There he is," one said fearfully.
"Hmm," he said with awe, "let us shoot him; there he is."
Shoot! But the eagles moved and the arrows missed. Then the arrows got lost; they turned into
reeds in the forest.
"Go pick up the arrow," he said. Gone! The person also disappeared under him.
"Bring it; did you find it?"
"No, I did not find it."
"Did you find it." All was silence; he was just talking by himself. Thus the man disappeared too.
Therefore they went in pairs to look for the fallen arrows.
Shoot! shoot! flap! "My brother-in-law can shoot me, "the eagle-man said.
"What did he say?" Shoot! flap! flap!
"My brother-in-law can shoot me," he said.
"His brother-in-law can shoot him," they said. "Let us go and call him." They went back home 8).
"Say, uncle, he says that you, his former brother-in-law can shoot him."
"Let us go."
His former brother-in-law went until he arrived. He pulled the bow, let fly and hit him with a poi
soned point. He shot again. Saa, went the eagle then and his wings flopped down. He shot him again.
Saa, out he came, crash! And he made a big depression in the ground. That is why such depressions
are called "places where the eagle fell".
"Now the child."
"All right."
He pulled the bow and let fly; the arrow sang as it went. Hit! And he shot the child. Crash! He
also made a depression in the ground.
"Now we have shot them at last. He is the one who was carrying us all away," he said then. "All
right, that is all."
Then they came back. "What shall we do?"
"Let us take off their breast down."
"All right." Jerk, jerk, jerk, jerk, but it went away in the form of hawks. The wing feathers went
away in the form of eagles, flap, flap, flap. It was made into eagles. The breast down became small
hawks; it was made small.
6 Walwai
Notes
1) The story about yaimo, the harpy eagle, is a literal translation by Rob. E. Hawkins from the
author's tape recordings.
2) On account of the presence of the arrow the eagle was discovered to be a human being in the
skin of an eagle. Brother-in-law (poimo) means here a stranger who is married to a local woman.
Apparently to the Waiwai it is degrading to assume animal form.
3) Poimo-komo; Although komo is a group designation, the story appears only to be about one
person. It can be mentioned for comparison that also yas(i:)-komo (medicine man) is a singular form.
4) The term for son here used was okopurwa.
5) Kurunau is the name of the son of my informant, Ewka. He was then approximately 6 years old.
6) With clothes means here with skin of feathers.
7) In Waiwai stories it is always an old grandmother who is sacrificed for the common good. Her
calm resignation will be noted.
8) No direct explanation is given why only the eagle man's brother-in-law can kill him. The most
natural explanation is probably that the brother-in-law is the one who should avenge the fate suffered
by his sister in losing her spouse and child.
Aspects
The motif in the tale about the eagle man closely corresponds to that in the deer story, but is more
clearly formulated. The brutish side of the animal man's complex character is disclosed, his marriage
with the human woman is dissolved, he is killed and as a result the type of animal in question comes
into being. This motif is further emphasized by a series of incidental circumstances. For example the
eagle-man is given as brother-in-law or brother's-in-law group, and when he is to be killed only his
former wife's brother can perform this act. This act of blood vengeance can be regarded as the op
position of the local people (that is to say the Waiwai) to the exotic. As regards the assessment of
woman by the Waiwai there are a few scattered reports. It seems that wives are able to abuse their
husbands and that women are regarded as particularly talkative. FinalIy, it is very typical that the old
grandmother is sacrificed as bait for the common good. It is she who can best be spared from an
economic point of view, and her resignation shows the inevitability of her fate and the generality of
the custom.
THE OLD MAN'S TRIP TO THE SKY 1)
Long ago the wife of an old man died (expression of dying), she died. Afterwards the one who had
been her husband went to cry. "The little mother of my son, (exp. of wailing, repeated three times) 2)".
"Keeu, keeu," it said then, (this is the note of a small bird). (Exp. of sitting down, repeated twice)
(exp. of suddenly seeing an object) (exp, of coming out in the open), she had put on clothes 3).
"For whom are you crying, husband?"
The old man's trip to the Sky 83
"For you, alas! Do you still exist, wife, alas!"

"Yes, I still do. Come, let us go."
"All right."
(Exp. of disappearing) (exp. of coming out into the open), they then went into a forest, another
forest.
"Call for us a way to cross now."
"All right," he said. "Hey! hey! bring a canoe for me." They did not answer.
"Whatever are you saying (exp. of disgust)," said his wife's ekati 4). "This is the way to say it,
'cross it, cross it", (she spoke) as does a dove 5).
(Exp. of large movements in a fluid, repeated six times) (exp. of coming to the surface), then there
rose to the surface a tremendous anaconda snake; it was the ekati's own bridge 6).
"Now walk along it and I will follow," she said.
"(Exp. of fear, repeated twice)," said the old man, "(exp. of fear) it is an anaconda snake (exp. of
fear), it might eat me (exp. of disgust)."
"Nevertheless, go and I will follow."
(Exp. of stepping lightly, repeated four times), then the woman's ekati went. The man was left
behind for the time being. (Exp. of stepping normally) (exp. of movement - evidently the back of
the snake bent down with each step), he passed along the bridge.
"I will take out your stomach." She wanted to take out his stomach 7). "Come along this way,"
(exp. of stepping lightly, repeated four times) (exp. of coming out into the clear). "Come."
(Exp. of stepping lightly, repeated three times), then they went holding on to each others arms.
"All right, you stay here, husband; wait a while. Mother will come for you later; stay here."
"All right." There the old man was left on the edge of the clearing. She went away.
Here and there appeared an opossum (exp. of fear), (exp. of appearance) an armadillo, (exp. of
appearance).
"Shoo, shoo," he drove them away (exp. of fear). "The opossums come quickly (exp. of fear)".
Then later his wife's ekati came. "Come. Why did you drive mother away?"
"She is an opossum! (Exp. of fear). I naturally drive her away because she is an opossum," he said.
"I see. That was mother; she had come for you."
"I see."
"Come."
"All right." His wife's ekati then led him away into the clearing. (Exp. of sitting down), there they
saw wasps (exp. of fear).
"Wasps! Who makes such big wasps?" They were as big as humming birds. "How do they ever
fix them? 8) What sort are they (exp. of fear)?"
Then later while the old man was still there other ekati's came. They stung them all over before
his eyes.
"Hey! there come more dead people," she said.
"I see."
"Come over here," his wife said then.
6·
"Come over here."

While they were still far away, the kakenau 9) cut the end of the giant wasp (nest). (Exp. of cutting)
(exp. of fine objects falling down). Then they went, many of them; they made a rumbling sound.
"Ouch! ouch! ouch!" The dead people yelled out loud, alas! (Exp. of dying), then they died, alas!
They caught hold of them (exp. of catching hold, repeated four times), many of them. (Exp. of
dragging). They dragged the corpses onto a giant mat, that is to say the ekati of the people who had
died (exp. of dragging). Then they split them (exp. of slicing, repeated three times) (exp. of ripping
apart) through the navel. Then afterwards they treated them with medicine to bring them to life again.
(Exp. of sprinkling) I do not know what it was they used; it was a genuine medicine that is in the sky
with the kakenau 10).
(Exp. of suddenly seeing). Then they came to life, and they rose up from the giant mat (exp. of
suddenly seeing) never to die again.
"Go over there; there is your wife's ekati," they said then. They took them to their wives. The
ekati that have been people have a separate dwelling place near the kakenau's.
Well, while he was still there the ekatinho of a yaskomo came 11). "Hey! hey! old man, I died,
alas!" he said to the widower.
He spoke thus also to Thunder, "Hey! take down the palm leaf whip, old man."
"All right." (Exp. of pulling out), he pulled it out, (exp. of pulling out) the giant mirror next, (exp.
of pulling out) the giant fan 12).
"I see." He got down just those many things.
"Where shall I throw it, yaskomo?" he asked.
"Down to the ground; throw it into the midst of those who killed me, (throw) your palm leaf whip."
"All right," he answered. (The sound of crashing thunder) a lot of thunder rolled; he threw it. A
great wind came into the house clearing, a lot of it; he blew it with his fan (exp. of fanning, repeated
four times); (it was a wind) strong enough to carry people away. Then it knocked down the houses
(exp. of falJing down); it caused people to lose their homes, alas! Then he threw a large barrel and it
rolled along like thunder, (sound of rolling thunder) (sound of distant thunder) it sounded then; as
it rolled along it made the noise. It rolled to the horizon, over there far away; it echoed on the horizon.
After that the old man went away again. "I am going back, wife."
"All right."
"Which way shall I go? (exp. of protest)."
"Go this way."
"All right."
Notes
1) This account of a man's visit to heaven to see his dead wife is translated literally by Rob. E.
Hawkins from the author's tape recording. The proper comprehension of the story is made very
difficult by the frequent use of a kind of vivid language, where outbursts of feeling often comprise
whole sentences.
2) Wailing is expressed by the sounds: omum-ren-chikita.
The old man's trip to the Sky 85
3) The meaning is that the deceased wife shows herself to the husband in the form of a little bird.
By clothes is meant skin of feathers (see Kurum story).
4) Ekatl here = spirit.
5) The Waiwai word for cross it = wahko toko, has the same rhythm as the call of the dove.
6) Anaconda (= okoimo) as bridge over the river that divides this world from the next is known
from other Guiana tribes (see, for example, de Goeje 1943, p. 14).
7) Presumably an expression to denote a temporary incorporeity.
8) Here is undoubtedly thought of a measure corresponding to the use of ant belts, that are well
known to the Waiwai as an invigorating remedy. The biting or stinging insects are inserted in loosely
sewn mats that are pressed to the body of the delinquent.
9) Kakenau or kakenau-kworokjam = spirits of the sky.
10) The achievement of eternal life in a spiritual form as an ekati thus demands a very concretely
understood insubstantiality. Wasps sting the dead, who are then slit open and emptied so that they
become empty frames. A medicine known only to kakenau in kapu (the sky) gives eternal life to the dead.
11) Yaskomo = medicine man; ekatmho = former ekati is the correct term for the soul of a
deceased after incorporeity.
12) Thunder's implements: the palm leaf whip, the giant mirror and the giant fan produce, re
spectively, thunder, lightening, and sudden gusts. A barrel is used for distant thunder.
Aspects
Whereas the Orpheus tradition is not known from the South American Indians, there are many stories
in which the first part of this motif is reflected: the sorrowing widower obtains supernaturally an
opportunity to visit his beloved wife in the Kingdom of the Dead (here in heaven) and afterwards
returns to earth.
The greatest importance of the account lies in the ample detail concerning the Waiwai's eschatological
ideas: the worlds of the living and the dead are separated by a river over which a giant anaconda forms
a bridge. The dead go through a kind of purification process and insubstantiality by means of wasps'
stings and by the body being emptied of its contents, so that the deceased person's ekatinho becomes
a light shell or shadow of its former self. A heavenly drug gives eternal life to the ekatinho, which
can then appear in animal form (here, for example, a bird or opossum). Incidentally, the Waiwai
fear of the magically-potent opossum is also evinced in this story. The whereabouts of the dead is
given as close to the kakenau-kworokjam, and here the married couple of life are once more united.
Finally, it should be noted that at all events dead yaskomo can from heaven with the help of the
kakenau (here suggested by thunder) revenge themselves on their presumably still-living murderers.
No wonder that the Waiwai fear the ekatmho of the deceased.
KURUM-YENNA (THE BUZZARD-PEOPLE) I)
Long ago they say the buzzard-people carried off Yuwuchi. Later his father searched for him a little
while along the wall of the house.
"Where is my son, alas! Where is my son, alas!" he said. "To whom did he go? Who carried him
away?" he asked.
After that he dreamed; "The buzzard-people carried away your son."
"Where?"
"We cannot see him" said the dream.
"I understand, alas!" he said. "What shall I do?"
"Make yourself smell offensively," the kworokjam said "make yourself smell offensively."
"All right I will give myself an evil smell over there," he answered.
Then he went to break open Brazil nuts. After that he put them in a basket until it was full. Then
after that his wife made him smell in a foul way. Then he engaged people to get puru tree bark, a
whole lot of it until it was piled high. Also there was Brazil nut bark and katwaru tree bark; bang,
bang, bang (they beat it off). Then he let himself be made to smell foully to the flies. Then he went
out to the edge of the clearing to fall down. Crash, he fell down. Then the flies collected on him, a
lot of them 2).
Then the buzzards came down; swish! swish! swish! a lot of buzzards, the buzzard-people, they
say. Then one with two heads came. Then little Yuwuchi came down; he was their servant, adopted
grandchild 3).
"All right, where is Yuwuchi," he asked, "where is Yuwuchi?"
"He is just over there," they answered.
"I see." Swish! Yuwuchi came down then. He had feathers over just the half of him, and on his
wings. His head was like a person's.
"There is my son," he said. "I will catch him firmly when he comes over here."
"Bring me a knife, my boy," said the buzzard-man. I do not know what sort he was, but the boy
said, "grandfather" to him.
"Is this it?" Jerk! And he pulled one out. "Is this it, grandfather?"
"No, that is a deer's knife," he said.
"What kind do you want?"
"It is just there."
"Is this it?" Jerk!
"No, that is a tapir's knife," he said.
"Whatever kind is it you want? Is this it, grandfather?"
"No, that is an anaconda snake's knife," he said.
"Maybe this is the knife, grandfather?"
"No, that is a tapir's knife."
"Is this it, grandfather?"
"No, it is an anteater's knife," he said.
- -~ ....- --.... - --....-.... -_._---..., .~----
The Buzzard-People 87
He went through them all. Jerk! He pulled it out then. "Is this it, grandfather?"
"Yes, that is the right one; it is a people's knife," the buzzard-man said.
"Here it is," and the boy gave it to him.
Then they gathered around the spoiled meat, that is, the buzzard-people gathered. Stab! Then
they stabbed him with a knife; stab! stab! stab! slice! slice! The knife stopped just short of the man's
flesh; it stopped just short.
Jump! Up rose the old man, jump! Tuuuu, he yelled 4). "Let me kill them all," he yelled. He ran;
whack! whack! He struck the buzzard-people, but just the young ones. He jerked the knife out of the
hand of the buzzard-man. Then they ran away along the ground; they left their clothes 5) and went
along the ground. They ran here and there along the trail at the edge of the river.
"Let me go, grandfather."
"Not at all, grandchild," he answered, "the sky might fall; it might crush you."
"I will hold the sky up," the old man answered, "I will hold the sky up." He fooled him. "You are
just fooling, you are just saying that, you are lying. Why are you working with children? Does not
your wife bear children? Are you not married? If we do not have a wife we go to fetch children," he
scolded. "I will kill you; you will just rot," he said.
"No, man. If you kill me, the sky will fall; the sky will fall, grandchild," the buzzard-man said.
He talked strongly.
"You are just saying that again; you just do not want to be hit," the old man said. "All right,"
he said then, "go along."
So the buzzard-man ran away; he let him go. "Go along," he said, "I will just take your knife,
your water vessel, and your clothes."
Then he let him go, and the old man came back home again and sat down 6).
"Say! I got a good knife; I really got a good knife," he said. "And this is just like my own clothes;
it will be nice for people to see. Let me try them on for a while," he said.
Flap, flap, flap, he went then. "Say! That is nice! And here is a good knife too; buzzard-people's
knives are really good," he said. It was black-handled and a good knife; it was shiny. "I have a good
knife now; I will be stingy now and will not let anyone take it."
"That is evidently what we do when we want a knife, we make ourselves smell foully," they all said.
Then he hid it. "Be sure not to show it if visitors come," he said as he hid it up in the roof. "I
should scold you all for sure; that is payment for my son," he said.
One day, two days, three days passed; then on that day the buzzard-people came again, the one
who had owned the knife. They arrived, "Weeweeweeweewee", they whistled; they were appearing in
another form. "Weeweeweeweewee, visitors, visitors, visitors!" They shouted.
"Why did you come, friend 1"
"I just came to you, friend," the visitor said, "I just came to you. How are you getting along?"
"Nothing new at all," he responded, "nothing new at all."
"Is that right. Tell me, friend, they say you got the buzzard-people's knife," he said next, "they
say you got the knife of the buzzard-people."
"Not at all," he answered, "not at all; they are just talking."
"You are lying!"

"No, friend! I am not lying at all."
"Well, they certainly do say that you got the buzzard-people's knife and the buzzards' clothes
also," the visitor said.
"They are fooling; they are just talking. Maybe you believe it?"
"Is that right; so they are just talking are they?"
"They are just talking."
"I see; all right."
The next morning he went away again. One day, two days, three days passed; then on that day he
came back again appearing this time in still a different form. Weeweeweeweewee!
"Visitors again," they said.
He arrived. "Why did you come, friend T"
"Just to you."
"I see."
"I just came to see you."
"I see."
"Say, friend, they say you got the buzzard-people's knife."
"Not at all."
"That is certainly what others say; that is what others have said."
"Why do you say the same thing just as if you had heard it. Whoever is telling you?" he asked.
"No one at all; others just tell it falsely, those who go that way," the visitor said.
"Is that right?"
"They say that you got the buzzard-people's knife, a real good one. Evidently we just make
ourselves smell foully if we want a knife, they said to us; therefore, naturally I say it to you,"
he said.
"Is that right? Not at all; they are just talking untruthfully. I did not get it at all; they are just
talking. I did make myself smell foully, but I just killed them all. I did give myself an evil smell; they
are telling some of the truth, but I just made myself smell foully. Because they carried off my son I
killed them all," the old man said.
"Is that so," he answered, "is that so? I am going back again."
They went away again. One day, two days passed, and they came again on that day, appearing as
from far away. Weeweeweeweewee! This time they had flutes when they came; they appeared in all
sorts of different forms. They had kwepukwepu flutes when they came. Weeweeweeweewee!
"Visitors again! More people who say the same thing," the old man said.
"Hey, friend, hey, I came to you. Say, friend, they say you got the buzzard-people's clothes."
"Whatever are these fellows saying," he said.
"They say that you got the buzzard-people's clothes."
"Not at all."
"Is that right?"
"That same kind of talk I keep hearing; from everyone I hear it. What are you all talking about?"
The Buzzard-People 89
he asked. "No at all, I did not get it at all. The buzzard-people just carried away my son. I did make
myself smell foully; Yuwuchi was there, but I did not get him, alas!"
"Is that so; I am going back again."
Then he came when the old man had gone hunting. Weeweeweewee! It was after several days had
passed this time.
"Hey, why did you come?" asked the other people, "why did you come, friend?"
"I just came to see him," he said.
"I see. He went away hunting."
Then they all went away.
"Say, little brother, they say that your father got the buzzard-people's clothes," he said 7).
"Yes," he answered; the child told it, his little son, the only one left. "Yes, he got it as payment
for big brother," he said.
"I see, go and get it for me to see," he said.
"All right." He went to pull it out. Jerk! The knife, jerk! The clothes next, jerk! The bumble bee's
clothes next. That is all there were. Jerk! "Look and see for yourself, this is all that he got."
"Well, that is nice, very good; clothes that are very good to look at," the buzzard-man said. Chee!
He broke wind, chee! "Say, I am not being a good visitor."
"He is a poor visitor to break wind," the child said.
Chee! "I am being a poor visitor," he thought. It was a bumble-bee who said it; he was changed
into a bumble-bee. Chee! "Say! I am being a bad visitor. Ha, ha," then he laughed and joked.
"I will try it on, son, my friend's clothes."
"All right, that is the way father puts it on."
"I see," (word of getting into), and he put it on. Then he carried it away back to the sky. (Two
words of getting into), flap, flap, flap, flap, flap, he went.
"So this is the way it is done," he said.
Then he went flap, flap for good. Flap, flap, flap, flap, flap. "Mmm, so this is the way it goes, son."
"That is the way father goes."
He flew low for a while; flap, flap, catch, up to the pole of the visitors' house. "Say, this is good;
so this is the way we change ourselves into buzzards." Flap, flap, flap, flap, flap, flap. "Mmm," he
said also.
The other one changed back into a bumble-bee then 8), and carried away his knife, the bumble
bee's knife. The buzzard-man carried away his own clothes; flap, flap, flap, flap, flap! He went. Then
he went up high.
"He is carrying it away," they all yelled then, "why ever did you show it?" they said. They scolded
the poor child. "Why ever did you show it? Those were your father's clothes. So he was the one who
came, and he is going away because the clothes used to belong to him."
They wanted to shoot him; he circled for a while around the top of the house. They wanted to shoot
him, but they could not because he was circling. Then he went away to the sky to stay there for ever.
Notes
1) The story here about the Kurum-yenna, or Buzzard-people, is a literal translation by Rob. E.
Hawkins from the author's tape recordings.
2) Apparently the meaning is that he came to smell as though rotten in order that the flies would
like the smell and summon the buzzards.
3) The status of servant or anton is common among the Waiwai. It is a child that has been more
or less adopted by an elderly married couple who have no children to assist them in household work.
4) Tuuuu = a kind of war whoop. It indicates that the father of the abducted son will kill or
capture the kidnappers, the Buzzard-people.
5) The Buzzard-people have apparently discarded their skin of feathers and pose as human beings
when commencing their meal on the supposed carcass.
6) The meaning is that the father dare not kill the Buzzard-man for fear of causing the heaven to
fall. The father did not get hold of his son but, on the other hand, the feather skin and knife of the
Buzzard-man.
7) When everybody had gone hunting the Buzzard-man returned alone to the village where the old
man's youngest son had been left behind by himself.
8) The bumble-bee plays otherwise no part in the story; presumably it is connected with the Buzzard
people in another way.
Aspects
The story about the man of the Buzzard-people who stole a child and then lost his feather skin and
knife, must if anything be considered a fairy tale. As opposed to the myths and legends mentioned
above, the motif and action seems here to be devoid of attitude and important content. However,
several incidental circumstances in the tale are of interest for they point to the Waiwai world of
imagination. It is mentioned, for example, that the father obtained in a dream the idea for his stratagem
in the case of the Buzzard-people. This is very characteristic of the Waiwai, who are very prone to
allow themselves to be influenced by dreams. As regards the religious beliefs of the Waiwai it is im
portant that the Kurum-man threatens that the heaven will fall should he be killed. The Kurum-yenna
dwell (see p. 102) in the uppermost layer and in consequence rule heaven; at the same time they are
dangerous kakenau-kworokjam. Also in connexion with breach of tabu during the seclusion of girls
at initiation, the danger is mentioned of the heavens falling and crushing the earth (see p. 155). Finally,
mention must be made of the tendency to personify the animal people. The Buzzard-people are
described in accordance with their qualities as human beings, with feather skin and many fine knives
with which to cut flesh.
The Dragon Uruperi 91
Fig. 13. Cassava sieve with the waratapi
-~
pattern. Questions asked about this sieve
pattern occationed the story about Uruperi,

as the dragon was 'covered with this very
design. (Nat. Mus. Copenhagen, H. 4202).
URUPERI (THE DRAGON)
There was once an old man who was angry with his son-in-law because he never brought home any bag
from the hunt 1). So the old man said to his daughter: "Far, far away in that direction there lives an
akri family 2) and a poroll frog". The daughter told her husband, who said: "I will go out and shoot
them". After he had gone a long way he thought he had finally reached the spot described, he made
a blind and summoned akri and porolt by imitating their sounds 3).
In fact there was neither akri nor poroli at this place 4), but a hole in the ground led down to the
big dragon, Uruperi. The old man was well aware of this, for he had once heard it roar here, but
wished to revenge himself on his son-in-law.
When the son-in-law called, Uruperi began to roar, and when the man heard this he ran away as
fast as he could and kept on running until he fell to the ground from exhaustion. The dragon was just
at his heels. It resembled a big serpent, but had hair on its body and fore and hind legs like a jaguar's.
Its tail was like that of an ant-eater, and its whole body was covered by a kind of meander pattern,
waratapi 5) (see Fig. 13). When the man fell down the dragon caught up with him and began to swallow
him, but he grasped hold of a tree and held on. He must have been very strong, for he held on all day,
his arms and head being outside the jaws of the dragon and only his body and legs inside. Shortly
before sundown the dragon gave up and left the man. The whole of his body that had been inside the
dragon was partly flayed and he was covered by the same pattern as that of the dragon. He had also
lost his hair, as it was so hot inside the dragon that the air from its jaws had singed it off.
As a result of this ordeal the man died shortly afterwards but soon came to life again 6). He then
L
returned to the village where he lived for some time. His skin continued to bear the waratapi pattern.
Some days later the man went out hunting again, and once more ran into the dragon, but this time
it changed into a man when it saw him.
The Uruperi man had a rattle (chack-chack) that was also painted with the waratapi pattern. When
it shook this rattle lightning came out of it, and when the rattle was shaken towards an animal it fell
to the ground dead, struck by lightning. This time the Uruperi man was very kind to the man, who
did not recognize him as the dragon, and demonstrated the efficiency of the rattle in the case of all
kinds of animals, big and small. Finally, he gave the man the rattle saying: "Do not show this rattle
to your fellow beings, but use it yourself when you meet game in the way I showed you".
The son-in-law never showed anyone the rattle, but brought home quantities of game to the village.
When people asked him how he was able to bring back so much game he merely replied: "I shot it
with my bow and arrow".
However, the son-in-law died shortly after. Immediately after his death the ekan of the Uruperi,
which was invisible, came to the village and took back the rattle.
Notes
1) A son-in-law is in the state of dependence expressed in the washma institution.

2) Akri = agouti.
3) By the help of animal imitations of which the Waiwai are masters.
4) It was suggested that this was in the vicinity of the Rio Mapuera, which seems to be the site of
most mysterious happenings.
5) This pattern, waratapi, is used also on cassava sieves. It was asking about such sieve patterns
that caused the story to be told. The pattern can also be used for painting the body with genipa, but
has no special significance. No rattles were seen bearing this pattern.
6) Presumably a paraphrase for loss of consciousness.
Aspects
No rattles with the waratapi pattern are to be found amongst the Waiwai of the present day, but
this pattern is used when painting the body and, as mentioned, on sieves. There appears to be no
special significance attached to its employment in these cases. A short version of the same story was
told by a Wapishana Indian. According to this a dragon or fable serpent, Waymayamochison (Waiwai)
or Urapily (Wapishana) lived up in the mountains or at their foot. It possessed a tremendous voice,
and the wind brought men and animals for it to swallow. It was over one metre thick, but was able
to fly although it had no wings. The snake's skin was patterned, and this pattern is now used for
festival hair tubes. This is what is related by old people though they have never seen the monster. It
is worth noting that in this case the legend has become a pure fairy story without any points touching
on the social. The bead hair tube pattern's name, wayma-yamochisonto, presumably means foot or
...
General Mythological Aspects 93
hand of the giant sloth (see p. 118), and the pattern of the sloth or its arm is amongst those known
from the Shodewika dance festival costumes (see p. 56).
The Waiwai version here noted down is brief and factual, but sufficiently accurate. It contains motifs
that are widespread over the whole of the Amazon area. "The Dragon" Uruperi is, for example identical
with the mythic figures Corupira or Yurupary, which are descriptions for the Lord over all the beasts
of the forest. Whereas the concept concerning the Lord of the animals is now of great importance
for a number of tropical forest tribes, this idea - that is to say the basic idea of the Uruperi myth
is not found at all with the Waiwai. With them, as mentioned earlier, there are ideas of various lords
over a type of animal or animal groups, but not over all animals. The only thing one has is the story
about Uruperi, which also formally has the character of a myth, but in content lacks its natural basis
as an idea that is believed in. We can conclude without further proof that it is a question of a loan,
presumably a late loan, as the Waiwai have not yet post-rationalized themselves to this basic concep
tion. The motif concerning the magical hunting weapon is also widespread over tropical South America
(see below).
In the Waiwai legend the young man is brought to the forefront. We sense the strict obligations
imposed on him by the washma institution in relation to his father-in-law, who wishes to get rid of
him. The strength and endurance of the young man is rewarded. He is given the rattle which enables
him to fulfill his washma obligations. The moral is that endurance must be shown in order to sur
mount these crippling duties.
GENERAL MYTHOLOGICAL ASPECTS
The greater part of the stories produced above are based on motifs that have obtained a very wide
dissemination. One need merely to think of the legend about the moon which is found in practically
identical form with, for example, the Netsilik Eskimos (Rasmussen 1931, p. 235). One must therefore
~
I be cautious about attributing too much importance to such motifs in the culture in question. Most
often they are merely loans, and only in some cases will a culture have post-rationalized itself to the
ideas lying behind. With the Waiwai it is almost entirely a matter of free myths and legends un
connected with rituals. When tales of this kind are adopted in a new cultural pattern, they will often
change character as regards detail even though the motif be retained. By so doing they obtain fresh
significance and functions.
The Uruperi motif can serve as an example: The Lord of all animals possesses a magical hunting
weapon that an ordinary mortal is permitted to borrow. This subject is (see Zerries 1954) widespread
in the Amazon area, though with considerable variations. With the Waiwai the motif is connected
with a typical washma situation which is of high importance in the Waiwai's daily life and other
mythology: the young man's dependence upon the family of his wife. With a Tupi tribe like the Tene
tehara (Wagley & Galvao 1948, p. 145), where Corropira is Lord over the forest and game, he only
spares the moderate hunter and punishes unnecessary hunting and poor hunting morals. Here the
significance of the story is clearly based on a practical hunting moral level, that appears important
and natural in relation to the Lord of animals. Incidentally, it quite corresponds to the importance
attached by the Waiwai to Poinkoyin, the Father of the peccaries (see p. 28).
In communities where secret masculine cults play a role and where women and uninitiated are
excluded from ritual life, the story obtains fresh twists in order to be adjusted to existing ideology.
In the Rio Negro area the Lord of the animals helps the unlucky hunter, but demands that women
shall never know of the magic weapon (Barbosa Rodrigues 1890, p. 74). Far to the south with the
Karaja, where the story of the Lord of the animals approaches the unrecognizable (Krause 1911,
p. 347), the serpent demon resident in the magic weapon revenges himself by killing the temporary
owner of it and all others because it gets into the wrong (uninitiated) hands.
As a last example mention must be made of the Barama Carib in Guiana (Gillin 1936, pp. 192 and
180). Here, as with the Waiwai, it is a matter of a big serpent, Orupere, which nearly kills a hunter
owing to the faithlessness of his brother-in-law. At this point the resemblance ends, however, as the
hunter kills the serpent, and from pieces cut from it grow the hunt binas (magical plants) that still
playa big role. We find here a great change in the subject as the magic weapon has been dropped in
favour of the appearance of magical hunting plants. These last are not only typical of the Barama
Caribs but also of the majority of the tribes in northern Guiana. It must again be assumed that ideas
already prevalent had caused the changes in the motif, which has thus not been unconditionally
acceptable for adoption in the culture, but has had to be adapted to it. The same has been the case
with the Karaja, where the motif with the magical weapon found acceptance, whereas that with the
Lord of the animals faded out.
These examples plainly show that a simple comparison of legendary motifs does not always make
sense. Far more important elements for a comparison are the basic ideas which direct the local selection
of stories offered. The background for an historical assimilation by a culture, the process of selection,
and the local formulation should be the main problems of myth research.
With the Waiwai there seems to be no causal relation between myth and cult or magical acts. The
ritualistic view in the field of myth research, particularly prevalent among religion historians and
Orientalists has its root in studies of Mediterranean and Near Eastern culture areas which, according
to Weisinger (1956, p. 387) are characterized by their relatively large number of ritual texts. In the
case of the Waiwai myths it does not seem relevant to take the view that the myth has arisen from the
ritual that it explains. Far rather must myth and cult be regarded as parallel manifestations of religious
conceptions or ideas. These manifestations can cast mutual light on each other and particularly on
their common basis.
An example from the Waiwai mythology can add colour to this view. The account about the
opossum as culture hero relates how, prior to the cultivation of the culture plant yam, the opossum
man taught the Waiwai how to build the three larger house types that are used today. The name of
one of these house types, the rectangular work shed, means opossum mouth (yawarimta), and on the
basis of this alone, one might construe this myth detail as a secondary post-rationalization. How
ever it appears that the opossum altogether is regarded as magically a very dangerous beast, and
when infants - who on account of their unstable souls are especially vulnerable - are brought for
the first time into the round communal house, the parents exorcise the opossum with a magic
~--.~--.
blowing and song. It is worth while observing here that the exorcism is performed in connexion with
the communal house that has no opossum name. It is also important to observe that in their exorcisms
the Waiwai have three magical procedures: the use of objects, actions and songs that can be taken
as expressing parallel categories (see p. 116). Behind all three methods lie a common basis and desire.
In quite similar fashion the name of the house type, magic blowing, song and myth must be regarded
as parallel expressions of a basic concept of the opossum as a supernatural being.
Usually the myth, in relation to other forms of stories, is defined according to its content; for ex
ample as an account of the genesis of present conditions in a past that is sufficiently distant for super
natural beings (including the chief person) and actions to be considered reasonable. However, in this
way the myth is not clearly delimited from, say, legends and fairy tales, much less defined.
In myth research four points come naturally into the foreground: the elucidation of origin, sig
nificance, function and structure. During the history of myth research these points have been answered
most variously and, regrettably, nearly always alternatively, so that new theories - intentionally or
unintentionally - have been regarded as incompatible with those already in existence. This dilemma
appears particularly to be due to the fact that experts in many different branches of knowledge: folk
lore, ethnography, religious history, the Oriental studies, psychoanalysis, and so forth, have dealt
with the myth material employing various working methods.
One of the greatest difficulties in assessing myths and legends seems to be that the content of both
is composite, the individual parts of each having, in an historical sense, a different origin. A Waiwai
legend will thus consist of a core, the motif, that may be of global extension because it expresses some
thing universal, independent of nature and culture. As mentioned above, the motifs therefore possess
no specific local significance although by their appearance or absence they help to stamp a culture.
It is psycho-analysts particularly who have concerned themselves with the meaning of the motifs, and
characteristically enough, from a universal point of view, detached from their cultural context. As
illustrated by the Uruperi example, each motif is surrounded by a local atmosphere, and this, plus
the motif, constitutes the actual legend or myth. This atmosphere can at all events again be divided
into two parts, which here is termed action and incidental circumstances. The same myth or legend
is found within a definite culture or tribe in a series of variants all based on a "neutral", unembroidered,
version. With the Waiwai at all events, the course of action is common to the whole tribe, though in
some cases it may cover smaller or larger groups than the tribe. It is characterized by the way in
which motifs are combined and the order in which they are placed in a traditional frame that depends
upon both the natural and cultural milieus. The action is but a part of the myth or legend and must
not be confused with it. Yet merely a generation ago such confusion was frequent because one then
usually had only the unembroidered neutral texts to work on. From the point of view of action the
legend is the property of the whole tribe, and in the course of action are found at all events with the
Waiwai frequent references to the assumed history of the tribe. The myth or legend must naturally
not be regarded merely as an historical chronicle, but one often discovers in abbreviated, personified
or symbolical form grains of historical verity (see Birket-Smith 1948, p. 565). The historical details
are generally so disguised in the myth that they can only be deduced when one possesses from some
other source knowledge of their existence. But this fact - the imperfection of our method - should
~.
not cause the historical aspect to be forgotten. When one cannot check the historical information,
it appears in a very vague and relative form, as the historical events are often very abbreviated in space
and time, and folk groups are personified. An example of this is supplied by the Waiwai creation
myth about Mawari, where the marriage between him and a woman of the Anaconda-people can
reasonably be construed as the assimilation of two folk groups.
The course of action in a myth or legend must, like the motif, be regarded as an abstraction. During
narration the course of action can be embellished with easily changeable details. These details or
incidental circumstances divide the one version of a myth from the other; consequently they are not
typical of the whole tribe but only of minor groups, families or individuals, and perhaps only for
shorter periods. The importance and function of the incidental circumstances was pointed out by
Malinowski (1926, 1954, p. 146), who maintained that every historical change would alter the my
thology. Malinowski imagined a constant process of adjustment of each single myth in a given
community, so that the myth always created a precedence for social status and sanctioned current
moral laws. There can be no doubt that what is altered in the myth in step with, for example, the
development of community life, is precisely that that here are termed incidental circumstances.
Starting at the same point, the great importance of incidental circumstances, Leach has criticized
and developed Malinowski's views. Leach (1954, p. 277) does not think that myths sanction and
stabilize but that, on the contrary, they are a symbolic language through which legal and status de
mands are voiced and argued by individual members of the tribe. The myth is thereby made into an
instrument of the individual, and its cultural effects will rather dissolve society than preserve it. The
question now is whether it is possible to reconcile the well-substantiated theories of Malinowski and
Leach. If so it must be due to the fact that Leach himself admits that the individual myth can exercise
a socially-stabilizing effect, but at the same time he maintains that there are at any time variants of
the same myth which justify contrary interests.
In the Shodewika myth the function of the Waiwai dance festival is stated to be an opportunity
for young people of both sexes to gain contact and to contract marriage. The fulfilment of this leads
in the myth to the emergence of neighbouring tribes, whilst other conduct is punished. In a detail of
a myth variant the purpose of the dance is given more concretely as diversions in the form of wife
exchanges. The first version is based on the general interests of the tribe, whereas the second reflects
the more personal proclivities. It should be added that the first version was related by the village leader,
whilst the other emanated from an ordinary, married Waiwai.
It appears probable, then, that in a given community's myths and legends one can always meet
views, as expressed by the chief and certain age classes or groups, corresponding with Malinowski's
stabilizing version, and at the same time contrary opinions, voiced by oppositional or common
groups, that tally with Leach's subversive version. The myth variants, that is to say the changing in
cidental circumstances reflect inner political or social tension between groups or individuals in a
community. A frequently discussed cause of tension with the Waiwai is, for example, the relations
between the newly-married man and his wife's brothers, the washma relation.
From the foregoing it seems to appear that when, for example, psychologists, historians and
functionalists define and interpret myths, it is never a question of the myth as a whole, for in reality
,..---------------------
it is motifs, the course of action and the incidental circumstances, respectively, that, in a narrower
sense, are subjected to consideration. As these parts of a myth have widely-different origins, and are
worked up according to equally varied methods, it is not surprising that the interpreting results are
not immediately compatible. In the meantime it would seem that what characterizes a myth as a
whole is not so much its content as its tripartite structure. Thus, when analysing a myth or legend
attempts should be made to interpret individually each of these three aspects, whereafter the several
results can be compared and weighed one against the other as, in principle, equal possibilities.
As an example of the three possible interpretations here referred to, mention can be made of the
Waiwai Anaconda myth, which deals with the adolescent girl who, with the old grandmother, is left
behind in the village. The incidental circumstances of this myth are found, for example, in their
conversations that clearly indicate a conflict situation. The girl's desire to break out of her isolated
period of initiation and obtain some amusement, and the grandmother's justified demand that the
norm be followed and the ban maintained. Here the proper social behaviour is discussed and finally
stabilized. According to the action, the girl is coveted by the Anaconda-people, she herself having
called their attention to her existence. She flees from them, and only by the grandmother hiding her
does she excape her fate: to be taken as a sexual partner. This action coupled with the handing over
by the Anaconda-people of new cultural benefits to the Waiwai can - viewed in conjunction with the
Mawari myth - be regarded as the prelude to a cultural contact between two tribes. However, the
action is unconcluded and the Anaconda-people have to leave the village, having failed in their
mission. If the myth motifs be considered as pictures or symbols, it becomes apparent that the girl in
fact was a sexual victim of the Anaconda-people - or of sex urge - as, in addition to being an image
of the river and fertility, the anaconda is for the Waiwai a sexual symbol: it is dangerous for adolescent
girls, it is both loved and feared, and it was the progenitor of the first woman whom the Waiwai creator
married. In the myth the girl hides herself under a clay vessel (that can be regarded as a female sexual
symbol); moisture from the river and Anaconda spies force entrance to the vessel (symbol of sexual
connexion). The village collapses (picture of the breaking down of the girl's former world and status),
and last, but not least, the Anaconda-people hand over their ornaments to the grandmother on leaving
- apparently unsuccessful. The ornaments can be taken as an expression of a payment of the bride price
(and in fact they are so used), and they are even donated with the word: "Here is something for brother
in-law when he returns home". One can thus - I believe - see an eternally-typical conflict reflected
in an unfinished and unclarified action based on motifs whose contents are complete. This curious
construction or structure of the myth engenders an inner tension, a dialogue in the myth as a whole,
that makes it intense and of import. The myth contains both a visible and a hidden reality.
It has often been said of the myth that it is both the past and eternal. This is undoubtedly correct,
which also seems to appear from the structure of the myth. If the action be considered, it is seen that
it is set in the past and is historical. On the other hand the universal motifs are raised above time
and place; they are eternally valid and latent. In the meantime these two sides of the myth are sur
rounded by continually changing incidental circumstances, expressed by the several variants of the
same myth; these incidental circumstances are linked to the immediate social situation, they are up
to date. It should be mentioned that Levi-Strauss (1955; p. 428 et seq.) stresses a corresponding tri
7 Waiwai
dimensional time as typical of the myth on the basis of structure studies, though with a somewhat
different point of departure from that of the author.
It will undoubtedly be very difficult to distinguish fairy tales from myths in the case of the Waiwai
if such a differentiation is feasible at all. In regard to European fairy tales it is clear, however, that
structure and time dimensions are well fitted to separate the categories. The incidental circumstances
of the fairy tale have become rigid in a medieval setting; the fairy tale is no longer topical, new versions
are not composed; it has only two time dimensions.
The above theoretical reflections afford no immediate help in explaining what the individual myth
or legend in its entirety means for the individual Waiwai narrator or listener. This can perhaps best
be explained by observing the opinions of children or adults about, for example, a fairy tale. Here it
frequently happens that small children are delighted with the colouristic details, whereas bigger
children are enthralled by the exciting action. Adults will often perceive its moral or universal applica
tion in a more or less abstract form. Fairy tales, however, are not topical. When it is a matter of a
myth version, the listener will also have to weigh views as expressed in the incidental circumstances;
should these make no impression on him, he concentrates on the action or the motif. There is not
only one correct perception of a myth, nor is there one correct version. A given myth is regarded in
various ways according to the mental and social situation of the listener. He may be in a tense position
of duty in relation to his wife's family, or he may have a son-in-law or brother-in-law to dominate;
he can be a chief or an ordinary member of the tribe; he may be infatuated or in the power of super
natural agencies; in every situation he will interpret certain relevant parts with particular intensity.
Naturally he hears it all, but apprehends only what he himself needs at the moment.
What the individual listener gets out of a definite situation in the narrative one can never hope to
discover unless one is given to assess foreign cultures collectively. On the other hand, what one can
say is that the listener can choose between a certain number of possibilities. In a situation of personal
conflict or in a case where two groups are antagonistic to each other and this is expressed in the
incidental circumstances of the myth, it would seem natural that the listener will note this aspect of
the myth with peculiar attention. The attitude of the listener as an individual thus obtains perceptive
ascendancy.
In a precisely similar way his attitude as member of the tribe - his national sentiment - will dominate
when, for example, he feels himself at one with the tribe and tradition in a politically-tense situation.
He will ignore internal disputes and concentrate upon the concrete account of the myth about how
his people came into being and separated from other peoples, and so forth. This also fits in with the
fact that there is the closest correspondance between the myth as we normally understand it, that is
to say as course of action, and the tribe, that is individuals regarded as members of it.
Should the listener have heard the myth several times, and should he not feel himself specially
engaged socially and politically, he will be more engrossed by questions relating to the universal
philosophy of life, in other words the material especially connected with the myth's motifs that prove
to apply over great parts of the world. Such ideas as the genesis of life, mankind's origin, life and death,
and propagation will fall into focus; the listener will heed this essential content as a human being and
not as an individual or member of a tribe. In speaking here of three personal attitudes, it is not because
others do not exist. In a number of situations persons will construe a report variously on account of
difference in sex, generation, occupation or status etc. But as these attitudes partly fall under attitude
as an individual within a community, so an analysis of them demands many versions of the same myth
for a satisfactory elucidation. (For example, Benedict, (1955, I, p. XL) from Zuni has called attention
to the two sexes' various versions of the same myth).
These views on the different attitudes of listeners are advanced in the hope that a clearer idea will
be reached concerning the mental situation of a narrator of, or listener to, a myth. Although it must
be taken for granted that the listener is selective, it must also be assumed that several attitudes are
latently present. According to the immediate attention field of the individual listener the myth can
take on social, historical or universal aspects; in principle all of these are equally correct and equally
necessary for a complete understanding of the myth. The individual investigator can naturally evade
a description of one or more of these aspects, but one can hardly ignore their existence and importance.
In the meantime, as it will never be possible to determine what attitudes were dominant in a given
myth and with how great a section of the tribe's members, one is left with a method that merely in
dicates which aspects it can be a matter of in the various situations. This view is the reason why the
Waiwai myths and legends above are commented upon in such a way that the various aspects are
mentioned as equal possibilities; that is to say that sometimes one and sometimes another of these
aspects can be relevant to a given listener in a given narrative situation. It can perhaps be expressed
by saying that the several myth aspects satisfy various human needs. The structure of the myth
apparently corresponds to various human attitudes, and thus expresses an inner dialogue corresponding
to that of the individual.
The last and most important question that will be sought elucidated here is whether Waiwai myths
and legends can be interpreted in regard to the views mentioned above. An attempt has been made
to explain that a listener, owing to various human attitudes, apprehends various mythic aspects, each of
which represents a milieu or an outside world. As an individual or linked to one or other social fraction
he lives in the social atmosphere of the myth's incidental circumstances. By the attitude he adopts to
institutions that harbour tension, for example, in connexion with initiation, choice of partner, and
relations with his wife's family, the listener places himself actively within the framework of the tribe.
In a similar way he places himself as a tribal member viewed in the greater milieu of the action of
the myth. Here it is a matter of the genesis of the Waiwai tribe, its assimilation by, or conflict with,
neighbouring tribes described in a foreshortened perspective by mixed marriages or homicides. The
milieu of the action is thus politico-historical and comprises all known, that is to say all "existing",
peoples. The highest possible attitude a listener can adopt is the universal one, raised above personal,
social and political conflicts. From a purely human point of view the lesson that can be deduced from
the myth's motifs is of vital importance, and an experimental assessment as to the significance of these
to the Waiwai cannot be avoided. The interpretation of symbolical or allegorical motifs is encumbered
with a high degree of subjectivity, and consequently the author will confine himself to emphasizing
what appears to be a typical common feature: All motif persons and situations each seem to combine
in themselves contrary qualities or components; they posses - as Heraclitus has put it - a discordant
harmony.
-
~. - -
--- ~
Thus Uruperi is both the feared, deadly dragon and the helping, food-providing Lord of the animals.
The anaconda evinces a divided nature as a feared, deadly and beloved (sexually and life-promoting)
being. The Buzzard-people have a central position with both a hero (Shodewika myth) and a trickster
(Kurum story). Like the trickster of North America it is a scavenger, and, (according to Levi-Strauss
1955, p. 440) points towards the two extremes: vegetable life and animal death. The vagina dentata
motif, which is connected with the anaconda, contains the same doubleness as it refers both to the
potency principle and its destruction, the fear of castration. The same applies to the incest motif,
that consists of a sexual and a tabu side. The jaguar grandmother is also placed as belonging to the
Jaguar-people (death) and as the source of agriculture (life). She must even die herself in order that
manioc can come into existence, a motif that is repeated with the origin of fish poison plants from the
body of the old Umawa. Mawari and his twin brother express two different qualities the life-giving
creator and his inevitable companion, the subversive forces. In this union of opposites in motifs here
referred to, the contrasts always seem to be - or could be paraphrased - life and death.
The question life versus death should thus be the most significant content the listener, among other
things, would be aware of when in his attitude as a human being he concentrates on the motifs. He
places himself within the living, surrounded by the dead.
This attempt to suggest the total significance and function of the myth in relation to its structure
thus ends with the postulate that a person by his various human attitudes can place himself in his
various worlds. In a way he justifies his presence in a greater context by placing himself as an individual
within the tribe, as a member of the tribe places himself among the peoples, and as a human being
places himself among all things living. On this basis it seems reasonable to assume that the myth
at all events with the Waiwai - expresses and supports mankind's instinct for self-preservation.
Cosmology
The Waiwai have no ideas as to how the world was created, and none of the myths collected touch
on this subject. It is just said that the world has always existed.
Cosmos consists of five layers. Each of these planes has soil and trees like the human layer. There
is an opening in each layer which enables a certain traffic between them. They have no special names,
but take their character from the beings that reside in them. Three of the planes are over the human
layer and are called collectively kapu, heaven (sky).
Under the human layer there is (Layer I) Taritari-yenna (taritarl = cicada, yenna = people). The in
habitants of this are of the same sizeas the Waiwai and wear the same clothes, but their skin is light
red. As opposed to the other layers, this one has sandy soil and few trees. Incidentally, the cicada,
by their number in September, give the time for starting the clearing of the fields (see p. 183). Above
this (Layer 2) is the human layer with its population of Waiwai and other yenna.
The first heavenly layer (Layer 3) is inhabited by the Maraki-yenna (maraki=quite large bird with
scissor-like tail, probably a hawk though possibly marati = marudi). They are people of the size of a
6 year old boy, and look like the Waiwai.
More important, however, is the fact that this layer harbours the eye souls of dead people (see p. 20),
and that it is regarded as a bright and friendly place, where all are happy. Eye-ekatlnho, purified and
reincarnated, can here find a permanent home. It is mentioned in the story concerning the old man's
trip to the sky that the ekatinho has a special dwelling near the kakenau-kworokjam, which fits in the
layer between earth and the kakenau-kworokjam.
On the next heavenly plane (Layer 4) dwell all kakenau-kworokjam, whose appearance is said to
be like those in Layer 3. By kakenau-kworokjam is understood the various forms of dangerous spirits:
sky spirits, completely disembodied spirits like bush spirits and the spirits of certain animals, par
ticularly birds "because they fly in the sky". Kakenau-kworokjam, which have not, like the ekatinho
kworokjam, any original connexion with human beings, are considered especially dangerous, and
therefore only the medicine man can employ them or render them innocuous. When summoning one
of his helping spirits (which is always a kakenau-kworokjam), there is always the risk that other
kakenau-kworokjam will slip through the hole in the layer at the same time.
This also happens when the sun is invoked. The sun itself is a kakenau-kworokjam and consequently
must be placed in this layer, though my informant dared not express himself on this point. The moon
is said to be between the 2nd and 3rd layers, just over the human plane. Just as the medicine man's
ekati can go to his helping spirits, so his ekatinho after death can take up residence with the helping
102 Cosmology
spirits. This is further illustrated under burial with soul ladders (see p. 166). In some cases the ekatinho
of medicine men are considered to reside in Layer 4.
On the uppermost plane, (Layer 5) the kurum-yenna are found (kurum = buzzard). Some Waiwai
called them kurum-kakenau instead of yenna, but this made no difference as "yenna" here is simply
a collective term for the same thing. They look like ordinary Waiwai. Actually no special explanation
is required because people place buzzards in the highest layer, for these birds are those observed highest
in the air. The Kurum-yenna occupy a prominent position in the Shodewika myth (see p. 72), for
the neighbouring tribes of the Waiwai are thought to have come into being as a result of the union
between various animal men and Kurum women. During a case of illness it was said that the medicine
man invoked his helping spirit, the harpy eagle, in order that it should bring back the ekati of the
sick person, and that he said of the soul: "It is high up, in the house of the buzzard people". My
informant declared that still more distant layers might contain other beings, but he was unaware of
them. This remark is curious, as it suggests that at any rate he (Ewka) did not regard the cosmos as a
complete, limited system, but realized that only his own conception of it was limited. This, presumably,
is not a typical view.
Every animal and plant has its existence on the earth, some have an ekatinho-kworokjam, others a
kakenau-kworokjam, and others no kworokjam at all. In addition, all these have an existence in
heaven (presumably in Layers 3 and 4, respectively). These heavenly parallels have -imo (great) added
to the name and are, as already mentioned, bigger and stronger than their mundane counterparts.
In olden days there was an -imo existence on earth also (see, for example, note 3 to the moon myth,
chanaimo), which seems to refer to the general feeling of "the good old days". Now they are found
only as unreal beings in heaven, only visible during dreams or trances.
In addition to the division into layers, some Waiwai have another conception of heaven. According
to this, heaven consists of a large, flat rock shaped like a cassava pan (a round, flat stone or clay pan),
resting on three upright rocks (pot rests). When it rains they believe that the water falls through holes
in the pan. Much goes to suggest that this idea is a late loan from the Wapishana Indians, and it
indicates - as opposed to the Waiwai conception - that the cosmos is a collected whole, obviously
stamped by the agricultural idea, whereas the Waiwai layers are characterized by animal spirits.
In the Waiwai language both rain and water are called "tuna" (tuna-ipu = main water = Esse
quibo). High water is not connected with heavy rain (the river does not rise for several days after
rainfall), but is explained as being due to the anacondas spitting out a lot of water. Rain itself the
Waiwai consider can be driven away by the aid of a magic song (see p. 112), but the faculty of invoking
the sun is reserved to the medicine man in a form that lies on the border line between compulsive
magic and supplicatory invocation (see p. 34). An informant explained that thunder was "the wind
that runs swiftly into a spiral"; another said that it was clouds rubbing against each other that became
warm and the wind burst into flame. In the story about the old man's trip to the sky (p. 84) an account
is given of a personified thunder-spirit, who causes lightning, thunder and sudden gusts of wind with
a giant mirror, a giant palm leaf whip, and a giant fan, respectively. When the moon is eclipsed or
becomes red, an equally rational explanation is not offered, for they aver that there is then a war
somewhere or other and that people are about to be killed. An eclipse of the moon is thus an augury.
-~-----~..~~_.~.--.
---- ----
Cosmology 103
The Waiwai ideas about their position in space and time are also strongly stamped by the myths
which are regarded as living reality. However, the myths begin with Mawari, the creator, and according
to the Waiwai he arrived recently. Long before him there existed heaven and earth, sun and trees and
so forth, and, as earlier mentioned, also kakenau-kworokjam and Okoimo-yenna. The creation of
the world is thus pushed back to a very distant and completely unknown past. As applies to the layers
with the infinity of space, so also with origin: time is only limited by the limits of human experience
and perception.
.,
Practice stamped by religious concepts

Having presented the religious concepts of the Waiwai, reference will now be made to the practice
resulting from them. This practice or the acts that thus come under consideration need not primarily
be of a religious nature, but can just as well be social or economic though they are all governed by
the religious content presented above.
It seems reasonable to divide the material into lay and medicine man's practice, but within this
general division we find an especially important sphere of supernaturally-stamped practice, that of
the compulsive ritual known as "magic blowing".
MAGIC BLOWING
Magic blowing is many things. Both in technique and purpose there are so many variations and so
much secrecy that a clear formulation of it is extremely difficult. The word "blowing" refers to the
ritual puffing, "pu-pu", which is performed with the mouth, coupled with a magic song, an eremu,
which projects far away the effects of the song, giving them a definite direction. The word "magic"
refers to the compulsive power exercised by certain songs when performed with the proper ritual.
Magic blowing is thus always the projection of a desire, or rather, of an order, and can be executed
by both men and women.
The purposes of blowing of this kind vary widely, and it will be expedient to divide them into the
blowing of laymen and medicine men, the curing blowing of the latter being of particular importance.
The most significant to the Waiwai community, however, is the death blowing, exercised by both
laymen and medicine men. This will be taken first.
Fatal blowing
The Waiwai always explain death as being a loss of the soul (see p. 161), and with the exception of
infants and very old people death is always due to a magic death blowing. This can either be the
primary blowing, "tono" or the secondary revenge blowing "parawa".
Tono
There are many forms of primary blowing:
1a. If a person x wishes to kill his enemy y as quickly as possible, x will creep over at night to y's
hammock and blow tono directly over the sleeping body. This is the quickest-acting of all tono methods,
but also the most dangerous, as there is the greatest risk of being caught red-handed. The method
Magic Blowing 105
is also dangerous in that the blower himself will die if any of the magic air current should return over
himself.
Ib. In such cases the blower will often blow through a long grass tube, ruwe (the thinnest of the
bamboo species found here).
1c. Or he can blow on a long arrow, the blown end of which is rubbed over the body of the enemy.
However, by this method death is not as rapid as with direct blowing.
From these examples it appears that the Waiwai regard blowing as a magic substance or fluid of
the same type as the soul (ekati); its effect is quantitatively conditioned and in inverse ratio to the
distance between the executant and his victim. Blowing has a mortally dangerous quality of itself,
and a mishap can cause the death of the executant; it lacks intention.
2. The more indirect tono methods are more frequently practised. For example, the person x who
desires the death of y, can begin by singing a magic song, eremu, of which there are many. Neither
then nor later will the executant mention y's name. After that x will take something that has been in
contact with y, particularly food remains, a banana peel, a gnawed bone, a piece of y's private cassava
bread and so forth. Cut nails or hair are also extremely suitable, but are for this reason carefully cut
up and spread; y's private property such as bow or hammock can be used, but for this reason such
things are always carefully hidden by their owner when not in use. After contact something of y's
ekatl is thought to remain for several days in such remains or property.
X will now blow tono over one or more of these objects, placing them close to his mouth and saying
"pu-pu". If, for example, it is y's bow that has been blown over, his right arm will first swell; if it is
his footprint the foot will swell, and thereafter he will die. Everyone is convinced that he will die.
3. Whereas the examples so far given have been based on contagious magic, a few will now be
mentioned where imitative, homoeopathic magic is decisive. This category is undoubtedly the one
most commonly resorted to by the Waiwai.
The tono blower can, for example, take the food remains previously referred to - or if he finds a clear
footprint of his enemy this also can be used. Whichever it is it is packed into a yawara leaf (probably
Guilie1ma sp.) possessing thorns that will pierce y. The bundle is tied together with bast of the pimpler
palm, puruweti (Astrocaryum plicatum), which irritates the skin and causes y pain. Then a big wood
ants' nest (shumeku) is discovered in which a recess is made for the bundle in order that the ants shall
sting y. The most important part of the process is still the singing of an eremu and the blowing of
"pu-pu". Y will now swell up, his stomach become so fat that he is unable to breathe; he will shortly
die. The train of thought must be that if only some part of the victim's ekati is subjected to magic it
will automatically affect the whole soul.
A man who had an unusually fat stomach was regarded as having been exposed to a tono blowing
of the last-mentioned category, but the magic song sung could not have been long and powerful
enough. When a person escapes death in this way it is not because the magic was insufficiently effective,
but solely because the executant did not know his eremu sufficiently.
In this connexion it can be mentioned that a person who thus avoids death is named "ekahri", the
same term given to wounded game which escapes. Actually, tono means primarily "to eat flesh",
but also "to blow another to death".
..".-------
I
~- - _. - ~-
106 Religious Practice
4. Another form of tono must be mentioned. This is more in the way of soul rape. The tono blower
takes, for instance, a little of his enemy's food remains with a stick and, without packing it in, goes
into the forest until he finds a wayam (tortoise). He catches the wayam and sings two eremu over it,
blowing being included. Without killing the tortoise, he loosens its shoulders from the carapace and
in the cavity thus obtained he places y's morsels of food. Thereafter he can do one of two things,
depending upon the degree of his hate. If he wishes to give y a chance to survive, he will build a fence
round the tortoise. Y will lose all desire for food and will begin to spit blood. He is then aware that
someone has blown on him using this method, and will go out to search for the tortoise. If y finds
it, he will open the carapace, remove the food remnants and blow upon them. In this way he will
survive the attack. He will then return home with the remnants and ask repeatedly in the village:
"Which of you does not like me?". But as the blower will refuse to disclose his identity, y throws away
the food remnants and enquires of each individual: "Do you know eremu?" When anyone answers
in the affirmative, y will ask him to come with him, and the eremu expert then must sing a magic
song over the blood y has spat out, and blow into y's open mouth. This ritual takes place in the
morning and is repeated in the afternoon. This is not a mortal but a curing blowing. That the eremu
expert must blow into the victim's mouth is reminiscent of the custom of parents blowing into a
child's mouth if it sneezes in order that its ekati shall not vanish with the sneeze. It can be assumed
that the eremu expert also blows the victim's ekati into place again after it has been liberated from
the magic. By magic here must be understood - as always with the Waiwai - possession by an evil
spirit, kworokjam. The magic is finally evicted by magic blowing over the blood spat out. Y will
again become quite well, though he must refrain from eating meat rich in blood, tapir, deer, wild
pig and such like. If y should later learn who has been persecuting him he will not revenge himself
by blowing x, but by a ruse slay him with a club. If, therefore, the tono blower really hates his
enemy and wishes to assure himself, he refrains from building a fence round the tortoise after placing
the food remains beneath its shell and blowing over them; y will then be unable to find the animal,
and will die.
The executant observes no eating tabus in connexion with the blowing, but afterwards he will wash
his mouth with water and mud for otherwise his wife would spit blood when he addressed her.
The motives inspiring the blowing on a person are naturally due as a rule to personal enemity. It
is often given as a reason that the other side is expected to resort to it and one hastens to do so first.
From the teaching given after the initiation seclusion of girls, it appears that theft can also motivate
tono blowing: "Steal not thy sister's cotton or other things; they will blow on you and you will die".
Although the executant of a fatal tono blowing will for good reasons attempt to remain anonymous,
it must be presumed that he will ensure that the victim discovers a blowing of this nature has been
performed. The only rational explanation of the Waiwai's conviction about the effectiveness of the
blowing must be that the victim is aware of his fate and languishes or dies in consequence of psychic
anxiety. In one case I discovered that a man who thought himself exposed to tono blowing applied
to the assumed executant in order to obtain a lifting of the spell. The assumed executant denied the
charge and continued to do so also during a 26 hour long oho chant (see p. 216). The victim was thus
partially reassured, and avoided death.
Magic Blowing 107
Parawa
As previously mentioned, the Waiwai regard every case of death - except in cases of infants and old
people - as a result of magic blowing. In the meantime as a blood feud is an absolute obligation for
the nearest relative - usually male - and is effected by the means of magic revenge blowing, parawa,
this necessarily becomes the most common form of death blowing. Generally it is a father, brother or
spouse of the deceased who executes the revenge blowing, which always takes place - at all events in
connexion with the original cremation - unless the deceased has infants or grandchildren. Infants
(up to the age of three) are particularly exposed to magical dangers (see p. 110), and are thought in
this case to suffer death by means of the blood leaves used (see below).
After death it is general to burn the corpse, and when the funeral pyre has burnt down a relative
removes some selected bones from the heap, for example part of a thigh bone and hand bones, or from
the spine and jaw bone. He then goes away and cuts a hollow bamboo tube, chali (medium sized
bamboo species), about 1- metre in length, in which he stops the magic blood leaves, kamshukuyari,
said to be a red grass that grows particularly on cliffs and near small creeks. If the death of the victim
is desired especially quickly, leaves of the mulumulu (plant with quite large leaves and white umble)
and of the pilishakt (small forest tree) are added to the bunch. The avenger can now choose between
two techniques: He can heat the unpacked bones of the deceased on a barbecue (kanapeni) about
15 ems high and push them down into the leaf-lined tube, which will then explode with a little "puff".
The tube is then inserted in a hole in the ground where it remains permanently. If the tube does not
explode it means that revenge will be unsuccessful.
The other method is to stick cold bones between the leaves in the bamboo tube; the ends are sealed,
and it is packed into yawara leaves (a thorny palm, possibly Guilielma sp.) bound together with kraua
twine. The bunch is then placed in a hole in the ground and a fire built up over it. Blowing takes place
whilst the fire is burning and the bundle is warmed. Special kinds of wood must always be used for
the fire, for example mawanali, ytlrswrmaru and pilishaki, and komyati'to (germinating fruit about
15 ems long of the lu palm). A number of plants mentioned that are used in a similar manner could
not, unfortunately, be controlled. A usual procedure also is to place the bunch at the bottom of a
hollow tree stump whilst burning.
Blowing always consists of a sound in imitation of an animal, coupled with the "pu-pu" previously
mentioned. The avenger can imitate the turukwarl (a type of grouse) by blowing through his nose
into a leaf, or by summoning the poroto (spider monkey) by blowing his hands with the mouth. He can
also call the meku (marmoset monkey) by whistling inwards or the yaypu (tapir) by whistling through
the front teeth or by a leaf in front of a slightly-opened mouth; the pishko (trumpet bird) can likewise
be imitated by a hiss produced with the help of the fingers of a clenched fist. As with to no blowing,
there is here probably a question of an eremu in addition to blowing; but, naturally, on account of
its power, no one dared to demonstrate it. This was the more understandable as it is regarded as
certain that the executant of a tono or parawa will himself die "if the song is not directed towards
another person". In order not to be accused of fatal magic my informant even went so far as to deny
that he knew of or listened to tono eremu.
It is worthy of note that the avenger often does not know his victim, and in any event will not
mention his name in connexion with blowing. The magic is sent into the air by the aid of "pu-pu",
and the victim will only be known by the fact that he will die within two months. However, it is
thought that if one of the big red ara parrots flies over a parawa executant, a handsome man will die
as a result of the blowing. When the avenger produces one of the imitative sounds, the ekati of the
victim is thought to answer with the same sound far away in the forest. The victim's ekati then returns
to its body. Later the victim himself will hear the animal cries, but then it will be the ekati of the
avenger he hears. How much can be deduced from this Waiwai statement is not quite clear; but there
appears to be a suggestion that the ekati (or rather, a part of it) of the blowing executant accompanies
the "pu-pu" towards the victim. It can sound surprising that this procedure can have a fatal effect,
but an explanation given by a Waiwai chief explains it a little: When the victim of revenge blowing hears
the presumed animal sound he will reply by means of imitations. He will then return to the village to
tell his fellows that he had heard the animals in question and will exhort them to go hunting with him.
Everybody will then turn out, but when no game is discovered they will turn to the victim and say:
"You must be under the influence of parawa, you will die." Psychic fear of magic is, we know,
very strong, and the feeling of being already placed outside the community will in many cases
undoubtedly result in death. In this way the author one morning met a young Waiwai medicine man
who was very upset because he had got the idea (apparently through a dream), that some distant
tribesmen might think that he had caused the death of one of them by blowing and that a revenge
blowing would now be performed.
When a suspicion of that feared and deadly magic could arouse so much alarm in the case of this
extremely robust Waiwai, it seemed not unreasonable to the author that certainty would result in a
nervous breakdown or fatal disorder. It is regarded as certain that people otherwise healthy suddenly
drop dead as a result of parawa or tono, but revenge blowing can also cause fever and the victim can
often be weak for a long time before dying. For example, a man was regarded as responsible for
having caused the death of another by blowing, and the latter's relatives resorted to parawa against
the former, who became sick and weak, but did not die. In the meantime the Waiwai felt that it had
clearly been proved that he was the guilty one. As death still failed to intervene and it was known
that he would have to die, he was thrown alive onto the fire. The vendetta was not pursued, perhaps
because it was felt that he was an undesirable person. This was connected with the fact that he was
an expert on magic songs, an ability that is much dreaded.
After a parawa blowing has taken place, and until it takes effect and vengeance is accomplished,
about one or two months elapse, according to the Waiwai. During this period the avenger must refrain
from a number of ordinary foods in order for vengeance to be successful. The diet (esefiema) consists
of: no meat or fish, though warakaka fish (30 em long fish with spikes on neck and back), electric eel
and tiger fish are permitted. These three fish each have qualities the unpleasant effects of which are
thought magically to be transferred to the victim. Besides this, only bread and drink made from pure
cassava flour without any admixture of tapioca, for example, kwachari' (ordinary pure flour) or puchi
(dried and smoked flour), can be taken. Adherence to a diet of this kind could hardly be kept secret,
and it must be assumed that the inhabitants of village must be aware of the performance of a revenge
blowing, which incidentally is regarded as an obligation of honour.
Magic Blowing 109
When the victim is dead the avenger will perform same, a magic act that consists in heating a stone
- preferably an old stone axe - and pouring water over it. The steam arising is directed over himself as a
final act of purification. Should he refrain from concluding his fasting period by same it is thought
that his stomach will swell.
Same is so powerful a cleansing agent that it can even neutralize a blowing. The victim who has
been blown upon can avoid death by the blower himself performing same over him. The purpose of
same in other connexions is always to drive out spirits that have caused illness by forcing out the ekati
and taking its place in the body. It thus seems reasonable to assume that death resulting from tono
and parawa is caused by the possession of the victim, and the consequent expulsion of his ekati.
The origin of a revenge blowing may go back many years. Thus the sister of the woman, Masari,
died several years ago and it transpired that the revenge blowing overtook Yarara. She died whilst
visiting the newly-opened mission station, Kanashen. Yarara was buried there (contrary to the usual
Waiwai custom of cremation), but her brother, Makaka, at once went to Kanashen when he heard
about it, and dug up her body one night. He took it away and gave it a traditional Waiwai cremation.
Thereafter he performed a parawa blowing over some of Yarara's burnt arm and hand bones. It was
stated in connexion with this parawa that the bundle was deposited in the root of a big dead kechekele
tree, whereupon it was set alight. When the tree fell it was thought the victim would fall ill and die.
The tree fell, and shortly after Masarl died in a neighbouring village.
Masari's husband, the old medicine man, Miywa, should then have blown on Makaka, but revenge
was not undertaken as Miywa had infant grandchildren and Masarl was one of the oldest women
in the tribe, whilst Makaka was quite a young man. This example shows that women also can per
form both tono (Yarara) and parawa (Masarl).
Other blowing
Eremu
During the reference to fatal blowing the term eremu has been employed several times, it being described
as a magic song. As eremu occupies a central position in Waiwai blowing, it should be more precisely
described.
Eremu consists of one or more words repeated in a sing-song voice for a considerable time. The
individual sentences or the whole are always concluded by blowing or puffing "pu-pu". Blowing has
no effect without the eremu, but it is the blowing that sends an eremu "deep into a person", and which
gives the eremu its direction.
Once when my informant had performed a rain-averting eremu, I asked him if it was a genuine
eremu. He hesitated a little before replying and then said: "It must have been, for you can see it is
clearing up after I sang it". This shows that an eremu is a song with a compulsive magical effect, and
that this power is regarded as real by the Waiwai.
There are many different types of eremu, but a difference must be drawn between those of the layman
and of the medicine man. The layman's eremu are also called ekatinho-eremu, ekatinho here meaning
the spirits of the dead, referring to the fact that these spirits attempt to seize and destroy the survivors.
Ekatmho also refers to the spirits of less dangerous land animals. The songs of the medicine man, on
the other hand, are called kakenau-eremu, kakenau referring to the more dangerous sky spirits.
The eremu of laymen

Amongst the most important of all blowing are those to avert poyin, that is to say all kinds of
supernatural dangers and pitfalls that particularly can befall infants of up to three years of age. The
background for this is that during this period the ekati of an infant is not thought permanently to reside
in its own body, but often to sit on its father's back or its mother's hip. As the ekati is invisible, the
father or the mother can often unintentionally bring it into contact with acts or objects that might
do it harm. This is the reason for a long list of bans in regard to diet and actions to be observed by
parents with infants, as expressed by the natal custom. Should these bans not be observed, the use of
eremu and blowing are important methods of assuring the health of the infants.
Thus, when the woman and the child leave the special birth hut and move back to the communal
house, the parents will sing an eremuto the opossum, which, according to the myth (see p. 75), taught
the Waiwai the use of the conical-roofed house, and-conclude with a "pu-pu". This is done because
the opossum is considered to be magically dangerous to the infant, as its kworokjam can occupy the
child and thus force out its unsettled ekati. Should this expulsion persist for any length of time, it will
result in the death of the infant. However, eremu and blowing will immediately expel the kworokjam.
Another poyin blowing was performed once when a man's infant fell sick just as he had shot a
macaw (kworo). As the kworo belongs to the dangers threatening small children, the man's mother
in-law assured him that the two occurences were connected. The man therefore resorted to blowing.
He first took the head and legs of the macaw and placed them close to the fire; he then splashed water
over a heated axe (for this old stone axes are used, but in this case only an iron axe was available),
and the rising steam was directed over the remains of the macaw. In the meantime he chanted: "Pu-pu,
do not put a poyin on my baby". The spirit of the dead macaw (kworo-kworokjam) is thought to be
frightened of the steam from the hot stone (both steam and stone are effective) and to fly from such
treatment. The bones, that are called "yocheri", are hidden away for possible later use in a basket,
kapato, of plaited manicolleaves. A basket of this kind is kept by nearly all families possessing babies.
Another common use of kamesi, which is the generic description of such magic objects, consists in
the mother lying in a hammock with her baby whilst the father burns one of each kind of animal
bone under them. Whilst the smoke from this rises round the child the father blows "pu-pu" and sings
"touko etc. - go away", that is to say the sickness; the mother sings the same.
The example of the parrot is typical in its form, as it contains all three magical procedures employed
by the Waiwai: 1) magical objects, kamesi, here animal bones, or perhaps shavings from a house or
earth from a bush hog's lair (when the house or the bush hog constitute the danger to the infant);
2) magical acts, same, as the steam from a hot stone or the enclosing of the fire (examples of which are
given under birth, see p. 142); and 3) magical songs, eremu, which have already been referred to. Each
of the first two procedures can be used in conjunction with the third, and the last-mentioned can be
Magic Blowing 111
Fig. 14. Basket containing selected bones

from fish, birds and land animals. These
bones are used as kamesi, magical ob
jects, and burnt under the infant's ham
mock in order to drive out animal spirits.
(Nat. Mus. Copenhagen, H. 4244).
used alone. Some prefer the one, some the others, but the blowing of "pu-pu" is resorted to in all
three forms. On another occasion the child of the man above fell ill, and the man had gained the
impression that this was due to a squirrel's kworokjam having attached itself to the infant's. The
father therefore climbed up a tree like a squirrel and let himself slide down imitating the sounds
of a squirrel. He then took his climbing sling and blew "pu-pu" on it and sang an eremu.
A man with an infant is averse to taking part in any major undertaking like the building of a house,
on account of poyin. For if the father should dig a hole for an upright there is a risk that the child's
ekati goes down with the father with the result that the child becomes frightened and perhaps ill. If
the father inadvertently covers the hole the child will die, as its ekati is still down there. Should a father
have taken part in such labours and the child becomes sick, he will perform same, placing a heated
stone, preferably a stone axe, in the hole and splashing it with water. The child's soul will rise with
the ascending steam, and the father claps his hands together over the steam and captures the soul
which by a movement of the hands he places above his own head. Whilst so doing he says: "Get cool,
get cool, pu-pu, fever go away" (repeated).
Whilst same plus a weak eremu can be used - as in the last example - there are those (particularly
mothers) who continually collect kamesi to be used magically with a weak eremu. Less often eremu
are used alone, but in this case they are more potent and the sick infant is blown upon directly. Those
proficient in eremu, who are generally feared, are more in line with the yaskomo, who also prefer a
powerful eremu. It is interesting in this connexion to hear a yaskomo's characterization of layman's
magic: "Ordinary people counteract poyin by just directing steam from a hot stone over all kinds of
bones without knowing properly about it". The indulgent scepticism of the yaskomo expresses a
certain contempt of the superstition of laymen, and perhaps we have here the yaskomo's feeling that
the idea is antiquated. There could thus be a question of an older stratum employing same and kamesi,
and a younger with eremu (magic songs).
Whereas the sickness of infants is largely left to the magical ability of their respective parents, the
cure of adults is generally left to the yaskomo. There are, however, a few exceptions to this. In the
first place there is a special eremu, with blowing, for headache. Apart from this, laymen have no
magical influence over illness, except that they can attempt to secure its transference to another. On
a journey down the upper Rio Mapuera, the author once observed a Waiwai who in a chanting voice
exhorted the kworokjam who had caused his sickness (a cold) to leave him and go to another Waiwai.
The eremu concluded with the usual "pu-pu", that was blown in several directions. In this case the
illness was regarded as deriving from a particular dangerous kworokjam called yukumnaruru, which
dwelt in the waterfall Yukumnarun, that we had passed the day before. The kworokjam represented
by the cliffs of the waterfall was undoubtedly a kakenau-kworokjam, which often reside at such places
(see p. 126). It also transpired that the sick person could not himself blow away the kworokjam but
had to have the assistance of a yaskomo. That the Waiwai when first occupied by the kworokjam first
tried to blow it over into a fellow tribesman was hardly an expression of enmity, but rather due to a
feeling that the spirit of sickness must have some place to be in order to assure its existence. Having
sung an eremu, he therefore blew in all directions, and afterwards spat, but without result.
For the sake of completeness two eremu will be mentioned though their meaning is by no means
clear. Once a Waiwai's dog was ravaged by a wild pig, and the man sang: "Bloody, bloody ..."
presumably in order that the wounds should heal.
My chief informant would only tell me one eremu, which ran "Wayputo (one, who never dies)
waypunero takru (will escape)".
The dispelling of rain

The last form of laymen's magical blowing, rain eremu, will now be mentioned. They are resorted
to when threatening rain clouds approach. Turned towards the sky one can shout: "Pu-pu rain go
away, pu-pu to the mouth of this river, pu-pu go and make the beads wet, pu-pu go and make the
axes wet (that is to say, go to the land of the Europeans, from which come beads and axes), pu-pu
carry it away in your ears, forest deer, pu-pu carry it away in your ears, savannah deer, pu-pu carry
it away in your ears, tapir" (all these animals have big ears). It was of this magic song my informer
said: "It must be an eremu for, as you see, it really cleared up when it had been sung".
Magic Blowing 113
It is typical of the eremu of laymen that their purpose is always to drive out spirits whether it is
a matter of poyin danger to an infant, spirits of sickness or rain. Also in the case of to no and parawa
blowing there is partly a question of an expulsion - of the victim's ekati.
One single, non-typical, non-expulsive eremu is to be found, however, in the case of love magic.
The circumstances were quite complicated, as they concerned a married couple who both wanted the
man's son by his first marriage as a co-husband for the wife. The son did not want this arrangement,
and the man said to his wife: "Sing the eremu that will turn him to you". As she did not know it, he
sang it on her behalf, when the son was not present: "Not timid (repeated), make him not timid, like
the two beautiful birds, chtltlr and wanatu; tawa", (Tawa is a bird that always flies alone and thus
wants a mate). It was discovered that this magic had had no effect about six months after it had been
practised!
Even though all Waiwai know one or more eremu, there are some who are regarded as specially
expert; however, they are not respected on this account but, on the contrary, are greatly feared and
disliked.
The blowing of the medicine man

Although the medicine man often performs his eremu in the same way as do the laymen, he frequently
resorts at the same time to tobacco and a certain magical apparatus in general. This is directly referred
to in the instructive story about poinko-yin, where a man says to his sceptical son: "It is true, I am a
yaskomo, I blow tobacco".
A young yaskomo, Ewka, related how he had obtained part of his knowledge of magic. He had
dreamt about the peccaries that would come to him, and when he told the local yaskomo of this the
latter said: "You must be a yaskomo" (that is to say have the necessary aptitude). Ewka was introduced
to his calling at night in a specially erected yaskomo hut. Here he was given a iiukwa (magic stone)
in his mouth and tobacco to smoke, while he carefully repeated each yaskomo eremu. This continued
for ten nights. Later Ewka dreamt that the Father of peccaries blew tobacco smoke down over him,
and he was then taught by the local yaskomo the eremu of the wild pigs (see p. 27).
The normal technique for the summoning of poinko-yin and kakenau-kworokjam is to sing an
eremu whilst holding a iiukwa stone in the mouth. After the song tobacco is blown over the stone
which is held in the hand. :f'l"ukwa is a quartz and is considered to belong to a kakenau-kworokjam
that resides in heaven. When poinko-yin or kakenau-kworokjam smell the tobacco smoke blown over
their fiukwa, they realize that someone is working with it and they descend to the yaskomo in question
without actually taking up residence in the iiukwa. The yaskomo can then request their assistance.
The kakenau-kworokjam actually owning the iiukwa possessed by the yaskomo thus becomes his
particular helping spirit, hyasm.
When the yaskomo summons the peccaries he often does so with a whistle. Sometimes the claws
of an armadillo are blown, but I have never heard of "pu-pu" in this connexion.
Laymen seem generally to try to drive out some evil or other by their eremu, whereas the eremu
of the medicine man is more positive and bears the stamp of an invocation. Whilst laymen drive away
8 Waiwai
the rain by blowing, the yaskomo in the same situation invokes the sun (see sun cult p. 34). An ex
tremely curious eremu is that sung by the medicine man on visiting the moon when naming a newborn
infant (see p. 140); this can run: "His toes (long repeated) apapa's toes (apapa = my father) (long
repeated), rna rna rna" meaning unknown.
When a yaskomo wishes to bring rain he does so by the aid of an eremu and by blowing from the
medicine man hut the claws of a special crab (shakawa) which (with other animals) is regarded as the
Father of water. In this way tuna-ekati, i.e. the soul of water, is invoked.
In the same way a yaskomo can blow the claws of an armadillo when cassava cuttings are being
planted in order that they may acquire good roots. A cassava eremu exists but is so rare that my
informant could no longer remember it. By a special eremu a yaskomo can in dreams summon the
okomo (wasps) in order that they may sting caterpillars to death, before they can damage the crop.
Another eremu assures the fruit crop of useful trees, for example the lu palm, and for this purpose a
big fly (porn) that sits frequently on clusters of the lu flower is summoned. The blossom eremu runs:
"Porn, tia, tia, tia, porn, tia, tia, tia" (repeated). The yaskomo can also ensure by an eremu a good
yield from the pepper bushes.
By the help of the fiukwa stone and tobacco the yaskomo, as we saw, can invoke the Father of wild
pigs, and using an eremu he is also able to summon wild pigs by singing: "Wild pig, be not afraid,
come closer, right to the edge of the clearing", and blow either an armadillo claw or a whistle. Other
eremu ensure good hunting; one, for example can cause the spider monkey to scream and thus betray
itself. A yaskomo can also assure the bird stock by blowing tobacco smoke over a fiukwa stone re
presenting the Father of birds, and an eremu can also be used by him to bring good fishing. The fish
erernu runs: "Fish, fish, fish, the one on the back of amama" (Amama is the yaskomo description
of eripoimo, a particularly fat type of anaconda holding a position corresponding to the Father of
fishes).
The yaskomo can also practice black magic by the help of his eremu, for example he can summon
the kakenau-kworokjam of the krako bird, and make it burn down the house of an enemy. The krako
will direct fire up into the chimney pot of the house. He can also kill a woman by summoning in a
dream the Chikika-people; the Chikika are a sub-section of the Anaconda people, characterized by
the fact that they have sexual relations with women. The spirit will come and say "I am chikika, I
sleep with women". The yaskomo then places the fiukwa stone in his mouth, blows "pu-pu", and calls
the woman's name. As a result of this the chikika spirit will go out and meet the woman when she is
quite alone in the forest; it will have sexual relations with her and she will suffer fright fulpain in the
abdomen and die.
An example in the contrary direction must be cited. This comes from the myth about the opossum
as a culture hero (see p. 75). The opossum man who is resurrected says to a man: "Long ago I rotted,
you are a real yasi (magical power, here medicine man), you blew upon me. Come to my house".
In the myth we have an example of magic blowing that can bring the dead to life.
The most important function of the medicine man, however, is to cure sickness, and here also magic
blowing plays a considerable role. Blowing takes place in different forms: as mentioned, it can be
practised in the open air for the invocation of the sun, rain and peccaries, but in cases of ordinary
Magic Blowing 115
illness it takes place in the communal house at the bedside of the patient. Finally, in the case of serious
sickness, the magic must be exercised in the special medicine man's hut, the shutepana, and only at
night and alone.
From the shutepana the yaskomo causes his ekati to proceed to one of three places, 1) to the
Anaconda people in the river, 2) to the Father of peccaries in a cave or, 3) and this is the most impor
tant, to the sky spirits to obtain help for the curing of serious illness.
Sitting on his stool he blows tobacco smoke over his fiukwa stone and summons his helping spirit;
his ekati ascends to heaven to consult the kakenau-kworokjam as to the cure.
In the communal house the cure of the medicine man in the case of ordinary sickness consists in
the singing of eremu and the blowing of tobacco smoke. The Waiwai previously referred to, who was
possessed by a kakenau-kworokjam as he was passing a waterfall and whose ekati' was forced out in
consequence, came under treatment of this kind. Unfortunately, the author was only able to listen to
this from a distance. It consisted in the alternating use of a chack-chack rattle and song, but the
medicine man also blew tobacco smoke over the patient's body. When, after this treatment, the yaskomo
went to his hammock he saw in a dream the harmful spirit disappear; it was a being, human in form,
decorated with a headdress of feathers and with a long beard, that had evicted the ekati' of the sick
man. This man was cured by the yaskomo having summoned his hyasi'ri', harpy eagle kakenau-kworo
kjam, and caused it to bring back the ekati'. An eremu of this kind can run: "It is high up (repeated)
tamu (the same as tamchi = father-in-law, which is the direct terminology for kakenau-kworokjam,
in this case the helping spirit) (repeated), it is in the house of the buzzards (repeated), send it back
here (the ekati' of the sick person) (repeated)."
However, the cause of sickness is not always the taking up of residence in a person by a kakenau
kworokjam. Just as often the reason is stated to be that one has been seen by a dangerous kakenau
kworokjam. For example, a man had dreamt that he travelled around a great deal and was given
good food. The yaskomo therefore sang the eremu of the Anaconda people in order to force the ekati'
to leave the depths: "Ekati' is in the depths, the cloth (that it is wearing) is in the depths. Bring it back
from the depths" (repeated). Another example: a hunter who had shot a number of wild pigs one
day got violent pains in the abdomen when following a wild pig track down to the river. The medicine
man who blew over him explained the illness as follows: "Perhaps the Father of peccaries saw you".
In ethnographical literature there are frequent references to medicine men sucking out things that
have caused illness. This is unknown with the Waiwai, but after they have sung and blown smoke over
the patient, yaskomo now and again display a fiukwa stone, saying: "This is what made you ill".
In so saying they do not mean that the stone was in the patient's body, but that the kakenau-kworokjam
represented by the stone was there. The yaskomo controls the power of the fiukwa, and as it represents
one of his helping spirits, the explanation apparently is that in this case he regards one of his helping
spirits as being responsible for the malady.
The sickness eremu of the yaskomo are apparently sung in conjunction with simple "pu-pu" blowing.
In a case of toothache a yaskomo can summon and talk to, say, the Father of peccaries or a jaguar
kworokjam, blowing to various quarters. These eremu vary greatly, though in general they can run:
"He died, his heart died, his lungs died, his body died, his ekati' died (according to my informant,
only a manner of speaking), far away; awake heart, awake lungs, awake body, ekati' awake". The
yaskomo also has songs to counter the dangers threatening infants, poyin, where the text consists of
listing the objects and acts from which parents should refrain, for example, "Mere poyi, kopi poyi
(expression for fear), do not expose yourself to poyin, touch not poyin, do not touch hidden bananas
(when bananas are stolen they are often dug deep down into the ground), touch not the bones of
dead people", and so on. The general rule must be regarded as applying: the blowing of "pu-pu" is
always performed in conjunction with the eremu. If blowing is not mentioned in every case it is because
these examples the author knows only as a result of his informant's demonstrations; they should
be not accepted as effectual.
The helping spirits invoked by the medicine man vary according to the character of the illness and
particularly - the yaskomo concerned. One thus preferred to summon the Anaconda people and the
Wild Pig people, another the Harpy Eagle people, and a third the Ant-eater or Otter people. The
word "people" refers to the fact that though the spirits really are kworokjam they look like people
seen in dreams. The yaskomo often employs an aid in summoning his helping spirit: he blows on a
ant-eater claw to call the ant-eater, or uses a special kidney-shaped whistle when the harpy eagle is
to be summoned. This use of an implement has presumably replaced the simpler form of ordinary
blowing from the mouth.
When a popular person is dying, the yaskomo will be called and told: "Come and blow on X, a
kworokjam may have seen him". The yaskomo will then blow on the top of the head of the dying
person all day, singing many kakenau-eremu. In the course of the following night the yaskomo will
probably dream about the sick person and be informed which kworokjam has seen him. Further
treatment depends upon this.
As a rule the yaskomo receives payment for such services; in one case he was even given the daughter
of the patient as a helper, anton for some years.
Analysis
It appears from the material that magic blowing with the Waiwai is far more comprehensive, both
in form and extent, than is generally imagined. Generally speaking it is difficult to witness, and it must
be admitted that the author has not seen a great deal of the material but has merely been told of it
by the Waiwai.
If we ignore the death blowing, which seems to occupy a special position, and regard the blowing
of laymen, it seems that its purpose is to drive out evil spirits, ekatlnho-kworokjam, Most ekatmho
kworokjam reside in the nearest heavenly plane (Layer 3) (see p. 101), but often are to be found on
earth - to the great detriment of the Waiwai, whom the spirits do everything possible to annoy. They
are exorcised, as mentioned, in three ways, all in conjunction with the blowing of "pu-pu" which
projects the magic force to the area where its effects are desired. The means are 1) by magical acts,
same, which may be the leading of steam from hot stones or an enclosure by fire; 2) magical objects,
kamesi, which may be animal bones or other objects that are burnt so that the smoke rises around
Magic Blowing 117
the patient; 3) magical words or songs, eremu whose radius is extended by blowing. The agents used
to drive out the ekatlnho-kworokjam seem all to be of a carrying or an ascending character: steam,
smoke from fires and from bones, words and breath. It is thus not unlikely that by exorcizing one
understands the driving of spirits up into the heavenly plane (Layer 3) where they actually belong
and are innocuous.
The blowing of the medicine man is always carried out in conjunction with the singing of an eremu,
and the two other forms he regards as superstition. "Pu-pu" itself is as a rule replaced by the use of
an implement, such as the blowing of a claw of the armadillo, crab, or ant-eater, or by a whistle.
Primarily, it is replaced by the blowing of tobacco smoke. The medicine man will also drive out the
kworokjam, but always does so by summoning the more powerful kakenau-kworokjam one or more
of which are his special helping spirits, hyasiri'. Kakenau-kworokjam belong to the more distant
celestial planes (Layer 4 and possibly 5 also). Here again the agent is of a hovering, ascending type.
The smoke that is blown over the fiukwa stone representing the kworokjam disappears in the air,
which is a sign that the gift has been well received. Tobacco smoke (see p. 28) is the offering that must
be made by the medicine man in order to secure the aid of the kworokjam. It is worth noting that
whereas the layman's blowing is compulsive (pure magic), it is in the case of the medicine man a
matter of voluntary agreement, something between magic and the beginning of worship (as in the
sun cult). In reality the medicine man placates his kakenau-kworokjam in order that they may
assist him.
There can hardly be any doubt that with the Waiwai the smoking of tobacco - when performed by
the medicine man - is considered significant as a welcome and influential gift when summoning helping
spirits, whereas its use as a stimulant is devoid of importance. The smoking of tobacco is only resorted
to on one other occasion: when the medicine man at night ascends in a dream or trance from the
medicine man hut to the sky spirits, but even then sufficient tobacco is not taken to induce a feeling
of giddiness. Tobacco smoking thus seems to have no applied narcotic effect and should be regarded
as a purely magical agent; on the other hand it is possible that a narcotic effect is aimed at by the
strong introduction of tobacco powder into the nasal passages when installing a new medicine man.
The blowings of medicine men and laymen differ widely both in regard to purpose and the means
employed. That of the medicine man is the more complicated and in addition he regards with scepticism
the effects of magical acts. However, their sense is similar, and the simpler form of the laymen's ritual
suggests that same and kamesi are an extremely ancient form of magic. Then come the simple eremu,
used by both laymen and medicine men, under which fall the fatal tono and parawa blowings. Finally,
as the latest development, we have the special eremu of the medicine man in conjunction with his .
special apparatus, particularly the use of tobacco. On this last is based the whole idea of personal
helping spirits (see also p. 167).
The blowings referred to here - apart from the fatal ones - are generally positive and serve useful
purposes, primarily the combating of sickness or the promotion of hunting or agriculture. On the
other hand it is more difficult to assess the effects of the death blowings, especially parawa. In a
community where the blood feud is obligatory, it can perhaps be said that the attempt to produce
death magically is preferable to the use of the club, the normal weapon of murder. For the mentally
strong it is probably an advantage, and at all events blowing casts a veil over the blood feud and
allows it to die out at an earlier stage (on account of the restrictions in connexion with the use of blood
leaves etc., see p. 107).
Fatal blowing with the Waiwai is linked with the custom of cremation. It might well be thought
that burial could provide material for the parawa bundle, but blowing has never been referred to
in this connexion. On the other hand, there is a case (see p. 109) of burial where the corpse was
disinterred and burnt in the Waiwai fashion in order to obtain the required charred bones for a
revenge blowing.
The religious basis of all blowing are the Waiwai conceptions concerning the human ekatl and
kworokjam; blowing casts light on these ideas in many ways. The methods employed are imitative
and contagious magic.
VARIOUS LAY PRACTICES
Magic
Several examples of magical acts have already been mentioned, and more will follow in the section
dealing with the life cycle. However, some examples, primarily those to promote hunting and fishing,
do not fall into these categories and consequently will be dealt with here.
Some reference should first be made to the most obvious and frequent magical practice of the Waiwai,
namely the painting of their bodies with anatto. This is said, amongst other things, to give them pro
tection against spirits, either by frightening them away by the red colour (kakenau-kworokjam), or by
causing them to be unable to see the red colour and what it conceals (poinko-yin). The whole body
is painted daily with anatto, and dogs also benefit from its protective quality.
All Waiwai boys and men carryon a loin cord the teeth of a number of animals (Fig. 15). These act
as an amulet. An old woman stated that the boys did this in order that they might when older be able
to shoot more game.
A frequent mixture of jaguar, otter and monkey teeth was explained as meaning that the owner
would become as capable a hunter as the jaguar, as fortunate a fisher as the otter, and as good a
collector as the monkey. The amulet is called ehdoyati.
In order to be successful in a tapir hunt one can mix ash from burnt feathers of the tapir bird,
mashwarini, and burnt neck hairs of a tapir with face paint. The special face paint is used to delineate
on the face the imprint of a tapir's feet. It was also stated that hunters of wild pig now and then painted
their bodies with anatto in jaguar designs. This should cause the wild pig to attack with the result
that more are killed. These two patterns were the only ones which the Waiwai knew were used for a
special purpose. In connexion with the first-mentioned, tapir hooves bound to the wrist can also be
used. A tapir hoof (yaipu-yamochisonto) can likewise be employed in cases of pain in the arches of
the foot, the hoof being heated over the fire and placed repeatedly on the tender spot. Magic medicine
also extends to the use of plants, the small herb koso-materarin (literally: "deer's hoof") being used
as a remedy for athlete's foot.
- .-- -..- -- '- -- .. -.. - - --.-,--' - - ---- ----- ~ -"""''-'''-',---,,
of Laymen 119
Fig. 15. Loin cords with animal teeth are

worn by most Waiwai boys and men. As an
amulet it is supposed to promote hunting,
fishing and collecting. (The amulet is seen
worn in Fig. 28). Likewise, the tapir's hoof
bound to the wrist will add to the good luck
of the tapir hunter. (Nat. Mus. Copenhagen,
H. 4123 and 4243 resp).
Should one wish to become a successful hunter of powis, a little dried powis gizzard should be
pounded in a mortar with pepper. The powder is then dissolved in water and the solution rubbed into
scratches previously made on various parts of the body.
In hunting it is useful to be a good climber like the squirrel. When a man has shot a squirrel he
therefore cuts off its front paws and with them scratches his children's chests, arms and hands in order
that they shall not fall down from trees later in life.
Strength is necessary in all walks of life, and the Waiwai believe that they can augment it by cutting
with a knife scratches over knees, thighs and chest (heart), and by rubbing these scratches with the
still bloody heart of a recently-killed armadillo. This is only practised by youths and men.
A means of gaining strength, industry and endurance and of counteracting laziness is the ant belt.
This is a loosely-plaited palm leaf band, about 30 X 15 ems, that can be tied at various places of the
person's body. The plaiting is so open that biting ants can only get their heads through and are
thus caught. This ant belt is often used in cases of sickness, not so much to ease pain as to give a
physiological stimulus. In this connexion long ants from hollow trees can also be used; they are just
let loose over the patient. The ant belt is also employed in connexion with the initiation of young
girls to prevent future laziness. Its most important use, however, is when the villagers are to clear
the forest for a new field. Everyone in the village is then given an ant belt to wear in order to become
strong; it is thought that by so doing they can fell and plant quicker. It is difficult to say how much
magic is concealed in this custom, which may well be an imitation of the industry displayed by ants,
as suggested in the Shodewika myth where the shoheli man is assisted by these insects in performing
an impossible task. The Waiwai apparently consider that the physiological effect lasts beyond the
Fig. 16. This ant belt (yuko-yapon) is plaited in the shape of a jaguar. Biting ants are caught in the holes, their heads
being forced through in one direction, so that they will bite the person when the belt is worn. Strength and industry
is supposed to result from this physiological stimulus. (Nat. Mus. Copenhagen, H. 4727).
moment, for they related that a man (Kayi), who had obtained a mass of ants over himself and many
scratches as a boy, was the strongest and most industrious member of the village.
The principle with the ant belt appears also to be adopted in regard to hunting dogs, shapali:, as
those that cannot be forced to follow wild pigs are cured in the following manner: the dog is tied by a
thin liana in the vicinity of a wasp's nest. When it has been made sufficiently wild by stings it breaks
the liana, and is then said to be fitted for the hunting of wild pigs. Another, presumably magic, remedy,
to improve a dog's ability to hunt wild pigs is to let it drink water in which the bark of the apopoli
tree (wapishana = karitom, perhaps Tovomita sp.) has been dissolved.
When a Waiwai woman has made a clay vessel and has just finished burning it, she smears the
inside with mafii and rinses out the vessel with a little water. She then washes the hands of her small
daughters in this water "in order that they may become skilful makers of clay vessels". Mafii (Symphonia
globulifera) is mixed with charcoal, leaf ash and wax into a kind of pitch which is also called mafii,
My informant, Ewka, thinks that if he eats the heart and tickles his ear with the wing feather of the
shakwali (a black and yellow bird that weaves its own nest) he will then be able more quickly to learn
foreign languages, as this bird has a habit of imitating other birds.
Magic practice is also resorted to to harm enemies. If it is desired, for example, that an enemy shall
become a bad hunter, one takes the bones of some game killed by that enemy and burns them under
a cassava pan. There seems here to be an idea that association with an agricultural implement will
prove harmful to hunting. It is not impossible that there are other, unknown, cases of a tabu on a
connexion between the implements of these two occupations.
It was said of one man that he possessed a special plant, kworomase puto, (head of an ara parrot)
that none was permitted to touch whilst it grew, as they would get a headache. Such things cultivated for
purely magical purposes are called nati. If the man wishes;to cause harm to~another, he carefully holds
.
the plant with a piece of wood whilst scraping a little off the'stalk which is ,'mixed with chipo (red face
paint). Some of this mixture could, for example, be smeared on the enemy's hammockand •
causehim
I
severe pains in the head. Watara, a cicada, is used for the same purpose and also mixed with face paint.
In preparing the various toxic materials, like say, arrow poison (curare), there is always an effective
of Laymen 121
plant poison, but in addition various ingredients of a magic character are included in the finished
product. Curare arrow poison, barawetr, is produced from the bark juice of the root of the baraweti
yepo (Strychnos sp.), which contains active curare. This fluid is boiled with the fish poison haiari
(umawa), red pepper (asisl), large menuri ants (ileku) and small menuri ants (kanaskusku), whose
effects are magical in the same way as are the bundles with fatal blowing.
Tabus
A number of tabus set their stamp on life in the Waiwai community. There is particularly the question
of eating tabus. These mainly flourish and will be mentioned in connexion with the thresholds of the
life of the individual: on the initiation of girls, at menstruation periods, for parents during the woman's
pregnancy and until the child reaches three years of age, and with death.
The preparation of curare is regarded as being so dangerous - only men, usually elderly, engage
on this -, that the man and his wife (but not the children) are subjected to five tabu rules during the
time they are so engaged, which is said to be a month. I) They must not bathe, wash hands or face
with water. 2) Of cassava products they may only eat cassava bread and other cassava products made
from puchi, i.e. the mass pressed in cylindrical form that for a particularly long time has been dried
and smoked on a frame over the fire. 3) They must not eat meat or fish except for the warakaka (a
small fish with two small spikes at the side of the neck and one on the back, a flat body and a round
tail). This fish is generally eaten outside the tabu period also. 4) They must not drink anything except
hot water. 5) The man must have no sexual relations with his wife or any other woman.
The preparation of kuchukwa (fermented but unchewed cassava beer) which is made in rotation
by the married women of the village, is also subject to a tabu. During the manufacturing period (about
4 or 5 days), women 1) must not eat alligator flesh or fruit of the ite (Mauritia flexuosa), 2) must not
themselves cook their own meat and fish, 3) must not have sexual relations with men, and 4) must
not use face paint. There is probably a practical reason for this last, as the colour might drip into the
drink and spoil it. If women break these rules the kuchukwa will become mouldy and, in consequence,
not strong and sweet.
,v
t
That there should be a ban on intimate relations between the sexes when preparing curare and
kuchukwa, each of which technically and sentimentally represents the summit of hunting and agri
culture, respectively, can perhaps be explained - as was done above in the case of hunting magic
by an unconscious ban on connecting the two pursuits.
My main informant, Ewka, told me that when he was quite a young man neither his mother nor he
ever ate any of the meat, apart from tapir flesh, that he himself had killed. They ate all kinds of meat
obtained by others, but believed that he would lose his aim if he consumed his own bag. The basis for
this idea is probably the belief in the reincarnation of certain animals and in the yin concept. In
addition it was apparently always the case that a man who killed some bigger game ate with his wife
and children, whilst the other inhabitants of the village assembled to a common meal. This separation
is due as a rule to the ideas concerning poyin: the kworokjam of the big game attaches itself to its slayer,
but must not be brought into contact with the parents of infants.
There is also a ban in connexion with hunting dogs (see also under menstruation p. 159). If, for
example, a wild pig is killed during the use of dogs and traps, its flesh will never be taken into the
communal house for eating, as the dogs that are also there would then never again hunt wild pig.
Accordingly, in Yakayaka, amongst other places, there is a small, special hut (or sun roof) intended
for meals of wild pig (Fig. 5). The dogs presumably become weak as a result of seeing blood. The rule
can possibly also be explained as a measure of security against the pork being mixed in the common
pepper-pot whereby the medicine man - to whom the flesh is tabu - might eat it.
When travelling Waiwai arrive at a section of river unknown to them and here reach a long straight
stretch, they will avoid looking at the banks either by bending their heads or by putting in their eyes
water mixed with a little pepper. The Waiwai fear that a breach of this rule will either give rise to fever
or cause them to lose all their hair; this latter is a very serious matter as a long pigtail is much esteemed.
What they fear is a strange and unknown kworokjam over whom the medicine man has no control.
This example illustrates a general idea behind the Waiwai magic: To see oneself is the same as being
seen; the magic takes no effect until the realization of its danger.
As a final example will be mentioned the avoidance of mentioning a person's name in his vicinity
or, for that matter, of mentioning one's own. It is thought that if this be done the small huri fish (masha)
will bite the person in question when he bathes, and a type of bat will bite him at night. The ban in
this case is undoubtedly due to the fact that a person's name is a part of his ekati, and that it should
not be detached from the rest on account of the risk of black magic.
To us tabu rules can seem of little importance, and for the Waiwai they have no positive effect
either, like, say, the rationing of a scarce commodity. A tabu is the negative side of something whose
importance indirectly is strongly emphasized. The traditional ban must have been created out of
regard for the inviolability of highly valued or dreaded concepts in the Waiwai community, and these
concepts prove to be: the threshold of the individual's life cycle - birth, initiation, menstruation, and
death, plus the peak results of hunting and agriculture, ideas concerning the Fathers of animals,
unknown spirits and the soul concept.
Omens
Under cosmology it has already been mentioned that when the moon was eclipsed or became red it
was taken as an omen and a sign that somewhere or other people were killing each other. It is very
usual to take auguries from the behaviour of birds. It is thought, for example, that it will be fine weather
the following day, and thus suited for hunting, if the fishing bird kurko or a special hawk sings at
night. And when the kurko flies over a hut it is said that someone or other is about to give birth. If
a macaw flies over a person who is performing revenge blowing, it is known that the victim is a hand
some man. The general question whether a boy or a girl is to be born is decided by the behaviour of
the woodpecker. If the woodpecker whistles "swis-swis" it is said that "its head must hurt, so it will
be a boy"; but if it knocks on the tree "tororororo" it sounds like "someone spinning cotton, and it
will be a girl". These omens must presumably be based on chance happenings.
Finally, an amusing little story: the Waiwai use the sole-shaped fruit pod of the watapa (Eperna
of the Medicine Man 123
rubiginosa) for playing "ducks and drakes". The number of ricochets achieved is an augury as to the
number of women with whom one will have relations in the time immediately ahead. By spitting on
the pod and mentioning the man's name, this augury can also be made to apply to another. It is note
worthy that they spit on the "stone" precisely as we ourselves do, but their only comment on this was
that "it is merely a part of the game." However, it is not impossible that this spitting is connected with
the blowing of "pu-pu", and thus is to exercise a compulsive power and bring good fortune.
THE MEDICINE MAN, YASKOMO
Repeated reference has already been made to the medicine man, particularly in the section dealing
with kakenau-kworokjam, yin, and magic blowing. These sections were to give the basic ideas with
which the medicine man is conversant, whereas the notions of the lay man in this regard are vague
and characterized by wondering respect. The details of the ideological world, lying behind the rela
tionship of the yaskomo with the Father of peccaries and the sun will therefore not here be repeated,
mention only being made of his particular position, his technique, his aids and his function.
The word for medicine man, "yaskomo", comes from "yasi", which means magic, supernatural
power or medicine man; the suffix "komo" means as a rule a group (like the suffix "yam" in kworo
kjam). The use of the ending "komo" in the case of an individual can be due to the medicine man re
presenting a class or profession with common knowledge, who does not talk, or is not spoken to, on
his own account but on account of his profession. The word "yasi" will be better understood when
one knows that "hyasiri" means a helping spirit, that is to say a kakenau-kworokjam personally
owned by the yaskomo. Altogether, there seems to be a connexion between the words "yaskomo" and
"kworokjam" quite apart from the suffixes. This is shown by the fact that an infant whose ekati must
be shown by a yaskomo to the moon (see birth, p. 140) can be called both kworokjam and yaskomo.
The dignity of a yaskomo is not acquired by inheritance or by election, but solely as a result of a
bent and special abilities; this is clearly shown by the way Ewka became a yaskomo.
When quite young he dreamt one night that a large herd of wild pigs (poinko) came up to him and
said: "Do you not want some meat?" Ewka replied that he did, and the wild pigs then said: "We
will return". On being asked when, they replied: "Early in the morning we shall be near the ite palms".
When Ewka awakened he told his uncle, Mapale, the local yaskomo, of the dream, and Mapale said:
"You must be a yaskomo". Mapale's statement stresses the Waiwai idea of the nature of a medicine
man: Ewka had the necessary bent, he was destined to become a yaskomo.
Shortly afterwards Ewka obtained a wild pig stone (poinko-fiukwa), and was instructed by Mapale
in the special knowledge of a yaskomo. This was done as follows:
One day the old yaskomo built a medicine man hut, shutepana, a small conical hut made of posts
that meet at a point. The hut was just big enough to allow the old and the coming yaskomo to sit
inside. Usually there is only room for one yaskomo. The posts are covered with leaves of the small
manicol palm, wapu (Euterpe edulis) and there is no opening for door or window, the leaves having
to be brushed aside in order to enter or leave.
If by accident the yaskomo should use the leaves of the big manicol palm, manaka (Euterpe steno
phylla), it is thought that he will fall down from heaven when engaged on the soul flight. A special
point about the shutepana is that it must never stand for more than twenty-four hours, but must be
built each time it is to be used, even for each single soul flight, whereupon it is pulled down immediately.
Incidentally, there is no parallel amongst the Waiwai to this conical form of hut.
When night fell Mapale led Ewka into the shutepana. Ewka was given tobacco to smoke and a
fiukwa stone to put in his mouth. Mapale said to him: "Here is the way to sing eremu; never alter it."
He began to sing. He first sang a little which Ewka repeated, and when Ewka had learnt the song they
sang it together; finally Ewka sang it alone. They continued in this way more than half the night.
During the following ten nights Ewka was taught about eremu and other yaskomo practice, though
this did not all take place in the shutepana. Traditional medical knowledge was surprisingly slight.
Ewka related that only for a moment one night had he learnt about the employment of vegetable
and animal drugs.
However, the coming yaskomo only learnt many things by degrees. One day, for example, when
his leg began to hurt, he asked the advice of his teacher, who told him: "You walked on the tracks
of a menstruating woman, hence your pains in the leg". The neophyte was taught to avoid adolescent
girls, menstruating and pregnant women. For this reason young women must avoid trodden paths as
much as possible, and often wind bast material round their feet in order that the yaskomo shall not
suffer pain or fever.
Some time afterwards the young neophyte had another dream in which he met poinko-yin who
addressed him saying: "Why do you sing the wild pig eremu? I am poinko-yin", and he blew
tobacco smoke over the neophyte's head. When the old yaskomo heard of this dream he took the
young man into the forest and taught him all the eremu for the summoning of wild pigs. These eremu
must only be sung on the day following a dream of this kind. Also this shows that one must be specially
predisposed in order to become a yaskomo.
When after some time the neophyte has acquired the secret knowledge necessary for the performance
of a medicine man's calling, he is installed by the elder yaskomo who has trained him. The induction
takes place in the proximity of the communal house and appears to be something of a public ceremony,
as the elder yaskomo begins singing early in the morning, whilst now and again putting mali - tobacco
ground in a mortar - into the nasal passages of himself and his pupil. He continues in this fashion
all day, the candidate beginning also to sing, and carry on until some time late in the afternoon. Mali
is only used when installing a new yaskomo. A special mortar 40-50 ems high is used in its preparation.
There can be little doubt that the big doses of snuff have a strong narcotic and ecstatic effect, as opposed
to the normal and extremely sparing use of tobacco when smoking. This may mean that when inducting
a new yaskomo it is desired to demonstrate his extraordinary, supernatural powers in order that com
plete confidence may be felt in his ability.
Technique of the Medicine Man 125
Technique
As appears above, dreams are an essential for the yaskomo in order to be able satisfactorily to
execute his calling, for he can only see his helping spirits (hyasirl) and other kakenau-kworokjam in
dreams or in trances. If a new yaskomo has no dreams and is thus without contact with a helping
spirit, he can hammer the bark of the mawayakro tree (unknown tree, the bark of which is said to act
and taste like soap) in water, bathe his head in it and drink some of it. This cure is believed to promote
dreams, and shortly afterwards the yaskomo will see in a dream a dragonfly flying over the water
towards and over him. This is a kakenau-kworokjam which will ask: "Why are you drinking this?"
The yaskomo will reply: "Because I want to become a yaskomo" (i.e, obtain the gift). The dragonfly
says: "Good, I am a kakenau-kworokjam, I live in the mawayakro trees". The next day the yaskomo
goes alone into the forest and sings a kakenau eremu: "I saw the kakenau-kworokjam (repeated)
I.
I
whose hyasin was it? (repeated)". In this way he gains contact with a helping spirit. It is quite customary
for a yaskomo to have two or three hyasirt, and it is said that some are able to summon even more.
The actual function of the yaskomo in the Waiwai community is contact with the hyasirl. Laymen
attend themselves to the ekatinho-kworokjam. However, there remain the far more dangerous sky
spirits, kakenau-kworokjam, the most terrible enemies of the lay Waiwai in sickness, death and bad
times. It is these that the yaskomo has subjected by establishing contact with the strongest amongst
them. At the request of the yaskomo the most powerful kakenau-kworokjam are able to wrest from
their fellows the pernicious mastery exercised by them. The yaskomo's special task is thus to make
contact with the strongest possible kakenau-kworokjam. This is done during dreams. If not sufficiently
predisposed for this, artificial aid must be resorted to. The special knowledge of the yaskomo enable
him spontaneously to exploit these formidable kakenau-kworokjam and make them his personal,
dependent hyastn. This is achieved by his special technique.
The eremu is the corner stone of Waiwai yaskomo practice. They can be sung in the open air, as
in the case of some wild pig and rain eremu, or in the communal house in the case of ordinary illness.
Finally, in most serious circumstances, for example, when summoning the Father of peccaries, they
are sung in the shutepana.
The shutepana has already been described. The yaskomo enters this alone at night and seats himself
on a stool. It seems reasonable to assume that this stool (Fig. 42), as was the case with so many other
Amazonian peoples orginally, like tobacco, was reserved to the yaskomo, though now it is generally
used by Waiwai men. This assumption is particularly supported by the fact that the production of
stools was the only case of occupational specialization found in the Waiwai culture, being exercised
by a single man, Waniu. The yaskomo also takes with him into the shutepana his pegall, pokara
(Fig. 18), which holds his magical equipment. It is noteworthy that he takes with him no form of
musical or rythmical instruments, not even a chack-chack rattle, which otherwise is customary medi
cine man practice with Amazonian Indians.
The two most important objects in the pegall are tobacco and the iiukwa stone. Nowadays most
Waiwai men enjoy tobacco, but they admit that until recently it was reserved for the yaskomo. The
secularization of tobacco is probably due to the influence exercised by the europeanised Wapishana.
The condemnation of smoking by the Christian Mission to the Guiana Waiwai - one of the few direct
interferences with Waiwai culture until 1955 - has also possibly had a negative effect. However, the
yaskomo is still the only one allowed to cultivate tobacco. In the village of Yakayaka tobacco plants
were only found in the old and new fields of the yaskomo, and only he cultivated them. That tobacco
is essential for the yaskomo can be seen from the explanation given by a Waiwai to his son: "Yes,
it is true, I am a yaskomo; I blow tobacco".
The tobacco leaves are stored in a package of leaves, and the cigarette "papers" or covers in small
plaited boxes. The tobacco (kamashu) is rolled into cigarettes about 20 ems long (kamashu), which
are wrapped in bast made from the awemiru (Eschweilera sp.) that is kept in place by three strips of
bast bound round it. The yaskomo said that he never smoked enough to make himself dizzy (and
never fell asleep in the shutepana). Only once has he become dizzy when blowing tobacco many times
over a sick person in the communal house. It must thus be stressed that the effect of tobacco smoking
is not mainly a narcotic one and that it does not induce ecstasy at all. The last example of blowing
over a sick person might suggest that tobacco exercises an independent magical effect. I was told in
connexion with a curing by a Waiwai yaskomo from the Mapuera area that he blew tobacco over the
body of the patient. However, this account was given through a not wholly reliable Wapishana inter
preter, and I dare not attach too much importance to it. In all cases that could be checked, tobacco
was always blown over a fiukwa stone in order to summon the hyasiri, The Waiwai consider tobacco
as the hyasm's sustenance.
In the Waiwai territory there are places with many quartz stones. They are most easily visible and
obtainable by whirlpools and similar places. At such spots there are also many kakenau-kworokjam,
for the quartz is assumed by the Waiwai to represent the kakenau-kworokjam on earth. The origin of
this idea is probably due to the special refractive qualities of quartz; it seems widespread, as crystal
is a part of the medicine man's equipment over the greater part of Guiana. It is crystal of this type
that is used by the yaskomo and called fiukwa, However it would be wrong to imagine that one
or more kakenau-kworokjam dwell in or temporarily occupy the fiukwa, for they are considered
to reside permanently in heaven. The fiukwa, however, belongs to one of them. The yaskomo uses
the same form of address to the fiukwa as he does to the kakenau-kworokjam that are his hyasin:
"my pet" or "my son". When summoning a hyasm, a yaskomo places in his mouth the fiukwa in
question and sings a special eremu. He then removes the iiukwa from his mouth and blows tobacco
smoke over it (the order can also be reversed). When the kakenau-kworokjam concerned smells the
tobacco smoke, it realizes that the yaskomo is working with its fiukwa and descends to the yaskomo
though not actually into the stone. That the kakenau-kworokjam really becomes a helping spirit
appears to be due to the fact that all these beings, like poinko-yin, are very fond of tobacco. In con
sequence they are prepared to fulfil all the yaskomo's wishes when contact is first obtained, provided
he gives them tobacco through their mundane representative, the fiukwa, As the author has often only
heard of the use of stones it is not absolutely certain that they have been quartz in all cases. Nukwa
often pass in succession from yaskomo to yaskomo. Ewka, the yaskomo in Yakayaka obtained some
makama fiukwa from his old teacher, Mapale, who had been given them young by his teacher. (Makama
is the name of an incorporeal kakenau-kworokjam.)
.~"_.~ - - _
...... ~. --- - --------- --- --_
...---'----- - --- -- _.--:::::;;'- - --- -
, ......
Technique of the Medicine Man 127
Miywa, the yaskomo of Mauika, maintained that he had received from the sky the fiukwa that
represented poinko-yin (who here must be considered as on an equal footing with kakenau-kworokjam).
When his wife died and he was in consequence unable to exercise his functions any more, his fiukwa
vanished without trace. He himself thought that this happened because it was frightened. At all events
he thus lost the possibility of summoning poinko-yin and the peccaries. In the same way he asserted
that his bird fiukwa fell from the sky during a dream; when he woke up this approx. It cm quartz
stone lay in his mouth.
Poinko-yin fiukwa can also be acquired in a more direct fashion according to Shapaulftu, the'
yaskomo at Kashimo on the Mapuera. He found his in a stream. It was about 5 ems long, a flat egg
shaped stone, not of quartz, and quite light. It was impossible for him to sing with it in the mouth,
he merely blew smoke over it. According to a rather uncertain interpreter, the stone was called poinko
kamashuan (presumably connected with tobacco-kamashu), and was kept to retain the wild pig in
the neighbourhood.
A Waiwai contracted fever one day and attributed this to the fact that he had stood on a rock in a
whirlpool. "I must have stood on a rock that was a fiukwa," he said, "and have caught a fever as a
result" (that is to say have been possessed by a kakenau-kworokjam). It is worth mentioning here that
the kakenau prove to have the same "infectious" qualities as the ekatl, so that objects (cliffs, fiukwa)
connected with the kakenau-kworokjam are able to transfer all their kworokjam matter. The yaskomo
who was to cure the case above-mentioned sang various eremu and blew tobacco. Suddenly he showed
a fiukwa stone in his hand, remarking: "It was this that made you ill; I shall retain it". A superficial
view would be that we here face an instance of healing by sucking out the evil - manifested as a stone.
In the meantime it was a matter of a coincidence, for it was the yaskomo's personal hyastn that had
possessed the patient.
A yaskomo can also intentionally make a person sick or even kill him. For example, a yaskomo had
a helping spirit, chikika, represented by a beautiful fiukwa stone which he had found in a river. With
this he could blow "pu-pu" and name the name of the woman he wished to kill. Shortly afterwards she
felt pains and died (see p. 114).
t
In addition to tobacco and fiukwa stone, a medicine man's pegall holds a number of small articles
used to summon the particular hyasirt, which consequently vary according to the yaskomo. Each
single object lies in a special finely-plaited box (Fig. 17). It is a matter of various instruments to blow.
The most usual one seems to be a small whistle called kukuwi. It is said to derive its name from a
big species of hawk which is linked with poinko-yin in a mysterious way. One Waiwai also spoke of
a woman, Turupu, the widow of a yaskomo, who could summon flocks of wild pigs by blowing her
whistle.
The author succeeded in getting sight of a kidney-shaped whistle, called kukuwi, with the Mapuera
Waiwai, but unfortunately the interpreter was unsatisfactory. The yaskomo maintained that he had
received the whistle from the sky and that he had not worked upon it at all. It resembled a nut, 3-4cms
long, and was egg-shaped. It had been cut longitudinally a little over the centre axis, the aperture being
half covered with pitch. Some thought it was made of the hard core of the fiepo tree (Caryocar sp.),
others - more probably - that it was a washi nut (unknown forest tree). By the help of this kukuwi
Fig. 17. Content of the medicine man's

pegall (pokara) basket. To the left are seen
between the claws of the great and the small
ant-eater the stone representing the Father
of peccaries (poinko-yin iiukwa), and above
it the kukuwi whistle. In the plaited box is
seen the yukuat moso whistle; this as well
as the kukuwi and the claws are blown in
order to summon peccaries. The leaf pack
age contains tobacco.
he summoned the powerful kworokjam of the harpy eagle in order to expel lesser kakenau-kworokjam
in cases of sickness.
The same yaskomo also had the claw of both the great and small ant-eater, which he blew to summon
the kakenau-kworokjam of that animal which also drives out the kakenau-kworokjam responsible
for illness. He blew the claw of an armadillo to summon closer the flocks of poinko, and when he blew
a small, round nut with a small and a larger aperture, yukuat moso, he summoned the pakria (small
wild pig). His elder brother had once found the nut in the stomach of a pakria.
The claw of the armadillo can also be used for other purposes. For example, the yaskomo at Yakayaka
blew it in order that the cassava plants should develop good roots. When he blew the claw of a crab,
shakawa, which is regarded as the Father of water, he summoned the tuna ekati, the soul of water,
and thus caused rain.
The yaskomo can gain contact with his hyasirl in two different ways, either by summoning it directly
or by allowing his ekati to journey to the kakenau-kworokjam in question and there obtaining the
necessary counselor else persuading it to return with him to earth.
The soul journey of a yaskomo can only take place from a shutepana and at night. From there a
yaskomo can send his ekati to three different places: 1) to kapu (heaven - particularly layer 4) to
make contact with the kakenau-kworokjam which are his hyaslri or to summon kamo (the sun) who
is also a kakenau-kworokjam; 2) to kamushpato in poinko-yauneri' (the cave in the wild pig moun
tain) where poinko-yin dwells surrounded by all the poinko, in order to persuade that spirit to send
many poinko to the yaskomo's village; or 3) to tuna-ipu (the river) in order to visit the Okoimo
yenna (Anaconda people) to obtain counsel and assistance.
Function of the Medicine Man 129
The yaskomo can only visit one of the three places in a night, for, as previously mentioned, it is
necessary to build a new shutepana before his ekatl can journey to a fresh place. It was said that one
yaskomo who went to heaven one night never returned; presumably this means he was found dead
in the shutepana, like the yaskomo who broke his poinko tabu (see p. 29). The individual yaskomo
feels so strongly affiliated with his special hyasirr that even at death he wants to journey to the one
preferred (see further in connexion with soul ladders, p. 166). Fortunately, information was obtained
showing that the hyastrt of one dead yaskomo led his ekatinho up to heaven, that another yaskomo
was thought to let his ekatrnho journey to poinko-yin, and, finally, that the yaskomo, Mi'ywa, preferred
after death to live with the Okoimo-yenna.
In addition to the soul flight from the shutepana, the yaskomo, as mentioned, can also summon
down his hyasfri direct to the communal house and the open air, and perhaps also to the shutepana.
The hyasm is summoned to the communal house particularly in the case of ordinary illness. It is
called down in the open air when the yaskomo is invoking the sun, rain, and poinko-flocks; when
the question is to safeguard the animal and vegetable world.
Function
Ideas concerning kakenau-kworokjam, poinko-yin and Okoimo-yenna have already been referred
to in some detail, and in consequence we shall now only discuss the function of the yaskomo in the
community, particularly in relation to his hyasirl.
As hyasiri, poinko-yin assures an adequate stock of the game most important to the Waiwai. The
yaskomo's knowledge of and responsibility for a long list of tabus in connexion with poinko is a
magical measure of security; his knowledge of the animal's habits and the circumstances that he shall
permit the hunting of poinko provides the greatest possible certainty for an effective hunt where
several animals of the herd can be shot. In addition, hunting morale can be kept at a high level, as
poinko-yin has no objection to sober hunting, but withdraws all his poinko if any are maimed and
bleed to death in the forest.
The importance of the Anaconda-people as hyasm is least reflected by their function; they can
keep away other spirits, but far more important the yaskomo can summon them to maintain fish in
the neighbourhood. It must not be forgotten that fishing is at least as important an occupation as
hunting.
The actual hyasirl, that is to say kakenau-kworokjam, has many different functions. Even though
they are kakenau-kworokjam, no one seems specially to have the sun or the moon as his helping spirit,
but the yaskomo is able to ascend to the sun and cause it to shine (see p. 33). After the birth of an
infant the yaskomo takes its ekati on his soul flight and presents it to the moon in order to obtain the
correct kworokjam name for the babe. As the name is a part of a person's ekatl, this practice has
almost the form of an act of baptism. Distinctive animals, and birds particularly, have kakenau
kworokjam. Thus the ant-eater (amachi), the otter (wayawaya), the bat (lele), the humming bird,
the harpy eagle (yaimo) and the non-corporeal makama-kakenau are summoned in the case of sickness.
The crab (shakawa) is summoned to cause rain, the armadillo (kapayu) in order to furnish the
9 Waiwai
~--~ - -"' ----_. -~-
cassava with good roots, the porn fly in order that the lu palm shall bear richly, and the wasp (okomo)
for the purpose of keeping caterpiIlars away from the fields.
Poinko and pakria (large and small wild pig) - both kakenau-kworokjam - are summoned in order
to obtain successful hunting, as is the Father of birds.
Finally, the yaskomo can harm his enemies by summoning, for example, the bird, krako, which
can set fire to a house; or chikika, which belongs to the Anaconda-people, that can kill women. In
regard to chikika (referred to on p. 114) a special treatment of hyaslri is mentioned in addition to the
contractual tobacco offering. Tukma, a yaskomo from Umaino (downstream from Mapuera) belonged
to the Shereo tribe but lived with the Waiwai. He possessed a chikika as hyasiri or omumuru (the
indirect term for okopuchi = his son). One day he returned from the hunt and asked for a bowl of
cassava beverage saying: "My son, chikika, is waiting out on the path". When he returned the bowl
was empty and he related that chikika had drunk it all. This was repeated the day after, but on the
third occasion Ewka (at that time a small boy) said: "I will go out and see him". Tukma replied:
"No, you are not a yaskomo", so Ewka had to remain at home. The chikika once more emptied the
bowl.
By investigating the yaskomo's technique and the hyasm employed, the actual function of the
yaskomo in the Waiwai community is revealed. It is shown that it is far from limited to the curing
of the sick, but must primarily be considered as occupation promotive. It is less important that he
can hurt and kiIl enemies; every Waiwai, who knows about fatal blowing, can do that.
Although a yaskomo's functions are always connected with his knowledge of kakenau-kworokjam,
he need not always summon a hyaslrl. By the interpretation of dreams he can often tell people what
they should do. It very frequently happens that a yaskomo receives people who wish their dreams
interpreted. He can interpret the dream by saying, for example: "There is a kakenau-kworokjam that
is trying to get you; you had better not go out for some time", or he can tell his questioner: "The
Anaconda people have seen you". He will then begin a healing seance.
The curing of the sick is not always confined to a yaskomo summoning his hyasm, for medicine or
medicaments can also be used (often simultaneously). As has been said, a yaskomo novice learns but
little medicine. Ewka only learnt about burning tobacco seeds under a patient's hammock, the patting
of the cheek of a sick person with the hair of an ant-eater, and bathing a weak person in cold water in
which has been dissolved pulverized pieces of tunakneri (river grass, soft subriverine), which have a
cooling effect, sand from pechamm (crab shell), or the bark from the mawayakro tree (which is said
to act and taste like soap, but is never used normally as it induces dreams). That the effect of this
medicine is to be regarded solely as magical there can be little doubt. The use of mawayakro bark is
probably for the purpose of causing the patient to dream and thus inform the yaskomo of the identity
of the noxious kworokjam. Yaruimo (Malouetia tamariquana) bark dissolved in water is sometimes
resorted to in cases of fever. The suffix "imo" (large, heavenly parallel, see p. 102), has presumably
been responsible for the tree being used medicinally (magically).
In cases of serious illness the yaskomo can also order the following things burnt under the patient's
hammock: kworokjam mochi (the hair from the kworokjam's armpit, that is to say a kind of lichen),
marrow from the arrowreed, yawari mafiipoto ("opossum with mafii on" (= pitch), a black-stemmed
I
Tabus of the Medicine Man 131
climbing plant), kworokjam's fan (an ordinary withered leaf which hangs, waving, from a tree) and
kahyana yottyocho (bone from the flesh of Sky-people, that is to say a small, white fungus which is
found high up on tree trunks). It is worthy of note that in this magical context the word used to denote
the sky-people is "kahyana", which is dialectically different from the Waiwai "kapuyenna". The H
sound, which is considered by Frikel (1957, p. 518) to be the more original, occurs now and again
in the dialect of the Rio Nhamunda area. In this case there is no healing by the aid of tobacco or the
summoning of a hyasiri by a yaskomo, but rather of a kind of gift or offering to the kakenau-kworokjam
responsible for the ailment. This is shown by his words in connexion with the withered leaf (probably
an eremu): "Kworokjam, here is your fan, depart, depart!" It is here a matter of a very rare procedure
which is not solely compulsive, but rather must be regarded as a mixture of sacrifice and magic in
style with the sun cult.
When a yaskomo is to treat a patient for toothache he resorts to an eremu, but he also causes some
red pepper to be ground in a calabash by means of a small peg. He himself takes a little of it, but
gives the patient a whole mouthful. This causes the toothache to disappear, and it does not return.
It has also been mentioned earlier that stinging ants are placed on a sick or weak person; it is possible
that the stimulation given by pepper and ant bites have a favourable physiological effect, either by
distracting attention from the pain or as a tonic.
The examples given above show that the employment of plant medicines is based almost entirely
on magical effect, whereas an actual medicinal effect seems completely unknown to the Waiwai. This
is in strong contrast to the more northern Arawaks (especially the coastal Arawaks, see p. 150), who
have a comprehensive knowledge of plant medicine.
At the same time it should be mentioned that the Waiwai yaskomo always use animal spirits as
hyaslri, as opposed to, for instance, the Arawakan Wapishana. The Wapishana piai men primarily
employ the spirits of plants, and summon amongst other the spirits of the bina plant for curing purposes.
It is not impossible that the difference between tribes using either animal or vegetable spirits is
connected with the lesser or greater knowledge of plant medicine. Whether it is the use of animal
r
~ helping spirits that has prevented the Waiwai from acquiring a proper knowledge of vegetable medicine
cannot, however, be decided on the material available.
Tabus
The yaskomo must adhere to various tabu rules out of regard for his special hyasrn, This is particularly
the case in relation to poinko-yin. As already mentioned, the permission of the yaskomo must be
sought before a wild pig hunt, and whether he goes out himself or not he must summon poinko either
by whistling, blowing a claw or by singing eremu. When the flock arrives, however, he must not him
self take part in the shooting. Should he kill a poinko it will be discovered by poinko-yin who will
kill him. In regard to pakria, a yaskomo may go so far as to allow his dogs to chase the animal into
a trap or into an old tree trunk, but he must then wait until an ordinary Waiwai arrives who can kill it.
In the same way a yaskomo must never eat poinko meat (incidentally, the consumption of this
animal takes place outside the communal house in a special little hut), and but little pakria meat. If
he breaks this rule, poinko-yin in anger will lead the yaskomo's ekati to the poinko mountain, and
transform it into a poinko, causing the yaskomo to die. At the same time poinko-yin will withdraw
all poinko from the district.
A yaskomo must never eat roast or fried meat. However, the Waiwai very rarely resort to this
method of cooking - the author himself has never experienced it - but nearly always boil in a
pepper-pot or cure on barbecues.
A yaskomo must never eat soft bananas; the reason for this is that the kakenau-kworokjam cannot
bear anything that smells strongly. The last rule may be limited to those yaskomo with particularly
sensitive hyasrri, like, for example, Makama (p. 23).
In common with the kakenau-kworokjam a yaskomo hates and fears blood and the colour red.
The yaskomo must therefore observe a number of tabus in connexion with birth, initiation and
menstruation, as contact with these events will make him weak. He will never undertake the healing
of a woman in these circumstances, he will not look in the direction of or use the same track as an
adolescent girl, he will not live with his wife in the birth hut nor take up his child until it is about
20 days old; he will not allow his wife to return to the family section in the communal house until
4-5 weeks have elapsed - the normal time is one to two weeks. All this is due to his fear of blood
which would make him weak.
Payment
There is not much information available about the payment given to the yaskomo for his curing
work. However, it seems customary to pay in spun cotton thread which is always a saleable article.
In one instance after a major case, the patient cured gave his 7 year old daughter as a temporary
anton (see p. 154). The difficulty in making a payment is often due to the fact that the yaskomo as a
rule is also the head man of the village and thus formally possesses the right of property over the
means of production. Payment is thus often illusory, and the chief reward must be assumed to be the
prestige and increased power inevitably achieved by the yaskomo.
Marriage 133
Fig. 18. Every Waiwai carries his own "vanity bag", a

plaited basket (pokara) nicely adorned with feathers,
and here patterned with the squirrels and frog design.
Life Cycle
Customs connected with the life cycle of the individual lie as the border line between the religious
and the social. The thresholds marriage, birth, initiation and death, however, are of widely different
character; the customs in connexion with birth and death are naturally based on soul conceptions
and animism, whereas those in connexion with initiation and marriage can often be traced back to
traditional mythology. Marriage, and in part initiation, which to some extent can be regarded as a
preparation for it, also points forward, and is of vital importance in regard to kinship and social
organization.
MARRIAGE
Among the Waiwai, the motives governing marriage appear for both men and women to be primarily
of an economic character. Amongst the men asked, motives generally were in the following order:
I) "to obtain someone who can work for our food", 2) to have children, and 3) attraction to a woman.
The third reason was seldom advanced, presumably because virtues like industry and ability largely
represent what a Waiwai finds attractive. It is also undoubtedly connected with the far-reaching sexual
freedom in relation to one's wayamnu, or accepted lovers or mistresses. The economic motive not
only applies to men, and is thus not particularly due to the fact that women's pursuits are the dominant
134 Life Cycle
ones. This is clearly seen in cases of separation, where the woman can also take the initiative. Barren
ness in women does not appear to be a ground for separation, but incompetence is, particularly in
regard to a woman's cassava work and a man's inability to bring home sufficient supplies of meat to
the family. Only in one instance was a man's personal feelings for another woman given as having
caused separation. In another case a man had, on marriage, taken a woman away from her family,
and shortly afterwards left her. This conduct was highly disapproved, though no attempt at recon
ciliation or revenge was made.
Marriage can be entered into immediately after a young girl's initiation, which is marked by
seclusion in connexion with her first menstruation, and a young man's maturity. On account of a
great deficiency of women among the Waiwai, several 16-18 year old men are still unmarried. Their
desire to assure themselves a wife is shown by child engagements, and three Waiwai men at all events
are waiting for girls to become grown up. The men's parents had arranged the matches with the girl's
guardians. In these cases the oho ceremony and bride payments were postponed until after initiation.
It can be anticipated that the lack of women will become still greater with these child engagements,
and several Waiwai are widowers, whereas all the widows and separated women have remarried.
Only one girl, about 16 years of age, was unmarried, but she was deaf and morbidly apathetic. It is
preferred that a young woman passes through her emasi time, that is, about 1 year after seclusion,
without marrying, but under present circumstances this rule cannot be adhered to. Pre-marital relations
are frequent, and in some cases take place even before initiation, though only with one's wayamnu.
The Waiwai know of a song inspiring love (see p. 113), which can be used before formally asking
for the hand of the chosen one if the person in question does not fully reciprocate one's feelings. The
technique has already been described, but the motive should be mentioned here. It was the case in
which a married couple wished to make the husband's son a partner in a polyandric marriage, as the
son would then stay and work with them. They had no daughters and therefore no sons-in-law to
perform bride service.
When choosing a spouse, the rule applies that only a wayamnu can be married. A Waiwai described
wayamnu as follows: "Those to whom we do not employ a term of kinship or any name". The term
wayamnu is only an indirect one; there is no direct form. Wayamnu are also negatively defined as
all persons of the opposite sex who .do not stand in the relationship of parent - child, epeka or awale,
in regard to oneself (see p. 190). A wayamnu is thus a person of the opposite sex who either comes
from another tribe, is an unrelated Waiwai, or, as appears from the kinship terminology, is a cross
cousin.
In a small community like the Waiwai, a suitable match within a group of unrelated persons is
seldom possible, and the most frequent marriages occur between cross cousins. That this is so is shown
by the terms of kinship, which classify maternal uncles as "fathers-in-law" (tamchi) and paternal
aunts as "mothers-in-law" (chacha), whilst maternal aunts and paternal uncles are classified as "mother"
(yeme) and "father" (apa), respectively. Where unilocality prevails, as in the case of the Waiwai, who
practice an unqualified form of matrilocal residence, cross cousins - as opposed to parallel cousins
will always be found in different groups. The marriage rule should therefore not be regarded as en
joining the marriage of cross cousins, but rather as a ban on the marriage of classificatory brothers
Marriage 135
and sisters. The local group formerly was presumably identical with the matrilocal extended family
group, and consequently exogamy was then prevalent (see p. 200); this is still the case in several
Waiwai villages, but not in all.
The dance festivals playa large role in selecting a suitable mate from a distant village, for a sexually
stimulating atmosphere is then worked up with that end in view.
The yaskomo plays no part at all in marriage. As one of them said: "They are not sick". This em
phasizes that marriage is regarded as a purely socio-economic institution. The further details of the
marriage are laid down by a curious legal ceremony, the oho chant. This custom will be described
elsewhere (see p. 217); suffice to say here that it involves a special form of chant used, for example,
in cases of decisions and claims of a certain official type. The speaker chants in short sentences what
he wants to announce, and after each sentence the opponent replies "oho" (that is to say "yes").
The dialogue, which can last for hours, is so ceremonious that freedom of speech and an urbane form
are assured. The oho acts as a binding decision on the parties taking part.
In cases of courtship the young man will let his father (or nearest male relative) go to the girl's
father and proclaim his errand in the form of an oho chant. The girl's father can refuse, but if he
agrees to the proposal, a tug-of-war regarding prestige and economy begins, where the girl's father
attempts to belittle his daughter in the suitor's eyes in order to force him to declare a still greater
interest and thus a higher payment for her. During the chant the bride's father will quote a price
which may be one of the long bows, a pegall, cassava sieve or, most often, a hammock. As a rule the
suitor's spokesman agrees, though several cases were observed where no bride fee was paid.
The course of the oho chant is of very great importance to those implicated. The status of the young
man in regard to his in-laws' family will partly be decided here, for the girl's father during the course
of the chant will demand that the young man settles down with him, that is to say resides matrilocally,
and he can force through a binding assent to this, if the suitor's father must use persuasion to bring
about the union. If on the other hand the girl's father willingly renounces his daughter, the young
man can escape with a lesser price for the bride and, more important, can refuse to dwell with his
father-in-law; in other words, he can avoid a considerable part of the bride service. Bride service,
which is only effective if the custom of matrilocality be maintained, is based on the washma institution
(see p. 201). According to this, it is a man's duty to obey the male relatives of his wife, particularly
the father and brothers, when they demand assistance, as for example, in field work or house building.
It is not surprising that attempts are made to avoid this dependency (which is of the same type as
Tupi's peito), and there are two ways this can be done. One can either ignore the rule about matri
locality, or the newly-married man can arrange for one of his sisters to marry his wife's brother, in
which case he will acquire the same rights over his brother-in-law as the latter has over him.
In general among the Waiwai matrilocality, and its consequent bride service, is not permanent,
though it lasts at all events one year. This corresponds roughly to the time it takes for the married
couple to obtain the first crop from their own field - until then they are economically dependent upon
the wife's family - and for the first child's birth to take place, where the woman's mother plays a big
part. This first year of matrilocality must presumably be regarded as advantageous to the married
couple.
136 Life Cycle
The same day that the marriage oho has been celebrated the pair move in together without any
further ceremony. Should the man come from another village, he moves into his father-in-law's house,
in one of the triangular sections which forms the round communal house; the bride places her hammock
underneath his in order to be able to easily look after the fire in the family hearth.
Finally, there are several new terms of kinship to be employed by the married couple; the mutual
"chuwya" (husband, wife, spouse) and the awale names (in-law). There is no name for marriage, but
nipita means to take a woman, ifiofiwa to take a man. Polygyny is called asahtihiyim, that is to say
a two-wife man. That bride service is called washma has already been mentioned; the bride price is
called in Waiwai "opichiyepeto",
All accounts agree that polygyny was extremely common only one generation ago, but that it now
is rare, presumably on account of the present shortage of women. Several cases were reported in the
case of the Mapuera Waiwai. Here it seems that the eldest of the wives - rather than the first - commands
the others, though there is frequent dispute as to who shall fetch the cassava, fuel, etc.
When a man takes a second, or possibly a third wife, she moves into his eta (household). There are
two reasons, particularly, for taking several wives: in the first place it is an economic advantage, since
the women's occupations are those that count. Secondly, if extra-marital relations result in a child,
the wayamnu in question sometimes moves in to the eta even though her possible husband becomes
angry.
In order to understand Waiwai polygyny, therefore, we must first consider the wayamnu institution.
Those who can be described as a person's wayamnu, that is, those who can be selected as spouses,
have already been mentioned. In addition, however, sexual relations are permitted with the whole
group of wayamnu even though they are married and one is oneself. If, for example, a man wishes to
avail himself of that right, which naturally can only be exercised as a result of mutual understanding,
he may even ask the husband of the wayamnu to sanction it. As a rule, however, he will take advantage
of the husband's absence, and will signify his desire by smacking his lips at the woman or by snapping
his fingers after her. As a rule she will follow him, but only if she feels so inclined. On one occasion
the author saw a man smirk at one of his wayamnu and offer her the drinking bowl when it passed
round amongst the men. This exceptional act was interpreted by those present as an "introductory
manoeuvre". The woman's husband does not like it as a rule, but says nothing unless he catches them
flagrante delicto, in which case he pushes his wife towards the door, but not out of it. This is said to
symbolize disapproval, which however does not justify separation.
If visitors come to a village and they possess a wayamnu relationship to any of the locals, it must
be decided during the first few days in each single case whether the persons concerned shall continue
as such or alter their status to epeka, that is to say, a constitutional relationship. Two cases were
observed where the women proposed that in future they be called achi (sister - man speaking) and
that they call the men in question wahrei (brother - woman speaking). The men agreed. In a third
instance the man refused his wayamnu's desire for an alteration of status. A change of status of this
kind is not a unilateral gain for the female wayamnu though she escapes a sexual relationship. As
titular sister she obtains economic obligations instead. As one wayamnu expressed it: "I wish to be
your sister and give you food".
Marriage 137
The change from wayamnu to achi, from mistress to sister, is thus a change from a sexual to an
economic partner, and in each case the man must consider which he most needs.
Normally, an unmarried man is provided with agricultural produce by his mother or sister, but
when he marries this duty passes to his wife, particularly as he is frequently living away from his
female relatives. Should he then obtain a titular sister in his village, she must fulfil a sister's obligations,
providing the man is unmarried. On the other hand a man is made fun of if he accepts any food from
a wayamnu. People will laugh at him when he first asks for a little bite and then the whole loaf, as is
the custom in this situation, and a comparison will be drawn with sexual relations.
When it is officially recognized that every Waiwai man and woman has a group of sanctioned sexual
contacts, and that a woman who thinks she has conceived with a wayamnu moves into his house
hold (plus the completely unceremonious entrance to wedlock where the man seldom pays any bride
purchase for his second wife, so that the bride service becomes illusory and the oho chant of no
importance), polygyny - and for that matter polyandry also - is easily achieved and is readily compre
hensible.
If a man marries and, in accordance with matrilocality, settles down with the woman's family, the
status of the woman alters from wayamnu to chuwya (spouse) and her mother becomes chacha (mother
in-law, grandmother). The wife's other female relatives, which in an extended family can be her classi
ficatory sisters or daughters, will continue to be the man's wayamnu; among the Waiwai the "second
wife" is in most cases the wife's sister or daughter (ex: Yukuma), although wives may well be unrelated.
As a rule a man pays nothing for his second wife (Charamcha, Yukuma), and never obtains any
repayment in case of separation - he dare not even ask for it. In the case of the Waiwai it can be said
that marriage is almost entirely an economic transaction (and, of course, a social one). On account
of the wayamnu institution a man has already obtained sexual rights in the case of his wife and several
women. That transferred to him on marriage is therefore solely the economic rights, and the bride
price and bride service must be regarded as payment for the working effort lost by the wife's family.
l
The position of women in marriage is generally good. She expresses her opinion and can start a
I dispute of her views are not in accord with those of her husband. She often sets him to work. Even
!
in our day there are examples of both a woman and a man killing their spouse. The woman's action
II
was probably inspired by a younger man who wanted her for himself.
There are also cases of polyandry among the Waiwai, though this is infrequent and is not referred
to in earlier times. It has been mentioned earlier in this section how - in connexion with a love-inspiring
song - the economic motive plays a part here, so that the elder of the two married men enjoys the
benefits of polyandry. In another case there was great tension between the men, the younger of whom
had wedged himself into the marriage. However, they lived in one household and watched each other.
Tension was only diminished when the younger man also took his wife's daughter with the older man
as second wife (as seen Fig. p. 199).
This can be termed polygamy, since Towchi lives in a polyandric and Yukuma in a polygynous marriage.
In several cases it was a matter of two young men, apparently in complete understanding, having a
wife in common. Naturally, polyandry can be a source of violent jealousy. Once, one of the husbands
so inspired took the wife out into the forest and cut her hands with his knife. The whole village was
138 Life Cycle
Fig. 19. A young married couple enjoys their siesta together in the woman's hammock, temporarily slung out in the
open working shelter.
outraged at this but nothing was done. Such tolerance, blended with fear, is extremely characteristic
of the Waiwai in their mutual relations; it is due to apprehension of revenge if mixing up in a dispute,
and to a strong desire to retain full personal liberty oneself in similar situations.
Marriage is regarded as such a normal condition for a Waiwai that without a wife at his side one
loses a number of opportunities. By always being a burden on his own family he loses his natural
independence and authority. It is particularly catastrophic, however, for a village chief and medicine
man (as a rule one and the same person), since by losing his wife 1) he can no longer order others out
to the common work, 2) issue invitations to dance festivals, and 3) be the highest authority in communal
house. In effect, this - which incidentally is connected with the oho chant - means that he must be
succeeded by another as headman. In addition, 4) his familiar spirits desert him, so he can no longer
practice the craft of a medicine man.
These conditions are presumably why Mlywa, the 60 year old temporal and spiritual leader, tried
shortly after the death of his wife to arrange a marriage with a girl only II years old. However, her
16 year old brother steadfastly opposed this.
Marriage is a purely social institution in which - particularly in connexion with wayamnu - there
are many factors of tension. There is no kind of authority which interferes with the course of events
whether it be murder, divorce or unjust treatment, but a public opinion exists the condemnatory
Birth 139
j attitude of which averts many misfortunes. This impalpable public opinion is based on tradition and
derives social strength from the myths, in this case particularly from the creation myth about Mawari.
It has already been mentioned (p. 47) that wayamnu means "my tortoise", and also, that the tortoise,
the mother of Mawari and the first ancestress of the human race, was exposed to the sexual attentions
of other beings. There can be little doubt that the institution is stabilized by this myth, and tradition
thus justifies the wayamnu system. The Mawari myth also supplies the first description of a marriage,
how Mawari obtained his sexual organ, felt desire for a woman, and fished her up from the Anaconda
people in the river. The myth stresses the monogamous relation established by Mawari. He made no
payment to, nor did he serve, the Anaconda people for his bride, which results in continual demands
being made on the Waiwai by the Anaconda people in connexion with initiation.
The husband's dependence on his wife's family is also clearly reflected in the Shodewika myth
(p. 74), as is matrilocality in connexion with the origin of the Indian tribes (p. 73).
BIRTH
Reference has been made to the fact that temporary matrilocality, at all events, can be explained
as a desire for the first birth to take place in the wife's family so that her mother can serve as midwife.
Two or three months prior to the birth the married couple subjects themselves to various tabu rules;
particularly dieting regulations. They will abstain from eating the larger game animals and fish,
because the kworokjam of these are poyin for the unborn child and will expel its ekatl, They thus act
as though the unborn had already obtained a soul (p. 110). Furthermore, the Waiwai maintain that
not only the women, but also the men, will suffer nausea and vomit if meat is the least bit tainted
and it usually is. During this period the main food is puchi (that is to say bread baked of cassava
flour long-dried in cylindrical form), a quantity of red pepper, small fish, liver (which the Waiwai
consider vegetable), and a little rib of wild pig (both poinko and pakria). Perhaps the man has
slightly less stringent rules; he can at all events eat many different kinds of birds that are tabu for
the woman.
Pregnant women must neither engage in the manufacture of clay vessels, since these would inevitably
go to pieces, nor take part in the poisoning of fish, for if they did the fish would not die. It is believed
that the sex of the expected child can be prophesied by the behaviour of the woodpecker (see p. 122),
but it can also be determined by the child's position: if lying high, a boy, iflow, a girl. When the big
blue veins appear on the abdomen one knows that the child is full-grown and is preparing for the
birth itself.
The husband erects a birth hut a little distance from the communal house in order to avoid bringing
blood into it. This hut, a so-called powishi-matko (powis tail), is a three-cornered shelter with a sloping
roof and no walls. When the birth pangs become strong both the woman and the man move into the
hut. If the man is unable to help his wife, either because he is a yaskomo to whom such things are
tabu, or because he is much engaged in other work, he can send a deputy. This can either be the wife's
father or one of her wayamnu. To one of the latter he may say: "You were not ashamed to have
i
;i
140 Life Cycle
intercourse with my wife, so you cannot be ashamed to assist her now". The wife will then ask the
husband or his deputy to light a fire and heat an adequate supply of water. She pours the warm water
over herself "in order that the blood shall become thin and not coagulate, so that she will not die".
In addition the woman's mother nearly always helps at births, though she can refrain from so doing
if she knows that the birth will be an easy one or if the birth lasts so long that a relief is necessary.
From the beginnings of the birth pangs to the actual birth takes normally about 3-4 hours, though
cases vary greatly. One woman gave birth so easily that she managed without help in the forest; on
the other hand, her sister, who was only about 14 years old, suffered for about 30 hours. No form of
massage is given in the birth hut, but when her time has come the woman stands on a pole (about
10 ems, in diameter) and holds with both hands to another pole tied up horizontally at about head
height. She goes half down on her knees whilst the husband holds her up. A layer of banana leaves
is put down as a pallet. Immediately after the birth the woman's mother cuts the umbilical cord with
the jaw of a pirai "because this is sharper than a knife" and ties it up with a piece of kraua cord
taken, for example, from the hammock. The blood of the infant is rubbed off with cotton, and the
child is then bathed in cold water in a big clay vessel in the hut.
The Waiwai word "eru" means both to give birth and to be born.
As a rule the woman stays in the birth hut for about a fortnight after birth, and the man usually
stays with her, though he is allowed to come to the communal house whenever he likes. The woman
presses her hands against the forehead of the infant to make the head round, and often presses the
legs to make them straight. The infant's ears are also pierced during this period, preferably by the
woman's mother, although if she is no longer alive, by the woman or her husband. The naming of
the child takes place shortly after birth. Usually it is the infant's grandmother who pronounces the
"family name" desired by her or perhaps the parents. This name is nearly always that of a dead,
beloved relative, frequently the great grandfather or great grandmother of the infant. Thus my in
formant, Ewka, gave his son the family name Wapena after its maternal grandfather's uncle who
at the same time happened to be its paternal grandmother's brother. Names are often decided before
birth with certain reservations, as there are many definitely male or female names. In addition to the
family name, the child is given at about the same time a "spirit name" (kworokjam name). It has
been mentioned earlier that an infant can be called a kworokjam, and frequently, in all events if the
child cries at the beginning, or possibly contracts a fever, the yaskomo will put up his shutepana at
night in order to undertake a soul flight to heaven. Here the yaskomo visits the moon and his brother,
both of whom are kakenau-kworokjam, and shows the moon the child's ekati. The moon, contrary
to other kakenau-kworokjam, has no objection to seeing bloody things and will do the child no harm.
The moon may say, for example: "This infant must be a kworokjam, here is its name ... ". The next
day the yaskomo will announce this to the parents. This child thus obtains as a rule two names; the
one it later will be called depends on which happens to stick. For example, Miywa, a medicine man,
gave the name of Kurunau to a boy before his parents had managed to express their own wish, which
was Wapena. In this case the kworokjam name stuck better than the family name, which seems
contrary to usual practice. It was also mentioned that on the death of his maternal grandfather the boy
would obtain his name, Kurum.
Birth 141
As examples of these two types of names can be mentioned the following three men from the village
of Yakayaka:
Family name Ewka Kworokjam name Chemyati

Yakota Korotwa
Charamcha Anchawan
However, it is by no means impossible that a person can be generally known by a third name, a nickname.
Thus one woman was known all through her life as Tapoka (the one who lost her arm), because she had a
bad arm. In another case the name Kapiena became the unflattering Kapego (the so-called "stink bug").
In a curious example (see p. 17) an account is given of why a Waiwai child obtained the name
Poroto (spider monkey) as a kworokjam name. This has a deeper significance because when it is said
that by accident the child received its ekati from a monkey instead of from the father at the moment
of conception, it illustrates the idea that a child normally obtains its ekati at the moment of conception.
On the other hand it is not certain that it is the father who is responsible for this.
As a rule the Waiwai desire an equal number of boys and girls. This is surprising in view of the
washma institution and of the fact that female occupations being the most important, make girls the better
investment. It was said that the last of either five girls or five boys would be killed if no child of the
other sex had been obtained. The ideal appears to be four of each sex, but the great child mortality
makes this next to unachievable. In one instance the mother killed the first six children when they
were born. The two only cases of twins that were encountered (Yoswi and Kamanyare) did not lead
to the death of either child. People merely said to the mother: "We told you not to eat the two bananas
that had grown together"; this at any rate suggests that twins are not considered desirable.
When the married couple has lived in the birth hut for about a fortnight, they move back to the
communal house, but before entering the door they both sing an eremu and perform magic blowing
(see p. 110) in order that the opossum's kworokjam shall do no harm to the infant. Finally, the married
couple and the infant move back into their usual place in their eta in the communal house and resume
their normal life except for observing the post-natal tabus. If the father is a yaskomo there are, however,
certain divergencies. He must not live in the birth hut or take part in the birth. He will not lift up his
child at all until bleeding has ceased (about 20 days after the birth), and when his wife moves back
to the communal house she must sleep for about three weeks in her mother's eta in order not to
contaminate him. A yaskomo is afraid of becoming weak as a result of the blood.
Peculiarities about the baby's ekati have already been referred to, and in connexion with magic
blowing, examples were quoted of its exposure to poyin. These must here be recapitulated.
It is almost certain that the Waiwai regard a child as being in possession of an ekati from the
moment of conception. It is quite certain that this is the case at birth, which can be seen from the
fact that "its ekati can immediately gain contact with poyin". From birth until about the age of three,
the ekati is not permanently linked to the body, but frequently accompanies the parents independently,
sometimes sitting on its father's back, at times in its mother's arms or on her hip (direct references to
the prevalent methods of carrying children), at other times walking at their heels. During this period
the child is called: "The one that may lose its ekati". So long as the father and the mother are together
..,
142 Life Cycle
and do nothing dangerous all will be well, but if one of them goes away on a journey, the child's ekatt
will flit from the one to the other. If whilst so doing it gets lost or if anything happens to it, the child
will fall sick and die. Before leaving on a journey, therefore, the child's father will first rub its back
up and down his own so that the child's ekatt can remain at home in its body. He will also wash his
hands thoroughly to ensure that some of the soul matter of the child does not follow him and thus
expose the whole ekatt to danger. Even when both parents remain at home with the child it is exposed
to a number of perils. They are assembled under the term "poyin", which actually means "something
that leaves one"; in this case the child's ekan, Poyin represents all kinds of supernatural dangers or
snares. These can be spirits like, for example, an animal kworokjam, an act or an object. The child
can be directly isolated from these poyin with relative ease, but this does not solve the problem,
because merely by gaining contact with its parents they will frequently be able to influence the infant's
ekati, which is linked with the parents. To avoid poyin getting into touch with the child through its
parents, the latter must observe a number of tabu rules; since experience shows that these are broken
now and again, the parents must insure themselves by magic.
It has just been stated that the opossum is a poyin; as also are the macaw and the squirrel (see
p. 110-11). The same is true of a number of other animals, particularly larger game, such as tapir,
wild pig, deer, large birds like the buzzard and harpy eagle and many fish, for example the red paku
and tiger fish, which are regarded as belonging to the Anaconda-people. The kworokjam of the
animals mentioned - and many others with them - will, through the parents, force the child's ekan
out of its body and take its place. This causes the infant to fall ill and die, or, in minor cases so to
frighten it that it falls sick. The parents must therefore refrain from eating such animals, and the man
must not go hunting or fishing, except for small fish. However, the ban on hunting and fishing is
frequently broken without anything happening, but if the child falls ill, the man will be very strongly
reproached by his wife, and the poyin situation must be met by magic practice. This can either be done
by eremu or by kamesi and same, where steam from hot stones is led over the bones of the dangerous
game and in under the hammock of the patient. A man who kills game or fish despite the tabu rules
will therefore also hide a bone of the animal in question for possible use later.
The dieting tabu rules are stricter in the case of the mother than of the father, which the Waiwai
explain by saying that the infant is suckled by its mother during the whole period. But if the child is
healthy, the parents often eat all kinds of meat. The ideal demand on a mother is that she must not
eat meat for a space of three years with the exception of two species of small bird: turuwi and turukwan,
and even in these cases she must cause a burning stick to roll backwards and forwards over the birds
whilst they are being prepared. This answers in character to the expulsion of a kworokjam by a circle
of fire, mentioned below. In the same way the mother of an infant must only eat small fish (kutmo),
pirai (pone), lukunani or sunfish (aparana) and but little haimara (aimara), She can have a craving
for fish and meat even if the dietary rules are not always adhered to.
The father will not eat tapir because its kworokjam is so big that it would crush the child's ekatl;
he will not eat pakria (a small wild pig) because it lives in holes in the ground and would lead the
child's ekati to this place; he will not eat poinko - wild pig, because it does not like bloody things and
will lead the child's ekatl away; he will not eat the mam bird, as this takes to air very suddenly and
--"-~------_.
Birth 143
thus frightens the infant; he will not eat fish caught in a shika trap; and he will not eat meat that has
been shot far from the village, because the kworokjam of the beast in question can lead the child's
ekati far away. An example of evasion can be given: Just at the beginning of the big dance festival,
Shodewika, and as the strangers hidden by their palm capes danced into the village clearing for the
first time, one of the local women came out with a burning torch and circled each single dancer. It
transpired that the woman was the mother of a baby and that she knew she would shortly be partaking
in the common meal. One of the strangers, with whom no contact had as yet been made, might possibly
have wounded, killed or eaten big game recently. In that case the kworokjam of the animal would
occupy the person concerned and infect those he ate with. Adults would suffer no harm thereby, but
transferred to the baby's parents the animal's kworokjam would be able to expel the baby's ekat'i
and to take its place. This would cause the child to scream, contract a fever, and finally to die. An
informant added: "Destroyed flesh (the animal's) destroys other flesh (the baby's)". The mother's
action of encircling with fire thus serves to drive out by an act of magic, same, the kworokjam matter
from those who might be carrying it. For the same reason a ring of fire is often laid round a successful
hunter. However, the mother and father, despite this, will not eat any big game, since both the hunter
and his prey are encumbered with kworokjam matter.
With the Waiwai, dietary tabu rules seem to be stricter for women than for men - in all events they
are followed more strictly by women. On the other hand, there are a number of bans for the man
alone. Those referring to hunting and fishing have already been mentioned, but in addition, he must
not undertake any major activity. He must not climb, break a tortoise shell, or work with a canoe.
Thus a canoe that was brought close by the village down to the river was first encircled with fire for
the baby's sake. On another occasion when Ewka had smeared his canoe with mafii (pitch), his classified
baby daughter became ill with constipation because of the binding mafii. Further, the man must not
take part in housebuilding or digging (see p. 111), and must not burn fields. All these acts - and prob
ably others also - are poyin, and must be avoided in order that the child shall not become "poyinwa".
Some of the rules can be avoided by resorting to kames'i. For example, a wood shaving from house
building can be kept in case the child falls ill should the father nevertheless engage in such work.
The whole system proves to be very elastic, as the infant may not fall sick if the rules are broken.
Consequently, the parents need not adhere too strictly to them, and by taking certain precautionary
measures can break them without incurring irreparable hurt.
The mother's activity is also restricted. She must not spin cotton, for if she does, she will bind the
child's penis so that it is unable to pass water. She must not weave aprons, make clay vessels, or
engage in other such activities. The only major work she can undertake is that with cassava, both in
the fields and in the house. This must be regarded as absolutely essential, since without it the family
would starve. This is important because agriculture is women's main working effort.
If a Waiwai couple with an infant were to follow all these tabu rules, it would mean that both would
have to adhere to a strict diet in regard to meat and fish, and refrain from journeys and any major
activity. The man must forego his main occupation, hunting, and almost entirely give up fishing, but
the woman continues her chief work, the cultivation and preparation of cassava. Whereas the woman
should begin again as soon as possible, the man obtains an extra free period which - naturally enough
144 Life Cycle
Fig. 20. The Waiwai husband cares for the little child while the wife continues her household work preparing cassava.
This divison of labour is due to the natal tabu rules, which temporarily prevent fathers of infants from getting into
contact with animal spirits, that is to say, from hunting and fishing.
is frequently spent in his hammock in the cool communal house. It happened several times to the
author that his main informant, himself the father of an infant, was called home by his wife in order
that, lying in the hammock, he could look after the child whilst the wife prepared the cassava. When
it is remembered that married couples are also subjected to prenatal tabu rules and that the man stays
with his wife in the birth hut, a picture is gradually disclosed of couvade-like customs.
When the three year period has elapsed, the older women in the village will say to the mother:
"Your child is now big and you still eat no meat. You and your husband can once more begin to
eat everything". The parents will follow this advice with relief. The child's ekati is now thought to have
become so large and independent that it no longer follows the father and mother, but goes its own
ways in the child's body.
t'
A Theory of Couvade 145
Theoretical and comparative aspects of the natal custom
One of the most well-known and popular customs in ethnography is the so-called "couvade" or "male
child-bed", which on account of its curiousness has been accorded a not wholly justified position and
often a completely erroneous interpretation.
The word "couvade" derives from the French "couver" to brood on the nest. This in ethnographical
terminology refers to the custom of men as well as women subjecting themselves after a birth to a
number of regulations, the most remarkable of which is that they must either simultaneously or
alternately remain in the bed or hammock with the new-born child for a certain period after the birth.
Properly, the word "couvade" can thus only cover a post-natal custom in which both the woman
and the man take part. For this reason the term "male child-bed" should also be dropped, as in
principle - at all events in the South American cases - the same regulations apply to the woman as to
the man. To some extent it is understandable that, viewed with European eyes, the main weight has
been laid upon the male role. For example, the woman's part has been interpreted as being more
biologically conditioned: rest after the delivery, special emotional attachment to the child, and diet
during the nursing period. However, none of these arguments is correct as regards the Indians of the
tropical forests; they are able to attend to their work two days after delivery, the men are apparently
as attached to their children as are the women, and in most cases the natal customs last for a much
shorter time than the nursing period.
The couvade conception has been systematically dealt with by a number of investigators who have
attempted in various ways to divide it into characteristic sub-divisions. For example, in 1910 Frazer
(1910, IV, p. 254) divided the available material into an easy pre-natal and severe post-natal couvade,
and almost at the same time Kunike (1911, p. 555) reviewed the two types: the true "male child-bed"
and the easier, restriction-stamped couvade. Most recently, in 1954, W. Schmidt (1954) has under
taken a thorough division into pre-natal, post-natal, and pre- and post-natal customs in connexion
with pregnancy and childbirth, and in the two last-mentioned groups he has separated the few instances
of "true couvade".
All the various attempts to differentiate between a true and an easier couvade appear to be in
expedient, since it helps to disguise the fact that all natal customs are based on the same ideas and,
since their several forms can at most be regarded as local variants. The best proof of this can be found
in the material about Indians of the tropical forest reported by W. Schmidt. Whereas the purely pre
natal customs are completely unknown, 6 cases of purely post-natal customs are found with 12 Carib
tribes, one of these being an example of true couvade, and 6 cases of pre- and post-natal customs, one
of which is likewise an example of true couvade. In the case of 20 Tupi tribes Schmidt (Schmidt 1954,
p. 205 et seq.) gives 2 uncertain, 4 cases without natal customs, 7 tribes with pure post-natal customs,
of which 2 are examples of true couvade, and 6 cases of pre- and post-natal customs, one of which is
an example of true couvade. With this distribution there is no small likelihood that the sources are
not sufficiently accurate to form a basis for systematic grouping. Should the information be correct,
however, the distribution shows that a grouping by tribes with post-natal and pre- and post-natal
customs, respectively, is unnatural, as the 32 tribes of 2 linguistic stocks here referred to possess in
10 Waiwai
- -...-- - - - ~.~--- --
.. ...
146 Life Cycle
the main the same type of culture, particularly in regard to their ideas. The grouping becomes a system
imposed on reality and not one derived from it.
If we now turn to the couvade (or natal customs) in general we find that primarily it has been inter
preted in two widely different ways. The first interpretation is of a social character and finds a con
nexion between the couvade custom and mother-right. As early as 1861, Bachofen advanced the
theory (Bachofen 1861, p. 17, 25) about adoption, whereby the couvade was regarded as being a man's
legalization of his child in a community practising mother-right. In 1888 Tylor (Tylor 1889, p. 254
et seq.) was convinced of this theory, based on his studies of distribution, that couvade should not
only be regarded as an indication of a social change from maternal to paternal, but as "the very sign
and record of that vast change". Tylor's interpretation in connexion with Kunike's theory (Kunike
1911, p. 556) that couvade was invented by the women in order to keep the men at home as assistants
is combined in Pater W. Schmidt's original view of couvade (Schmidt & Koppers 1924). Realizing
that the couvade custom was also found in the so-called "Urkultur", like, for example, that of the
inhabitants of Tierra del Fuego, Schmidt later amended his theory to comprise only an isolated group
of severe couvade (Schmidt 1954).
We have previously touched on the unnaturalness of such a distinction, and at all events in respect
of South America the dependence of natal customs on lineality must be denied. This can already be
seen from the fact that natal customs are found among tribes of all culture types and lineal conditions.
They exist with the Yahgan with patrilineal and patrilocal bands, the Siriono with matrilineal bands,
the Mataco and Chorote with mixed bands of matrilineal base, and the Sherente with exogamous
patrilineal moities with sibs. It has likewise been observed in the case of the Quechua and Witoto,
who are patrilineal, with, for example, the coastal Arawak with their matrilineal clans and the Tupi
Guarani tribes with uncertain patrilineal extended households or sibs.
Another circumstance that invalidates the maternal/paternal right theory is that in most of the
Amazon region one cannot with certainty speak of unilateral descent. It is frequently a matter of an
extended family with temporary matrilocality with ambilineal inheritance as a result of the sex-condi
tioned economic system. On the other hand, it is not uncommon for the man to be indicated as the
progenitor of the child, as it receives its soul at conception, and the woman is merely regarded as the
embryo's place of growth. However, the consequence of these mixed circumstances is in many cases a
bilateral system as is the case with the Cariban Waiwai referred to below. Everything thus suggests
that one can ignore the theory concerning the dependence of the couvade on a transition from matri
to patri-lineality.
Curiously enough, the other important theory about couvade was also advanced by Tylor (Tylor
1865, p. 287 et seq.) who, however, later dropped it in favour of Bachofen's theory mentioned above.
Tylor, who in 1865 here first used the term couvade as a scientific term, assumed that the couvade
custom was an expression of a physical link between father and child, where the acts of the father
were magically transferred to the offspring. Frazer, among others, acclaimed this view (Frazer 1910,
IV, p. 244 et seq.) and further developed it by averring that the sympathetic magic on which it was
based would in post-natal cases be contagious magic - whilst in pre-natal cases it would be of the
character of homoeopathic magic. This division of Frazer's is, as mentioned above, inexpedient, and
for South America completely irrelevant, since purely pre-natal cases are lacking. The theory of a
mystic connexion between father and son is also the basis for Karsten's explanation (Karsten 1915)
of South American couvade. Here, among others, von den Steinen's information (Steinen 1894,
p. 337) from the Cariban Bakairi Indians is cited, about the idea that it is the man who - at conception
lays the egg or sows the seed that becomes the new child, whilst the mother is only fertile soil. Metraux
also follows this interpretation (Metraux 1949, p. 370), whereas Lowie (Lowie 1948, p. 36), after
having opposed Max Schmidt's view (Schmidt 1917, p. 6 et seq.) that couvade was for the purpose of
forming an economically-inferior social class in a matrilocal community, merely recognizes the couvade's
magico-religious character.
The chief objection to the Tylor-Frazer theory is probably that the role of the mother has been
overlooked or at least, under-valued. However, the rules for the mother are in principle the same as
for the father; they differ only as the sexually conditioned economic activities differ. To consider
couvade as a purely male phenomenon would be as wrong as if a zoologist only concerned himself
with the hatching out of eggs by the male bird and completely ignored the hen. Besides, the logical
consequence of the father's special position would always be pre-natal customs, on account of his
role at conception, and the theory would thus not cover the purely post-natal cases;
For a long time South America has been regarded as the centre of couvade, because, among other
things, of the many cases known there as compared to other continents (Schmidt 1954, p. 169). In
South America the north-eastern part, Guiana, has been particularly regarded as the classic area;
Schmidt emphasizes (Schmidt 1954, p. 298) the Caribs as the actual bearers of couvade in South
America with the most characteristic examples and the most numerous cases of severe couvade.
In regard to natal customs of the Waiwai it should first be stressed that the question of maternal or
paternal rights plays no direct part, and that here there is, as with most of the Indians of the tropical
forests, bilateral descent, equal weight being laid on the mother's and the father's side.
In the same way the idea of a mystical connexion between father and child is of minor importance
in the Waiwai natal customs. True, it seems clear that animation takes place at conception, that is
to say by the man's act (which explains the pre-natal regulations), but the bans applying to the father
apply equally to the mother; the child is equally linked to both parents. A further examination of the
classificatory system of kinship in connexion with naming rules also shows that the child has the
'same origin already in the third ascending generation reckoned both through the father's and the
mother's side.
The basic ideas and causes of the Waiwai natal customs appear more clearly in reality because they
have magic practice superimposed upon them, providing a possibility to infringe upon the ideal
demands, in the same way that pathological cases are often invaluable in interpreting the normal
state of the human system.
The Waiwai's own conscious grounds for, for example, the man's post-natal dietary tabus can just
be regarded as superficial, pretended explanations, which can be seen, among other things, by the
frequent variations with neighbouring related Carib tribes (cf. Brett 1868, p. 355, Tylor 1865, p. 289).
The character of the restrictions and their resemblance with those observed in connexion with initiation
10·
148 Life Cycle
and menstruation (cf. Roth 1915, p. 319) likewise lead one to think of more general basic ideas as
background for the natal custom.
In the case of the Waiwai we find: 1) the idea of animation at conception which is a condition for
the pre-natal section of the natal custom, as the ekati of the embryo can be exposed to poyin; 2) the
rule concerning ambivalent inheritance and bilateral descent, which constitute the background for an
equally close link between the child and the father and mother respectively, which results in natal
restrictions for both parents; 3) the idea about ekati and kworokjam as possessing contagious qualities
and consisting of a divisible but always connected mass, soul matter, whereby an animal kworokjam,
for example, can infect a man's ekati, which again is connected with that of his infant; 4) the idea
about the instability, up to the age of about 3, of the infant's ekati, where it or part of it is bound to
the father and mother respectively, and thus exposed to the same kworokjam influences as are the
parents; 5) the idea about poyin, a theory of illness which declares the various stronger kworokjam
to be the cause of dangerous diseases and death by poyinwa, that is to say the expulsion of the weak
infant ekati ; 6) all ideas and magic practice pointing towards a conscious avoidance of poyinwa,
which thus consequently indicates that the great child mortality during the first three years of life
and in the last months of pregnancy is the actual cause of and motive behind the natal custom; 7) the
idea that particularly the kworokjam of animals, and not that of plants, are poyin causes the man
to be cut off from his pursuits, hunting and fishing, whilst the woman can without risk resume her
agricultural and household activities; 8) the fact that agriculture is the dominating occupation forces
the person engaged in it, the woman, to resume work as soon as possible; and finally 9) the social
situation which makes it natural for the man to assist his wife with births, the care of the child, and
in passing the greater part of his spare time in his beloved hammock.
The more one is able by same, kames! and eremu to assure oneself in cases of a breach of the natal
rules, the weaker these will appear; finally they disappear completely into magic practice. The Waiwai
appear to stand in the middle of this development, still subscribing to the natal rules as the ideal, but
with means at hand to break a number of them without incurring any major risk.
If on the basis of the Waiwai practices at births the natal customs are to be characterized without
taking into account the magic superimposed upon them, one can hardly talk of "couvade" in the
special sense of that word. The case of the Waiwai thus is that one may well have a fully developed
couvade ideally-speaking, but in reality it is reduced beyond recognition. This is an example of the
surmise that it is in principle wrong to talk about easy and severe couvade, semi- or true couvade, or
special forms of natal customs so long as one is unaware of the basic ideas behind them. If these ideas
prove to be of the same character, for example, in the whole of the South American continent or over
the entire world, there is no longer any background for such divisions.
There is no reason to doubt that the magic practice that has modified the natal custom of the Waiwai
must be regarded as historically later than the custom itself. It is therefore not unreasonable to assume
that the extent and duration of the ideal restrictions are increased in step with the effectiveness of the
magic; a couvade of three years' duration like the Waiwai's is also quite unique; it is highly unlikely
that it ever has been practised.
The natal custom of the Waiwai casts light on the background and weakness of the two main theories
of couvade dealt with above. The question of a mystic connexion between father and child is linked
with our point 1) regarding animation at conception and thereby proves to be inadequate. The theory
about couvade's connexion with the transition from maternal to paternal right is illustrated by our
points 7 and 8) about occupation, which in reality may be the common source of lineality and natal
custom, as cultures where the economically dominating agriculture is in the hands of women, are
considered frequently to practise maternal right. At the same time religion is still linked with the older
hunting and fishing occupations, which refer back to the original - now acculturized - hunting cultures,
which experience shows were often associated with paternal right. These two tendencies are still active
in the Waiwai community in the form of the male animator and originator theory and temporary
matri-locality, which balance each other in a bilateral system. The maternal-paternal rights theory is
thus perhaps not entirely a figment of the imagination, but it shows the danger of distribution studies
that ignore basic ideas or circumstances, as in this case with the prevailing economic system. In the
case of the Waiwai we must define the natal custom as motivated by the great child mortality, as created
..~
out of purely animistic ideas, and as stamped by the distribution of labour within semi-agriculture.
'~
\ It would be valuable if this definition could be extended by comparison to comprise a larger cultural
\
area or even the whole of South America. Unfortunately, however, sources are inadequate, and even
in cases where the couvade of a tribe has been well described, no information is available concerning
its basic ideas or the character of its spirit world. Scattered features can, however, be stressed which
seem to suggest that the definition formulated above applies to the whole of South America.
In regard to other Carib tribes it is a widespread idea that the father must adhere to his dietary
tabus because definite animals will, through the father, give the child disease or the abnormality that
characterizes the animals in question. This applies to the Antil-Carib (Tylor 1865, p. 289), Akawoio
(Brett 1863, p. 354), Makusi (Schomburgk 1847-48, II, p. 313), Oyana (Crevaux 1883, p. 241) and
Bakairi (Steinen 1894, p. 334). In these cases it is implied that it is the spirits of the animals in question
which, while not affecting a grown man, are able to hurt the delicate infant soul. This also clearly
appears with the Barama River Carib (Gillin 1936, p. 180), where the father's restrictions are due to
the forest spirit, Akatombo, who wishes to bring disease to infants. There is no doubt that originally
Akatombo was identical with the Waiwai's ekati'nho, that form of animal spirit which is regarded as
1
I
i"r
a reincarnated human being. Quite the same idea is behind the Cariban Galibi's (Biet 1664, p. 389)
belief that if during a period of pregnancy a man eats certain fish or aquatic animals, the child will
die, its soul passing to the species in question. The last example must be understood as meaning that
the father's breach of the tabu rule will result in the spirit of the animal involved, via the father, stealing
the child's soul thus causing its death. This is completely analogous to Waiwai ideas.
The other great linguistic group of special importance in regard to natal customs is the Tupi-Guarani.
In their case also, there are scattered, but obvious, signs of the same basic ideas as with the Waiwai.
Thus a Guarayu man (Nordenskiold 1911, p. 167) lies in the child-bed, when his wife has been delivered,
because the soul of the infant (anhuer) follows the father everywhere. If the father went out and, for
example, shot an arara, the child could die. Here, we have both the idea that the childs soul is extremely
unstable and that certain animals such as the macaw (which is identical to the kworo of the Waiwai),
are of danger to the infant.
150 Life Cycle
The neighbouring tribe, Siriono (Holmberg 1950, p. 68 et seq.) regard an infant as delicate and
exposed to peril, and because it is intimately connected with both parents, it is strongly affected by
their activities. In order to keep the infant alive and healthy, both parents remain for a time in the
vicinity of their hammocks, subjecting themselves the while to a number of dietary tabus; they both
scarify themselves. This example has been specially given because it stresses the idea of the weak (or
psychically unstable) infant's connexion with both parents, as is the case with the Waiwai. With the
Guayaki in Paraguay (Mayntzhusen 1912, p. 410) it is the custom for the expectant father to wash
himself with a fish poison during the delivery in order to impede the presence of the jaguar demon,
one especially dangerous to infants. A similar idea is shown more clearly with the north-east Brazilian
Tenetehara (Wagley & Galvao, 1948, p. 142). Here, during the pregnancy of the wife and during the
child's infancy, the man must observe restrictions in respect to a large number of animals (both hunting
and dietary tabus), namely those whose spirits (piwara) can force themselves into the unborn child
and cause the physical abnormality that is the natural sign of the animal in question. Here, as with
the Waiwai, one notices that it is particularly the man who has tabus, because these are connected
with his sphere of work, hunting. The animal spirits, which correspond to the kworokjam of the
Waiwai, can through the father affect the health that is the souls, of the unborn and newly-born.
The example is a complete confirmation of the more general validity of the basic ideas and conditions
applying to the Waiwai. Although Zerries (Zerries 1954, p. 160), basing himself on the Tenetehara,
among others, supports Kunike's view (Kunike 1911, p. 551-58) that the South American couvade
rests on an ancient hunter mentality in the form of proto-totemism (or nagualism), there appears to
be no grounds for such a theory. For one thing proto-totemistic ideas are uncertain and at best were
rare by comparison with the widespread couvade, and for another the theory does not show sufficient
consideration for the role of women in natal customs.
The last objection is best illustrated by examples taken from the Arawakan linguistic stock. With
the Wapishana (Roth 1915, p. 322) both parents subject themselves to a "lying in", during which
they are considered equally unclean. Here, as with many other Arawakan tribes, plant spirits are
particularly characteristic, while among the Waiwai, for instance, and among others, it is always
animal spirits that act both as helping and as malevolent spirits. It is reported from the coastal Arawak
(Roth 1915, p. 324, cit. Dance 1881, p. 249) that the soul of an infant clings to the father until the
umbilical cord drops off (about 5 days), but does not become independent of the mother until it begins
to walk (about one year). The longer period of connexion with the mother than the father is particularly
well illustrated by the Arawakan Palikur (Nimuendaju 1926, pp. 83, 87). A Palikur man stays at home
with his wife and baby for about 10 days after the birth. For a long period thereafter he must con
tinually carry a baby sling and a miniature bow and arrow for the soul of the infant which is thought
to follow him everywhere. Although at this time the father is bound by many restrictions, he is,
significantly, allowed to go hunting. He may hunt all kinds of game and eat nearly anything. On the
other hand he must not use an axe or fell trees of certain species, (for example the silk cotton tree,
the spirit of which makes infants ill); nor must he grate or drink the vegetable cipo. It is worth noticing
that the Palikur religion does not talk at all of animal spirits, but only of spirits of plants, in addition
to the demons of water and mountains and the souls of the dead. Further, there also seems to exist
Childhood 151
the idea of spirits of cultivated plants that are dangerous to babies, since Nimuendaju refers to a
father of an infant who kept a handful of soil from a field he had sown in the child's critical period.
This corresponds completely to the Waiwai's kames! (magical object), which is often the bones of
animals hunted during the child's critical period. Among the Palikur the father, as we said, may go
hunting again and eat game after a few days, but the mother must, apart from ordinary household
chores, abstain from all work - particularly agriculture - for 2 months after the birth. This example
shows that when two of the conditions that applied to the Waiwai, namely 7) and 8) are altered, the
natal custom completely changes character. Apparently it is not animal but plant spirits that are
dangerous, and as this particularly hits the woman's occupation, she, not the man, is the one, who
must subject herself to the severest restrictions. According to time-honoured theories the Arawak
thereby depart from couvade, yet it is seen that the motive and basic ideas are of quite the same type.
Remembering these comparative glimpses, it seems reasonable to observe collectively the South
American natal customs - particularly those of the tropical forest tribes. It also seems to be very
probable that these natal customs, as a rule called couvade, are 1) motivated by the great child
mortality, 2) are stamped by the special distribution of work within semi-agriculture, but 3) are created
by purely animistic ideas about the human soul and animal or other nature spirits as possessing
qualities like divisibility and contagion. The latter results in the strong spirits being dangerous to the
weak infant soul. The more these dangerous spirits are connected to the man's domain of work, the
more the natal customs will result in a practice closer to the classic idea of couvade.
CHILDHOOD
Waiwai children can be suckled up to the age of eight provided a small brother or sister has not arrived
in the meantime - as is usually the case.
Weaning can be quite sudden. In one case a child of three was to be weaned and as it wanted the
breast despite the order, the mother quickly placed a hairy caterpillar on her breast so that the child
got this in its mouth instead of the nipple. The mother said: "This is what comes out when you suckle,
so you had better stop doing it". The child was weaned. It cannot be denied that children who were
too early or too suddenly weaned often appeared irritable and jealous of "little brother". Children
up to the age of two are carried in a baby sling (weniapon) over the mother's hip or in the arms; from
two until three they are carried on the back in a baby sling or by a band over the forehead of the
mother or father. When they"become heavier, at'"an age of three to five, they are often carried on the
• •
shoulders. Thereafter they manage by themselves.
As a rule children of up to eight years of age sleep in their parents' hammock, generally the boy
with the father, the girl with the mother. After that age they are given their own hammock (kuyuwa),
which is hung up in their parents' eta on one of the two other sides of the section. In one single case
a four-year old girl had her own hammock on occasion.
The ordinary direct terminology for children until they are about 13 is okopuchi, which means
"little corpse" or "a small one"; more seldom the term amoto (a weak one) is used. Okopuchi is also
152 Life Cycle
Fig. 21. During the Shodewika dance festival an elderly man relaxes in his hammock while the women are enjoying a
drinking interval. Small children are suckled and carried in baby slings.
the direct term for a son or a daughter, whilst amoto seems to be used in the case of a more-distantly
related child. In indirect speech children are referred to as muri or rikomo, but even adults are considered
as still somewhat rikomo. Altogether, there is no great division between the world of children and
adults; children are regarded as a kind of small equals who must not be ignored.
With the Waiwai there was an example or so of orphan children being adopted - even from neigh
bouring tribes, usually by childless couples. In such cases the children possessed full status as son or
daughter.
From about five years of age boys and girls are treated differently. Little girls patiently follow their
mothers to the fields and are allowed to dig up cassava tubers, and so forth. The boys practice with
small bows and arrows, for example by shooting at a piece of calabash shell floating downstream.
They fish near the village and shoot at birds and smaller game like agouti, which they often roast with
out the participation of their elders (Fig. 22). By degrees they are allowed to accompany the father on
longer and longer journeys. Play and teaching merge imperceptibly. Childhood seems to possess
few duties. A child's older epeka and its classificatory parents and grandparents can order it to do
certain things, such as fetching water or glowing embers, and other such minor services.
As a rule grandparents greatly love their grandchildren; they walk with them in their arms or let
Childhood 153
Fig. 22. Child and youth are preparing their own catch, a small agouti for roasting.
them fall asleep in their hammocks. The grandmother (usually the maternal grandmother) cuts the
children's hair and de-louses them, and often weaves the small girl's aprons. If the grandmother is
dead, all this is done by the mother. The paternal grandfather or father makes the children's hammocks
and the boys' lap. The boys, on the other hand, make their plain long bamboo hair tubes themselves.
Anton
Finally, reference must be made to a curious custom that might almost be described as a kind of
"domestic assistance" institution. An elderly married couple who has no children or grandchildren
between the ages of 5-13, often tries to obtain an errand boy or girl to attend to this minor duty. A
help of this kind is called, in indirect speech, an anton. My main informant, Ewka, was an anton for
an elderly woman after his mother's death. In this case the effect was probably almost that of an
154 Life Cycle
adoption. In another instance a 7 year old girl was anton for an elderly married couple (Mtywa) who
had an adult adopted son; the girl's mother allowed this as payment for Miywa's magical healing
of her husband, and also because a Waiwai finds it difficult to refuse a request (see p. 218). The young
girl was unhappy in her new home, and returned to the parents in the course of a year or so. During
her stay Miywa had said to his adopted son: "Here is your wife, train her yourself".
On another occasion an elderly woman asked for a girl of about eleven as an anton. She had a bad
leg and needed a messenger girl; at the same time her husband could obtain an extra wife. However,
this request - the second of its kind in the course of a short time - was not acceded to, because the
girl's classificatory brother, a youth of 16, said: "She is my only sister, and I need someone to work
for my food".
The anton custom seems to be an effective means of counteracting the haphazard division of large
and small families and of equalizing the consequent differences in economic obligations and practical
services.
The anton relationship can develop into a kind of voluntary adoption for mutual advantage, and,
by bringing into the family an unrelated person it can also become a short-cut to marriage. This last
mentioned effect may well be due to the acute shortage of women and the child engagements resulting
therefrom.
INITIATION
As soon as the first menstruation takes place, the young girl informs her mother or the female head
of her eta. The girl is at once told to sit down without anything in her hands and without touching
anything. She is given an old mat or in some cases a kind ofwoven hood or cap, wechi (which means
mat) specially made for the purpose, which she must hold over her head at all times and thus not be
able to look up towards the sky. All this is done in order that she may not infect her surroundings by
her weakness. The mother will at once - or, if it takes place at night, early the next morning - cut off
all the girl's hair with a pirai jaw, and remove all ornaments, leaving her only her apron. This is done
so that she may not in the future become lazy, for the seat of laziness is in the hair and the ornaments.
In the meantime the father of the girl starts building the initiation hut, wayapa (that is to say, "the
walls"). The wayapa can be a screened-off enclosure in the communal house itself, but most often
particularly if the house is well-filled - it is an individual hut, which differs from others in that it
possesses no door. The hut is constructed of lu palm leaves (Oenocarpus baccaba) or - if none are to
be found in the vicinity - of the leaves of the pimpler palm (Astrocaryum plicatum). The leaves of the
dalibanna (Geonoma sp.), otherwise generally used for thatching, or of the wild banana (Heliconia
sp.) are never used, since the kworokjam of these two trees would make the girl ill. Neither can one
use manicolleaves (Euterpe sp.), as it is thought that the manicol kworokjam will come in the shape
of a man and have intercourse with the girl, whereafter she will continually dream that he will come
night after night.
As soon as the hut is finished the girl enters it by pushing aside the leaves. Seclusion lasts, as a rule,
for about two months, but in one case the girl was in the hut only for about a month, as her family
Initiation 155
was in a hurry to plant a new field far from the village. During her long stay in solitude the girl's main
occupation is the spinning of cotton brought to her by her mother. She must leave the hut only for
necessary errands to the woods. In such cases she must take great care to have the old mat or hood
over her head, as it is believed that the sky will fall down and crush houses, trees and everything should
she look up at it. The underlying idea here is the cosmological conception of the sky as a big cassava
pot borne on three supporting stones, presumably a Wapishana influence, though it may be valid
also with the more original idea of heaven. Here the idea presumably is - as is often the case in con
nexion with menstruation - that the girl's weakness infects her surroundings. If the girl manages to
see only a small part of the sky, the result may be only a heavy shower of rain. The girl can go out
to relieve nature at any time of the day or night, and it does not matter if she 'is seen by people in
general. The yaskomo, however, must not see her, and should he look at her unremittingly he will
contract a fever. He will therefore try to look away and will never use the path that she has just trodden.
Attempts are also made to ensure that the hut in which she is housed is situated as far as possible from
his usual dwelling. If the girl falls ill during her initiation, the yaskomo will not even come and cure her.
Even though an adolescent girl may see people, she will never talk to, much less answer, them. Only
if it is imperative will she announce herself in a whisper. Only the -father and mother (or their possible
deputies) can enter her hut, but even they will limit themselves to saying: "Here is your food" or
something of that kind, whilst the girl merely mumbles "mh" in reply. This strict ban on speech is
due, according to the Waiwai, to the fear that the Anaconda-people may hear the girl and thus obtain
a chance of catching her (see p. 158). As has been mentioned, the girl passes most of her time in the hut
spinning cotton, and brings with her her spindle and a small piece of arrow cane to beat the cotton
with. She also has her hammock for the night, but as opposed to later menstruations, uses no men
struation mat by day. On the other hand she must sit on an old piece of light, white tree trunk. The
blood must sink into the ground, as it is thought she will develop dark skin on her posterior if she
uses the menstruation mat during the first menstruation. If she sits on a piece of heavy hard wood
during her seclusion, it is feared that her reactions will be too slow when later asked to perform a
service. The girl also takes with her into the hut a knife and a clay vessel, but she must not touch
gourds for fear that her cervix uteri may sink.
During the entire period of her seclusion, in the wayapa, the girl must adhere to a strict diet and
may only eat 1) cassava bread made from tapioca-free flour like, for example, puchi, 2) kwashari,
that is, pure cassava flour dried in cylindrical form, grated and stirred in warm water, 3) now and
then, kwashari mixed with a drink made from lu fruit (kumu), 4) yisa (thin cassava juice, boiled) and,
5) for the only animal food, kutmo (small fish).
A large 'number of animal and vegetable products are tabu for the following reasons: pakria (wild
I
pig) and toucan will cause the cervix uteri to sink (the toucan has red tail feathers), maam will produce
sores on the scalp (as it has itself), spider monkey and powis cause red pimples (as they have them
selves). Shfpiri (howler monkey), and meku (marmoset) bring sores all over the body, because their
respective kworokjam will bite the girl; tiger fish will induce a rash patterned like its own skin. The
red paku fish results in a big, fat stomach; wicharu (sakiwinki monkey) will make the girl's face colour
dark; tapir, forest deer and tortoise will give the girl a great deal of wind for the rest of her life, and
156 Life Cycle
Fig. 23. An emasr, coming-of-age girl, shortly after the month-long initiation seclusion.
During a period of two years the girl's life is governed by restrictions and hard work.
Initiation 157
the tortoise will, in addition cause hollows in the skin. The haimara fish causes "flaccid thighs" on
account of its flexible tail; the alligator causes warts on the behind, the marudi bird causes a red back
side (like its own). Akri (agouti), pashki (small agouti) and labba give rise to sandflies in the feet. The
wayam (tortoise) and shoheli (small sloth) result in melancholy, slow girls. Finally, most fruits and
vegetables, if eaten by adolescent girls, cause the cervix uteri to sink.
Each of the animals above-mentioned possess a kworokjam, which is the actual cause of their unfor
iI tunate effect on the girl. Otherwise, ordinary animal kworokjam are not dangerous to human beings
- apart from infants - and the explanation of the tabus must therefore be that the girl is undergoing
,I a period of weakness which exposes her to the power of the kworokjam. It will later be mentioned
I
that there are tabus that are not intended to protect the girl, but rather, to protect the game from the
I
I
effects of her weakness.
When the girl has passed the prescribed two months (approximately) in the wayapa, the mother
1
comes to the hut one day with a long bow. She sticks the bow through the side of the hut and says
to the girl: "Hold on". The girl does not reply but seizes the bow and by it is pulled out of the hut.
This is done so that "she should not rot before she dies", or, in other words, so that she will become
very old and will stay strong to the last (like the wood of the bow, krapa, which is so tough it never
rots). The custom of drawing out by the bow, which marks a violent change in status and in the form
of existence, can be regarded as a "rite de passage".
When the girl has come out, the mother gives her a little gourd which she must once push up between
her legs in order for the cervix uteri not to sink and become visible (of which there was one example
with the Waiwai). The mother then places an ant belt on various parts of the girl's body, which is to
stop her being lazy in the future. Finally, the mother instructs her in six basic rules: 1) To refrain for
some time from eating meat and drinking tapioca, 2) Never to answer angrily or pertly an elder relative
when asked to perform a service. 3) If an elder relative says: "Go and fetch water" you must answer
"oho" or "ta" (Very well). 4) Never to be lazy. 5) To rise up quickly when asked to perform a service.
6) Never to steal cotton or anything else from her sisters, "for if you do they will blow magic on you
1
and you will die".
Willingness, industry, honesty and obedience are thus the virtues of an emasi, that is, of a coming wife.
After this teaching the girl can again put on some of her ornaments, for example calf bands and
necklet, but the feather ornaments that often hang from the apron are not put on for some time for
fear that the toucan feathers will cause the cervix uteri to sink. For the same reason some women
refrain all their lives from wearing feather ornaments. More important, however, after initiation the
girl obtains for the first time her apomi, the upper arm bands of white bead strings. These are regarded
as a sign of maturity for both sexes. As a rule about a month will pass before the girl has sexual rela
tions. However, some are less timid, and may have had them before initiation, but in both cases only
with a wayamnu.
158 Life Cycle
ADOLESCENCE
For about two years around initiation (i.e. about 11-13 years of age) the adolescent girl is called emasi,
The whole of this period is stamped by hard work, the older women trying continually to keep the
emasi employed. It was often noticed that the emasl had to do household work even when the other
members of the family were assembled for a common meal.
A number of bans last for the whole emasi period. There is, for example, one ordaining that an
emasi must not walk on the customary path, and preferably should have material round her feet so
that the medicine man will not tread in her footsteps and thus contract fever (see p. 124). An emasi
must not eat tapir flesh, for if she does, her stomach, it is thought, will swell. Neither must she eat
poinko, wild pig. I observed that this was strictly adhered to when a man came home one day with a
poinko he had killed. His wife's little sister, aged about 12, came to meet him, but a group of men in
the work hut at once shouted: "Do not let her eat it" (repeated). It is thought that by doing so her
emasi weakness will make all poinko "weak" and cause them to run away. At the same time poinko
yin will become angry and withdraw his wild pigs from the village for good (see p. 29).
The Waiwai believe that if a girl does not undergo initiation, there will result heavy rains accom
panied by thunder and lighthing; the water in the rivers will rise. They explain this last by saying that
the Anaconda-people spit a great deal. My informant gave an account of some Waiwai who had not
believed in the existence of the Anaconda-people, and thus had not secluded their young girls. But
when the girls one day went down to the river to bathe, some Anaconda men appeared, seized them,
and made off with them. The Anaconda-people only show themselves to young Waiwai girls, never
to men (except yaskomo) ..
In connexion with initiation one repeatedly comes across reference to the Anaconda-people, for
example as a reason for seclusion, silence, head mats, and so forth. It is therefore interesting that such
ample justification for the customs can be found in Waiwai mythology. The last part of the creation
myth can particularly be regarded as a justification and stabilization of a socially-demanding custom.
In this the pursuit of Waiwai girls by the Anaconda-people is explained as being due to a desire for a
sister exchange in return for the Anaconda woman stolen by Mawari.
In the myth about the Anaconda-people the theme is extended, and a precedent is created for certain
ornaments - left to their "brother-in-law" Waiwai by the Anaconda-people - to indicate a definite
social status. The whole explanation and interpretation of Waiwai initiation is thus nourished by their
mythology.
Menstruation
There are few customs connected with menstruation except for some tabu rules of a character similar
to those governing initiation.
Menstruation in Waiwai is called "roupo" (that is to say, to remain seated on the ground). Although
it is realized that the menstruation interval corresponds with the lunation, the Waiwai do not appear
to connect these two facts. During menstruation the woman remains in her hammock most of the
time; she is apprehensive about participating in ordinary work, and is not allowed to work at all with
cassava, either in the field or in the home.
Adolescence 159
During menstruation, and only then, women use a mat made of the beaten bark of the Brazil nut
tree, titkopicho, which she usually makes herself. If it takes too long, the husband can lend a hand.
The Brazil nut tree is extremely rare in the Guiana Waiwai's area, and in most cases they must fetch
the mats from the district of the Mapuera Waiwai or else obtain them by trading. When not in use
the mats hang over a palm leaf stalk horizontally placed in the roof. Only one corner of it is taken
for each menstruation; this is afterwards thrown away.
There are special tabu rules for a menstruating woman in connexion with bags of game. She must
not eat flesh killed by younger men, for if she does, they will be unable to kill their prey in future.
She is, however, allowed to eat all kinds of meat, provided it has been killed by older men. In addition,
a menstruating woman must never eat the flesh of game that has been hunted or caught by dogs,
which particularly refers to poinko, though also to other animals. Even all other Waiwai who eat
game of this kind must carefully wash their hands with leaf soap, as, if they bring any of the smell
~ . of this game to their hammocks and one of these later is touched by a menstruating woman, it will
T
prove impossible to get the dogs to chase game any longer. The weakness thus transferred to the animal
is again transferred to the dog which in touching the animal has part in its kworokjam. The infectious
quality of the kworokjam is responsible for the ban.
The lower jaws, particularly of the tapir and wild pig - which are often kept as a kind of hunting
trophy - are always hung up under the dog shelf so that a menstruating woman shall not inadvertently
come to step on them. Should she do so in the case of a tapir's lower jaw, her husband would never
again see a tapir. The same would occur if anyone burnt a tapir's lower jaw under a cassava pan
(see p. 120).
Here, it is presumably not so much the weakness of the menstruating person that is concerned as is
the fact that most kworokjam hate and fear red and blood (see p. 22). When such risk is involved in
keeping the lower jaws of animals, it is surprising that the custom persists. Unfortunately, the author
was unable to obtain any explanation of this. His main informant, Ewka, who himself had seven tapir
jaws hanging up, merely said: "Perhaps my son will play with them when he grows bigger", but he
clearly evinced a hunter's pride when showing them. If the lower jaw of a pakria hunted by dogs is
trodden on by a menstruating woman, the dogs will never again hunt them. In this event there is a
means of curing this weakness: the bark of the apopori tree (which smells like pepper and is often
mixed with it) is mixed with pepper and cassava juice which is warmed up nearly to boiling point.
The dog's mouth is then tied and the mixture is smeared first over the dog's snout and then over its
whole body by the woman responsible for the accident. This is the only occasion when this remedy
can .be resorted to.
Male adolescence
There is no initiation for Waiwai men corresponding to the seclusion of girls. At an age of about
13 to 15 a boy will be given an apomi (upper arm band of white bead strings) by his mother (or her
deputy), and will be told how he should wear it. As a rule the boy will evince both pride and timidity
about putting it on, and can be seen walking about for days with arms folded in order to hide this
sign of maturity. A young man once explained that he was afraid people would laugh at him. It was
160 Life Cycle
said that prior to the visit of the Anaconda-people (see p. 50), bark apomi had been used of the same
type as those still worn at Shodewika dance festivals.
About the same time as the apomi is put on, the young man's nasal septum is pierced to enable him
to carry the resplendant nasal decoration which consists of the red tail feather of a macaw projecting
vertically. Not until then is he able to clothe himself in full ceremonial dress. (Fig. 8).
Boys are given no moral lectures at this juncture unless they have actually broken some unwritten
law, in which case they are told about it, and perhaps reproved. By this time the boy has grown so big
that he desires to replace the clumsy boy's hair tube by the more elegant adult type. The old one he
breaks. (Fig. 12).
At this time his designation is changed from okopuchi to okopurwa. He is so called not only by
his classificatory parents but also by the elders of the village. After a daughter's initiation she is also
included under the direct term okopurwa.
THE AGE GROUPS OF ADULTS
The Waiwai language contains a group of designations which indicate persons of definite age groups.
The importance of these groups is governed by social and, particularly, economic considerations.
After the emas'i period there comes a time between initiation and the first birth. During this period a
woman is called emato by those not closely related to her; the family continues to employ the usual
terminology of kinship. If a woman has no children, the term can be applied to her until death.
Normally, a woman during this period belongs to her parents' eta (household) and works for her family.
From the time of her first childbirth until old age (about 40-50), a woman is called ewshanyon
(the suffix "yon" means mother, ewshan = child). This is her actual period of activity as head of an
independent eta. Her economical responsibility is considerable, since the basis of the Waiwai community,
agriculture, depends upon her. An ewshanyon is almost continuously active, and in the household
she must attend to various single relatives in addition to her husband. If many of her children die
early, she is given the sinister name of okohyon (mother of corpses).
Old women are called yeme (mother) or - more often - chacha (grandmother). During this period
their activities grow less. The head of the village sees to it that a part of the agricultural produce is
obtained by common labour on his field; daughters or an anton give a hand with the daily work.
There is thus more time for older women to engage in more tranquil occupations, such as handicraft
or looking after the children.
The age stages of men correspond roughly, though the first only extends from maturity to marriage.
During this period the man is referred to as karipamchan. That marriage and not the first child marks
the threshold is not surprising, as by the rule of matrilocality on marriage he moves from his mother's
eta, which hitherto supported him and for which he worked, into a new one.
Between the conclusion of marriage and old age a man is referred to as etutekasha, and during
roughly the same period he is addressed as pitl, Piti is a term of kinship for a younger male relative,
but it appears to be given an extended connotation so that it embraces all younger men in the village.
Death 161
It is this class that executes all the heavier manual labour connected with the clearing of fields, long
hunting expeditions, and so forth. This group will often consist mainly of men who, because of the
washma custom of dependence on the wife's family, are obliged to comply with demands to work.
The elder men (from about 45 years of age) are often called apa (father) or pacho (grandfather,
which in indirect speech becomes paritomo). A paritorno need never engage in heavy work such as
the clearing of a field, but can stick to quiet occupations like fishing and plaiting. The head of the
village will partly furnish him with products from the head's own fields in order for him to pass a
great part of the day in the hammock, often with his beloved grandchildren.
DEATH
A number of points in connexion with death have already been dealth with, particularly in connexion
with the disappearance of the ekati at death and its transition to ekatinho (see p. 17 and p. 18) and
in the section dealing with fatal, magic blowing.
According to Waiwai ideas there are three ordinary causes of death, each linked to a definite period
of life. When a baby dies it is always due to poyin, that is to say, certain supernatural dangers to which
inadequate attention has been shown by the parents. When very old people die, it is due to their
becoming weak and contracting eperia (fever); eperia appears to be regarded as a kworokjam, for it
is thought that if anyone sees the bones of a person who has died at an advanced age, the eperia of
the dead person will try and catch the individual in question. Others, in addition, said that eperia was
a kworokjam which was supposed to wear clothes and look somewhat like a Brazilian. When a person
contracts a disease of the nose, throat or lungs, he says this kworokjam has entered him. To all other
ages the rule applies that death can be caused by a kworokjam (particularly a kakenau-kworokjam),
but this seldom happens, since the yaskomo usually succeeds in bringing back the stolen ekati to the
body before it is too late. It is therefore assumed that all death during this period is due to fatal magic
blowing, either the primary tono blowing or the secondary parawa revenge blowing. The theory
behind all inexplicable deaths is in all cases that a person loses his ekati, which is either evicted
by a kworokjam or is stolen. For this reason the sick and the dying feel themselves to be lighter
than usual.
The ekati can leave the body during dreams and illness in the case of ordinary people, but if not
brought back by magic means in the course of a short time, the person must invariably die. Suicide
seems completely unknown among the Waiwai, though homicide naturally occurs, for example as a
result of marital conflicts. For example, a man killed his wife. A woman shortly before that had killed
her spouse in order to obtain a younger man as her sole husband. If a man discovers with certainty
that a person has tried to take his life by magic, he can resort to tangible counter-measures by killing
his foe with a club (watma or payura), My informant gave me one day so lively a description of such
an event that I had the feeling it was a personal experience of his. A man can go to his enemy whilst
the latter is sitting on his stool talking to others. The man will first talk in friendly fashion with his
enemy, but suddenly, whilst the enemy looks away, the man will give him a fatal blow on the temple
11 Waiwai
162 Life Cycle
Fig. 24. The war club, payura, is resorted to, for instance, when a
man feel sure that an enemy has blown magically on him in order
to cause his death. (Nat. Mus. Copenhagen, H. 4127).
with the payura club. This is held with both hands at the thick end and the blow is struck from the
left shoulder obliquely down towards the right.
Upon death by violence the ekan also leaves the body, though, as opposed to soul theft, only in the
moment of death. The -ekatl is spread all over the body, but is located particularly in the region of
the heart. Death is recognized when the heart ceases to beat. Everyone is afraid of his own death
"because one dies completely". The death of others is also feared because their ekatinho are always
malicious.
The Waiwai word for death in all its forms is kwaihlri. This word is even employed in careless talk
about old and sick people.
When a person is so weak that death is considered certain, he is carried out of the communal house
and placed in an ordinary little rain shelter of the powishi-matko type. This is done because his presence
would otherwise make the others unhappy and "they would not play or whistle". They would be sad
and talk about his illness and thus make him unhappy. The spouse of the dying person, his closest
relative, or "the one who would miss him the most", sleeps with him in the little shelter. If the person
Death 163
is much liked, the yaskomo will be called to try and cure him, but otherwise the person is just left to
die by himself. It is typical that the sick person himself is soon seized by a spirit of hopelessness, takes
no food, and quickly pines away.
When a man dies his family and friends weep, and hands are rubbed up and down the thighs. Steps
are immediately taken to cremate the body. This is done before midday if the person died in the
morning, and the next morning if death occurred at night. The deceased's female relatives will cut
their hair short, and the male relatives will at all events cut off a piece of their pigtail. A long pigtail
is a Waiwai's pride, and probably also a sign of manhood. For this reason he does not cut off all his
hair as do the Mouyenna living to the south-east. The children of the deceased's family have all their
hair cut off because he had caressed it. It is apparently feared that the part of the deceased man's ekati
transferred by these endearments may change into the dangerous ekatinho.
As a rule the corpse is borne to the funeral pyre clad only in a lap in the case of a man or an apron
in the case of a woman. On one occasion, however, the dead man was dressed up in his ceremonial
dress. The body is not veiled when carried away.
A yaskomo is frequently asked to take part in the procession in order to afford protection against
the kworokjam that may have been responsible for the death. In general, most of the village turns out
to witness the cremation, except for the children. It is feared that the eye ekati' of children might other
wise be led away during the ceremony (see p. 19).
The body, which has been lying in its hammock the whole time, is now carried by two or four close
male relatives (brothers and spouse, for example) to the pyre by a long pole supporting the hammock.
The cremation takes place at an open spot far from the village - in an old clearing, never in the forest.
The pyre consists of a pile of logs about 1 metre high, and the body and the hammock are not thrown
onto it until the flames have reached the top. The deceased's personal effects are destroyed at the
same time; a man's bow and arrows are broken and burnt, but not on the pyre; a woman's baskets
and spindle are destroyed and can be burnt in her old eta hearth or outside the house; knives are
broken and bead ornaments thrown into the river. Only an odd, costly object may pass to a close
relative who asks for it, for example a woman's apron to her daughter, or a man's axe to his son. My
informant, Ewka, one of the very few who had managed to get hold of a gun, thought that his son
should inherit it "unless my son should get angry and destroy it". In a culture like the Waiwai's, where
practically every cultural element is definitely a male or female implement, it is reasonable that the right
of inheritance should follow the bivalent rule that a son inherits the father and a daughter the mother.
After the corpse has been cast onto the pyre, those who have no special connexion with the deceased
soon return home, whereas his family and close friends remain for a time watching the fire and weeping.
They then return to the village and lament. A woman who loses her husband may weep for several
days. When the fire has burnt out, a close relative takes a few bones out of the ashes; these burnt
bones are of considerable importance in the case of a parawa, that is to say, a fatal magic blowing
undertaken shortly after the cremation. This magic blood feud must be performed by a close relative
of the deceased. The remainder of the burnt bones are collected on the ground and covered by leaves
of the pimpler palm (Astrocaryum plicatum), and a few sticks are laid over to keep down the leaves.
As a rule nothing more is done.
11·
164 Life Cycle
In the case of children, the burnt bones are collected and placed under an inverted clay vessel,
either a parakwe (drinking bowl) or a tahelim (cooking pot). An adult's bones are said to be too big
to allow this, though this is not in accord with fact since the clay vessels used for the manufacture of
the cassava drink are amply large enough. In view of the cremation's declining importance among
the Guiana Waiwai (see below) there is reason to assume that the placing of the bones of the dead
under a clay vessel once applied also to adults. Information was obtained from the Mapuera Waiwai
in support of this assumption, but unfortunately it was received through a none too reliable Wapishana
interpreter. According to him, there were the following possibilities: the burnt bones 1) were collected
on the ground and covered with leaves, 2) were placed in a plaited basket of lu palm leaves and kept
in the house, or 3) preserved in a special small hut at the place of cremation. In the event of the village
being moved, the remains were placed 1) in a tree in the forest, 2) under an inverted clay vessel, or
3) in a clay vessel somewhere or other in the village. However, the author has never seen or heard of
bone remains preserved in the communal house, so if it is not a matter of a directly wrong inter-
pretation, the explanation may be that the interpreter's source, Churuma, whilst a naturalized Waiwai,
originally came from the Piskaryenna Indians, who live further to the south by the central Mapuera.
As a rule the Waiwai are so afraid of the baleful intentions of the ekati'nho that it seems inconsistent
to have close contact with bone remnants. Placing them in the forest is incompatible with the concern
shown that the grave shall lie in a clearing. During his journeys in Waiwai district the author has never
come across grave huts. This uncertain information about the placing of bones in a basket in the
communal house, however, is supported by a report about the Faruaru tribe (= Parukoto), who
according to Frikel (1957, p. 545), are said to live near the upper Mapuera. According to this report,
this tribe is said to be endocannibals, who mixed bone ash in their drink in order to become "wilder
and stronger". The ash is said to have been kept in small baskets that hang from the roof of the
communal house. There is thus a possibility of a Parukoto feature partly absorbed by the Waiwai
culture, as is the case with the Parukoto tribe itself (see p. 235). In connexion with cannibalism, it can
be mentioned that the name given fatal blowing, tono (as mentioned on p. 105), actually means: to
eat meat. This may be a reminiscence of an earlier anthropophagy.
In addition to destroying the personal property of a dead person, other things are often destroyed
in anger. When an old woman died, all her fine gourd plants were cut down, and when a small child
died, her father felled the very rare taruma tree, probably a culture growth, which the Waiwai had
taken over from the Turuma people who lived in the area 30-40 years earlier. A beloved dog can also
be killed on such occasions. Generally, it is a matter of something that has belonged to the deceased,
and a Waiwai explained that when trees were felled it was due to anger at "those who may talk ill of
the dead person and yet exploit his trees". At all events there is no question of any funerary gifts, as
the Waiwai do not conceive any personal survival after death.
The most violent destruction in connexion with a case of death is the complete burning down of a
village. This is not done in the case of every death, though the Waiwai maintain that this was the rule
in the olden days. Such conflagrations are only resorted to now on the death of an important member
of the village, the head man, the medicine man, or one of their wives. Two burnt-out villages of this
kind lying in the immediate vicinity of the present Mauika and Kashimo clearly showed traces of
Death 165
household utensils left behind, which leads one to assume that clay vessels, for example, were not
removed to any extent but were smashed by the collapse of the houses. The burning down of the village
is usually done on the same day as the cremation, and 20-30 people suddenly find themselves without
a roof over their heads. As a village is sometimes rebuilt only a few hundred metres distant from the
old, it is not for fear of the grave that a removal is undertaken. In one case at Erlpoimo (upper Esse-
quibo) a move was made in connexion with many deaths because "there were too many bones around".
On account of the ideas concerning ekatinho (see p. 18) and its manifestations, people are afraid
of the site of the grave and try to avoid coming too close to it. There is no death feast or later cult.
However, if the deceased has been a much-loved person, one may go out and clear an opening round
his grave if the forest threatens to engulf it.
When a death has taken place, no intelligence concerning this is transmitted to neighbouring villages.
One waits until strangers come on a visit and then informs them of the death by means of an oho
chant. An oho chant (see further p. 218) is always performed, often several times, in connexion with
a death. The close relatives of the departed, spouse, father, brother and so forth, thus address them-
selves to those unrelated to him. During the course of the oho the sorrowing relatives will express
indignation that it was possibly a fellow villager who killed the dead person by magic blowing. The
unrelated people, on their side, obtain an opportunity to proclaim their innocence, their sympathy,
and their hope that the mourners, despite their anger, will remain in the village also for the sake of its
prosperity. If in a case of death no relatives hold an oho, people will censure those who should have
done so and even accuse them of having blown magically upon the dead person themselves.
In addition to cremation, which is general over the whole Waiwai area and almost universal with
the Mapuera Waiwai, burial frequently takes place with the Essequibo Waiwai. The Waiwai say
themselves that they learnt the custom of burial about 30-40 years ago from the Taruma when they
lived just north of them between the confluence of the Kuyuwini and Kassikaityu with the Essequibo.
The Waiwai then lived in close contact with the Taruma, who since have disappeared as a tribe, having
been partly absorbed by the Waiwai group. On their side the Taruma had learnt the custom of burial
from the more nothernly Wapishana in the Guiana savannah, and these in turn had probably been
influenced by the Roman-Catholic mission. On the Brazilian side burial is not practised, apart from
individual cases in connexion with the funeral of a yaskomo. The Mouyenna, for example, practice
cremation, and a Mapuera Waiwai chieftan whose wife had just been cremated thought the custom
would continue unchanged.
A new impulse in the direction of burial has appeared among the Essequibo Waiwai with the estab-
lishment of an unevangelized field mission, started in this area by the Brothers Hawkins in 1951. A
Waiwai woman who died at this mission was buried, but her brother, who lived near the Mapuera,
came in order to revenge her death by magic blowing. As he found her buried and wanted some of
her burnt bones for the spell, he disinterred her one night without the missionaries knowledge, took
the body away and gave it a traditional cremation. Then, with the aid of a burnt finger and elbow
joint, he conducted his magic blowing.
It seems as though the Waiwai regard cremation as a necessary condition for parawa, revenge
blowing; the author, however, has no material which enables him to furnish definite proof of this.
166 Life Cycle
No case of burial was heard of that was followed by revenge blowing, and only children are given a
secondary funeral (see below). Apart from this possible result of a change in funeral customs, the
question does not appear to be regarded with any degree of religious fanaticism or to be considered
as anything of deep importance (as certain archaeologists are inclined to suppose). Whether the dead
person is cremated or buried, people are equally frightened of the ekatinho which from the grave
attempts to persecute the survivors.
In the case of burial - where most elements are the same as with cremation, for which reason they
will not be repeated here - the corpse is laid on its back in the grave with the head pointing towards
the west. The reason for this is explained as being that the deceased must face the east, towards the
sunrise, "so that there can be sunshine"; should it instead face west, it is thought that there will be
rainy weather for the first month. The body must lie straight on its back, and that it does so can be
ascertained during the first new moon. If it lies horizontally all is well; should it lie obliquely the corpse
is also lying on its side. Clothing and ornaments occasionally follow the dead person to the grave on
the same principle as that applying to cremation.
If a mother and child die during a birth they are buried together and the child is laid in the mother's
arms; otherwise common burials are unknown.
When a child is buried, the relatives will return to the grave about a month later in order to mourn.
They will then collect the bones in a little heap near the grave and place an inverted clay vessel over
them. This secondary burial is presumably a relic of the more pristine cremation. Also in this case the
bones of adults are considered to be too big for such a practice.
If a man dies far from his village, and no burial can be arranged, his relatives will weep. Steam from
a heated stone will be led over his personal property in order to safeguard the infants from poyin.
Even from ancient times the Waiwai have had the reputation amongst other Guiana tribes of having
well-trained hunting dogs. These are accordingly treated with great veneration. An unusually good
hunting dog may even be cremated or buried, and the owner will weep over it. Ordinary dead dogs
are merely thrown away in the forest.
The explanation hitherto current concerning the manner in which the custom of burial reached the
Waiwai is not quite definitive. A custom should be described in connexion with a form of burial that
has taken place - at all events three times - with the Mapuera Waiwai, and once with the Essequibo
Waiwai.
The first instance concerns a yaskomo who had expressly asked to be treated in the following
manner after death: he should be buried (contrary to normal practice), and another yaskomo (and
only such a person) was then to place a flat plank of white, light wood kamuywa (Pourouma sp.),
about 5 metres long, vertically in the ground just at the side of the grave. The lowest two-thirds of the
plank should be painted in red onomto colour (Bixa orellana) with horizontal rings, and the upper
third should have black rings of soot from pots (possibly mixed with the bark juice of the tasha tree
(Inga alba) if the colour is to be specially durable). The plank was called the yaskomo's ladder or
bridge. Its purpose was to enable all the yaskomo's helping spirits, hyaslri, to leave the body and
ascend to the sky where they belonged. Finally, his own ekati, now in the form of an ekatmho, would
leave the grave "as body" and proceed to its heavenly place. As opposed to the usual idea of the
- - ..........- ------~-~
Death 167
ekatinho's haunting of the earth without any sense of personal survival, the author ventures to suggest
that behind the term "ekatinho - as body" lies a belief in survival after death. The two other cases of
yaskomo or soul ladders were also met with in the Mapuera district. The one of them, used when
Kashar'i died, was said to have been the very first case with the Waiwai. This presumably took place
about thirty years ago (as my informant stated that Kashari was dead when he himself was born).
Here a dual purpose was said to be served: his ekatinho would go to heaven, and his children would
be spared seeing his ekatinho and hyasiri,
There are no examples of yaskomo ladders in connexion with cremation, or in the case of lay men.
However, a special case is mentioned where a yayalitomo (head of a village) in Eripoimo (Essequibo
Waiwai area), who had been particularly beloved, was given a similar soul ladder when he died. As a
rule the yaskomo and the head of the village are one and the same person, but this does not seem to
have been so in this case. The dead man was given a plank about It metres high, painted with charcoal
like a ladder (horizontal bands), placed upright in the grave so that it touched the head. The corpse
was then covered over. His ekatmho could thus ascend to the skies where all are thought to be happy
and friendly.
One more example of burial is known in connexion with the Mapuera Waiwai. Here it was a yaskomo
whose special hyaslri was poinko-yin (the Father of wild pig). When he felt himself to be very weak,
he said: "Bury me, I am already dead; it is only my iiukwa stone that is now speaking. I am dead."
He was then taken to an old clearing and buried. But under the ground he was heard to say "aah,
aah, mh, mh", so it was realized that he was going down in the earth to poinko-yin. There, it is believed,
he remains still.
The old yaskomo in Mauika (Essequibo), thought that when he died he would go to the Okoimo-
yenna (Anaconda-people), who were his special hyasiri. Presumably he was also thinking of burial,
but it was not directly mentioned.
It can be concluded from these examples that in addition to the admitted influence of the Wapishana
from the north on the Essequibo Waiwai, which resulted in a slow, general change from cremation to
burial, another influence has been felt, particularly by the Mapuera Waiwai, as a result of the yaskomo's
allowing their ekatmho to withdraw to their respective hyaslri by the aid of soul ladders, but always
in connexion with burial. It is probable that both these influences began about the year 1920. It would
not be unreasonable to assume that the Waiwai obtained an impulse from the south in regard to
burial. Although the Mapuera tribes all resorted to cremation, the Carib groups around them practised
burial almost without exception (see Frikel 1957, p. 520).
Waiwai burial, particularly in the case of yaskomo, is closely linked with the whole layer of medicine
man practice connected with voluntary soul flights from the shutepana. This must be considered one
of the newest of the magic practices, though hardly as young as burial (see also analysis of magic
blowing, p. 117). It is by no means unlikely that we will be able to see a certain connexion among the
Waiwai between the yaskomo's summoning of his hyasrn, the ekatmho as a haunter of the earth, and
cremation on one hand, and the yaskomo's soul flight to his helping spirit, the death journey of his
ekatinho, and burial on the other; for this, however, a comprehensive comparative analysis would
be necessary.
168 Life Cycle
ASPECTS
In reviewing Waiwai marriage, birth, initiation and death, there is reason briefly to mention the cultural
basis stressed by the Waiwai in each case. These conscious motives for the thresholds of the life cycle
naturally tell us nothing about the historical origin or the unconscious social origin, but are of some
interest for the understanding of the cultural picture. If we examine whence the groups of ideas con-
nected with the four "thresholds" derive, it is obvious that the customs connected with birth and
death rest on a purely animistic basis, and normally contain an element of magic. Birth and death
are considered the peculiarly individual thresholds, whereas marriage and initiation are more socially-
stamped. However, none of the four thresholds are really directly social, as no common arrangements
are made in the case of any of them. The feeling of community created, for example, in the case of the
dance festivals, is never met with in connexion with the thresholds of the life cycle, apart from the
mourners at a cremation - and they are completely unorganized. It is now apparent that customs in
connexion with marriage and initiation are frequently dealt with in the myths. The myths, whose
main features to a great extent must be considered as loans, have presumably undergone continual
amendment in regard to detail in that they have come to explain the origin of these social customs.
The myths have now existed for generations and have gradually acquired independent importance
as a guide to the conduct of the individual. They have become an expression of tradition and act as
a moral code.
The Waiwai myths can be good stories in themselves. They often tell of supernatural beings, though
in our days these, in comparison with animism, are of no importance to the religious concepts of the
Waiwai. It is certain, however, that owing to their assumed age and sacrosanct contents, the myths
exercise an important function by creating a precedence and thus justifying and finally stabilizing the
forms of behaviour in connexion with marriage and initiation.
By comparing the life cycle of the Waiwai with their conscious motives a partial understanding is
gained of their attitude: religion, that is to say, animism with magic practices, is particularly linked
with the extreme of existence, the special individual thresholds, birth and death, whence - whither,
and thus, to human existence itself. The myths, on the other hand, particularly their details which
supply tradition and a moral code, are to an unusual degree connected with events of social importance,
such as marriage and initiation.
Dance Festivals
At least once a year a Waiwai village celebrates a dance festival of one kind or another. There can
be a certain reason for a festival of this kind such as the inauguration of a new communal house, and
so forth, or the desire to arrange meetings with young strangers with a view to later marriage with
local, unmarried girls. In most cases, however, the reason is merely the general wish for a festival
and contact, plus the duty - which involves prestige - to return the hospitality of others. The only
essential for a dance festival is an ample supply of cassava, vast quantities of which are brought from
the fields about a week before the party and made into cassava bread and beer. The dance festivals
could equally well be termed drinking festivals, for enormous quantities of beer are consumed. The
Waiwai say themselves that they only dance in order to drink.
No dance festivals are any longer directly connected with the seasons or agriculture, but in the old
days it was the custom, so the Waiwai say, to dance when the planting of a new field had been finished,
i.e. when the short rainy season ends at the beginning of January. The custom is still followed by the
Mouyenna, a neighbouring tribe to the south-east. This dance festival had no special name, being
merely called manumtopo, that is, a dance.
Another manumtopo that incidentally has many features in common with the Shodewika festival
described below, is held in connexion with the inauguration of a new communal house. When erecting
one of the big round conical-roofed houses, miimo, a central pole is used as a temporary support of
the roof poles. The day the house is completed and thatched, one or more of neighbouring villages
are invited to a dance festival, and the first day passes like all other festivals in drinking and dancing.
On the second day the central supporting pole is cut down and carried away, whilst a new pole about
12 metres high is decorated by one of the older men of the village with red and black paint. Only the
lower, thick end of the pole is painted. In one case the patterns was the "agouti's wrist", in another
the okoimo-miori, Anaconda pattern, according to the artist's fancy. It was stated that the purpose
of this painting was merely decoration; there was no magical intent.
Then three or four of the male guests take the new pole and dance round with it in the village clearing.
That the guests do this is possibly due to the fact that the local people seldom take part in the dance
themselves. After the round dance with the pole the same men stick the thin end through the door
and up through the smoke aperture. Up there it is tied firmly just over the centre where the common
hearth is sited. Finally a cowl of palm leaves is placed over the smoke hole.
When this work has been done, the dance festival continues according to type, often lasting a few
days longer.
170 Dance Festivals
THE YAMO DANCE
The yamo dances are very protracted and consequently are held but seldom. Unfortunately, the
author was never fortunate enough to witness a dance of this type, and thus has only sporadic in-
formation about them.
Yamo appears to be a kind of common description for two kinds of dance festivals: klr1r1 and
mahoa, both of which are connected with the Anaconda-people.
It is related of the origin of klr1r1 that the first Waiwai yaskomo went in a dream on a visit to the
Anaconda-people. Down there he witnessed a dance, and on his return from his soul flight he told
his tribesmen about it. The dance was called klr1r1 after the species of anaconda visited by the yaskomo.
The characteristic thing about it was that the women sat in the middle of the communal house and
sang whilst the men danced around them. No flutes were used, and the men had no patterns on their
dancing costumes. Apart from this the dance proceeded as with a mahoa.
The origin of the mahoa was said to be as follows: A Waiwai yaskomo who was out walking in the
forest came to a mound on which was a big old tree stump. The stump was hollow, and from it
came music, as from a small whistle. When the yaskomo saw and heard this, he hurried back to the
village and summoned several other yaskomo. Together they returned to the mound. The yaskomo
then went down into the hole and reached far into the earth before they discovered whence the music
came. It proved to be the Anaconda-people living under the mound, and when the yaskomo reached
them they were just engaged in dancing a yamo dance, where the only instrument used was a small
whistle called mahoa (hence the name of the dance). The yaskomo remained with the Anaconda-
people for a long time in order to participate in the dance and to see everything that took place. Finally,
when they were ready to return home, they said: "Give us the whistles". They were given them in an
old tipiti, but before they left the Anaconda-people warned them, saying: "Do not show the whistles
to the women". On their return the yaskomo only showed the whistles to the men and told them what
they had seen. In this way the Waiwai were able to copy the yamo dance.
The yamo dance (of the mahoa type) is held at irregular intervals, and only when an ample supply
of food and drink is available. Before the dance opens, a small rectangular house is erected where
the men can don their costumes unseen and stay between dances. Around this house a fence is raised
to stop women and children from observing what goes on in the house. The whole dance lasts about
two months, interrupted, however, by rest days and hunting days in the case of men, and by working
days for the women when they attend to the provision of adequate supplies of cassava bread and,
particularly, cassava beer.
During the first month the dance is solely a male dance, and the women are not even allowed to
be in the immediate neighbourhood of the dancers, since the mahoa flute is used as musical accompani-
ment. The men's dance costumes are made of chawana palm leaves, which have over the back a pattern,
usually three horizontal bars. The costume is so long that only the feet are visible plus the one hand
that holds the musical instrument. The face is covered by a mask of painted bast material.
In the second month the men use dancing rattles instead of the mahoa whistle, and the women thus
obtain an opportunity to take part. However, the women do not actually dance themselves, but sit
The Yamo dance 171
singing in the centre of the communal house as with the kirirt dance. During their participation the
women do not wear any actual dance costume, but only a curious necklace, a rope made out of ite
spires, from which a tuft of loose fibre of the same plant falls down over the stomach to about the navel.
The dance consists for the great part of only two men dancing at the same time. They come from
the fenced-in house clad in dance costume, enter the communal house, and begin to dance in a circle
around the singing women, who are unable to detect their identity. Besides the rattles of the two men
which furnish the beat there is only the chant of the women "Come yamo, come yamo, come yamo
(repeated), you are my wayamnu (repeated)".
Both dancers are called "yamo" during the dance. By definite rattle rhythms they are able to demand
food and cassava drink, of which latter six different varieties can be served. When the first two dancers
become tired, they dance out of the communal house into the fenced-in changing house. A moment
after two other dancers emerge and the performance is repeated. Tired dancers can rest in their ham-
mocks, and the dance is continously kept going for an indefinite period.
Between two ordinary dancing couples two lads can be dressed up as yamo clowns. A quantity of
palm leaves are tied onto them, and they play pranks in the communal house, such as spitting out
water and so on.
The two forms of yamo dance mentioned here have originally been very closely connected with the
Anaconda-people, and it is asserted, also, that dancers imitate that people's mode of dancing. The
. meaning of the word "yamo" is not too clear, but is said to mean "hand"; there is no information as
to whether there should be any connexion with okoimo (anaconda). In the very sparse literature on
the subject it is stated that yamo is the name of the whistle used (as in the case with mahoa) (see Roth
1929, p. 90), who describes a crescent-shaped whistle under this name. This can perhaps be linked up
with a statement by Farabee (1924, p. 175), who gives an account of a Waiwai story about a yaskomo
who once heard a whistling sound in the forest, and who, proceeding towards the sound, discovered
a kidney-shaped whistle which became the first musical instrument of the Waiwai. On a quite different
occasion, the author was told by a Waiwai that there was both a man's and a woman's yamo whistle.
The latter the women were said to use if they wanted to call back their husbands from the hunt or the
fields if danger threatened or anything special was happening.
Thus several things suggest that "yamo" also describe a whistle in the same way as does "mahoa".
The word "kirirl" was said only to mean a particular species of anaconda, but it should be recalled
that in order to summon his hyasiri the medicine man now and then employs a kidney-shaped whistle
(see p. 127), which is called kukuwi.
There is a far sharper distinction drawn between men and women in the yamo dances than in other
dance festivals; at all events it is certain that women are excluded from a part of the performances
connected with yamo. It was even stated on one occasion that in order to participate the women must
clothe themselves in male garments, but this seems inconsistent when they sing: "Come yamo, you are
my wayamnu". This invitation to extramarital sexual relations with the anonymous "Anaconda-
people" stresses once more the traditional link with that people, which in the case of the men is a
matter of an in-law's dependency and thus for women a wayamnu relationship.
The yamo dances of the Waiwai appear degenerated and mixed up with each other, or so the many
172 Dance Festivals
uncertain details seem to suggest. Presumably they were once regarded as cult dances in honour of
the mysterious Anaconda-people, and as such are unique with the Waiwai. At all events they are
unique as regards their duration - about two months.
SHODEWIKA DANCE FESTIVAL
The most common dance festival, the Shodewika, can be described far more thoroughly as the author
has witnessed it.
Two factors particularly condition the frequency with which the Shodewika is held: an ample supply
of cassava, and the obligation felt to return an invitation. In addition, there is often a deeper motive
in that an attempt is made to find suitable partners for the marriageable girls in the village. Six to
twelve months can elapse between two Shodewika, though the interval is frequently shorter.
The Shodewika festival at which the author was present, began on November 28th 1954. It happened
to be a new moon, but whether this had any significance is unknown. For dancing at night moonlight
would seem to be preferable.
About a week before the festival begins, the head of the village, the yayalitomo, who issues the
invitations, sends his villagers out into the fields to fetch cassava. When they return with the roots,
they usually sing a song excusing themselves for not bringing more than they do, for example, "Little
agouti ate the cassava (repeated)". As a reward for their efforts the yayalitomo invites them either to
kuchukwa (the ordinary, unchewed, thick bitter-sweet cassava beer like parakari) or kurai (the chewed
mass of cassava bread to which sweet potato has been added and fermented to beer). Whilst the women
are engaged on the preparation of the cassava, the yayalitomo sends several men out hunting. A joint
undertaking of this kind organized by the head of the village is called ekaimali, and as a rule it is started
by the help of an oho chant (see p. 218); the yayalitomo chanting the request to each implicated in-
dividual who then feels himself under an obligation to comply.
When an adequate supply has thus been assured, the invitation is issued, almost without warning.
At a certain time the yayalitomo of Yakayaka, Ewka, held a Shodewika to which he had invited
the yayalitomo of Mauika, Miywa, and his retinue. About five months later Miywa decided to return
the dance festival, and sent an invitation to Ewka. Miywa did not himself bring the invitation, but
handed it over in the form of an oho chant to his adopted son and deputy, who in turn handed it on
to a younger man who finally paddled to Yakayaka in ceremonial dress. Here he chanted the yayali-
torno's invitation direct to Ewka as follows: "My leader sends me (oho) to invite you to come and
drink (oho); let everyone come who wants (oho), and everybody who does not want to come, stay
home".
The yayalitorno invited, Ewka, let the invitation pass on to his brother-in-law, who passed it on to
his second son-in-law, who finally, handed it on (still in oho chant form) to the heads of the different
families in the village and in a neighbouring village.
A Shodewika always begins at sunset, and the invited guests will always leave home as early as
possible in order to be able to reach a landing place near the village early in the afternoon. The journey
The Shodewika dance 173
"
Fig. 25. The Shodewika dance costume consists of a long cloak of split ite palm leaves over which is tied a bright
cape of ite spires. The headdress is plaited from ite leaves, and altogether the costume makes the wearer next to
unrecognizable.
from Yakayaka to Mauika takes only a half day's paddling up the Essequibo. Five canoes each with
eight persons, all in ceremonial costume and festive spirit left Yakayaka; the only two who remained
behind were an adolescent girl and her old grandmother. During the whole canoe trip there was yelling,
a high, long-drawn out note ending with syncopated barks, from one canoe to another, and for long
stretches races were run with great zest. The canoes were heavily loaded with people and their personal
effects: hammocks, bows and arrows, clay vessels and so on, filled with material for the dance costumes
- fresh ite leaves, shredded and bound together ite leaves, ite spires and twisted shreds of the bark
of the sarai tree. The camping place selected was reached in the afternoon and camping was done by
families who then ate, painted themselves and began to make dance costumes without getting into
touch at all with the local people who had issued the invitation. In theory the locals knew nothing
about the presence of the guests in the vicinity of the village.
The dancing costumes of the men consist of the actual cape, made out of a leaf of the you, ite palm
(Mauritia flexuosa), the individual leafs of which are split, befreed of their central ribs and plaited
174 Dance Festivals
into a continuous roll about three quarters of a metre in circumference. The sheath of the leaf is torn
from the individual leaves and a cloak about Ii- metres long remains. To the roll is plaited a headdress
made of the leaf of the kumu, lu palm (Oenocarpus baccaba), and a cape of ite spire strips is tied over
the cloak, covering about two thirds of it, a bright yellow against the green background. Now and
then a headdress made of harpy eagle down is placed outside the leaves.
Another important part of the men's dancing costume is the bark upper arm band. Outside the
bead string a broad piece of sarai bark (Sterculia pruriens) is placed. This is covered with young leaves
of the puru, pimpler palm (Astrocaryum plicatum). The bracts have black meander pattern made from
the leaf ash of the mina or dallibana (Geonoma sp.), mixed with the latex juice from the osorku tree
(Macoubea guianensis). From these upper arm bands hang long tufts of powis feathers. An apomi
of bark is worn only by men and then only at Shodewika festivals. However, it was once stated that
women wore them at Yamo festivals, which presumably must be interpreted in connexion with the
reports about women wearing men's clothing at these dances.
A special necklace consisting of orange and red tufts made of toucan down, known as warporokuru,
is said also to be used by men only, particularly at Shodewika; this adornment was stated to have
come originally from the Piskaryenna people, living to the south near the Mapuera.
Women do not wear corresponding dance costumes, but decorate themselves with diadems of red
toucan down and criss-crosses of Job's Tears.
At the landing place bark trumpets t of a metre long are also made of sarai bark twisted into a
spiral; these, like the ordinary flutes, are called lattk. Otherwise, various flutes of bone and bamboo,
whistles, and dance rattles are brought, The rattles are decorated with strips of spires from the ite,
often negatively dyed.
When the preparations of the guests at the landing place are accomplished, they proceed unseen
and unheard towards the village. Close to the edge of the clearing they await the signal for their onrush.
In the meantime an apparently uninspired dance is taking place in the village; four or five local
men without dance costumes dance in a chain anti-clockwise, and three to four local women dance
inside them. The leading figure in each chain gives the rhytm with a dance rattle and sings short
strophes that are repeated by the persons following. The chains alternate in holding an interval for
drinking.
At about 6.30 p.m. things start to get organized and to liven up. The yayalitomo responsible for the
invitation has clad himself in his bark apomi and painted his body with red stripes like the other older
men; the younger ones go in more for black painting with genipa. None of the locals has a dance costume,
but they are decked out in festival adornments which includes nose feathers, feathers in the corners
of the mouth and headdress for the men, and chin ornaments and diadems for the women. The locals
now begin to yell towards the forest thickets where the strangers are thought to be hiding, and shortly
afterwards the sound of a drum is heard struck with a slow regular beat. It is the same man that was
sent with the invitation, the yayalitomo's employee, who stands in the doorway of the communal
house beating the drum quicker and quicker. He then goes in between the lines of the dancers.
By about 7 p.m. night has fallen, and suddenly a deep, humming note is heard from the edge of the
wood. This is the bark trumpet of the visitors. All the locals run into the communal house. The trumpets
--, .. ~ -""--- -- --------- - ----.. -_.... --"-' --
.... The Shodewika dance 175
rise to a tremendous crescendo and are now mixed with the sounds of flutes and rattles. The silhouettes
I of sixteen beings, unrecognizable in their palm leaf costumes, suddenly appear from the gloomy
forest and dance in towards the village clearing in a wild, swaying dance which consists in placing
the right foot forward half sideways and then bringing the left foot up to it. The male dance leader
uses both a bark trumpet and a rattle; most of the men also have bark trumpets plus whistles made of
animal bones, of bamboo and of grass. The leader's rattle gives the beat of the dance which circles
the dancing ground in an anti-clockwise direction. The music stops now and then, and the leader sings
a new rhythmical strophe which is repeated for a long time by the whole chain. Within the circle
described by the men dance - also anti-clockwise - about ten women in ceremonial dress. They also
have a dance leader who indicates the beat with a rattle. Apart from this the women possess no musical
instruments. They hold each other's hands whilst they sing, repeating their leader's strophe which is
different from the men's. Only the visitors take part in the dance.
The local people soon emerge from the communal house, and a local woman encircles each male
dancer with a burning torch to ensure the safety of the smalI children (see further explanation, poyin,
p. 143). Shortly afterwards there is a sound of yelling and whistling, and two local men come out to
the place, each with two cassava loaves which he swings in the air whilst singing: "Here is cassava,
here is cassava" (repeated). The visiting women jump after the bread which is finally wrested from
the men with difficulty. The two men come out time after time with bread, and each time a woman
manages to get one she takes it into the rectangular guest house specially built for the occasion.
For the next hour the visitors dance to song or musical accompaniment alternatively. After having
sung monotonously for a time, they begin to yelI, which is a sign to go over to a whistle accompaniment.
A local man or woman frequently appears carrying a drinking bowl into the centre of the two dancing
circles, and when one of the dance leaders and the circle in question begin to yell it is a sign for a
drinking interval. So far four cooking pots and four drinking bowls with tapioca put down in the
middle of the place have been consumed. At about 8.30 p.m. the dance is broken off, the local people
bringing in some cassava loaves, a pot with fish (pepper-pot) and two big drinking bowls containing
thick tapioca drink. All seat themselves in a circle to eat the meal in relative silence. The eating interval
lasts about an hour.
After the common meal the dance recommences and continues until 6 a.m. the next morning in
unchanged form except that from I a.m, until 4 a.m. they dance inside the hut as it is a little cold
outside. A few local men in dance costume and a single local woman take part in the dance. On the
other hand, a few of the elder visitors do not participate. They and the local people do not take part
in the ceremonial drinking either, but accept the drinking bowl in the conventional "from hand to
hand" fashion instead of the cupbearer handing the bowl to each single dancer. The women, partic-
ularly, are untiring in their singing and dancing, whereas the men take longer intervals for drinking.
So far, the tapioca drink, ekwali, has been that mostly offered, but now the two local cupbearers, who
stand almost continuously in the centre of the dancers, bring various fermented cassava beverages:
kuchukwa, kurai and so forth. The guests often call for more drink by now and again singing in
between the ordinary songs verses like "Little lizard, there is the drink", "I can smell the drink",
"Drink is still like honey juice", or "Let us drink kuchukwa". During the dance jokes are sometimes
176 Dance Festivals
shouted, often of a coarse, sexual character. One man, for example, shouted: "Hold on to the girl",
and to a woman: "You are drunk, yeme (classificatory mother), you had better go to bed with some
man or other". A particularly apt reply rouses a brief peal of laughter and the dance continues.
The texts of the songs sung at a Shodewika dance depends on the dance leader in question. Normally,
a male and female dance leader are selected for each day of the festival. They must possess endurance
and be knowledgeable about songs. The individual strophes are either quite short sentences or merely
single words made rhytmical by the addition of a meaningless suffix. The strophe has an invariable,
melodic and rhytmical pattern. Its text does not change. Although it is not always immediately apparent,
the strophes are connected with each other. They are remembered by the dance leader because they
are linked together in long stories - often of a mythical character - like, for example, the story in the
Shodewika myth, which tells of the wanderings of the Waiwai couple on their way to the first dance
festival (p. 57-62). There are numerous stories of this kind, each containing songs enough for a whole
day's dancing. By changing dance leaders daily, one ensures new songs to dance to throughout the
whole festival.
The contents of the strophes vary considerably, but in cases where it was possible to catch them
and get them translated they frequently concerned animal names. Thus the dance was commenced by
the men singing a long list of birds' names mentioned individually, though nothing was said about
them otherwise. They then sang "ite spires", "the leaves will fall from the headgear", "a bird came
into the house", "we shall eat paku", "the chiriki bird eats the fruit of the walima tree", "we wear
upper arm bands of bark because we are to dance", "pakako bird", "we shall remain as beautiful as
the karau bird", "I hear something on the other side of the river", "the birds eat the small fruit",
"the tapir will lie down on the ground", "night-owl", "the dog howls au, au, au", "the dog is coloured
with anatto red", "the opossum stinks", "I drink as I hold my whistle".
The women sang correspondingly short strophes, mentioning trees and the various cassava beverages.
They also sang "bark baby sling", "I will put the sloth in the pot", "I broke my chack-chack" and so
on. The texts of the songs appear to be purely wordly in character.
Themelody to each strophe follows a stereotype pattern (see example 3-18 in appendix on Waiwai
music p. 288). The dance is correspondingly stereotype apart from the whirling entry already mentioned
and the moments when it increases in violence, so that the dust is sent whirling upwards and the dancers
collide and upset each other. In general the dance consists of a kind of tramping walk with the knees
bent. Both the men's and the women's chains describe anti-clockwise circles. The right foot is advanced,
the left brought up to it (one, two, stop, one, two, stop), and when the chain has progressed in this
fashion for about a quarter of the dance circle, some steps are taken backwards and inwards. (Fig. 26a).
Within this circle the women form another, though the woman leader often follows at the side of
the male leader, and in this case the women move almost radially from the outer circle to the centre (b).
For short periods the women can dance bent strongly forwards and half backwards in the ring.
Suddenly they all dance into the communal house, but soon come out once more; they only dance
in "in order to be able to emerge blowing whistles". There seems to be no age limit for participation
in the dance. One local woman carried her baby, clad in a little ite leaf cape, in her arm during the
introductory dance before the arrival of the guests. During the latter dance a boy of about seven years
The Shodewika dance 177
a b
Fig. 26. Patterns of the Shodewika dance chain mentioned in the text.
of age in a dance costume took part, but he was tied to his father - who danced just in front - by
leaves. Several of the older men did not take part, but this was merely because they considered it too
exhausting.
Generally speaking, the dance takes place in the space outside the house, but if it begins to rain or
becomes cold at night or hot by day, the dancers resort to the central dancing floor in the communal
house. There is one undoubted advantage about dancing outside: in the course of the dance each
individual consumes such enormous quantities of drink that it is impossible to hold any more. However,
it is still offered to them and it is not good form to refuse; indeed, they even exhort the hosts to bring
still more. In consequence one frequently sees a man who has just filled himself up quite calmly spit
it out or vomit it up in order to be able, courteously to accept the next time a drink is proffered.
As mentioned, the first stage of the dance lasted from 7 p.m. until about 6 a.m. the next morning.
When the dance was over, everyone repaired to a stream to bathe, and then the guests slung their
hammock by families in the nearby forest. Many lay down to sleep for an hour or so, others played
the flute. Soon they all began again to paint themselves and don their costumes.
At about 4 p.m. the dance recommenced, this time with different dance leaders. The male leader
and the dancer next after him danced without capes of ite leaves, and the whole thing seemed "un-
organized", as only about two-thirds of the visitors took part. The male dance leader had a chack-
chack in his right hand and a bird arrow in his left like a kind of dance staff. Proper dance staffs or
dance clubs were not used at any of the dance festivals attended by the author, though there was
knowledge of them. Instead an almost 2 metre long arrow or arrow shaft was often used (see Fig. 27).
Later, things grew more animated, and one of the costumed men jumped round like a deer and chased
after the children. The dance finished at 9 p.m. on account of general exhaustion and rain, and the
guests spent the night in the newly-erected guesthouse.
The supply of cassava beer and bread decides how long a Shodewika festival is to last; normally
it extends over 3-7 days. However, it is not possible to have supplies of meat and fish for the festival
and communal meals over such long periods, so that on the third day of the dance these supplies must
as a rule be re-stocked.
This is done by suspending the dance the whole day. The host then sends all men out to hunt and
fish. A joint undertaking of this kind is called "ekaimali" and is introduced by an oho chant. The
host chants his exhortation to go hunting to his deputy and presumed successor, who transmits it
12 Waiwai
~.--- ---~ - --,----_.- .''''~ ...
178 Dance Festivals
Fig. 27. Second day of a Shodewika dance festival. To the right is a local man offering the drink, next to him the
male dance leader with the chack-chack and a dance arrow. In the background can be seen a row of dancing men
hidden in ite palm leaf cloaks.
through an employee to everybody else. All feel an obligation to comply, and as a rule start off in pairs.
During a Shodewika most of the meals will be common ones, and the woman responsible for the.
preparation of the cassava beverage and food intimates to the host, the yayalitomo of the village, that
"the meal is ready". In the usual ceremonial manner, the host informs his deputy, who passes it on
to an employee who tells everybody that they should approach the eating place.
On the fourth day of the Shodewika dancing begins again, this time in the morning, and continues
until no more cassava beer remains in the village. The festival is then over, and shortly afterwards the
visitors return to their homes.
,. Animal Imitations 179
DANCE FESTIVALS AND ANIMAL IMITATIONS
It is said that Shodewika festivals sometimes end in an ant-eater game. Some men take whole lu palm
leaves (Oenocarpus baccaba) which they place on their heads down their backs. To the stalk of the
leaf, which is held over the head, they bind the inner section of the wild banana (Heliconia sp.), so
that it projects like a long snout. Thus decked out the men come, bent forward, running or creeping
from the forest into the village clearing, imitating with grass whistles the piping voice of the ant-eater.
Here they are surrounded by children who bark at them like dogs. The women try with sticks to knock
off the snouts. When successful, the ant-eater men fall to the ground dead, and roll themselves in the
mess of vomit resulting from the dance festival. They then place themselves in a circle and sing a song.
The game is then over.
The author himself did not witness an ant-eater game in connexion with the Shodewika festival
he attended from 28th November 1954 onwards. On the other hand, it took place together with other
animal imitation games at a shorter dance-drinking festival that took place in the village of Yakayaka
on the 29th December 1954.
As there was an ample supply of kuchukwa (cassava beer), it was decided to hold a one day's dance
festival. At 5 a.m. two lads, antons of two of the men in the village, arrived at the neighbouring village
and invited those present to the dance, which was to start at 10 a.m. the same day.
The author did not reach Yakayaka until 2.30 p.m. By that time the doors were shut. Sounds of
yelling and chack-chacks were heard inside. The door was opened and two male dancers stood in the
doorway with legs spread out; between their legs crept dirty young men representing pakria, small
wild pig, hiding behind a hollow tree stump. Other dancers then killed the "pakria", whilst small
children barked like dogs in front of the hole. The "corpses of the pakria" were laid by women in a
heap, and pretence was made of carving them up with a knife. The disguised "pakria" then arose as
young men.
Shortly afterwards the same youths came disguised as amachi (ant-eater), with lu leaves hanging
down their backs. They bent forward as they walked or crept, and wore the inner section of the wild
banana as a snout. In their mouths they had a long grass stalk by the help of which they produced a
whistling note. One "ant-eater" carried its young on its back. After the "animals" had whistled and
run about the place, women suddenly emerged from the house with sticks and attempted to strike
off the snouts. The "animals" tried to defend themselves and fled. When the snout was broken the
"ant-eaters" fell down dead, but after lying for a short time they got up and, still disguised, went away
into the forest.
Shortly after the young men appeared as wayam (tortoise), crawling up towards the house with
their legs, arms and head covered with grey mud. They crawled right up to the door opening and ate
soil. Here they were found by the women who turned them over on their backs so that they could
not escape. They lay there squirming and wheezing and were collected in a heap. Two women indicated
with a knife that their shells had been broken on the right side between the carapace and plastron.
The "tortoises" then rose.
A little while afterwards the young men represented a flock of poinko (big wild pig) from the river.
12'
180 Dance Festival
r·
Fig. 28. Post festum. Dizzy from drinking this genipa-painted youth throws off his dance
costume at the end of the festival.
Animal Imitations 181
Their faces were grey and their bodies blackish-grey. They devoured plants and upset some sugar
cane. Dancers with bows and arrows then arrived and shot at them, but the poinko attacked the men
who then fled, but returned and finally killed all the pigs. These were then carried away on the men's
backs and thrown in a heap and dismembered. The young men then rose up.
Then a flock of shIpIII(howler monkey) came dashing into the house. Their faces were painted black,
and green twigs were worn as tails and the yellow fruit of the purukawe in the necklet (purukawe is
the fruit of an unknown bush which, when placed on the throat, resembles the characteristic larynx
of the howler monkey).
They climbed rapidly up the poles of the house and the rafters reaching the high cruciform plat-
form. Here they began to eat the stored bananas throwing the skins down on the heads of the dancers.
Now and then they placed their posteriors outside the platform and let fall a banana skin as a sign
of a "sumptious meal". They growled and scratched their chests and faces. Some women threw lumps
of thick kuchukwa mass at them, and when they were hit they let themselves slide down the house
poles and fell down dead. They were all collected in a heap, and a stake was held over them indicating
that the hair had been scraped from their skins. They then got up.
Almost the same performance was repeated later with poroto (spider monkey) and usha (satan
monkey), but faces were painted red. After that came koso (forest deer) and yaipu (tapir) also up
from the river. After a keen hunt on the clearing they were shot by the dancers with bows and arrows
(the arrows had no points and were shot gently against the disguised persons; the latter had green
twigs behind their ears, and, in the case of the yaipu, muddy bodies).
Between this long series of animal performances dancing went on of the normal type as with a
Shodewika, with male and female dance leaders, respectively. Drinking intervals were held every
45 minutes, and the whole dance lasted only from 10 a.m. until about 6 p.m. the same day.
A common meal was consumed at 5 p.m., but here one married couple ate by themselves because
they, i.e. the woman, was "in charge of the drink". An adolescent girl from the village participated
neither in the common meal nor in the dance, but was kept at work sifting cassava.
As opposed to a Shodewika dance, there appears to be a question of a rite with the animal imitations.
The dramatic representation of a hunt and the quartering of a number of the most important food
animals must be assumed to have a magical significance, though its importance is to some extent
forced into the background by the sporting and amusement aspects. Incidentally, the Waiwai them-
selves thought that these animal imitations were a loan from the Mouyenna Indians.
If this is correct, it can safely be assumed that these animal imitations have nothing to do with the
Shodewika dances, since the origin of these is completely unknown to the Waiwai and is believed to
go back very far indeed. According to the Shodewika myth, this dance deals with the rise of the various
tribes from animal people, whereas in the animal imitation games the beasts are merely regarded as
hunting targets.
Annual Cycle
The Waiwai method of indicating time is closely linked with the heavenly bodies, the sun, moon and
stars, particularly the pleiades. If it is desired to indicate a time of day, it is done by pointing to the
place in the sky where the sun was at the time in question, saying at the same time "kamo" (sun).
The question when anything happened during the day is in Waiwai "ahto kamo" (where is the sun ?).
There is, however, a word for tomorrow - "pashesha". Several days are indicated by moving the
hand in the direction of the ecliptic a corresponding number of times. The number of months, or rather,
moons (nufii) a journey has taken is explained by moving the hand contrary to the ecliptic a corre-
sponding number of times. This can presumably be explained by the fact that at a definite time of the
day, for example, at sundown, the moon from day to day is to be found in a more and more easterly
position in the heavens until it disappears, reappearing fourteen days later in the western sky.
The course of the year is recognized by the continual change between dry and rainy season, and a
time can be indicated by saying "they travelled at the small rains". On the other hand, there are no
means of counting the years, and no Waiwai is able to give his age in years. Age can only roughly be
computed by the age group to which the person in question belongs and by, perhaps, the age of any
of his children. It is possible that the Waiwai also use knotted strings to indicate a limited number of
days (for example, before a festival). The author has seen a knotted string in a Waiwai's toilet box,
but it was immediately hidden away, and it was not possible to obtain any information about its
general use. In regard to the Waiwai's use of figures, it would seem that they only know the basic
figures from I to 3. "One" is thus called chewni, "two" - asarhkl, and "three" - asorowau; many or
several is called malihula or yake. Farabee (1924, p. 181) gives, it is true, figures from I to 21, but the
length of the words causes one to assume that these are in general compounds.
The agricultural cycle's commencement is decided astronomically, however, as the season when
the pleiades show themselves on the horizon at cockcrow. When this happens everybody must put on
ant belts (see p. 119), and the hard work of clearing a fresh piece of forest for cultivation begins. The
expression "cockcrow" may arouse surprise, but the Waiwai keep poultry and have done so for many
years, apparently only using them as alarm clocks.
Changes of temperature in the Waiwai area during the course of the year are unimportant, and
there is no special resting period for plants and trees. Even the two rainy seasons of the year, the long
one about June-August and the short one in December, are not specially pronounced and vary in
strength. There is ample rainfall during the whole year, an average over 2 metres annually. The short
rainy period is called frog rain on account of the status of frogs as Father of water (see p. 32) and
their croaking, particularly during this period.
____ __0 __ ---. ... _
Indication of time 183
Fig. 29. Bitter cassava, the domina-

ting food product of the Waiwai,
is harvested daily by the individual
families. Some gathered roots can
be seen lying in the foreground.
The economic life of the Waiwai is dominated by slash-and-burn agriculture and the cultivation of
bitter cassava, definitely the main foodstuff. With the Waiwai cassava appears to have a growing
period of from 9 to 12 months, and its cycle fixes the annual cycle of the people cultivating it.
The beginning of the year could be expected to be shown by the ending of the long rainy season,
but a surer astronomical determination has been preferred: the season when the pleiades show them-
selves on the eastern horizon at cockcrow, i.e, about 4 a.m., shortly before daybreak, which occurs
in July. At this time, at the end of the long rainy season, the hardest work begins, felling trees in the
future clearing. Normally this is common work directed by the village chief, and it occupies most of
the labour force for some time, though a single family may, if new arrivals, take it on on its own.
In the course of the subsequent dry season the felled trees and bushes dry, and after the branches
and twigs have been hacked away to some extent and placed under the big trunks the whole is ignited
and burns and smoulders for days. The best time for after-felling work and subsequent burning is
said by the Waiwai to be when the tantari are in abundance. This is a cicada, a "sun bee", which
appears in great numbers, particularly in September. When the short rainy season finally arrives and
carries the ash salts into the ground the planting of cassava cuttings begins, as a rule about December.
In the old days the conclusion of planting was celebrated by a dance festival at the end of December
(see p. 169). From now on the women must regularly weed the new field as well as the old, from which
swollen roots of cassava are fetched daily to the village.
As will be seen, the greatest concentration of working effort in connexion with agriculture lies in,
or in connexion with, the long and the short rainy seasons, with clearing and planting, respectively.
184 Annual Cycle
This harmonizes well with the fact that the dry seasons are preferred for hunting, fishing and collecting.
In general fishing is best on the upper Essequibo and upper Mapuera during the dry seasons, as fishing
with bow and arrow demands relatively shallow water; for fish poisoning river basins with slight
current are required. When hunting Waiwai men again want first of all sun; it was further mentioned
several times that fruits which ripen in the autumn (August-November) attract various animals. One
can find toucans in the taratara trees when their fruit ripens in September, and poinko will be met
with when the iruri fruit falls to the ground in November. Knowledge of a long list of these factors
stamps the efforts of hunters throughout the year, and plays a still greater role for the collection of
wild fruit and so on, which is dominated by the women.
Knowledge of the astronomical, meteorological, botanical and zoological factors determining the
annual cycle are to some extent tribal inheritance, but are especially the province of the village chief,
yayalitomo, and the medicine man, yaskomo. Reference has already been made to the secret knowledge
of the yaskomo, which comprises such important things as the summoning of the sun and rain, the
assurance of good roots for the cassava, and the summoning of game and fish. His importance seems
most pronounced in respect to hunting where, for example, he is always first consulted in regard to
. ,
wild pig. On the other hand he never despatches people on tasks concerned with food-getting. As
opposed to him there is the yayalitomo, the organizer. It is the yayalitomo who is able to obtain
ample supplies of cassava and other such foods. This primarily demands that he is able to rally people
around him who will assist him in the field work, but also that he knows how to obtain a rich harvest,
when the rains will come.
Here the functions of the yayalitomo lie close to those of the yaskomo, and in four of five cases
the two positions were united in one and the same person. The yayalitomo's position is the more
important in regard to employment throughout the year, as he can send out the people of the village
on common tasks, ekaimali, through the agency of the "oho chant" in connexion with agriculture -
at all events during dance festivals (p. 177) - and also fishing and hunting.
To sum up it can be said that though the seasons affect the total working effort, the results of these
influences are seldom unduly obvious. This is mainly due to the fact that stocks are never built up to
guard against bad times, so the individual families must daily assure themselves the necessary supplies
by men's hunting and fishing and women's field work. The ability of the cassava root to keep fresh
and undamaged in the ground for long periods after its natural ripening is a considerable factor in
maintaining the day-to-day economy, and fits in well with the hunter complex in this culture. This,
incidentally, can have been of importance when developing bitter cassava into the dominating agri-
cultural product, as the adoption of bitter cassava did not necessarily mean any major breach with
the original hunter economy and its cultural pattern.
Social Organization
Certain aspects of the Waiwai social system have already been several times referred to (particularly
under life cycle, marriage). The composition and size of social units are founded to a great extent on
economic factors, occupation, and the distribution of work. Semi-agriculture, dominated by women,
combined with men's hunting and fishing, make the individual family into an economic unit. At the
same time this bipartition of pursuits means that single persons cannot manage alone, but must join
a family. The individual family thus usually consists of one or two members over and above the unit;
father, mother and unmarried children.
The size of the local group is primarily determined by the slash-and-burn cultivation, as this demands
the collective work of several families if it is to be remuneratively operated. The number of families is
again restricted by natural circumstances, as the scarcity of good farming land sets limits to the local
population figure.
As relations between individual, family and local group have grown out of bonds of blood and are
expressed in kinship terms, the study of the Waiwai social organization will be introduced by a discus-
sion about kinship terms and their behavioural implications.
WAIWAI KINSHIP TERMS OF ADDRESS
(all variations obtained)

Man speaking
Ego's generation
brother, elder-l-equal nono
brother, younger . pIt!
brother, youngest okopurwa
sister, all . . . . achi
father's brother's son . nono
father's brother's daughter, older-l-equal achi
father's brother's daughter, younger wachi
father's sister's son. . . . . . . . . . poimo (pall ?)*)
*) Brackets round a term indicate either - in the case of the wayamnu - that it is a matter of an
indirect form, or that the term is rare and presumably due to a cross relationship not recognized by
the author.
..~--'-
186 Social Organization
father's sister's daughter, equal . . . . . poimo (wayamnu)

father's sister's daughter, younger . . . . okopurwa, wahrei
father's sister's daughter, prior to puberty . okopuchi, amoto
mother's brother's son . . poimo (pHI?)
mother's brother's daughter poimo (wayamnu)
mother's sister's son . . fiofio (pall?)
mother's sister's daughter achi
brother's wife . achi (wayamnu)
sister's husband poimo (okopurwa younger)
fiofio (tamchi elder)
wife . . . . . chuwya
wife's brother . poimo, fiofio
wife's brother's wife okopurwa
achi
achi (wayamnu) if not epeka
wife's sister . . . . . achi (wayamnu)
wife's sister's husband poimo if equal
(piti younger?)
lst, ascending generation

father . apa
father's brother apa
father's brother's wife yeme
father's sister, older chacha, if awale or more distant
father's sister, younger achi? (extremely rare) if epeka
father's sister's husband, elder apa or pacho
father's sister's husband, younger or equal poimo?
mother . yeme
mother's brother. . . tamchi
mother's brother's wife yeme, if epeka
mother's brother's wife yeme (wayamnu)
mother's sister. . . . yeme
mother's sister's husband pacho (apa)
wife's father. . . . . tamchi (fiofio, apa
with cross relationship)
wife's father's brother poimo
wife's father's sister poimo (wayamnu) achi, if epeka
wife's mother . . . chacha
wife's mother's brother poimo
wife's mother's sister . poimo (wayamnu)
1st. descending generation

son } before puberty okopuchi
daughter
son } after puberty . okopurwa
daughter
Kinship Terms 187
brother's son . . pitl

brother's daughter pal'i
sister's son . . p'it'i (pall)
sister's daughter pal!
son's wife . . . okopurwa
(before offspring)
teknonymy
(after offspring = wayamnu)
daughter's husband poimo
2nd. ascending generation

father's father . picho
father's mother chacha
mother's father pacho
mother's mother chacha
wife's father's father picho
wife's father's mother chacha
wife's mother's father ".pAcbo
wife's mother's mother chacha
2nd. descending generation

son's son . . . pal!
son's daughter. . . pal!
daughter's son. . . pal!
daughter's daughter pal'i
Kinship terminology for a woman speaking is, in general, the same as for a man speaking, but
specially:
sister, elder and equal fiofio
sister, younger. . . . ewshan, mofia
brother, elder and equal fiofio?
brother, younger . ewshan, wahrei
son . ewshan, omreri
brother's children ewshan
sister's children . ewshan
children's children ewshan
Kinship names in Waiwai - English

Man speaking
fiofio brother (elder and equal), father's brother's son, mother's sister's son, (sister's
husband), (wife's brother).
piti . brother (younger), brother's son, (sister's son).
achi . sister, father's brother's daughter, mother's sister's daughter, (wife's brother's
wife), (wife's father's sister).
r;.~
,
I'
-
00
00
"d
<!'i'
w pACHO = chacha PACHO ~ chacha pACHO = chacha
p rACHO = chachu
l AL~
,_. ..
:.E
~ I
~.
o A ~6
J A o 6 6 b
e. POIMO TAMCHI ~ chacha POIMO
~=r~"
~
~P::LACHO)
~ chacha APAL~
yeme APA (achi) IAPA)
5' (POIMO) (NONO)
en
0-
-a'
r>
0-
~ -0 ~
(")
?- POIMO NONO
L (\
achi NONO achi POIMO
(okopurwa) (PIT!) ~
~
..,
~
... '26~g, .
6 NONO
A
~i -i-
~
i-rrr
~
OKOPURWA
CHl
A
EGO chuwya -'-- = POIMO
pIT!
"
a
~
s
i;~
:~d, , I ~__
CD
-achi (-0-)
~ §.
3en
~OkOPurwa)
...,
o
•__ [b. :b.] lb. pub.]
§"
~
c, p!TI. nalf pIT! pall okopurwa
..,
c, (PALl) .
~6
~
Y'
3~
i:l
en PALl pali PALl pat!
"0
s~ -i- = wayamnu
i:l
<!'"
Kinship System 189
poimo father's sister's son, mother's brother's son, wife's' sister's husband, (father's
sister's husband), wife's father's brother, daughter's husband, wife's mother's
brother, sister's husband, wife's brother.
(wayamnu) . . . . . father's sister's daughter, mother's brother's daughter, brother's wife, (wife's
brother's wife), wife's sister, (mother's brother's wife), (wife's father's sister),
wife's mother's sister.
chuwya wife, spouse.
apa . . father, father's brother (father's sister's husband), (mother's sister's husband).
yeme . mother, mother's sister, father's brother's wife, (mother's brother's wife).
chacha father's sister, wife's mother, father's mother, mother's mother, wife's maternal
grandmother, wife's paternal grandmother.
tamchi mother's brother, wife's father.
okopuchi } child, son, daughter, youngest brother, (father's sister's daughter, younger),
okopurwa . (wife's brother's wife), (son's wife), (younger relatives without offspring).
pall. brother's daughter, (sister's son), sister's daughter, son's son, son's daughter,
daughter's son, daughter's daughter.
pacho father's father, mother's father, wife's paternal grandfather, wife's maternal
grandfather.
Woman speaking
ewshan sister (younger), brother (younger), son, children of brothers and sisters,
grandchildren.
fiofio sister (elder and equal), (brother elder and equal).
wahrei brother (younger).
mofia . sister (younger).
omrert , son.
The terminology for woman speaking appears in general to correspond to that for man speaking
apart from certain terms for one's own and younger generations; in addition, women employ for the
younger generation the same terms as those used by men. Women never use the term "poimo", In-
formation concerning woman speaking kinship terminology is far from adequate.
t
KINSHIP SYSTEM
I In order to draw up a theoretical kinship chart an attempt must be made to ascertain whether some
terminologies can be omitted in order to achieve simplification. It should be stated immediately that
all terms cannot with complete certainty be regarded as having been correctly given. This is due
particularly to two circumstances: in the first place the author had not sufficient time at his disposal
himself to review on the spot the social organization of the Waiwai, and he has unfortunately been
unable since to obtain any supplementary information. Secondly, kinship was very inter-woven by
cross relationships. This is not surprising in view of the present numbers of the Waiwai, about 170
individuals. Some terms must therefore be regarded as possible or dominating, but not always as the
sole or definitive ones. A person often stands in a number of different forms of relationship to another.
In one case where a man's father and father-in-law had concluded brothership, the man used the word
"apa" (father) to his father-in-law, as the term "apa" was the dominating one.
As kinship terminology is generally maintained to be the same with a woman speaking as with a
man, except for the nearest relations of one's own generation, sisters and brothers and younger
generations, the author will solely confine himself to terminologies used by the man.
A Waiwai man can call his brothers by one of three terms: fioiio, elder or same age; piti, younger,
and okopurwa or okopuchi, youngest - provided there is a pitl, However, all these designations cannot
with equal validity be accepted as purely kinship terms. The words okopuchi and okopurwa should
rather be translated as "child", and are used in respect of an age class rather than as a degree of rela-
tionship (see p. 160). The problem is made more difficult in the case of the word pitl, since the distinction
between elder and younger siblings of the same sex as the speaker is very pronounced, in any events
with the Carib tribes. However, the question is of little importance as spouses and their offsprings are
considered and designated the same. But the designation pm also has an extended meaning, com-
prising all the younger men in the village (see adults' age groups, p. 160). The sole quite precise term
for brother is thus fiofio, which in the case of younger ones can be replaced by the broader piti. In-
cidentally, a man will as a rule use the designation "tyuwu" to another man of roughly the same age,
whether he is closely, distantly, or not at all related, to the speaker.
There is only one expression for sister, namely "achi". Nono etc. and achi cover both genuine
sisters and brothers and classified ones, i.e. parallel-cousins, plus declared sisters and brothers, for
example by brotherhood or voluntary transition from the wayamnu status (see p. 136). The term
fiofio must be so understood when used for a sister's husband or wife's brother, and "achi" when
used for a wife's brother's wife and wife's father's sister.
Cross-cousin terms are for a male cousin "poimo" and for a female cousin the indirect "wayamnu"
("my tortoise", see myth p. 47). "Poimo" is the most general in-law term, meaning primarily brother-
in-law, but also son-in-law and wife's uncle. Owing to the great age variation within this terminology,
three generations, a difference is often drawn between "poimo" and "poimochi" (or pomochi = little
in-law) used in respect of a younger poimo.
Wayamnu is the term of reference for cross-cousins of a sex opposite to the speaker, that is to say
for possible spouses, as cross-cousin marriage (see below) is permitted and frequently occurs. There
is no direct term for wayamnu, and as personal names are not employed directly, one is often compelled
to point or snap fingers at one's wayamnu. A man's wayamnu can change status in two ways, either
by becoming his wife, whereupon the expression "chuwya" is employed, or by changing the sexual
partnership to an economic one and thus achieving the status of a declared "achi". The affinal terms
poimo, chuwya and wayamnu are the only reciprocal ones in Waiwai.
In the first ascending generation the two closest kinship terms are "apa" and "yeme". "Apa" covers
father, both real and classificatory, i.e., paternal uncle and possibly the father's and mother's sister's
husband; "yeme" covers mother, real and classificatory, i.e., mother's sister and possible mother's
brother's wife and father's brother's wife. "Apa" is also a broader age group designation for all older
men in the same village, and is frequently used as a form of address to the chief of the village should
he be an older man.
-'--
Kinship System 191
The term "tamchi" covers father-in-law and maternal uncles; in the same way "chacha" is used
for mother-in-law and paternal aunts. These two kinship terms clearly show that cross-cousin marriages
are not only permitted but occur frequently among the Waiwai.
"Chacha" is also the designation for a grandmother. There is no explanation why the word mother-
in-law and grandmother is identical. It may be a matter of a weak avoidance of mother-in-law, for
"chacha" must primarily be considered to mean grandmother. The word "pacho" is used to describe
all grandfathers; in the case of very old people this can become "parito".
The word for a child, "okopuchi" before, and "okopurwa" after, puberty is, as already mentioned,
in part an age group term and in part a kinship term for classificatory sons and daughters (and possibly
daughters-in-law). The word "okopurwa" is also used to designate step-children and adopted children
of both sexes.
Unfortunately, in regard to terminologies for children of brothers and sisters, the author may have
been given some that are perhaps not completely valid and which may derive from cross relationship.
Both sister's son and brother's son are called "pitf", and sister's daughter and brother's daughter
"pall". On one occasion the term "pall" was applied also to a sister's son. The apparently inconse-
quential thing about the designations is that no distinction is drawn between cross and parallel nephews
and nieces, respectively, despite the fact that according to the classificatory system parallel nephews
and nieces should be regarded as sons/daughters, and cross nephews and nieces as potential sons/
daughters-in-law. "Pitl", as younger related man, should thus be replaced by "okopurwa" or "oko-
puchi" in the case of brother's son, and in the case of a sister's son probably by "poimo" or "pomochi".
In the same way "pall" should in the case of a brother's daughter be replaced by "okopurwa" or
"okopuchi", and a sister's daughter - who is a potential daughter-in-law - by "okopurwa" or tek-
nonymy.
As this is not the case, and the terminologies are thus not symmetrical, it can merely be determined
that asymetrical relationships predominate, and that the first descending line follows, in a terminological
sense, a lineal system rather than the general bifurcate merging system. The dividing line between the
two classificatory systems must be assumed to have come about as a result of disharmony in the
locality rules, as a traditional matrilocality today is broken by an epeka-locality (see p. 200), where a
group of full and half siblings cling together. In a group of this kind there will often be (as mentioned
above and on p. 136) a voluntary change of status between, for example, a man and his wayamnu,
so that they achieve the status of mutual siblings, and brotherhoods will be instituted. Both one's
sisters (achi) and brother's wife (wayamnu) will be able to be regarded as sisters (epeka-status), and
the dividing line between paternal and maternal nephews/nieces will lapse. As terms for son and
paternal nephew (man speaking) are different, it must mean that the terminologies are disentangled
via the woman (in casu achi).
Whereas the kinship term for son-in-law is normally "poimo", there is no correspondingly specific
term for daughter-in-law (man speaking). Either "okopurwa", which has a broad class sense, or
"teknonymy" is used. Presumably "teknonymy" here must be regarded as a kind of avoidance that
has developed from the man's potential marital status to both the daughter-in-law and to the sister's
i
daughter (see marriage types 2 and 10 p. 202), who theoretically are one and the same person.
f
If we ignore the ambiguous terminologies which result, amongst other things, from cross relation-
ship, the Waiwai system of kinship is theoretically simplified thus:
(The terms for nephew / niece are entered below under the designations
for son- and daughter-in-law)
pACHO
A 6 1
chachar- ch_a_c_h_a_L:_A_C_H_O _
R:-----~----:r-6--1 A ~ 1
OW""
o
!
=
TAM:' APA ~ TA;CHl :A I yeme

yerne
-I
. . [;lO:O POIMO! h"
ac '
EGO chuwya POIMOLChi NO NO
A
pITi' pall
~=
piTI
Ii
OKOPURWA
0
okopurwa POIMO pali
(pali) (PITl)
PALi' pali
-:- = wayamnu
Fig. 31. Theoretically simplified kinship chart of the Waiwai.
On the basis of the theoretical, classificatory kinship chart it appears that the Waiwai's system of
relationship is bilateral, special weight being placed neither on the mother's nor on the father's side.
The nomenclature shows no trace of clan organization, but rests on the principle of the division of
parallel and cross relationship, the bifurcate merging type. His own generation is, for a man, divided
up into four groups: brothers and brothers-in-law (primarily sister's husbands), sisters and potential
spouses; for a woman the case is symmetrical. It seems as though a man regards persons of the same
generation and sex through women, that is to say a brother-in-law (poimo) is the person married to
the man's sister. It appears from the kinship chart (p. 188), that a wife's brother is called "poimo"
if the wife's brother's wife is one's own classificatory sister (achi), but that he is called "fiofio" or
"plti", respectively, if'the wife's brother's wife is one's wayamnu. It would seem that to possess a
wayamnu in common justifies the use of the term "fiofio",
On account of the classificatory system, the number of brothers and sisters is far greater than that
justified by blood relationship, and the number of brothers-in-law and potential spouses in particular,
Forms of Address 193
is far in excess of that made possible by polygamous marriages. A man distinguishes only between an
elder and a younger brother; a woman likewise only between an elder and a younger sister. This may
be due to the division of labour.
The placing in the system of, for example, brother-in-law and mother-in-law shows that the Waiwai
do not distinguish sharply between generations on the one hand and degrees of relationship on the other.
Just as parallel-cousins are classified with sisters, so parallel uncles and aunts are classified with
parents; in the same way cross-cousins are classified as brothers-in-law and potential spouses, re-
spectively, maternal uncles are classified as fathers-in-law and paternal aunts as mothers-in-law. The
two last mentioned relatives will, if the cross-cousin marriage has been effective from the second
ascending generation, be married to each other. In a corresponding way, the classificatory fathers and
mothers (paternal uncles and maternal aunts) will be married to each other.
The terminology justifies the principle about symmetrical cross-cousin marriage, whereas marriages
of different generations should, to judge by the terminology, be rare provided we ignore polygamous
marriages with a woman and her daughter by a previous marriage.
Only in one case with the Waiwai did the author discover a distinction drawn between classificatory
and actual relatives, namely in the terminology "apa"; here "amo" is used for "your father" (actual
plus classificatory) and "ayolo" for "your father" (actual),
The special nomenclature used for potential spouses, "wayamnu", which in addition to cross-cousins
comprises unrelated persons of the opposite sex, forms the background for polygynous and poly-
androus marriages, frequent with the Waiwai. There is also an underlying factor, particularly in
connexion with sororate and levirate, as a man's brother's wife is always his potential spouse and a
woman's sister's husband is always hers.
There are indirect forms for all Waiwai terms of kinship with the possible exception of "pan".
Only the term "wayamnu" has merely the indirect form.
FORMS OF ADDRESS
Although as a rule a Waiwai has two personal names, it would be unthinkable to address him by
either of them. This would not only be impolite, but one would be ashamed to employ it as "one
casts a spell on a person by calling him by his name", a psychic value being attached to it. Similarly,
one never utters one's own name, and when asked: "Who is that?", always replies: "awl" (I). The
use of personal names only occurs in cases where the person concerned cannot hear it, but even then
kinship terms are most commonly employed, or merely "nolo" (he). There is only one exception tc
this rule: so long as they are small, children are often addressed by their personal name, at all events
by their parents, brothers and sisters. This exception affects by teknonymy also the adressing of adults,
who, for example, can be called "awayin" (awa's father) or "awayon" (awa's mother). Teknonymy
that specially applies to parents can be employed both by related and unrelated persons.
Even in the case of one's wayamnu, for which there is no term of adress, the personal name must
be avoided. Gesticulation must be resorted to in order to attract the attention of the person in question,
13 Walwai
-,.. --~* .......,.. ~- .-' - -
plus the use of the word "amolo" (you). "Amolo" can be used for anyone instead of the specific
kinship term.
Children can address anyone, but their parents are extremely careful in teaching them at an early
age correct kinship terminology. If nevertheless, a mistake is made in addressing a man by his personal
name, it is thought that as punishment a small fish, masha, (huri or little haimara) will bite one at
the first opportunity, or that a type of bat will bite one at night. It can therefore happen that an un-
justified kinship term is employed to avoid unpleasantness.
The yaskomo is the only person who stands in a kind of relationship to supernatural beings, and
he uses terms, particularly "apa", in regard to them.
KINSHIP GROUPINGS
The division of groups in the Waiwai kinship system is, for the consanguineous kin, strongly stamped
by the generations. This is seen from the age group terms (see p. 160) and also applies to the grouping
of the affinal kin.
Parents are regarded as a group, apa and yeme, both actual and classificatory. The apa term, partic-
ularly, is far-reaching; a man thus said "apa" to a number of different men, namely 1) to his real
father,2) to his paternal uncle, 3) to his mother's former husband, 4) to his father's brotherhood brother,
5) to a man because he wished it, 6) to a man because he was old, and 7) to the head of the village.
Another group comprises one's children in a classificatory sense.
In the meantime, the most important is the grouping "epeka", which covers the closest, blood-
related individuals of the same generation. Epeka are children of the same mother or of the same father,
plus parallel-cousins, that is to say, classificatory siblings. As a rule it is an epeka group of this kind
that dominates the economic life of a village. Indirectly related persons like a wayamnu can by mutual
agreement pass over to an epeka status and become "declared epeka". They then acquire economic
obligations instead of the sexual ones hitherto.
The second important grouping is the affinal awale, which comprises the more distant relatives,
parents-in-law, brothers-in-law, sons-in-law (tamchi, chacha, poimo). It will be seen that there is no
terminology corresponding to our sister-in-law. This group is more collected in the wayamnu-chuwya
group, which covers potential and actual spouses.
In addition to the above-mentioned kinship groupings, the Waiwai men also use a group designation
for some close relatives such as mother and some distant epeka, i.e. classificatory siblings. Such
relatives are collected under the indirect term "yanan".
It was expressly stated that a man's father and children did not belong to the yanan group, and
it must therefore mean that yanan refers to a rudimentary system of exogamous, matrilineal clans.
In a system of this kind a man on marriage will move from his clan and his children will then belong
to the mother's clan. When speaking of more distant epeka, non-local is presumably meant. When
it is only a matter of some epeka it is reasonable to assume a clan system rather than a moiety system,
where everybody - also parallel-cousins on the father's side - would at the same time belong to the
mother's moiety.
As opposed to "yanan" there is the word "analilo" which refers to Indians of other tribes or other
races. It is said that "analilo" is used for people of different physical appearance.
It is not uncommon for two unrelated men to contract a friendship which is regarded as brother-
hood. They then call each other brother. Chikima from Yakayaka had a relationship of this kind with
Kayi, who now lives with the Mapuera Waiwai. This resulted in Chikima's son, Mauasha also calling
Kayi "apa", even though Kayi in reality was his "tamchi", his wife's father. Brotherhood had thus
changed the terminology for the first descending generation also, but it had not changed the rules
governing their behaviour.
Brotherhood means that two men often assist each other in economic undertakings, hunting and so
forth.
THE VILLAGE OF YAKAYAKA
To obtain a more precise impression of the importance of kinship to social organization, it will be
practical to examine family relations in a village. The village of Yakayaka is a typical example (Fig. 32)
and the one longest visited. It numbered 40 individuals on January 1st, 1955, and this accounted for
Fig. 32. The village of Yakayaka is dominated by the 10 metre high conically roofed communal house. All 40 inha-
bitants of the village sleep and often eat inside within their respective family sections, but most work during day is
carried out in the two smaller working huts. .
13·
Fig. 33. Ground-plan of the communal house (If Yakayaka divided into sections each comprising a single family-
household, the eta.
over half the number of Waiwai dwelling in British Guiana and a little under a quarter of the total
number of Waiwai.
The village constitutes a social unit and consists of the round communal building which houses all
its members. The sketch (Fig. 33) shows the common hearth in the centre with an open space around
it, with a passage to the diametrically-placed doors. Between the two concentric circles of house poles
the hammock places are shown by numbered lines. The sides of the triangles facing the house wall
are also occupied by hammocks. In addition to the common hearth a great common grater-canoe
(x) is placed near the back door. The communal house is about 12 metres in diameter.
Each of the triangular sections forms an eta, i.e. an independent household, and contains a family
hearth in the centre and a dog shelf towards the wall to which the family's dogs are tethered. The
inhabitants of Yakayaka are so placed that in each eta the father is mentioned first, his wife being
immediately under him.
Eta in Yakayaka
1) Charamcha, with son Awa, 8 years old 2
and Ayetskiri, with daughters Watiki, 6 years old,
and Watku, 2 years old . 3
2) Manaka (Ayetskiri's son), 16 years old . . . . . 1
---
6 + 2 dogs
3) 1
1
4) 1
2
5) 1
6 + 3 dogs
6) Paranchitna (with their son Tamoka), 8 years old 2
Kamanyare, and over them . 1
Tarishi (their daughter), 8 years old . . . . . . 1
7) Yarka (Kamanyare's epeka, probably half-brother), 14 years old 1
Mashipata (Kamanyare's sister), 11 years old. 1
8) Emerka (Kamanyare's grandmother) 1
9) Waiwai (Kamanyare's epeka), 18 years old. . 1
---
8 + 4 dogs
10) Macharwe with their daughter Ana, 4 years old . 2
Powa, with their son Onowana, 2 years old 2
11) Yakota (Powa's half-brother), 25 years old . . . 1
including, occasionally, Ana
12) Totore (Powa's step-son, Powa formerly married to his father),
13 years old . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
6 + 2 dogs
13) 1
3
14) 1
1
15) 1
7 + 1 dog
16) Chikima . 1
Kawa, with their son Ekaipun, 1 year old . . . . 2
17) Ashwa (Kawa's son with Chiliminoso), 10 years old. 1
- - -
4 + 0 dog
18) Twaipu . 1
19) Ahma ...•........ 1
20) Kapienna (their son), 18 years old 1
3 + 2 dogs
7 eta with a total of 40 persons and 14 dogs.
There are 7 eta in Yakayaka, but they must be regarded as comprising 8 families, as the polyandrous
marriage between Towchi and Kurum/Yukuma has ended, so that 3 and 4 constitute two families.
Even though Kurum and Yukuma now each represents his own family, they still live together in the
same eta and share the family hearth. They practise a far-reaching economic association, work in the
fields and now and again hunt together despite personal tension. This is due to Yukuma's traditional
dependence on his in-laws (see washma custom below).
The head of the village is the approximately 30 years old Ewka, No. 13, and a review of the relation-
ship shows that the village mainly consists of families where either the man or the woman is Ewka's
epeka.
The kinship chart below should be read from left to right. The top row shows a successive series of
marriages where the spouse to the left dies and a new marriage is started with the partner to the right.
The result of these changing marriages is a number of children, who are brothers and sisters, half-
brothers and -sisters, or actually unrelated though belonging to the same epeka group. The figures
under the epeka row show the placing in the eta.
? =
I
TUISHU
I-I
miko
,
---- TUMEKA
I
chako
,
WAYURUKWA
I .
towchi CHIKIMA powa EWKA YAKOTA MACHARWE TOTORE
3 16 10 13 11 10 12
In long connected series of epeka of this nature, great differences of age arise within a generation, and
with marriages of mixed generations one who belongs to the epeka row can ascend to an elder genera-
tion. The row thus continues:
-~~-
WAYURUKWA powa = MACHARWE
_1-
It was stated that Towchi was epeka to Ewka, but as she had no actual father or mother in common
with him, the two must be regarded as classificatory parallel-cousins. Ewka's marriage to Towchi's
daughter, Ahmori, gives us an example of the niece marriage. This example also shows Ewka's fortunate
position in the middle of epeka, which gives him more of them than those on the wings. Coupled
with his personal qualities, this position has undoubtedly contributed to his status as head of the village.
Next in importance to Ewka, probably, is Towchi, who in addition to personal ability and authority
exercises great influence in virtue of being mother-in-law to both Ewka and Yukuma.
It is not fortuitous that the families of Ewka and Towchi have placed themselves furthest from the
doors; these two places are considered the best.
- -- --- ------ -
~
Fig. 34. Towchi, most important woman in Yakayaka as mother-in-law of the village leader, Ewka, and radiating a
great personal authority, is also a very skilled potter.
There can now be reason to investigate how the individual families are related to the epeka group
The married couple (1) Charamcha / Ayetskiri is mixed, as Ayetskiri comes from the Piskaryenna
Indians near the Mapuera. Charamcha's status is affinal, since for a short time he took his wayamnu,
Powa (10) to wife despite the protests of both the deserted spouses.
The married couple (3): Kurum married to Towchi and dominated by her.
The married couple (4): Yukuma / Ratare; Ratare is the daughter of Towchi. Yukuma was previ-
ously married to Towchi. This example is typical of the cross relations which make an unambiguous
interpretation of the Waiwai kinship system so difficult; as
KURUM
towchi ~
YUKUMA
I
ra tare = ~ ~ ~ t~
) . PEPMA
plpl
Thus Towchi lived in a polyandrous marriage at the same time as Yukuma lived in a polygynous one.
Incidentally, it may be remarked that Pepma did not regard Ratare as a stepmother (yeme), but as
a half-sister (achi). Marriages of mixed generations are by no means uncommon with the Waiwai,
MAPALE.. "towchi
.. ,
I
YUKUMA
,,
, .-t. .
. I
ahmori
so that Yukuma had previously been married to his stepmother's mother, as Yukuma's father, Mapale,
had previously been married to Towchi's daughter, who thus ranked as mother to Yukuma.
The married couple (6): Paranchitna / Kamanyare were said not to be linked to the epeka group by
bonds of relationship.
The married couple (10): Macharwe / Powa both belonged to the epeka group but had no actual
parents in common.
The married couple (13): Ewka / Ahmori; Ahmori is also the daughter of Towchi.
The married couple (16): Chikima / Kawa belongs through Chikima to the epeka group. Incidentally,
this couple had attempted to obtain the husband's son by a former marriage included in a polyandrous
union in order to gain his working effort for the home. The son, Mauasha, did not wish this and
married his cross-cousin instead.
The married couple (18, 19): Twaipu / Ahma did not appear to belong to the epeka group and were
only staying in Yakayaka temporarily.
When it is remembered that a village chief will do everything he can to bring unrelated persons to
his village in order to increase its prestige and prosperity, the ratio of one or two stranger families to
6 related families must be regarded as a clear indication that the epeka group is an extremely important
factor in the build up of the Waiwai village community.
THE FAMILY
Just as the structure of the village is stamped by the community of brothers and sisters, so also is the
individual eta in the communal house stamped by marriage.
An eta is a household that collects around a family hearth. It always consists of a married couple
and only one; as case (3 & 4) is explained as an originally polygamous marriage. To the eta also belong
unmarried children, stepchildren and adopted children, plus any unmarried brothers and sisters or a
surviving mother or father of the wife. It is thus an individual family. Since most of the individual
families in the communal house stand in an epeka relationship to each other, one could speak of an
extended family. As a rule, however, the natural head is dead, owing to the generally low average
duration of life.
It has previously been mentioned that a certain degree of matrilocality exists among the Waiwai.
However, this should be regarded almost as an ideal demand which is only occasionally fulfilled and
then only temporarily, as a rule in the first year after the conclusion of marriage (see p. 135).
The Family 201
Even though it might seem that a village built up on the epeka system would upset the principle of
matrilocality,' this need not be the case. Thus, Ewka is married to the daughter of his epeka, and his
sister Powa is married to Macharwe, who belongs to the same epeka group, though neither had either
parent in common. Yukuma still follows the rule of matrilocality and has a far-reaching economic
association with his father-in-law with whom he hunts and works in the fields.
However, matrilocality is particularly a burden for the husband on account of the dependence,
washma, in which he stands to his wife's brothers and father.
To serve washma means to let one's sister's husband undertake some work for one. Washma work,
which the brother-in-law is bound to perform, must be regarded as a bride service, in theory valid
for life but actually only as long as matrilocality persists.
At the oho chant that takes place in connexion with the contraction of marriage, the duration of
matrilocality is one of the main questions of dispute. A man who has had to press strongly to obtain
a girl in marriage must in return promise to practise matrilocality for a longer period. Because an oho
chant is binding, a suitor of this kind will be forced into a longer working period for his in-laws.
Washma always acts through the woman. A man thus applies to his sister if he needs work done,
whether in the fields, house building or smaller tasks such as the manufacture of arrows. The woman
then passes on the message to her husband in a form such as: "Go and cut in my brother's field".
If the man does not perform this work the woman's brother will become angry and say, for example:
"You are my sister's husband (poimo), but you don't obey me".
The washrna custom ensures that in an epeka-stamped village solidarity is not subverted by the
special interests of the individual family. In Yakayaka, Ewka possessed through his sister, Powa,
washma rights over Macharwe. That Macharwe found this burdensome is shown by the fact that he
twice left the village in an attempt to establish a new one. Only a lack of drive in realizing this project
forced him to return to the village. Through the washma custom not only the epeka group but also
its awale relations, its in-laws, are incorporated in the joint tasks and economy of the village.
The most effective way in which a young man can evade his washma obligations is to let his sister
marry his wife's brother, whereby the rights of the two men cancel out. This sister exchange does take
place, though it is but seldom possible.
The economically dominant person in the eta is the woman; a man simply could not manage with-
out one. Before a man marries he is cared for by his mother, or by his sister should the mother be dead.
If married and his wife dies, he will move back to his sister until he finds a new wife. In this way also
the sister's husband will feel his dependence upon his in-laws. Above (under marriage), the distinction
between sister and wayamnu, between an economic and a sexual partner, has been dealt with; it can
merely be said that a wife combines these two functions. A man's relations with his female awale for
example, his mother-in-law, is on the other hand stamped by avoidance. One feels ashamed to talk
to one's mother-in-law because she might think that one was fawning for the purpose of having sexual
relations with her. This must therefore be regarded as a theoretical possibility in the case of an awale,
and there was, in fact, one instance where a man had married his father's sister, who is his classificatory
mother-in-law. Only if a man is very hungry may he ask his mother-in-law for bread. The weak trace
of mother-in-law avoidance on the part of the man is supported by the fact that a man's kinship term
for a grandmother, chacha, is identical with the word for mother-in-law, and that - as opposed to the
special term for father-in-law, tamchi - there is no special word for mother-in-law. The same thing
applies between a man and his daughter-in-law.
FORMS OF MARRIAGE
The eta and individual family are built on marriage, of which the Waiwai practice many types, both
monogamous and polygamous.
As a man (or a woman) must find his (her) spouse amongst the wayamnu there are two possible
forms of marriage within the framework of the family:
1. eros s-cousin marriage, which on account of the classificatory terms must be regarded as the
type of marriage most frequently met with. For example, the children of Ewka and Powa were destined
for each other. Four couples, at all events, practised this type .
. 2. avuncular marriage, with a sister's daughter. There were two certain examples of this.
Thewayamnu institution with the appearance of a number of potential spouses and permitted lovers even
in the case of the marriage of all concerned, is active in the establishment of polygamous relations such as
3. polygyny in general, and
4. sororal polygyny, that has taken place frequently. This form would be the natural result of a
combination of polygamous and cross-cousin marriage tendencies.
5. sororal monogamy in connexion with the death of a wife was also observed and harmonizes
well with the classificatory mother concept.
6. polygyny by marriage with a woman and her daughter by a previous marriage, one example
(Yukuma). If we look at the terminologies for wife's aunts (wayamnu) and uncles (poimo) it will be
found that this nomenclature also stresses that type of marriage.
As the wayamnu institution applies equally to women there is also:
7. polyandry in general.
8. leviratic polyandry, one case (Yakota + Macharwe).
9. leviratic monogamy in one case where the husband died.
10. polyandry by marriage with a man and his son by a former marriage, one case (Powa); see
also Kawa (p. 134).
In principle the wayamnu concept extends beyond the tribe, and consequently there is nothing to
stop one fetching a bride from one of the neighbouring tribes. In Yakayaka only Charamcha had done
so, marrying the Piskaryenna woman, Ayetskiri, from the upper Mapuera.
Particularly the Mouyenna Indians south-east of the Waiwai have furnished the Waiwai with wives;
six were heard of. In return at least three Waiwai women had married Mouyenna men. In addition,
individual Waiwai had obtained wives from You, Piskaryenna and Katwine, all south of the Waiwai
area, near the Mapuera. Two Waiwai women had married outside the tribe, one with a Taruma and
the other with a Wapishana Indian, both north of the Waiwai area. It was generally held by the Waiwai
that such mixed marriages were a new feature. The first time a Waiwai married a Mouyenna was thus
said to be only about 40 years ago; this, however, does not agree with the historical sources (see p. 7).
Descent 203
DESCENT
In connexion with the mixed tribal marriages the question of the children's status arises.
As previously mentioned the kinship terminology and the symmetrical cross-cousin marriage points
towards a bilateral system, but traces in the direction of matrilineal descent has also been referred to.
In the cases that could be determined, it proved that a child of a Waiwai father and Mouyenna mother
was regarded, and regarded itself, as a Mouyenna, even though matrilocality was not practised. Naturally,
this can be due to a Mouyenna rule about matrilineage. The chief informant, Ewka, considered, however,
that it was environment during growth that determined tribal status, and that a child of a Waiwai
man and a Mouyenna woman would be a Waiwai provided he grew up with that tribe. This explanation,
which places environment above descent, established the rule concerning bilateralism, but it shows at
the same time that descent depends on the current rule of locality. The traces of matrilineage one
occasionally encounters among the Waiwai can best be explained by a reference to the view that
matrilocality - which now is only an ideal - has, to judge by everything, formerly been a general rule.
There is hardly any doubt that it is a general Waiwai idea that a child belongs equally to the sides of
both its parents. This can be seen by the fact that a child whose parents die will join the nearest female
relative and her eta whether she is related through the father or through the mother.
In addition to locality, the rules of inheritance are also connected with the descent rule. Ignoring
such things as field and hunting territory rights, which are always common property, and where there
is thus only a question of a right of personal use rather than a right of property, the rule applies that
material effects are to some extent separate estate and are regarded as personal property. These objects
being conditioned by sex to a high degree, a son can only inherit his father and a daughter her mother.
To the extent that one can talk of the position of village chief being inheritable by the son, the same
ambivalent rule is followed in reality. Ambilinear inheritance corresponds to bilateral descent.
THE HEAD OF THE VILLAGE, YAYALITOMO
As mentioned above, a village consists socially of a number of eta or individual families, most of
which often stand in a mutual epeka relationship to each other. Theoretically, therefore, the village
can be considered as a bilateral extended family, to which belongs an isolated individual family or so.
The social organization of the village is a faithful reflection of the family organization. Just as an
individual family absorbs any relatives and forms a household, so the extended family absorbs friends
and forms a village. In accordance with this it is the custom to call the yayalitomo "father" (apa),
and his status vis-a-vis the people in the village corresponds to that of the dominant person in a
washma relationship.
Social behaviour, which extends beyond kinship behaviour, particularly the epeka-awale relation,
is in the main linked with the village chief. The head of the village, or yayalitomo as the Waiwai call
him, owns the clearing and the communal house. Any Waiwai may become the yayalitomo if he is
able to assemble some men around him and persuade them to clear a fresh patch of ground and build
./
a communal house. A natural qualification is either a strong personality and authority or a larger
group of epeka and their affilated awale over whom to dispose. Succession also plays a role in achieving
the dignity of yayalitomo; at all events in two instances this office passed to a son (or adopted son).
However, there is no question of a rule, but merely that the family of the old yayalitomo is regarded
by the village as an important one, and that in consequence his son possesses a natural advantage. If
the son does not appear to be qualified, another who is can take over the post. If no suitable candidates
are to be found in the village, it will be dissolved and the individual families will spread to other Waiwai
villages.
Succession in connexion with the taking over of the dignity of head man is in reality linked to local
circumstances. Only a son - he need not to be the eldest - can decide whether a village is to exist after
the death of his father, the headman. Should he so decide, only he himself can take over the position.
If, on the other hand, it is decided to move, one can either move to a village already in existence and
subject oneself to its headman's authority, or establish a new village, whereby other members of the
village obtain an opportunity to achieve the rank of headman. The position of a yayalitomo can be
described as a primus inter pares, which is emphasized by the plan of the communal house and his
position in it (see p. 198). The equal distribution of the eta in the circular communal house is well
fitted to a community so devoid of rank. An eta in the communal house corresponds structurally to
the Waiwai lean-to shelter, powishi-matko, regarded by the Waiwai as their original building type
(see p. 76), and at any rate typologically older.
The Waiwai village is neither stable nor permanent. As a rule it only has a life of about 5 years, for
economic, technical and religious reasons. The village is always sited in direct connexion with the
field, and close to an assured water supply, i.e. a small brook; in addition, it will not be far from a
major river system, owing to the needs for communication and for fishing and hunting trips. After
about three years a slash-and-burn field is exhausted and unremunerative because of strong under-
growth, and it will seldom be possible to have more than three fields in the immediate vicinity of the
village. Even before that time the communal house will as a rule have been renewed in preference to
undertaking the many repairs necessary, and when renewing it, it often happens that the whole village
is moved a few hundred metres away.
A third factor will usually prove decisive: this is the custom to burn and desert a village when one
of its more important members dies (see p. 164). According to reports, this custom was more frequently
practised in the past than it is now, and then is said to have comprised every adult member. Now it
is followed at all events when the yayalitomo, the yaskomo, or one of their wives die. When many
people have been buried in the proximity of the village, this alone provides a motive for removal,
owing to the fear felt about the ekatmho of the dead.
When a village moves for one reason or another, a change also in its composition often takes place.
A dissatisfied person or one with a strong personality may use the occasion to form a new independent
village; this was the case when Yakayaka was established, as people moved from the earlier Eripoimo.
As mentioned in the case of Macharwe, one can also attempt to move from an already existing village.
The gaining of the office of yayalitomo is either connected with the establishment of a new village or
with death. A new yayalitomo makes his appearance not only on the death of a yayalitomo but also
Rights of Property 205
on the death of his wife. In Mauika, the next-largest of the Guiana Waiwai villages (with about 30
inhabitants), the wife of the headman died, but he decided to remain in his old village, probably
because a move had been made not long before. He was able to do this as he was mlmimitl, that is,
owner of the house. In the meantime, being without a wife, he was no longer regarded as a completely
valid member of the village, since for one thing he became economically dependent upon the female
leader of another eta. Shortly after, the dignity of yayalitomo therefore devolved upon his adopted
son, whilst he himself acted as an informal stabilizer in the village for a transitional period.
As already mentioned, a yayalitomo must know how to make a good field and to be able to predict
the rains. A good yayalitomo is one who plants a very big field and obtains ample crops. He can only
do this because he acquires, upon asking, in addition to his epeka and awale, the help of all the men
in the village in clearing work. On such occasions a yayalitomo can resort to an oho chant (see p. 217)
in order thereby to compel any who may oppose his demand for common work. He has the right to
institute an "oho" regarding this, and the other party will then be bound to comply with the request.
In the case of joint work the oho is used normally in connexion with cassava cultivation, and the
yayalitomo will less frequently take the initiative in sending out people to hunt or to fish, although
fish poisoning can come under the heading of joint work. The yayalitomo has to be able to dispose
over this labour force, as great economic obligations rest upon him. He must see that the old people
in the village obtain sufficient supplies of cassava from his field should they possess no young female
"
relative to work for them. He must receive guests and look after them if they have no relations in the
village.
Furthermore, he must produce cassava for the almost daily common meals.
In return for these obligations, the yayalitomo has the natural right for his eta to occupy the best
position in the communal house, that is to say, furthest from the doors, and he enjoys a prestige in
accordance with his personality and authority.
RIGHTS OF PROPERTY
Before proceeding any further with the village and its leader, a few words must be said about the rights
of property and the distribution of work. Personal rights of property apply equally to men, women
and children; one can never obtain a child's toy by trll;ding without its consent, uninfluenced by its
parents. Household utensils, implements and weapons are personal property.
Bigger objects, like a canoe used by a whole familyvare owned by the father, whereas larger clay
vessels, cassava pans and tipiti, which are also used by the family in association, are the property
of the family's female head. The canoe is thus private property even if its production is the result of
common effort. Clothes and ornaments are always personal property, as are hammocks made by the
man for his wife and his children. The barter of personal property in the tribe is usually done in
connexion with an "oho". As mentioned in connexion with a trading oho (p. 217), the rule seems to
apply that the right of usage takes precedence over private property rights, so that a man who, for
example, possesses no bow can demand one of the two owned by another man. It appears also that
products from deserted fields become joint property.
"
Property rights are strongly stamped by the Waiwai's day-to-day economy, where there is never
any amassing of values. Even the harvest is not collected for storage, as the keeping qualities in the
soil of the ripe bitter cassava makes this unnecessary. This special quality of the bitter cassava must
have made agriculture more acceptable when a switch was made from a pure hunting and collecting
economy.
Whereas the smaller working houses lying around are owned and erected by one or two individual
families, the communal house is formally owned by the yayalitomo.
The clearing is also owned by the headman though the result of common effort. It is then divided
up into family plots of about 2 acres which each family plants and thus acquires right of use.
For the village of Yakayaka there were two fields divided as follows:
Ewka
Chikima Kurum +
Paranchitna Yukuma
Macharwe Ewka
Charamcha
It is worth mentioning that each eta in the village has a plot of land except Twaipu and his family
who, as previously mentioned, was only staying there temporarily.
It was found that in addition to sharing an eta Kurum and his son-in-law Yukuma also shared a
field. The sketch also shows that the yayalitomo, Ewka, was the only one to own two plots of field,
each of which was larger than those owned by others. Women must fetch from their own plot the
cassava needed to supply the bread and beverage needs of their family. For the common meal, both
the daily one at midday and on festive occasions, the yayalitomo asks the women in turn to fetch
cassava from his field. The woman now makes bread and from it drink; this is her property, but when
it is to be used she hands it over to the yayalitomo who then gives it to the members of the village and
any guests. Thus a woman is always in charge of the drink, and usually also of the food, to be used
at common meals.
DISTRIBUTION OF WORK AND POSITION
When common meals are given, certain members of the village have special functions. When the woman
responsible for food and drink delivers it to the yayalitomo she says: "Please, the food is ready".
However, the yayalitomo does not pass on this message direct to the village members but to a definite
person. In Yakayaka this was his father-in-law, Kurum, who through his wife, Towchi, belonged to
the next most important family in the village. In the neighbouring village of Mauika the message
from the headman was given to his adopted son, who was later to be his successor. It thus seems
r-;-
Distribution of Work 207
\
1
I
I
•
J
l
r
Fig. 35. The chief occupation of Waiwai women is the preparation of cassava, the poisonous
juice of which is here patiently pressed out by the help of the tipitf.
'.
justified to assume that the message is given from the yayalitomo to his deputy. The deputy then passes
on the message to an employee, who in Yakayaka was Kurum's son-in-law, Yukuma, and in Mauika
a younger awale man, Wanawa. Finally, the employee tells everybody in the village. Only then does
one assemble for the daily common meal at about 1-2 p.m. As a rule it consists of a tapioca beverage
or kuchukwa (cassava beer), red pepper soup ("pepper-pot") usually without meat or fish, and cassava
bread.
This order of rank becomes still more apparent in connexion with an "oho chant", which is initiated
by the yayalitomo in order to invite a neighbouring village to a dance festival or to send the people
of his village out to work in the fields. In the case of a dance festival the message is transmitted indirectly
as follows:
Yayalitomo Yayalitomo
I
Deputy
Employee V
1 ' I
Deputy
Employee
~
»>:" families
Hea~~ of
The yayalitomo gives the message to his deputy, who gives it to the employee. The last-mentioned
then goes to the neighbouring village and conveys the invitation to the yayalitomo there, who also via
his deputy passes it on the employee. The employee then tells everyone in the village.
In domestic village affairs, however, the first three links drop out, but at common meals are replaced
by the woman responsible for the catering.
As the Waiwai community appears today it seems unthinkable to the author that there can be a
social basis for such a developed system of rank in view of the small population of this tribe and the
limited functions of the yayalitomo. It thus seems more to be a matter of a rudiment or of a loan
from cultures more stamped by rank. As the custom works today it is, however, a means of augmenting
the distinction between the yayalitomo and the ordinary man; but the difference will never be a great one.
The stratified organization of the village with the headman, his deputy and his employee are, with
the exception of the yaskomo, the only cases of individual specialization in the Waiwai community.
Apart from this, the distribution of work is, as is the case everywhere in the Amazon region,
strongly conditioned by sex, the men engaging in hunting and fishing and in the forms of collecting
that demand major muscular efforts, like the collection of honey and bees, or of fruit and nuts that
demand climbing skill. The women attend to general collecting, and also take part in fishing, when
it is a matter of fish poisoning, but then their work takes the form of collecting. They can thus also
take part in the fetching of lianas that are used in fish poisoning. A woman who is childless may also
participate in men's hunting expeditions, even though all she does is to carry home the bag.
Fish poisoning is, of course, a common effort in which several families in the village take part as
a rule, but it is only occasionally organized by the yayalitomo. One or more men beat out the fish
poison at a suitable place in the river where the current is quite weak. Each time they lower the basket
with the fish poison they say: "May the fish be drunk by poison". Whilst they are so doing, other
Distribution of Work 209
men, women and children stand ready further down the stream and collect and kill the unconscious
fish which float or jump on the surface. When this has been done the more fortunate of the collectors
give half their fish to the men who have put out the poison. The person who has organized the fish
poisoning, who as a rule receives a good supply, and possibly another who has been fortunate, allow
their wives to distribute the catch to all who have remained at home. It is characteristic that each
child also obtains a fish; children are regarded as fully-fledged members of the village, but it is naturally
assumed that they will give the fish to their mothers and that it ends in the family pot. The men's
sphere of work includes the heavier side of agriculture such as the clearing and burning of fields.
They also assist in other aspects of farming like digging up and carrying home the cassava and helping
with the planting, though the actual work of cultivation and household task fall to the women.
In regard to game it is a rule that men invariably cut up the meat, whereas the women always remove
the hairs of the fur by pouring hot water over them and then either picking or scraping them out.
Bread and beverages are made by the women, who likewise attend to cooking, collecting and the
cutting of firewood. As a rule they also fetch water.
Amongst the most important techniques it can be mentioned that the production of clay vessels
is a woman's task, but men often do the painting or the scratching of a design.
Only women spin cotton and make cassava scrapers. Plaiting work like pegall, sieves, tipitl, fans
etc. is performed solely by men, as is also the case in respect of hammocks and weaving of men's loin
cloths. On the other hand, the special bead weaving and all other bead work is done by women. House
building is a man's task, as is the manufacture of weapons, including arrow poison, and the adaptation
of musical instruments. In connexion with this last it should be mentioned that the artistic side of the
Waiwai culture is nearly always performed by the men. Only they play musical instruments, apart
from the rattles used by the leading woman at dance festivals. Only men produce plastic art and
patterned plait work. Even the clay vessels manufactured by the women are decorated as a rule by
men. The men decorate themselves far more carefully than women with body, and particular face,
paint. Finally, the myths are also related by men.
.
Fig. 36. Waiwai composite comb, a piece of art.

14 Waiwai
The reason why practically all work of an artistic nature is linked with the man is difficult to explain.
It can, however, be emphasized that in general the Waiwai man has far more spare time than the woman,
and that his sphere of work - especially hunting - is of a particularly dramatic character. In the myths
just as in animism and magic, it is nearly always animals that stamp the imaginative world rather
than plants. The same is the case with visual art; practically all the things made: grater boards, stools,
basketry, bast costumes, etc., represent animals, particularly the jaguar, anaconda, lizard, frog, ape
and fish. Within this field the men, in view of their hunting and fishing, are naturally the more com-
petent interpreters, as well as being both the more inspired and the more engaged.
As a result one cannot talk of professional craftsmen among the Waiwai. Nearly every family can
do what is necessary, and none is able to dispense with the economic basis represented by personal
labour at agriculture, fishing or hunting. This also applies to the yayalitomo and the yaskomo. Natural
ability and inclination play their part, of course, and Charamcha, for example was particularly good
at plaiting and sometimes did for Yukuma, who preferred to spend most of his time out hunting.
Similarly, Towchi and her daughter were unusually adept at making clay vessels, making them for
others in the tribe in return for payments in kind, such as spun cotton. Only one man, Waniu, amongst
the Guiana Waiwai was able to carve low stools, and he provided the whole group with them. In the
same way, Machawe was the only one capable of carving small dogs and armadilloes from ite kernels,
which children wore on a string round their necks.
Special mental powers were frequently met with amongst elderly people, for example Ayetskiri was
known for her skill in lay eremu, and a man like Chikima was appreciated as a narrator of myths.
!
~
I
The daily round
In connexion with the distribution of work between the sexes, a few remarks can be made about its
distribution over the day.
The daily task of collecting food is always done in the morning, as it is desired to take advantage
of the cool early hours for the heaviest work.
There will always be a few families which have planned hunting and fishing trips. These start as
early as 3-4 a.m. If it is a special hunt, three or four young men will go off, but often there are combined
trips where one or two families leave in the canoe. The women can then indulge in fish poisoning and
collect potting clay, fruit and iguana eggs, whilst the men hunt and practise fishing with bow and arrow.
Of those, who remain at home, some women go to the field where, from about 6 to 9 a.m., they dig
up the daily supply of cassava, plant a corresponding number of cuttings, and perhaps weed. The
particular woman in charge of the common beverage must attend to a larger supply, and often has
some of the family's male members to help her in digging up and carrying home. Waiwai men, who
perform a considerable amount of the agricultural work, often have the hunter's typical attitude
toward steady work; they gladly let it drop if a sudden opportunity arises for hunting. This is also
the reason why Waiwai trips take an unnecessarily long time; richer hunting far from inhabited places
excites their hunting instincts.
For women the morning passes in household work, especially the preparation of cassava. Should
the family have a baby, one can often see the husband lying in his hammock (when debarred from
hunting on account of poyin) deputed to look after it. The women bring panniers of fuel to the hearth,
and go down to the river, bearing three or four calabash containers, to fetch water. Here, there is
( nearly always something going on; the children bathe, try their father's canoe or attempt fishing. All
the Waiwai bathe at least once daily. When the women fetch water they take the opportunity to have
a dip; modesty forbids the men to stay near the spot. Solicitude, and particularly jealousy, often causes
some husbands to accompany their wives, and they sit on the bank just out of sight, waiting on their
stools. Not only jealousy but also marital solidarity and understanding frequently gives the husband
cause chivalrously to accompany his wife in her work. Women enjoy respect and esteem according
to their personality, not only in marriage but also in village life. However, they have not quite
the same social rights as men (see, for example, p. 216), and cannot, so far as is known, become a
yayalitomo; however they can exercise fu11 influence through their husbands and may dominate
them. In this connexion mention can be made of a joking remark on the part of a Waiwai man when
he heard that someone had broken one of Towchi's clay vessels. He said: "If it were I, I should now
14·
212 The Daily Round
Fig. 37. Waiwai fishing normally is carried out with bow and arrow either from a canoe, a rock or - as here - from
a platform erected in shallow water.
be far up the river!". Though the social position of women is inferior to that of men, it dominates in
the sphere of economics. Though it cannot be proved, it is tempting to regard the inordinate vanity
and love of finery of the Waiwai men, as compared to the far greater moderation of the women in
this respect, as being due to the women's occupational domination, and the difference in motives thus
engendered for the selection of mates by the two sexes.
The individual family (eta) normally eats together at about 5-6 a.m., and a midday meal is taken
at about I p.m. either individually and haphazardly, or, more usually a common meal prepared at
the insistance of the yayalitomo, where first the men and then the women eat. If the head of the
family has been absent in the morning hunting, he often returns about 2-3 p.m. His wife must im-
mediately drop all work in order to cook some of his bag, which is then consumed as quickly as possible
by the whole family. If the man has been lucky and killed a big animal, or has obtained an ample
r
The Daily Round 213
Fig. 38. 5 Waiwai men gathered for the midday meal, consisting of pepperpot with alligator meat; the women will
eat afterwards.
supply of fish, one of three things may happen: the hunter or fisher may merely distribute the meat
or fish raw to all members of the village who thus enjoy it by families at the meal at 5-6 p.m.; or, one
may - particularly after a fish poisoning expedition - distribute the fish, which is then cooked by
families, whereupon the yayalitomo summons a common meal and first the men and then the women
eat from the many clay vessels that have been brought together; or the hunter can hold a nohaini
(literally: here it is = be pleased (to eat)) to which he invites the whole village. In this last event the
hunter and his family must not participate in the common meal, presumably on account of the risk
of poyin (see p. 143), but eat by themselves out of their own pot, whilst the main part of the meat is
handed over to another woman of the village to be cooked. At nohaini men and women eat at the
same time, but in two circles each round ones own pot.
If it is practicable, an invitation can be sent to a neighbouring village concerning a nohaini, in
which case the meat will be smoked over a barbecue during the night and eaten the day after the hunt.
It is unavoidable that the man who often brings back ample quantities of meat and fish to the village
enjoys special favour and prestige. Accordingly, it is a common practice for strangers to make them-
selves popular by bringing with them gifts of food when visiting a village.
When a Waiwai is approaching a strange village, he will be particularly careful with his morning
toilet, especially his face paint; he will put white eagle down on his shiny, greased hair, but he will
214 The Daily Round
Fig. 39. Waiwai men are extremely vain, and

especially before visiting a strange village they
adorn their black, greased hair with white down
from the harpy eagle.
not feel properly at his ease until he has been able to present gifts of meat and fish at the welcoming
talk with the yayalitomo. It was with genuine pride that one of our Waiwai with the expedition handed
over to the yayalitomo on our arrival at the village of Kashimo the whole of our meat supply, about
t of a tapir. On another occasion he distributed haimara fish, first to the men and then to the women
and children.
The afternoon is the quietest time of the day in a Waiwai village. During the hottest time one rests
in hammocks, which may have been hung in one of the working huts without walls so that one can
see what is going on. Later, practical work is done: the women spin or make clay vessels, the men
plait or manufacture arrows. A couple may be engaged in an oho.
After the evening meal darkness falls immediately, but for many hours the cool air is enjoyed out
of doors or in the working huts. If there is illness in the village, the work of the yaskomo now begins,
either in the communal house or in his medicine man's hut, which cannot be built until darkness falls.
One or two young men often practise flute playing long after most of the inhabi tants have gone to rest.
However, quiet at night is always sporadic. The inhabitants lie by families around the eta hearths,
and the women, whose hammocks are hung under those of the men, must regularly poke the fire.
Sounds from the forest cause first one dog to bark and then another; this is followed by a howl when
the owner hurls a log at it. Talks goes on. The events of the day are discussed and, if humanly possible,
made fun of. Laughter then breaks out and after that quiet prevails for a short space.
The urge to laugh and to poke fun at others is very characteristic of the Waiwai. One is always
friendly in front of one's fellows, but to a third party there is no mincing of words. What is said of
The Daily Round 215
Fig. 40. The tapir - largest game of South America - was killed by bow and arrow from the canoe. After a smoking
on barbecue the two hunters handed over most of the meat to the leader of the village visited two days later.
one, one's reputation, is an important factor conditioning self-respect and humour. The Waiwai
possess no legal institutions that formally indicate obligation and mete out punishment of social
offences. If a person does wrong people will talk ill of him behind his back. When he hears this he
will become extremely uneasy.
",.-_.
The Oho chant
In earlier pages frequent reference has been made to the term "oho chant", but to facilitate matters
for the reader a complete description of this judicial institution has been postponed until now. This
means of communication is of great importance to the village and to the tribe as a whole.
The Waiwai term "oho-kari" means "yes saying". It covers a special mode of expression in official
announcements, requests, and claims. It is characteristic of the oho that the speaker, or oho-opener,
in short, fast and firm sentences chants what he wants to tell his opponent, who at the end of each
sentence answers "oho".
The oho is always carried out by only two individuals, who sit on low stools opposite each other.
The questioner will invite his opponent to take a seat, and then in a special chant-tone he will make
his requests in short sentences rising in pitch at the end. After each sentence the opponent answers
with a hardly audible "oho", that is, "yes".
During the first phase of the oho, which usually takes a quarter of an hour, the opener is mainly
flattering his opponent and speaking disparagingly about himself. This, according to the Waiwai, is
done in order "to get on the right side of the man", from whom he often wants some service. The
opener terminates the first phase of the oho by a sentence falling in pitch or by a humming sound.
This is the sign for the opponent to start his phase of chanting sentences, which are now interrupted
by the opener's oho. In this way the opener and his opponent will chant alternately for a considerable
time - generally for one or two hours. There is even an example of an oho which went on for 26 hours
without any interruption.
In this 26 hours' oho-chant the opener wanted to refute a supposed magical blowing, which might
lead to his death. He therefore invited the medicine man to an oho which started at 8 in the morning
and continued till 10 the next morning. During this time the two chanting persons did not eat or move
at all.
The medicine man continued obstinately to deny his blowing and at last the opener, running out
of words and arguments, rose and left. This meant that he had lost his case.
A strong formalism is connected with an oho and therefore only experienced people are able to
engage in it. It requires a clear pronounciation and a correct diction, and - what emphasizes its
ceremonial character - the use of old dialect words, which have now disappeared from everyday talk.
Above all, the oho requires quickness in thought and speech. As a rule only men engage in the oho,
but a woman may occasionally make use of the oho-institution though only with a male opponent.
That women are considered particularly talkative appears from the story about the harpy eagle (see
\,
A ceremonial dialogue 217
p. 79). The opener of the oho is not necessarily a man of higher prestige than his opponent. Any
person who wants to make an announcement or request may be the opener.
The oho-chant is used on a number of occasions which all have social aims and a certain official
stamp.
a) When a young man wants to marry, he asks his father to go to the woman's father or her nearest
male relative to perform an oho on his behalf, and the young man's father may open the dialogue as
follows:- "This my son said (the father-in-law answers oho), he wants your daughter (oho), then
let them live together". After the first phase of the oho the girl's father may refuse or postpone the
alliance by objections which will usually be of an economic character, or he may agree and chant
like this:- "There she is (oho), she is still lazy (oho), she does not work properly (oho), but let him
try himself (oho), he will bring her back", and he may add:- "Let them stay here (oho), do not let
them go far away". Finally, still in the oho-chant style he will ask for the payment which may for
instance be a hammock, a pegall or a bow. It may be noticed that the opponent is slighting the object
(in this case his daughter) which he is requested to give away. This is very typical in oho where it
is a matter of some form of trading. It presumably expresses a psychological sales technique, as the
derogatory reference will cause the interested party to praise, and thus set greater store by, the person
or object under discussion.
The oho-ceremony is really of very great importance for the two families involved, as the young
man's status in relation to his in-law-family will be the weaker the more his father has pressed his case.
If the girl's father has too willingly given away his daughter, the young man can refuse to settle
near his in-laws and thereby evade an essential part of his bride service. If on the other hand the suitor
has to beseech his son's prospective father-in-law, the young man may have to face lifelong obligations
to his wife's father and brothers. Thus the marriage-oho contains an element of trade.
b) The oho-chant is also used in ordinary trade enterprises. If, for instance, a man owns two hair-
tubes, and has refused to give one of them away to another person who has asked for it, the interested
party may say:- "To-morrow we will say oho". A refusal will affect more persons than the two men
involved, and the significance of the oho is here that of preventing a severe conflict. In brief such an
oho sounds:- "I want your hair-tube, (oho), so I came, (oho), you live here, (oho), have lots of beads,
(oho), you can make another one". And the owner answers: "I refused it, (oho), now I will not refuse
any longer, (oho), here take it away". The oho continues and in return the owner may ask for a loin-
cloth or the like, so the result may be a fairly equal bargain. On rare occasions the owner will continue
to refuse the request; the demander then will go on flattering the owner and humiliating himself for
a long time, and if his rhetoric does not work, he may get so angry as to blow magically on the owner.
Thus the binding character of an oho is evident; ~he Waiwai say that without the oho "a man will
not keep his word". The serious and binding effect of the oho is also stressed by the fact that a refusal
is often followed by the fatal magical blowing and an ensuing blood-feud.
The oho-opener will have to be fairly sure of the result before he starts an oho. If he succeeds in
apparently doubtful cases he will undoubtedly win admiration and prestige.
c) Individual contracts and appeals to communal work, as for instance activity in the clearings and
housebuilding, are organized through the oho. In cases of communal work the village-chief is the
218 The Oha chant
oho-opener. The village-chief has but little authority; in some cases he must rely on the oho-institution
in order to have his intentions carried out. Once, for instance, a village was in need of pottery clay,
but in spite of repeated requests from the chief, nobody went out to get the clay until he had taken
an oho with some of his men. The authoritative position of the chief is clearly illustrated in the ex-
ample "Oho before a hunt" (Appendix p. 315): "I am not the chief I because of that for the time being I
they don't obey my mouth".
d) Invitations to a feast are also sent out by the village-chief through an oho, something like the
following, which is referred to under Shodewika dance festival (see p. 172). Incidentally, it should be
mentioned that there is a possibility that an oho chant appears in the Shodewika myth (see p. 63).
Here it is also a matter of an invitation to a dance festival which at first is refused, but Mawari at last
persuades the strangers invited. With a normal invitation to a dance festival the oho, summarized,
can run as follows: "My leader sends me, (oho), to invite you to come and drink, (oho), let everyone
who wants to, come, (oho), and everybody who does not want to come, stay home".
In this case the important thing is not the contents of the oho; more important is, that it indicates
a graduated organization of village administration through persons who are practically considered to
be substitutes and official employees of the leader (see p. 208). It was my good fortune to observe
the same graduation in a few other cases, such as oho in connection with work in the clearings and
communal meals.
e) A feast like the one already mentioned usually lasts four to five days. On the third day it is
interrupted by the chief who through the agency of an oho sends out the guests and his own people
to hunt and fish in order that the feast can go on. This oho corresponds exactly to the one which is
used to summon people for communal work.
f) As has already been mentioned, the oho is used for refuting a supposed fatal blowing.
g) But the oho is also used at deaths, before and after cremation. When a woman dies, her father,
her brother, or her husband can say oho, but only to those who are not relatives of her's. On the
death of a man his wife can say oho to men only, though not to her husband's kinsmen or to her
wayamnu. If none of the relatives of the deceased person says oho, people will talk badly about them
and even accuse them of having blown on the deceased. However, news of a death is never sent to a
neighbouring village, but when strangers pay a visit and hear about it, an "oho" will often follow.
A relative of the deceased may chant: "She died, (oho); someone or other must have blown upon
her, (oho), let me now depart, (oho), I wish to live by myself; (oho), I wandered about and arrived
here, (oho), I thought you were good people, (oho), I brought my wife's body." The unrelated person
can reply to this: "I did not want your wife, (oho), I did not blow upon her, (oho), do not depart,
(oho), I shall miss you, (oho), you have been kind to me, (oho), you have cut my field, (oho), therefore
I wish you to remain here, (oho), close to the bones of your wife". As appears from the oho examples
given in the Appendix, the main section consists of sentences containing meaningless words endlessly
repeated. Among these come completely incomprehensible words or passages, together with the sen-
tences that indicate the matter in question. See the example "Oho after a death" (p. 307), Ewka: "And
we will eat each other (spiritually) I with curses, I supposeII I am not like that I I do not use curses".
And (p. 310) his partner's reply: "The group of old songs I I do not know them ... (and p. 311).
Comparative aspects 219
Other people rather I evidently picked her up." A death-oho will always take place between a kinsman
and a person unrelated to the deceased. On the kinsman's side the gist of the oho will be despair and
indignation because someone has blown on the deceased; the unrelated person will express his inno-
cence in the death and his sympathy with the mourner whom he will usually invite to stay in the village
to preserve its prosperity. The oho's character of lament, and its special psychological effect in that
respect, appears from the example (App. p. 304): "We will cry I not feeling the lack of her perhaps III
We will be happy, I suppose".
In addition to the above mentioned examples there may be some other uses of the oho. But those
described here show that the oho is an important institution for the maintenance of social control,
ensuring economic, political, and legal equilibrium. If everyday talk is used in courtship and requests
for objects or services, a refusal can always be risked with resultant quarrels; but the "oho" prevents
trouble. Similarly, the example with magical blowing evinces an urbane solution of a problem, which
without the oho-institution might have had fatal consequences. Announcements of death through the
oho-chant also prevents quarrels, because people get the opportunity to assert their blamelessness.
Only in the case of invitation to feasts does the function of the oho seem to lie outside the general one
of preventing internal conflicts. The fact that a ceremonial 'collective invitation ·treats·-all alike and
cannot omit possible enemies, makes for solidarity and in itself limits conflicts.
The means to these important ends is the speaking grace you must grant your opponent, who can
propound his arguments unexposed to violence. The speaking grace is assured by the strict formalism
and ceremonialism expressed in the sitting posture, the dialogue, the stereotyped chanting tone, the
quickness, and the dialect words. The whole ceremony so completely binds the two implicated parties
that the result of the oho is not determined by public expressions of sympathy or the like, but is
exclusively realized by the two parties involved.
COMPARATIVE AND ANALYTIC ASPECTS OF THE OHO
The Waiwai themselves called attention to the fact that the oho custom as found with them existed
also with the Shereo and You (Caribs) near the central Mapuera, and was formerly found also with
the Wapishana (Arawaks) in the savannahs of British Guiana. This report suggested the undertaking
of comparative investigations.
As regards the Wapishana, there is little doubt that Schomburgk witnessed an oho, though he was
apparently not clear as to its content. Schomburgk (1848, II, p. 73) talks of a greeting ceremony where
the chief seats himself upon a stool and delivers lengthy reports. Here it seems rather to have been a
matter of a trade oho. Later Schomburgk describes (1848, II, p. 384) how, when the chief had finished
his long welcome speech, the elder men of the settlement commenced theirs.
If we go to the immediate neighbours of the Waiwai in the north (Taruma) and in the south (Paru-
koto), both of whom today have disappeared or been absorbed by the Waiwai, we also discover traces
of the oho.
Coudreau (1887, II, p. 350) writes of the Taruma: "Ils sont de tres bonne societe, ils ont toujour
220 The Oho chant
l'air, quand j'arrive, de me donner audience. Mais cela est assez commun a toutes les nations indiennes,
ce qui caracterize les Tarumans, c'est le rythme chantant des discours d'introduction". (p. 353) "De
temps a autre, a intervalles egaux, vient une phrase que les deux interlocuteurs vociferent en meme
temps comme une refrain ... Le dialogue dure une demi-heure pour chacun ... ". Coudreau regards
this form of diction as a survival of an old-time custom: the behaviour of two savage warriors when
meeting.
Although this view does not quite correspond to the content of the Waiwai oho, there are important
points of resemblance. By resorting to a strictly formalized diction and behaviour the chance of an
urbane solution of a problem, sayan unexpected meeting with a strange warrior, is increased. The
mutual assurance of liberty of speech would probably have a like effect.
In regard to the Parukoto we have only John Ogilvie's report via Roth (1924, p. 630) that here also
the host delivers a speech of welcome, in which hope is expressed that the stranger does not bring evil
spirits with him.
Incidentally, there are in the Guiana area several clear cases of oho. Barrere (1743, p. 189-90) describes
from French Guiana the harangue of the Galibi chief as lengthy discussions in which a pronunciation
is employed quite different from that of normal speech. Speech is voluble and extraordinarily rapid,
unusual expressions being used. When the stranger has finished, the local chief commences in similar
fashion and in a firm tone as though declaiming. Often they do not care to listen one to another. Some
will speak for half an hour without stopping a moment. The funny thing is that if the stranger happens
to belong to a different linguistic stock each will "karbete" in his own language for hours at a stretch,
the one not understanding a word of the other. Although we do not know the content or function of
this ceremonial form of speech, it must, if only on account of its form, be considered as related to
the oho custom.
There are also examples from Surinam of oho-like usage; de Goeje (1910, p. 26) thus writes: "Die
Trios haben die eigentiimliche Gewohnheit, sich ganze Geschichten im Versmass, und zwar in Tro-
chaen, zu erzahlen, Gegen Abend sieht man oft einige Manner beisammen sitzen, von denen einiger
erzahlt und der andere zum Zeichen des Einverstandnisses wiederholt "na" oder "naile" hinein wirft.
Nach einiger Zeit wechseln sie de Rollen". Here the oho's form is clearly indicated, and with reference
to the content de Goeje (1910, p. 26) refers to the exhortation to tribal kinsmen for help and (p. 16)
songs of mourning in connexion with a local death. de Goeje (1941, p. 122) also refers to a ceremonial
speech from Oayana in connexion with a death, where the mourner, sitting on a stool, recited in a
high tone short, rythmical sentences.
Schomburgk, the first traveller to visit the Waiwai, was also the first to describe the oho-like saluta-
tion ceremonies from British Guiana. About the Makusi he writes (1847, I, p. 362): "The conversation
was generally carried on in a singing, one might almost say, plaintive tone and acquiescence in the
credibility of, and astonishment at, the narrator was expressed by the repetition of the last words
with the addition of "Na" or "Wa" ... The departure is accompanied by the same ceremonial".
It should be observed here that "Na" and "Wa" are affirmatives in Makusi. Schomburgk goes on to
say that it is characteristic that the host, at the beginning of the conversation, always refers in dis-
paraging terms to the stool, the food or the drink he has served to the stranger; whereafter the guest
Fig. 41. Distribution of the ceremonial dialogue and oho chant in South America. (In brackets are given the respec-
tive linguistic stocks).
1. Waiwai (Cariban) IS. Island Carib (Cariban) 29. Guahibo (Guahiban)

2. Parukoto (Cariban) 16. Taino (Arawakan) 30. Chiricoa (Guahiban)
3. Shereo (Cariban) 17. Waika (Waika) 31. Amarizana (Arawakan)
4. You (Cariban) 18. Yekuana (Cariban) 32. Achagua (Arawakan)
5. Taruma (Taruma) 19. Caua (Arawakan) 33. Ijca (Chibchan)
6. Trio (Cariban) 20. Huhuteni (Arawakan) 34. Cagaba (Chibchan)
7. Oayana (Cariban) 21. Siusl (Arawakan) 35. Cuna (Chibchan)
8. Galibi (Cariban) 22. Tucano (Tucanoan) 36. Boro (Witotoan)
9. Wapishana (Arawakan) 23. Miriti (Tucanoan) 37. Witoto (Witotoan)
10. Makusi (Cariban) 24. Desana (Tucanoan) 38. Karihones (Cariban)
11. Taulipang (Cariban) 25. Tuyuca (Tucanoan) 39. Coreguaje (Tucanoan)
12. Arawak (Arawakan) 26. Bara (Tucanoan) 40. Jivaro (Jivaroan)
13; Akawoi (Cariban) 27. Cubeo (Tucanoan) 41. Nambikwara (Nambikwaran)
14. Warrau (Warrau) 28. Holoua (Tucanoan) 42. Yurakare (Yurakarean)
222 The Oho chant
highly praises it. This corresponds closely to the Waiwai practice at an oho in connexion with trade
or courtship.
Schomburgk begins his account of the salutation ceremonies by a remark that they are also to be
found with the Warrau and the Waika (here = Akawoi) "in almost similar fashion, except that with
the Makusi those who were talking did not look at one another, but engaged in conversation with
faces turned aside". The appearance of oho-like ceremonies with the two last-mentioned tribes cannot,
however, be further confirmed, and for the time being the statement should be accepted with reserve.
On the other hand, the oho custom has apparently been practised by their eastern neighbours, the
Arawak, from where Roth (1924, p. 625), quoting R. H. Schomburgk, refers to a salutation consisting
of three short sentences after each of which the guest responded "Wang", which means all right or
some such affirmative. Roth (1924, p. 669) reports in another connexion about a young Arawak who
calls on a girl's father as a stage in courtship "and says he wishes to have a talk". The content and
intensity of this talk approximates very closely the courting Waiwai's oho, and Schomburgk (1848,
II, p. 459) refers to a father-in-law's confirmation "unter einer Menge schoner Redensarten" at a
similar Arawak courting expedition.
It appears from these comparative observations that far from being an isolated case among the
Waiwai the oho custom is to be found over great parts of Guiana, unmistakable in its characteristic
form, and also in a few cases of similar content: request for aid, trade, courtship, and in cases of death.
The strong concentration in the Guiana area favours the hypothesis that doubtful cases should be
assessed positively, when considering the relative uniformity of the culture area.
The same view should be adopted when regarding the appearance of the oho custom in, for example,
the upper Rio Negro district. But before we reach this some Venezuelan cases will be cited. Koch-
Grunberg (1923, III, p. 112) says of the Taulipang: "Bei offiziellen Gelegenheiten wird diese Anstands-
regel von den Indianern peinlich beachtet. Der eine erzahlt erst seine lange Geschichte fertig, wahrend
der andere mit halblauter Stimme viele hofliche "ehe - enau - he - na" dazwischen wirft, bis er selbst
zu Worte kommt. Dabei sehen sich beide nicht an". Similar conditions apparently exist with the
Yekuana (Kock-Griinberg, III, p. 354): "Beim Antritt einer langeren Reise verabschiedet man sich
von jedem Zuriickbleibenden der Reihe nach in eintoniger Rede, wobei der Zuhorer unzahlige hofliche,
teils fragende, teils bekraftigende "yede ", yeda? yema l, yehe! eye!" U.S.w. einflicht". With the primi-
tive Waika to the south a presumably oho-like custom is also found. Thus, Schuster (1958, p. 118)
says that the passing on of news takes place in the form of a ceremonious talking song and not by
means of ordinary statement and answer.
At the sources of the Rio Negro, particularly near the Rio Aiary, the closest parallels to the Waiwai
oho are to be found, and here, especially with certain Arawakan tribes, there can be no doubt that
it is a matter of the same custom. Among the Caua, Koch-Griinberg (1909, I, p. 126) witnessed a
reception ceremony, whereafter "begann zwischen beiden ein langes und unglaublich rasch und ein-
tonig hergeplappertes Wechselgesprach, in dem einzelne Worte immer wiederkehrten ... zunachst
erzahlte der Wirt alles, was in der Zwischenzeit in seinem Haus passiert war, mit steter Wiederholung
einzelner Worte .,. Beide Parteien sahen sich wahrend dieser Forrnalitaten grundsatzlich nicht an
und verharrten vollig regungslos auf einem Fleck ... (p. 127) Bei beiden war die Stimme weinerlich
hoch geschraubt 00 (po 128) Bei Eintritt der Dunkelheit traten einige Manner und Weiber vor Mandii
0
und hielten ihm wiederum in zeremoniellem Ton eine langere Rede, die von diesem mit einigen
hoflichen "6ho ka" beantwortet wurde 00 (p. 129) zunachst war es dasselbe eintonige Wechselge-
0
sprach wie am vorhergehenden Tage. Allmahlich aber folgten die Worte immer rascher aufeinander,
der Ton wurde immer klaglicher 00 0Schliesslich gingen ihre Reden ineinander tiber und endigten in
einem langeren Duett ... Die ilbrigen Bewohner nahmen gar keinen anteil an der Klage, unterhielten
sich, lachten laut, In its form the Caua's ceremonial speech agrees closely with oho. In regard
00''''
to the content, Koch-Griinberg calls it a reception ceremonial, but what is actually spoken about
appears each time to be a death of a near relative of the chanting hosts. This also corresponds to the
Waiwai's oho.
The neighbouring Siusi tribe use similar ceremonial forms of speech, but here there are also reports
of the content and significance of the custom. When a Siusi chief leaves his village for a longer period,
he delegates his powers to a deputy, here his eldest brother, in a lengthy, monotonous speech. This is
answered by a lament that has the same melody and rhythm as a wailing. (Koch-Grunberg 1909, I,
pp. 191 and 69). A similar ceremonial speech was used (Koch-Grunberg 1909, I, p. 182) when the
chief handed over his daughter to a courting member of a neighbouring tribe, and this developed into
a lament when he took official leave of his child. We thus find here the oho-like custom employed in
connexion with courtship, as with the Waiwai, on partings, and when transferring powers to a deputy.
From a third Arawakan tribe, the Huhuteni, eastern neighbours of the last two mentioned, Koch-
Grunberg mentions (1909, I, p. 62) long conversations where the words were uttered very rapidly
and syllables most briefly in a singing tone. The frequent repetitions and the numerous polite "6ho
ka" from the spectators he found extremely confusing.
From the Arawakan tribes in this area there are thus convincing points of similarity with the oho,
so too is there a great possibility that the same custom is found with a number of Tucanoan tribes.
This applies to the so-called greeting ceremonies that Koch-Grunberg observed with the Miriti (1909,
I, po 240), where short sentences were continually answered by "ha, e, aha". It applies to the Desana
t and Tucano (1909, I, p. 257), the Tuyuka (1909, I, pp. 285 and 316), and the Bara (1909, I, p. 334).
The Cubeo (Kobeua) and Holoua also employ the ceremonial dialogue in case of death and departure,
squatting upon their haunches without looking at each other (Koch-Grunberg 1910, II, pp. 133-34).
In the area north of Uaupes-Caqueta ceremonial speech is manifested in the mirray ceremony of
the Achagua. According to Rivero (1883, p. 420), who wrote in 1736 about the Llanos of Eastern
Columbia, the substantive is derived from the verb "nurnerraidary" which means "to make a speech".
After a welcome ceremony the speaker began a long address seated on a stool or squatting. He spoke
with an intonation like a child reciting the catechism, and at great speed as though it was something
learned by heart. The conclusion of the speech was delivered in a plaintive tone "6 como se acaba
de cantar una epistola, levantando un poco la voz y dejandola caer de golpe". Hardly had he ended
before the person to whom the mirray had been addressed answered in a similar manner. Once more
the first speaker advanced his views, and one could continue in this way for one and a half hour or
more. Gumilla (1745, I, p. 352), whose account of the mirray of the Achagua quite agrees with Rivero's,
adds that as a rule the speech periods were ended with a: "Yaqueta, nude, yaqueta", which means
224 The Oho chant
"That is true, brother-in-law, that is true", in a rising tone. No one comments on the dialogue, the
content of which, according to Rivero, consists of a continual repetition of assurances of welcome.
Rivero also refers to the mirray ceremony in the case of the Guahibo and Chirico a (1883, p. 146) and
the Amarizana (1883, p. 417). In the last-mentioned instance the mirray appears to concern trade.
North of the Achagua area there is a break in the continual spread of the ceremonial dialogue, as,
for one thing there is, so far as is known, no information from the Motilones about this. In the extreme
north of Columbia the custom seems to be re-discovered among several Chibcha-speaking people
such as the Cagaba (Kogi) and the Cuna. When considering these tribes an important factor must
be taken into consideration. As opposed to the typical tropical forest tribes these communities possess
the beginnings of a rank system, stratified in various classes. This must mean that many of the relations
that, for example, in the Waiwai's oho could be expressed unambiguously between individuals of equal
rank, here would be expressed between differently placed groups of individuals. A social custom in a
socio-political system of this kind must be expected to obtain increased political content.
The Cagaba employ three clearly distinct modes of talking: the greeting formula, ordinary conver-
sation, and ceremonial speech (Reichel-Dolmatoff 1950, pp. 87-88). The greeting formula is irrelevant
in this context. In regard to conversation, it is observed that those participating never look at each
other, and that persons present now and again interrupt with exclamations like uaua, good! or arse,
really! Conversation takes place in a monotone, but normal, voice.
Ceremonial speech is used by and to the Mama (priest) or other person of high rank, such as elderly
heads of families. It takes place in conjunction with confession, deliberations, or nocturnal meetings
in the house of ceremonies. Talking is done in a high falsetto that passes to nasal enunciation, whilst
the tone drops to normal during the course of the talk. The concluding word or whole sentence is
repeated frequently and often sung. (Reichel-Dolmatoff, 1950, p. 74). A speech of this nature some-
times becomes a ceremonial monologue or dialogue where, for example, two people meet in the house
of ceremonies and start talking about the bad times, administrative conditions, juridical questions and
the like. The speaker does not appear to be interested in the effect of his words. When he has finished,
another steps forward, repeats something of what has been said, and adds to it. A ceremonial speech can
last for over two hours, sometimes for the whole night. Bolinder (1918, p. 179) speaks of apparently
similar formal deliberations, the seyan-nayan from the Ijca, the southern neighbours of the Cagaba.
Two factors must now be recalled that are of importance when comparing, for example, the Waiwai's
oho custom and the Cagaba's ceremonial speech. The utterance' of the affirmatives after each of the
other party's sentences is with the Waiwai almost inaudible, and seems to be completely lacking with
some of the tribes of the upper Rio Negro, which incidentally possess a similar ceremonious form of
speech. In regard to the content of the custom it must be mentioned that with the Cagaba all authority
is concentrated in the Mama (Reichel-Dolmatoff, 1950, p. 136). This means, for example, that a court-
ship takes place via the Mama, that the length of the bride service is decided by him, that he represents
the tribe vis-a-vis strangers, and that he decides the question of guilt and conflicts in general. In a
word, all the subjects taken up in a Waiwai oho are here linked to the Mama, and ceremonial speech
equally so.
However, more like the Waiwai oho-institution, our starting point, is the onmakket of the Cuna,
as described in the case of the Columbian Cuna by, among others, Was sen (1949, pp. 46-54) and
Holmer (1951, pp. 16-21). The onmakket, which means "meeting or congress" is, according to Holmer
(1951, p. 17) the central institution in the ceremonial life of the Cuna Indians. There are various kinds
of meetings, but "the general meeting" is of the greatest interest on account of the comprehensive
description and form. The meeting in question was a public one lasting the whole night in the house
of the second chief. The host and the first chief lay each in his hammock whilst people sat around on
benches. According to Holmer (1951, p. 20) "The first and second chiefs ... were first conversing in
a chanting tone. They were relating to each other the things which had happened during the last
month ... , as regarding planting and clearing as well as regarding our arrival the day before. The
one who at the moment listens answers alternately n-n-n-n (yes) and te-e-ekie (so it is). After a short
pause follows the uanaet ( ... the tradition) in the same way answered by n-n-n and tekie. All the time,
the Indians were talking softly between themselves, ... Apart from the melody (of the chant), use
seemed to be made of a form of rime, especially of the terminations -are, of which each following
one was uttered in a slightly higher key, until the line was broken in a sudden and rapid cadence".
Holmer (1951, pp. 20 and 80) suggests on the basis of the appearance of the termination -are, which
is an extremely rare element in the ordinary Cuna tongue, and on account of the word-final nasaliza-
tion in chant, that there can be a question of foreign influence in regard to the ceremonial speech
custom, and refers in this connexion to the Cagaba and the Goajiro. From Wassen's (1949, p. 48)
detailed description of a congress meeting it appears that the two chanting chiefs lay in two hammocks
placed parallel to each other, so that they did not look at each other during the dialogue. In addition
the ceremonial speech was so full of archaisms that the two centrally-placed heralds were compelled
to explain what was said to the audience. Its content seems particularly to have been Cuna history,
which was thus preserved as a living tradition, but it also engaged on practical and topical subjects,
such as the performance in time of seasonal work or the introduction of a visitor, etc. In the case of
the Cuna it is certain that this custom existed prior to the conquest, for Oviedo y Valdes makes re-
ference to the areyto custom (1853 tom. III or II,2, lib. 29, chapt. 28, p. 137) from the Cueva province
in Panama. Areyto is translated by Oviedo as "tractar cantando", which refers to the form of these
nocturnal council meetings; whereas the content is suggested by the remark: "Estos areytos ... son
sus letras 6 memoriales".
In connexion with Oviedo it should briefly be mentioned that he employs the term areyto about a
custom of the Espanola Indians (Taino). Here, however, areyto is translated as "baylar cantando"
(1851, I, lib. 5, chapt. 1, p. 127), and we are not certain that with the Taino it is a matter of any cere-
monial dialogue. Reports become even more confusing when we read Loven (1935, pp. 505 and 591).
He stresses "the similarity existing between the Tainan caoba-assemblages ... and the mirrayes of
the Achaguas". This double reference to the Cuna's areyto and the Achagua's mirray, both of which
must undoubtedly be regarded as related to the Waiwai's oho, naturally supports the existence of
ceremonial dialogue with the Taino. Loven (1935, pp. 502, 505) merely mentions that there are held
council meetings, caoba meetings which dealt with matters of general importance, such as war and peace.
They also had certain judicial functions. When the cacique talked at a caoba, he sat on a duho (a wooden
\
stool reminiscent of Achagua and Chibcha stools) with hands on the knees and the face turned upwards.
t
15 Waiwai
I
1
i
226 The Oho chant
Things are just as uncertain regarding the Caribs of the Lesser Antilles as they are with the Arawaks
of the Greater Antilles. Rouse (1948, p. 556) says that each carbet communal house appointed a man
to act as host for visitors. Only one man ordinarily spoke at a time; the other men hummed if they
approved.
Rochefort (1665, p. 524) also mentions the alternating dialogue used at council meetings. This
harangue was opened by an old man speaking in a plaintive tone, and was continued by the chief.
The very name of the meeting house "carbet" recalls, for example, Barrere's description of the cere-
monial diction of the Galibi, "karbeter",
In the investigation of oho-like speech customs we have now reached the northern limit of the area
examined, and can determine that among several doubtful cases the custom is re-discovered north of
the sources of the Rio Negro, at any rate with the Achagua and the Cuna, and presumably with the
Cagaba, whilst other examples advanced are doubtful.
When passing from the sources of the Rio Negro southwards to the Rio Japura and Issa, oho-ilke
customs are found with, for example, the Witoto and the Boro under such pleasing names as tobacco
palaver or the Indian parliament. Whiffen (1915, p. 259) thus writes about the Witoto in connexion
with the reception of a visitor: "The chief explains to them (the family heads) the presence of the
stranger, and takes counsel on the question of his entertainment. As he describes his intentions he
falls into a rhythmic chant, and his followers assent with deep-chested Huhh! (= yes in Witoto, see
1915, p. 250). All this is a lengthy business, but the tribe eventually arrive at a common decision".
The chief then dips the stick in the tobacco pot placed in the center, and licks a little of the liquid. All
the men in turn follow his example to signify consent and a binding tribal agreement is reached in
this way. From Whiffen's example it appears (for example 1915, pp. 196 and 222) that a corresponding
tobacco palaver is found among the Boro. Normally, all the adult males of the village come to the
council meeting or tobacco palaver that is directed by the chief. All sit on their haunches in the centre
of the communal house. According to Whiffen (1915, pp. 65-66) "the speaker is doubtless under the
influence of coca, and will talk on and on. He may take hours to deliver his oration, given with endless
repetitions, while those who agree with him will grunt "Heu!" to show approval from time to time
throughout the performance". All who agree with the speaker dip into the tobacco pot after he has
done so; whereas those who disagree just let the pot pass. When doing so he is bound to explain in
a speech his divergent attitude. When everyone has thus signified his opinion - for or against the
speaker - the matter is decided by the majority and there is no possibility of appeal. The ceremonial
licking of tobacco acts as a binding promise in every verbal agreement between individuals, and serves
to emphasize the binding nature of friendship. In regard to the Witoto and Boro, it must thus be
determined that the ceremonial mode of speech resembles to a very great degree the oho of the Waiwai,
but it is connected with a ceremonial licking of tobacco that gives the whole custom a firmer institu-
tional stamp. In this context it should be observed that the Achagua used yopa snuff in connexion
with their mirray, and that the Taino used tobacco snuff at their caoba meetings (Loven 1935, p. 591).
The content and function of the tobacco palaver with the Witoto and the Boro are of both individual
and general character. Here personal complaints can be voiced and are decided either at the direct
or indirect instance of the molested person (Whiffen 1915, pp. 65 and 197). In palaver form a young
----------------------------------------------------------
man pays court to the object of his choice, who is represented by her father or the chief (p. 163); a
man can obtain a divorce from his wife at the same ceremony, provided his arguments are sufficiently
adequate (p. 165), It would seem that there are also tobacco palavers in connexion with congratulations
to a father in couvade and on occasions when names are given by the medicine man to the father of
the child (p. 153). Of things of general interest, decisions are made at the palaver on hunting matters
(p. 65), questions of war and peace (p. 117), and on the election or approval of a new chief (p. 65).
It can be seen that the individual content of the tobacco palaver is well in line with that of the Waiwai's
oho, whereas the palaver of general content possesses a more political character and thus lies closer
to, for example, the congress of the Cuna.
In one case Whiffen (p. 163) calls attention to the fact that the ceremonial licking of tobacco in
connexion with courtship is found north of the Rio Japura, which can be taken - with some reserve -
as meaning that the tobacco palaver is also known among the Cariban Karihones. Crevaux (1883,
p. 365) says of the Karihones' western neighbours, the Tucanoan Coreguaje, whilst expressing surprise
at the great resemblance between the Indians of the Rio Japura and Guiana: "Ce qui nous a frappe
surtout dans cette ceremonie, c'est un chant monotone ou plutot un recitatif semblable a l'evangile
du dimanche des Rameaux, ... ".
South-east of the Witoto we find with the Jivaro a greeting ceremony that in important respects
resembles the oho custom (Karsten 1935, pp. 246-48). When a visitor enters a house, a stool is im-
mediately offered to him. Shortly after the host seats himself opposite him, and indicates with a word
that he can begin. The visitor then commences his speech, not in a normal tone, but rather in a very
rapid shout. At the same time he and the host look sternly at each other. The speaker explains the aim
of his visit, that he wants to see his friends, to learn whether they are healthy, etc. As long as the guest
speaks it is not considered proper for the host to interrupt him except by certain grunts representing
assent or approbation, and with confirmatory words like ita (yes), etc. After the guest has finished,
it is the host's turn to answer him, the guest only listening and interrupting, as his host had done, by
the usual grunts of assent. This conversation lasts from five to ten minutes. The same type of cere-
monial greeting also takes place when two parties of Jivaro Indians suddenly meet on the trail in the
forest, even if they are unknown to one another. The aim of the "greeting" then is to find out whether
the other party has hostile intentions. The custom is called in Jivaro Enema (from enemartinyu = to
speak in a loud voice). It is also used in connexion with barter (Karsten 1935, p. 249) and at war
council meetings (p. 283).
Karsten's description of a young man's courtship and his conversation with the girl's father (p. 188)
also contains a number of resemblances in form and content to the Waiwai's oho in connexion with
courtship. It appears here that the father's opposition to the union is only apparent; he must not
appear eager to give away his daughter, in order to force the young man to promise not to evade the
bride service. However, there is no report of any ceremonial speech in this connexion.
The fairly continuous dissemination of the ceremony I have attempted to follow - which can be
briefly characterized as a chanting dialogue with interspersed affirmatives - ends with the Jivaro. To
the characteristic distribution - north of the Amazonas - must be added two cases from East Bolivia
and the Mato Grosso, respectively, that must be considered though they are far from typical.
IS'
..
228 The Oho chant
Among the Nambikwara trading is stamped by a strong formalism. When two bands wish to ex-
change goods (Oberg, 1953, p. 97) the visiting chief kneels and makes a speech extolling the hosts
and their goods, and depreciating the things which his band has brought. The host then makes a
similar speech, and trading begins. In individual cases the technique of trading is the same. If a man
values an object of his own he says that it is no good, thus showing his desire to keep it. This argument
is carried on in an angry tone of voice until a settlement is reached. A man with a clever tongue gets
what he wants and convinces the other that he, too, has made a good bargain. Levi-Strauss (1948,
p. 91) describes a meeting between two bands of the Nambikwara. Each band in turn uttered long
monologues composed of short exclamations in a plaintive tone. The voice was raised and became
nasal towards the end of each word that was long drawn out. The warlike band advanced reproaches;
the more peaceful stressed their pacific intentions, both apparently in very exaggerated terms. Although
the Nambikwara dialogue lacks the continual affirmatives of the oho, there are features, both in the
form and the typical exaggeration and depreciation, that recall the oho custom.
The last example of the ceremonial speech custom comes from Yurakare in East Bolivia (d'Orbigny
1835-47, III, p. 204), where guests after a formal reception are addressed by their local kinsmen.
"Standing in front of his house, the host then started a speech which lasted for hours and was delivered
in an increasingly louder voice. The visitor answered in the same manner. The two interlocutors might
thus spend a whole day conversing", immovable and unaffected by sun and rain. Later they lamented
their deceased relatives. The lament also alternated between the two and was of a ceremonial character.
It appears from the foregoing that the oft-employed expression "salutation ceremony" is a poorly-
chosen term for the far more important custom that in the case of the Waiwai is known as the oho
institution. Its ceremonial dialogue has only a superficial connexion with the greeting in the sense
that it often takes place when two people meet after a long separation or, as strangers. The main
characteristics of the ceremonial dialogue in South America are difficult to determine for several
reasons. First, because of their content and function one can in advance assume that they will be
variously formulated in the different community systems, for example, according to the degree of social
stratification. Typical in this respect are, for example, the differences between the ceremonial dialogues
of the Cuna, the Witoto and the Waiwai, respectively. Second, they are difficult because the cere-
monial dialogue lies close to several other Indian ceremonial speech customs. Over large parts of the
Continent wailing, usually in the form of monotonous monologues, are met with in connexion with
the burial of a relative (see Metraux 1947, pp. 31-32). Another mourning custom is the weeping
greeting, where the visitor on arrival is exposed to weeping and outbursts of grief, particularly on the
part of the women. This last-mentioned custom with which, among others, Metraux (1928, p. 180
and 1947, p. 40) has concerned himself, appears to have a characteristic distribution in relation to
ceremonial dialogue. From Metraux's map showing its distribution, it appears that the weeping
greeting is found over the southern and eastern parts of the Continent, and, for example, with several
Tupi-Guarani peoples who are assumed to have helped to spread it. Only with the Jivaro does the
weeping greeting overlap the ceremonial dialogue particularly widespread in the north and west. If
it thus can be maintained that the weeping greeting is connected with the Tupi-Guarani peoples, then,
conversely, it must be stressed that ceremonial dialogue is apparently not found at all among these
tribes, not even among the northern branches such as the Oyampi and Omagua. It is also noteworthy
that the ceremonial dialogue so general with the Arawakan and Cariban tribes does not seem to
appear among their southern groups, such as the Mojo or the Bacairi. When Metraux (1947, p. 41)
maintains the existence of the weeping greeting also with the northern tribes, the Parukoto, the Macusi
and the Tucano, it must be remembered that these likewise employ the ceremonial dialogue that also
can have the character of lamentation in connexion with death.
In an attempt clearly to delimit ceremonial dialogue from other speech customs, mention must also
be made of the custom, particularly widespread in the southern part of the Continent, of the chief
making recommendations and revive tribal traditions in a ceremonial monologue (Lowie 1949, p. 343).
Finally, there are many types of formal greeting on arrival or departure; these should not be con-
fused with the ceremonial dialogue here under discussion which does not possess the function of a
greeting.
The purpose of this study of distribution is not merely to demonstrate the presence of a definite
custom in a certain area, but rather to suggest that this custom has been widely mis-interpreted as a
relatively unimportant rule of etiquette. However, with the Waiwai the oho custom is an important
institution in regard to social control in the sense that the topics advanced under this form are assured
an especially urbane treatment on account of freedom of speech and the binding character of the oho.
Much suggests that the same importance can be attributed to a number of the cases here produced
in comparison. Writers who have referred to the ceremonial dialogue have all mentioned that the great
speed, the peculiar diction and the numerous archaisms made it partially incomprehensible. They
have therefore frequently failed to explain the content and function of the dialogue. Its exterior form
has been sufficiently clearly indicated for us to be able to say that at any rate, the Trio, the Macusi,
the Taulipang, the Yekuana, the Achagua, the Cuna, the Caua, the Siusi and the Jivaro practised a
ceremonial dialogue corresponding to the oho of the Waiwai. Owing to their placing among the
certain cases, it is probable that the other tribes mentioned here, about whom less adequate informa-
tion is available, are also aware of the custom. To summarize, ceremonial dialogue in connexion with
trade is mentioned for the Wapishana, the Jivaro, the Nambikwara and the Achagua; its practice in
connexion with courtship is referred to in the case of the Siusi, the Witoto, the Boro and presumably
with the Cagaba and the Jivaro ; and its connexion with death is spoken of with the Parukoto, the
Oayana, the Caua and the Yurakare. In regard to the dissemination and direction of the ceremonial
dialogue it would seem difficult to make any positive assertion, for it is found within many language
families such as the Chibcha, the Arawak, the Carib, the Tucano, and the Jivaro. This, coupled with
general geographical considerations, suggests however, a slow diffusion from a culturally-dominant
area like sub-Andean Columbia. The special form of oho used by the Waiwai when issuing invitations
to a festival and when exhorting to collective work or a common meal (see p. 208) particularly supports
this view. In these instances the structure of the oho evince administrative traces of social stratification,
with chief, second chief, herald and lay men, that seem to have no natural affinity with the character
of the Waiwai social structure. On the other hand we find this stratification typical for tribes like the
Cagaba and Cuna (particularly, however, at the time of the conquest) and other sub-Andean tribes.
.-
230 The Oho chant
The fact that the Waiwai's oho contains at least one feature that can be traced to the sub-Andean area
must sufficiently support the assumption that the ceremonial dialogue was disseminated from that area.
In view of the present distribution it must be assumed that the custom reached Guiana and the Waiwai
by way of the sources of the Rio Negro and the Rio Branco.
Whilst referring to sub-Andean influence in the Waiwai culture, it can also be emphasized that
the cult of the sun, which possesses as correspondingly an isolated position in the Waiwai religious
system as does stratification in the social system, must be considered to be a sub-Andean feature.
If one investigates more particularly the sub-Andean element in the Cuna's onmakket and the
Waiwai's oho, respectively, a characteristic change in the stratification can be observed. With the
Cuna it concerns the exercise of fixed official duties by the first and second chiefs and herald in relation
to various groups of laymen. It is thus a matter of a vertical social stratification in accordance with a
permanent principle of rank that particularly characterized the tribe in the 16th century (see, for
example, Stout 1948, VI, p. 261). With the Waiwai the first chief was represented by the village leader,
whilst the one corresponding to the second chief was the village leader's deputy (for example father-
in-law or adopted son), that is, his potential successor. With the Waiwai the herald was represented
by the deputy's son-in-law or younger awale (that is to say potential son-in-law); he was thus in a
washma position in relation to the deputy, a subordinate kinsman. From this it will be seen that the
sub-Andean structure of, for example, the Cuna, with vertical social stratification, is with the Waiwai
replaced by a horizontal social stratification based solely on kinship.
It must be admitted that, because of its special character, the ceremonial dialogue is a difficult element
to treat comparatively as regards identification. It appears to be completely independent of ecological
conditions and is suitably special and limited in extent to enable one reasonably to deduce specific
historical conclusions. Finally, ceremonial dialogue is an important culture element the presence of
which - though often misinterpreted - informs us of judicial norms of the same nature and importance
as those disclosed by the oho institution of the Waiwai.
Fig. 42. The low wooden stool of the Waiwai is used only by men,
for instance when performing an oho chant. Only one man in the tribe
knew how to carve stools.
-.- - _.--.--- -. ----.-- ----.--------
.'.
Political organization
THE VILLAGE
The Waiwai village constitutes a sovereign political unit, represented by the yayalitomo, and is auto-
nomous in relation to the whole of the Waiwai tribe. There is no chief for the whole Waiwai tribe, nor
has anyone authority over several villages. It should, however, be observed that amongst the Guiana
Waiwai group there was a tendency to regard one of the village headmen as possessing greater prestige
than the others. Mlywa, head of Mauika, was incontestibly the greatest authority in 1954, but when
his wife died and the leadership passed to his adopted son, this informal position as head of the group
passed to Ewka, the headman of Yakayaka.
The yayalitomo acts as representative of the village when invitations are despatched for a dance
festival and also when strangers arrive. As a rule a stranger will announce himself by yelling as he
approaches, and then waits at some distance from the village. The yayalitomo then comes to him
usually bringing his stool in order, sitting on this, to listen to the stranger's errand and hear news of
friends. Not until this inspection is over is the stranger invited into the communal house for a drink.
The yayalitomo's position in its social sense has been dealt with earlier (see p. 203 et seq.), Inci-
dentally, the whole of the political system is built up on the social as an extension of social principles
and the kinship system. The basic element is the single family to which single individuals attach them-
selves. The village consists of several such families that are joined in turn by some other families. The
newly-arrived families come under the authority of the local yayalitomo according to a kind of priority
principle. Irrespective of the tribe to which they formerly belonged they are regarded as Waiwai, for
locality is the decisive factor. A person becomes a yayalitomo who has enough personal authority
to get others to follow him in the clearing of a new field or the building of a communal house. The
right he thus obtains over the new locality can never be taken from him. On the other hand it is quite
legal to move from the village in order to establish another, but as a rule this will be contrary to the
wishes of the yayalitomo. The position of this personage is consequently closely linked with locality
and the bonds of kinship, and this must be one of the reasons why no leaders of the whole tribe ever
arose. The position of the yayalitomo is best evinced by his prestige and in the oho custom whereby
he can call on the people to perform collective work. But even the system of rank occasionally expressed
in the oho is of kinship character, built on a horizontal social stratification. The ordinary Waiwai
detests any form of restriction on his personal liberty. A yayalitomo is thus only "the first among
equals" so long as his initiatives are accepted.
In addition to the head man of the village, the yaskomo also possesses political influence on account
of his magical powers (see p. 129). It will just be recalled here that in his relation to poinko-yin the
232 Political Organization
yaskomo is really administering an unwritten hunting law that must be complied with by all for the
good of the whole tribe. In the same way he lays down the correct procedure in relation to the super-
natural. The intentions of the yayalitomo and the yaskomo may clash, particularly in the sphere of
occupation, so that complete harmony can only be expected when the same person fills both offices.
Generally, this is the case; in four of five cases known the yayalitomo was at the same time yaskomo,
for example, Ewka in Yakayaka, Miywa in Mauika, Shapaulitu in Kashimo, and Maanata in the
now deserted Kahri. Only in Aakonioto were the offices held by two persons, Churuma as yayalitomo
and Kapienna as yaskomo. There may well be several yaskomo in the same village, since, among
other things, their qualifications to become a yaskomo are evinced at an early age. It can therefore be
said that to be a yaskomo is an important - though not absolutely necessary - qualification for later
becoming a yayalitomo.
LEGAL CONCEPTIONS
Whereas by reason of his personal authority the yayalitomo can recommend, a yaskomo can demand,
though only in virtue of his mandate from the supernatural. In reality, the strongest authority is exer-
cised by public opinion in judging what is correct behaviour and what is not. Homicide is frequent
in the Waiwai community, especially when we include the presumed magical killings. The killing of
an unwanted new-born child at the hands of the mother is general and arouses no public reaction.
In the same way it is permitted to let weak old people die by simply leaving them to themselves. It is
an acceptable procedure to sacrifice a person's life (most often that of an old woman) for the common
good, as appears from the myths (p. 41, 65 and 80). Of greater importance, however, is the blood
feud, which is not only a right but a duty instituted in the magical parawa-blowing (see p. 107). Murder
committed for revenge is normally followed by retribution on the part of the family of the person
last killed, except in special cases, for example if the victim is an undesirable person (see p. 108). As
opposed to these cases of homicide that are committed as a result of the bonds of kinship, there are,
exceptionally, expulsions from the community, where the attitude of the whole village is the executive
authority. Punishment altogether is rare, but can take place when a man catches his wife in infidelity
(see p. 137) if he is of a jealous nature. Adultery is considered a sufficient provocation to justify the
murder of the offending man by the injured party, but normally this does not seem to take place. On
the other hand, it has happened that a person has killed his spouse in order to obtain a new, behaviour
that was strongly disapproved though not punishable by violence. No cases of incest were observed,
but this is regarded as so gross an offence (see p. 55) that those implicated would presumably be ex-
pelled from the community.
Theft, which on account of the general distribution of all commodities is rare, appears to justify
fatal blowing by the person injured (p. 157). In all ordinary disputes, for example concerning the size
of the bride price, the length of bride service, mutual working effort, and the abandonment of property
rights, the oho custom is the legal institution that re-establishes peace between the parties. Right of
use in the case of objects seems to take precedence over property rights; this is presumably connected
with the distribution of commodities; both factors promote solidarity within the group.
The Tribe 233
The individual Waiwai has the greatest objection to getting mixed up in the conflicts of his village
kinsmen, even when his sympathies are clearly on the side of the one party. His attitude is dictated by
fear of provoking fatal blowing, and a strong wish to avoid outside interference in his personal free-
dom, should he find himself in a similar situation. Fear of disagreements seems often to result in a
conscious isolation between village groups.
THE TRIBE
The Waiwai tribe is not a political unit and has no one to represent it vis-a-vis other tribes. It con-
stitutes a cultural-lingual unit of an extremely loose nature in the relations to neighbouring tribes, at
any rate in peace time, and can scarcely be regarded as a geographical group.
Linguistically speaking, the Waiwai belong to the Carib an stock as opposed to their north-westerly
neighbours, the Wapishana and the Atorai absorbed by them, and their south-westerly neighbours,
the Mouyenna, all three of which belong to the Arawakan family. Frikel (p. 522) regards the Mouyenna
(Mawayana) as Caribs, but as he has apparently never been in direct touch with them, the author
prefers to take his stand with Mr. R. Hawkins, the missionary, who is very expert in the Waiwai
tongue and who classifies the Mouyenna as Arawakan, as do others, including Farabee.
Incidentally, Frikel has the Wapishana reaching right down to the sources of the Mapuera, which
is not in accord with the position today. For a long time they have kept to the savannahs and have
not reached further south than about 2° northern latitude.
The linguistic distinction is not as important as the cultural, for the Waiwai say that those who
dress and live as they do are like themselves, for example, the Mouyenna and Piskaryenna. The Wapis-
hana, on the other hand, are different. They now wear ragged European dress and live in the savannahs,
partially civilized. No one wishes to marry into them. Cultural affinity is thus a condition for contact
and its consequent marital connexions and lingual understanding.
The Waiwai have no neighbours to the north-east since the Taruma have died out as a tribe and the
few survivors have been absorbed by the Waiwai or Wapishana. All the Waiwai connexions are thus
to the south with a number of tribes on the Mapuera and its tributaries. The Mouyenna is the most
important, and has been mentioned. Southwards are people like the Sheree, Piskaryenna, Shouyenna,
Katawina, Parukoto, You, and so forth. All these tribes on the lower Mapuera are given the generic
name of umaino. They all seem to belong to the Cariban stock of languages. According to Frikel
(p. 554 et seq.), the Tchereu (Sheree) live a little east of the Mapuera about -to northern latitude, the
Hichkaruyenna (Piskaryenna) a little west of the same river (the name of this tribe is translated by
Frikel as Red Forest Deer, whereas the author was told it was savannah deer, forest deer being "koso");
the Katwena (Katawina), on both sides of the Mapuera at about the level of the equator. The Shou-
yenna and You are not mentioned in Frikel's detailed list of tribes in the Trombetas area, nor are a
number of tribes known to the Waiwai but unlocalized: Tohoma, Mashawa, Warayenna, Kuruyenna
and the extinct Wanamaritu. The Marakayenna can presumably be identified with Frikel's Maracha,
who are said to live a little west of the Mapuera on a level with the equator. Finally, reference is made
by Frikel to the Parukot6 (p. 545 and 553) as Parukot6 or Faruaru, who are stated to live near the
Mapuera from about 10 northern latitude to the equator and east of this. Today this area belongs to
the Waiwai, though, as mentioned below, they recognize a relationship with the Parukoto, Parukoto
means Paru people or Mapuera people. (Several of the tribes known to the Waiwai are mentioned on
pp. 24 and 73).
It seems to be general in the case of the tribes speaking different languages that the one dominates
the other in a lingual sense. The Waiwai were thus dominant in relation to the Mouyenna. It was the
Mouyenna who had to learn the Waiwai language, which they did to a great extent. This may be due
to the fact that they were a smaller tribe than the Waiwai, and also because the active male partner
in the mixed marriages was usually a Waiwai.
Conversely, the Wapishana were dominant in relation to the Waiwai in the one case where a Wapis-
hana man had married a Waiwai woman.
Although the Waiwai describe the Mouyenna "as like ourselves" they recognize characteristic
small differences. Thus the Mouyenna women have long backs and small buttocks and therefore tie
their aprons high. Waiwai women, on the other hand, have broad thighs and bind their aprons lower.
Similarly, the Mouyenna men wear their loin cloths higher and looser than do the Waiwai men. It
is said that the white bead band, hung from ear pegs and passing under the chin, was formerly a
feature of the Mouyenna, but some decoratively-minded Waiwai seem to have adopted it as a result
of inter-marriage.
As mentioned previously (p. 23), there is often a suggestion of characterization in the Waiwai
naming of other tribes. Thus Piskaryenna (from piskarl] means the savannah deer people, "because
the people have long, thin legs"; and Shouyenna (from shou) means kibihee people, "because they
smell so badly". On the other hand, my informants maintained that Mouyenna does not mean frog
people (frog = mawa), as is often maintained in literature. Frikel says of the Mouyenna, however,
(p. 551), that Mawayenna means frog people, and that according to his informant this referred to the
long legs and fat stomachs of these people, which caused them to resemble a dead, stretched-out frog.
Frikel's informers from central Trombetas have felt the Mouyenna to be so distant that suspicion
and ridicule have coloured their reports compared with these of the closer-situated Waiwai. Let this
rehabilitate the Mouyenna.
Little is known of the assessment of the Waiwai by neighbouring tribes. Frikel (1957, p. 560) men-
tions that the Waiwai were not liked by the Faruani (= Parukoto), who were on a bad footing with
them. Incidentally, neighbouring peoples characterized the Waiwai as good in some respects, though
rather pugnacious. The Taruma consider the Waiwai especially expert in magic blowing and fear
them on that account (Farabee 1918, p. 138). A Taruma now living with the Mouyenna gave the
following description of the Waiwai (Guppy 1958, p. 220): "They are a very restless and quarrel-
some bunch of people ... they don't like to live close to another village because they are frightened
they may quarrel and fight one another". In this statement there seems to be a hint that vigour rather
than superior culture has preserved the Waiwai from the extinction that has fallen to the lot of so many
tribes in this area during the last 70 years.
As appeared in the creation myth, the Waiwai are descended from Mawari, as are all the other
The Tribe 235
known Indian tribes mentioned above. Of these the Parukoto, Katawina and Taruma have now dis-
appeared, according to the Waiwai, and have been partially absorbed by them. The Mouyenna are
presumably on the way to being so, and the Shere6, the Piskaryenna and the You have married into
the Waiwai tribe. In view of the Waiwai's small numbers, this strong mixture must have exercised a
great influence on their tribal unity. When it is recalled that a village is usually built up on an epeka
group, one better understands that it is the village, not the tribe, that represents the greatest political
unit in the Waiwai culture. The considerable mixture of tribes that has been experienced, recognizable
in recent generations, raises another question: how many of those who today regard themselves as
Waiwai are really so genetically? In this respect it was interesting that my chief informant, Ewka,
who in general considered himself a Waiwai, maintained that the Waiwai were in reality Parukoto ,
and that only two individuals, Kimlya and Maanata, were true Waiwai. These two men, together
with Waniu, were the only ones to possess English names in addition to their Waiwai ones. Krmtya
was thus called Sam; Maanata, George; and Waniu, William. They had obtained their English names
many years earlier from a visiting catholic priest. The two true Waiwai aforementioned were said to
have come from a western tributary of the Mapuera, probably the Kikwo.
There is good reason for assuming that the individual Parukoto tribe has been partly absorbed by
the Waiwai according to that tribe's own account, but another aspect must not be forgotten. According
to Frikel, Parukoto, in addition to being the name of an individual tribe, was also a generic designation
for the Mapuera tribes as a whole. The group term Parukoto, which is a result of the Caribs' own co-
ordination of language and blood-related small tribes, comprises, according to Frikel, more than a
score of minor Carib tribes particularly around the Mapuera and west of it from about -to southern
latitude up to the Acarai Mountains. When the Waiwai say that they are really Parukoto, it thus can
also mean that they consider themselves - as others do - as belonging to the big Parukoto group. It
can be added that Frikel was given exactly the same report about the Mawayenna (Mouyenna) by
some of their neighbours, who said: "Actually they are Parukoto" (Frikel, p. 522). This last view
encounters only one difficulty: that as opposed to those who really were Parukoto, there were two
genuine Waiwai.
With reference to the historical data (see p. 7), there is, however, hardly any doubt that when the
Waiwai considered themselves as Parukoto, it was due to the intermarriage of Parukoto with Waiwai
that had quite obviously taken place in the course of the three first decades of the present century.
Incidentally, the Waiwai appear not to classify their neighbouring tribes according to language and
blood, as maintained by Frikel (1957, p. 523), but by culture, as stated above.
When the Waiwai referred to the Taruma tribe it was always a matter of a group which formerly
lived next to the Essequibo, north of the Waiwai. However, according to Frikel a single tribe of the
same name (Chanima) is said still to exist near the Tuninu, a western tributary of the Trombetas,
between that river and the Mapuera. For the surrounding tribes and the more eastern Caribs, the
word "Chanima" has come to be a generic name for a number of single tribes near the Rio Tuninu,
including the Tunayana (Frikel, p. 524).
The Parukoto and Chanima groups, according to Frikel, are two dialect groups together comprising
a major Carib group. Parukoto-Chanima is linguistically different from the four other similar Carib
,..
r
i
Fig. 43. One of the two "true Waiwai", Maa-

nata, working on a fish trap. Most Waiwai
consider themselves to be of mixed Parukot6
origin generically.
major groups in North Para. The Carib dialect and major groups do not appear to possess any political
importance for the Waiwai today, but can possibly during warlike periods have exercised an influence
on the composition of leagues. Recently, however, there have been feuds between the Waiwai and
their kindred group the Sheree.
As already mentioned, Chanima was the generic name used particularly by this group's eastern
neighbours. On the other hand the western neighbours, i.e. the Parukoto, called this group or parts
of it (inter alia the Chanima and Tunayana) Okoimoyana (Anaconda-people). It is related that these
people slept under water (tuna = water).
Although Frikel's division of the North Para Caribs into dialect groups according to the Indians'
own coordination does not appear to agree with the Waiwai's division, there are nevertheless many
curious points of similarity which will here briefly be summarized. The Okoimo-yenna also figure in
the Waiwai Mawari myth (p. 46) and in other places, though not as a neighbouring tribe but as super-
natural beings. However, the supernatural feature can be due to the fact that they belong to a suffi-
ciently distant past. It is noteworthy that the Taruma (who correspond to Frikel's Charuma and
belonged to the Okoimo-yenna group) held even more elaborate ideas about the Okoimo-yenna than
did the Waiwai. The Taruma were assumed to possess special amphibian qualities, and their creator,
like the Waiwai's, obtained his woman from the Okoimo-yenna. Taruma accounts of the contents of
Okoimo-yenna's house are also more comprehensive than the Waiwai version (see p. 53) for, among
other things, the Taruma version lists all the objects that were later introduced to them by the Whites,
like, for example, bananas. With the Waiwai the list covered a few women's implements and the cotton
The Tribe 237
and anatto plants (see p. 42). In this connexion it is remarkable that cotton, and presumably also
anatto, were unknown to the Waiwai in Coudreau's day, 1884 (see p. 10).
Waiwai history up to the present time is stamped by their almost complete extermination about
the year 1890, and the subsequent heavy intermarriage with neighbouring tribes, particularly the
Parukot6 in the south and the Taruma in the north (p. 9). Apparently the Parukot6 were at the
Waiwai cultural level (Farabee 1924, p. 183), but the Taruma were superior, for example in regard to
culture plants (see p. 10). In addition the Taruma possessed the traditions about the Okoimo-yenna
in Farabee's day, 1913, whereas that writer makes no mention of this in regard to the Waiwai. In
Coudreau's day the Waiwai actually feared the rivers (p. 6). Moreover, it should be remembered that
the Waiwai predilection for the Okoimo-yenna derived particularly from old Miywa's relations with
them, his helping spirits (see p. 129). Miywa said himself that he had been the first Waiwai in the
Essequibo area. During his whole youth he had thus lived in close contact with the Taruma, and he
had also adopted a Taruma boy when that tribe succumbed to an epidemic. Finally, it should be re-
called that not only the Waiwai but also the Taruma had a village called after the Anaconda helping
spirit, eripoimo. From the Okoimo-yenna myth (p. 49) it appears that among other things the Waiwai
learned the use of beads from the Okoimo-yenna (although their use vanished and reappeared only
with the advent of the White men). This story seems to contain the memory of an early, but short,
contact with Europeans. However, it is not likely that the Waiwai themselves experienced a meeting
of this kind in their seclusion on the Serra Acarai. It appears more probable that the story is a loan
from the Taruma, whose history points to such an event. As early as 1670 the Taruma lived at the
mouth of the Rio Negro in close contact with the Portuguese, but shortly after they fled northwards.
By 1770 at all events they had settled in their present area by the upper Essequibo (see, for example,
Evans and Meggers 1960, p. 263). Everything thus suggests that as late as the beginning of this century
Waiwai culture obtained important elements, and that plants such as cotton and anatto were unknown
before then. These, and possibly other elements, reached the Waiwai via the Taruma, but came
originally from the Amazon, as did the Taruma themselves. The creation myth thus proves to contain
concrete historical data, but in its present form it cannot be more than about fifty years old.
Unfortunately, the historical sources of the Waiwai do not go back sufficiently far for us to be able
to demonstrate the acculturation from savage tribe (Jaguar-people) without husbandry to an agri-
cultural tribe with maniok and kraua, as suggested in the creation myth (see p. 47). But this is quite
in accord with Frikel's general acculturation hypothesis (1957, p. 530 et seq.) for this area. He says,
for example, that when Indians explain about a tribe that the forefathers had been savage "Jaguars",
it means that they were acculturated wild tribes, that is to say marginal hunting people who had been
influenced by the more advanced Caribs.
Frikel (1957, p. 518) suggests where these Caribs came from, for he maintains that all migration
accounts of which he is aware point towards the west or north-west, towards enormous mountainous
areas with volcanoes and hot springs. The only Caribs whose locality answers to this description are
the Umaua or Carijones in the upper Caqueta-Uaupes area. It is then of some interest that Koch-
Griinberg (1922, p. 264), by comparative linguistic investigations, found the Umaua to be clearly
related to the Trio and the Pianokoto. These two tribes differ only from the Waiwai dialectically, and
\.
in Coudreau's day the Pianokoto were the Waiwai's eastern neighbours with whom they stood on a
friendly footing (see p. 6). Koch-Griinberg found the linguistic resemblances so great that he assumed
a migration of the Umaua from Guiana to Caqueta-Uaupes. Nevertheless, several factors oppose a
Cariban trek westwards. The Umaua possess a very concentrated distribution and are too numerous
(about 25,000 in 1915 according to Whiffen, which is presumably greatly exaggerated) for them to be
the result of migration from Guiana. A trek in the other direction, as assumed by Frikel, appears more
reasonable, and in this connexion two sub-Andean features in the Waiwai culture are recalled: the
cult of the sun and the social stratification in connexion with the oho (see p. 230). In regard to possible
cultural relations with the Caqueta-Uaupes area, reference should also be made to the yamo masked
dance, where the use of bark masks and the ban on women's knowledge of and participation in this
dance are north-west Amazonian features.
COMMUNICATION
The historical reflections - concerning likely migrations and diffusions in the past - which concluded
the preceding chapter, figure little, if at all, in the daily notions of the individual Waiwai. When these
historical phenomena are projected downwards into the sphere of social life, they appear as various
forms of communication and as such are of vital importance.
The individual Waiwai seems to possess a natural tendency towards isolation. Among other things
this urge would seem to be rooted in the occupation of hunting, which is spoiled when too many
congregate. It was also alleged that the fear of being involved in blood feuds, particularly of being
accused of having practised magic blowing, was a reason for conscious isolation (see p. 233). Altogether,
it would appear that an independent mentality prevails as a result of an unconscious desire that one's
personal liberty shall not be restricted by fellow tribesmen. These tendencies, which can cause family
groups of 10-20 persons to isolate themselves in a village community, are counteracted by the need
for a certain communication. This reciprocal effect has already been reflected in the history of the
Waiwai, where repeated divisions of the tribe (isolation) were succeeded by a vigorous admixture
with other tribes (see p. 9).
Intercourse both within and without the tribe takes place primarily by an exchange of intelligence,
commodities and marriage partners, and in all these cases the oho chant is the central institution.
It is not only an important means of verbal communication, but is employed specially in connexion
with the contraction of marriage and in trade agreements (see p. 217). The oho custom also helps to
promote communication in other ways, for example in case of death the mourners will in this form
be strongly exhorted to remain in the village despite its melancholic associations. The oho is likewise
resorted to by the yayalitomo in connexion with the invitation to the Shodewika dance festival, which
is the most important factor in the selection of a non-local spouse.
The yayalitomo is naturally the central figure in regard to contacts outside the village. His whole
position depends upon his ability to rally people around himself and his family (see p. 203). When a
stranger pays a visit to a Waiwai village, his first act is to make a long report to the local yayalitomo,
-r _.-..- -......------ - .- -- -.-.... -- - - ---~-- ~--- -- - -- - - ~ ~~---
Communication 239
Fig. 44. For a century the beautifully patterned cassava grater boards inserted with small stone flakes have been the most
important export article of the Waiwai. This one is decorated with the alligator design. (Nat. Mus. Copenhagen, H. 4193).
to whom he announces the purpose of his visit, and conveys the news from his own village. This
spreading of the news is augmented by the fact that before leaving his home village the stranger has
bidden farewell and may have been given messages by each individual there.
The most normal category of visitor is the young man who is looking for a wife because the choice
locally is too limited. The traditional occasion for meetings with a view to marriage is the dance festival,
especially the Shodewika, where a sexual atmosphere is worked up by the aid of cassava beer. The
function of the dance festival as a means of communication is also clearly indicated in the Shodewika
myth (see p. 74). Altogether, the Waiwai myths - besides being a means of communication between
the generations - are in their action a permanent justification of contacts and assimilations that have
occurred between the Waiwai and other groups (see p. 96 et seq.). These assimilations seem always
to have taken place via marriage alliances. It has been shown earlier how the Waiwai in this way
must be assumed to have learned important cultural benefits from the Taruma (see p. 237), and how,
for example, they learned from the Mouyenna the use of the bead chin ornament and the animal
imitation dances (see p. 181).
On the other hand, contact with the more distant neighbours in the north-west, the Wapishana, has
not been of a marital character, but solely stamped by trade relations. In 1870 mention was made of
the Wapishana traders who travelled through the Waiwai country for the purpose of trade: Waiwai
cassava grater-boards and hunting dogs were taken back to the savannahs, for the latter were famous
even in 1837 (see p. 5). To this day the beautifully-patterned grater-boards of the Waiwai are their
biggest export article to the northern savannahs; in exchange the Waiwai have obtained the much-
coveted porcelain beads that now quite dominate their costume and ornamentation, plus forest knives
and a few iron axes which have greatly facilitated agriculture. Repeated meetings with Wapishana
traders brought the latter's craft, the dugout, to the notice of the Waiwai (see p. 9). The canoe was
essential in order that the Waiwai could undertake the move from their more isolated situation on the
Serra Acarai down the Mapuera and Essequibo rivers, and it must have caused a partially fresh orien-
tation of the Waiwai's communication network from a west-east land route to a south-north water
route. The Serra Acarai that had previously been the centre, thereafter became the barrier within the
Waiwai area. On account of the more rapid method of transport, the ratio between the communication
index and the size of the village remained practically unchanged (see pp. 4 and 5). Previous reference
has been made to the sporadic appearance of the earth burial custom (see p. 165) and the idea of
heaven as a cassava pan (see p. 102), which both must be considered loans from the Wapishana.
Within the Waiwai area a certain exchange of products also takes place. Thus the Essequibo Waiwai
still fetch from the Mapuera bows of krapa wood and coir mats of the Brazil-nut tree. In the meantime
it transpired that both these trees were also to be found in the Essequibo district, and therefore this
trade is not so much due to reasons of plant geography as to tradition. Something similar must be
assumed to be the case with the curare liana, strychnos, which according to the Waiwai is found only
at one place in the whole of their territory namely, on the first ridge of the Serra Acarai south of the
watershed. This ridge is called by the Waiwai Baraweti-yapone and by the Wapishana Urali-tau,
Both names mean curare mountain. People from the whole Waiwai area come here to fetch curare.
One of our Waiwai fellow travellers from the northernmost Essequibo village, who himself fetched
the poison from the place, told us that his grandfather, who lived on the Mapuera, had done the same.
Poisoned arrowheads in bamboo quivers were a common article of commerce, as are also the arrow
shafts of arrow reed, woywi (Gynerium sagittatum).
Arrow reed was introduced to the Waiwai as a culture plant only a few years ago; formerly, this
important product was obtained from the Mouyenna and Wapishana. A Mapuera Waiwai obtained
through his Mouyenna daughter-in-law an opportunity to bring back to his village some roots of
arrow reed, and at almost the same time a Wapishana brought some roots to his Waiwai wife on the
Essequibo. A lively trade, particularly from the Mouyenna to the Waiwai stilI takes place with cut
arrow reed, but in virtue of existing marriage ties this unstable trade communication has developed
into a permanent culture element for the Waiwai. Much of the Waiwai trading has primarily a social
aim: it often is more a means to create friendship than an economic transaction. This is undoubtedly
connected with the fact that every form of institutional communication must be utilized to the full in
view of the great isolation and small population in the area.
-..-"~
Acculturation 241
Fig. 45. On journey crossing the Serra Acarai, the Waiwai have erected the three-cornered shelter "powis-tail". In
recent years contact with the White man has brought the iron pot and the bush knife, great advantages in daily
work and when travelling.
ACCULTURATION
Right up to the year 1900 the Waiwai appear to have been completely unaffected by civilization; they
lived in isolation on the Serra Acarai, and only two expedition had until then visited their area briefly
without discovering in the culture any trace of European elements (see p. 12).
From 1900 until 1950 a weak and partly indirect influence made itself felt via the neighbouring
Wapishana tribe, as mentioned above. Beads succeeded plant fruit, particularly Job's Tears, for
women's costumes and ornamentation; forest knives and iron axes replaced digging sticks and stone
axes, and presumably greatly facilitated agriculture; a few iron pots and cassava pans made their
appearance, the iron pots particularly being appreciated on account of the Waiwai habit of always
taking pepperpot with them when travelling. Fowls probably became known during the same period
16 Waiwai
without any knowledge being gained as to their utilization. It is possible that knowledge of various
culture plants from the Old World, for example, the banana, is older, but here it should be remembered
that at the beginning of the century the Waiwai appear to have been strongly influenced by the now
extinct Taruma, through whose agency European elements may have been introduced to the Waiwai
(see p. 236). The most important influence in this period must definitely be said to have been the
improvement of agriculture as a result of better implements and, perhaps, new cultivated plants.
Within social and religious life, on the other hand, no changes of note seem to have taken place.
The period from 1950 up to the present day has been, and is, completely dominated by increasingly
intensive missionary work carried on by the Unevangelized Fields Mission. In 1951 a permanent
mission station was established, Kanashen, between Yakayaka and Mauika on the Essequibo, where
Mr. Robert E. Hawkins and his wife settled. Up to 1955 (when our expedition ended) the missionary
work had mainly consisted in the creation of good relations with the Waiwai, plus thorough studies
of the Waiwai tongue whilst creating a Waiwai written language. Although during this period the
missionaries consciously endeavoured to preserve the original material culture and the Waiwai's
respect for it, a certain change of mentality began to be manifested by the Waiwai living nearest to
the station. In the first place they were paid for the various work they performed for the mission, such
as house building, field and transport work etc. Although wages were immediately converted into
coveted utensils, they quickly gained the idea that work - good or bad - would be paid for at a definite
rate according to its duration. During this time the Waiwai acquired a more reflective attitude, and
consciously assessed their own culture against the background of civilized standards.
After 1955 things began to move. Ewka, the yayalitomo and yaskomo of Yakayaka, on whom the
missionaries long had worked was converted to Christianity in 1956 in connexion with the recovery
of his daughter from a severe illness, and after some hesitation most of the Essequibo Waiwai followed
en masse (Hawkins 1959). In the wake of this change in religion came many changes of the culture:
polygamy, the drinking of fermented cassava beer and the smoking of tobacco were forbidden, and
the large communal houses were deserted in favour of one-family huts. All this must have influenced
social life very markedly. Smoking in secret, padlocking of hut doors, and the emergence of a con-
sciousness of sin are fresh and foreign features in the culture. In step with the progress of Christianity
with the Essequibo Waiwai, more and more moved northwards from the Mapuera. In 1958 not only
all the Mapuera Waiwai, but also all the Arawakan Mouyenna and a number of Piskaryenna and
Sheree had left the Rio Mapuera, which became denuded of human beings (see Yde 1960, p. 83).
All had left for the Essequibo to settle in the neighbourhood of Kanashen where there are now in all
about 250 Indians of mixed origin. The Waiwai culture, which in 1955 was vigorous and in the main
unaffected by civilization, has already ceased to exist.
Phonetic key
The phonemes of Waiwai (Carib an linguistic stock) are:

i ordinary
central close vowel u
e as in every o
a as in all a
ch as in child t
sh as in shall s
fi as in spanish n
I interchangable with r, with alveopalatal flap r
y interchangable with j, consonantic k
p fricative bi-labial h
w as in well m
stress
In Waiwai stress of a word often varies between syllables, though generally it occurs on the last.
Two-syllable words, however, frequently are stressed on the first.
16'
.-..=----
Glossary of Waiwai words
achi sister (man speaking) hyaslri helping spirit

aimara haimara fish
amama kind of anaconda -imo great
anton errand boy or girl kakenau-
apa father kworokjam sky spirit
apomi upper arm band, sign of kamara jaguar
maturity kamashu tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum)
apon wooden stool kames! magic object
aSlSI red pepper kamisa lap, loin cloth
awale group of affinal kin kamo sun
awechi warishi, back basket kanapelu barbacue
awi I kanaua dugout canoe
kapu sky, heaven
ehtoyati amulet of animal teeth karipamchan man between maturity and
ekahri wounded game marriage
ekaimali common hunt kechekele great forest tree (Inga
ekatr soul, shadow gracilifolia)
ekatrnho former soul, spirit kerechichi beads
ekatinho- kereweti kraua (Bromelia sp.)
kworokjam reincarnated spirit keweyu woman's apron
emasi coming-of-age girl koso red forest deer
emato woman between initiation and krapa bow
first childbirth kuas'i tipiti
epeka group of classificatory siblings kuchukwa fermented cassava beer
eperia fatal fever spirit kumu lu palm (Oenocarpus baccaba)
eremu magic song kurum buzzard, black vulture
eripoimo kind of anaconda, former village kutmo group of small fish
eru to give birth, to be born kuyuwa hammock
esefiema diet food kwaih'ir'i death
eta single household kworo red macaw
ewshanyon mother of a child, age term class kworokjam spirit
chacha grandmother, old woman latik flute, trumpet

churi cassava bread
chuwya spouce malya root (cassava-like) of unknown
plant
baraweti curare poison (Strychnos sp.) mafii pitch
Glossary 245
maraka medicine man's rattle tahelim cooking pot

marati maroudi (Penelope sp.) tamchi father-in-law
maure cotton (Gossypium sp.) raritan cicada
mawari the creator titkopicho menstruation bark mat from
miimo communal house Brazil nut tree
to no primary fatal blowing
napi yam (Dioscorea sp.) tuna water
nohaini common meal on big game tuna-ipu main water, Essequibo River
nufii moon. tushma banana
nono elder sibling of same sex
fiukwa magic stone
umana working house
umaua fish poison (Lonchocarpus sp.),
oho yes
culture hero
okoimo anaconda snake
uruperi the dragon, a mythical fable
okopicho child before puberty
animal
okopurwa child after puberty
okorupu balata (Manilkara bidentata)
onomto anatto (Bixa orellana) warakaka unknown little fish
wayam tortoise
pakria collared peccary wayamnu my tortoise, allowed sexual
pall grandchild, niece partner
parawa magic revenge blowing wayapa initiation hut
pashki small agouti wayma big sloth
payura war club washma bride service
pacho grandfather, old man wechi mat, used as headcover at
pm younger male relative, age class initiation
term weniapon baby sling
poimo brother-in-law, affinal group WOyWl arrow
poinko white-lipped peccary
pokara pegall, vanity box
pone pirai (Serrasalmo sp.) yaimo harpy eagle
poroto spider monkey yaipu tapir
powishi-matko powis tail, tree-cornered shelter yaku group of birds
poyin magic infant danger yami hair tube
puru pimpler palm (Astrocaryum yamo secret dances connected with the
plicatum) anaconda
yanan rudimentary matrilineal group
roupo menstruation yasi magic power
yaskomo medicine man
same magic act yawari opossum
shapali dog yayalitomo village leader, chief
shere cassava, maniok (Manihot yeme mother
utilissima) yenna people
shodewika dance festival yin father, owner
shoheli little sloth yocheri bones for magic use
shou kibihee you ite palm (Mauritia flexuosa)
shutepana medicine man hut yukiyapon ant belt
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Dansk Resume
Indledning (p. 1-13)
Waiwai-indianeme lever ved foden af Acarai-bjergene, der udger gnensen mellem Britisk Guiana og
Brasilien. I 1955 la landsbyeme aIle ved kildeflodeme til henholdsvis den mod nord Iebende Essequibo
River og den sydpa lebende Amazonbiflod, Rio Mapuera. Klimaet er tropisk med rigelig nedber pa
2-3 m arlig. Vegetationen er overalt yppig regnskov, der af jagtvildt rummer store flokke vildsvin,
tapir, skovhjort og mange arter af aber. Flodeme har stor fiskerigdom. I disse naturomgivelser lever
waiwai-stammen, der kun bestar af 180 individer fordelte pa 7 landsbyer. Ved at srette antallet af
beboere i en landsby i relation til den afstand, de rna tilbagelregge for at mode stammefrrender, opstilles
der forsegsvis et kommunikationsindex, hvis talvrerdier illustrerer en opdeling af waiwai i en nordlig
og en sydlig gruppe.
Waiwai-sproget herer til den karibiske sprogret og synes at have seerlig tilknytning til den sydfor
boende gruppe af Para-kariber, Stammen blev forste gang besegt i 1837 af R. H. Schomburgk, der
kun giver ganske fa og tilfreldige oplysninger om den. Det samme grelder H. Coudreau, der i 1884
gennemrejste waiwai's omrade, Den ferste beskrivelse af stammen skyldes Farabee, der i 1913 som
den ferste fandt waiwai ogsa nord for Acarai. Spredte oplysninger hos Coudreau og Farabee ger det
ejensynligt, at waiwai ca. 1890-95 nrer var blevet udslettet af en nabostamme og kun ved flugt nordpa
overlevede. Restbefolkningen syd for Acarai blev strerkt opblandet med parukoto, men beholdt sit
oprindelige navn. Bortset fra W. E. Roth's ekspedition i 1925, hvor waiwai's tekniske kultur blev
studeret, foreligger der i ovrigt kun embedsmrends kortfattede rapporter om waiwai op til vor tid.
Den sparsomme litteratur er i evrigt tilstrrekkelig til at dokumentere, at der blot i de sidste 100 ar
har fundet en kraftig stammeblanding og stammedeling sted, der rna have bragt nye - navnlig ama-
zoniske - kulturelementer til waiwai's kendskab.
Til forstaelse afwaiwai's religiese og sociale liv skal deres ekonomi og teknik opridses kort. Erhvervs-
livet er domineret af svedje-agerbruget, hvor den bitre maniok er langt den vigtigste kulturplante.
Eftersom dens dyrkning ikke krrever nogen speciel hestperiode eller oplagring, er den vel tilpasset
mandens hovedbeskeeftigelse, jagt og fiskeri, fordi den ikke forudsretter nogen radikal rendring i
mentalitet og arbejdsfordeling. Waiwai's agerbrug er lettere og mindre udviklet end dets naboers.
Det er vresentligst et kvindeerhverv, medens kun manden jager og fisker. Jagt og fiskeri udeves navnlig
med lange buer og pile, hvis spidser forgiftes med curare til abejagt. Jagthunde anvendes srerlig til at
drive vildsvin i frelder. Fiskeriet foregar hovedsagelig med bue og pil samt ved hjrelp af ruser; det er
af sterre ekonomisk betydning end jagten. Rejser foregar nu hyppigst ad flodvejen i kanoer af udhulede
trrestammer; ved transporter over land anvendes lange ryg-brerekurve til husgerad og madforsyninger.
250 Danish Summary
Waiwai landsbyen bestar som regel af et stort rundt fselleshus, der rummer alle landsbyens enkelt-
familier. Rver familie har i sin sektion sine hrengekejer opheengt i en trekant, i hvis midte ildstedet er
placeret. Det meste arbejde foregar dog i fri luft i de sma arbejdshytter. -
Udefra set kan man anltegge et deterministisk syn pa waiwai-kulturen med naturen som begnen-
sende faktor for udviklingen af erhvervet, der - i vekselvirkning med traditionen - afstikker mulig-
hederne for samfundsudviklingen. Imidlertid strider et sadant syn afgerende mod waiwai's egen natur-
opfattelse, der er opbygget pa forestillingen om aktive - til dels vilkarlige - magter og knefter, hvis
virksomhed man seger at begrense eller fremme. Det skonnes derfor i lige sa hej grad at vrere waiwai's
opfattelse af naturen som naturen selv, der pavirker den kulturelle udvikling. Derfor er de religiose
forestillinger i det felgende behandlet ferst,
Religiose forestillinger (p. 14-37)

Waiwai's sjelebegreb er fundamentet for de religiose forestillinger, og deraf udvikles naturligt andre
grupper af overnaturlige vresener. Saledes kan ekati oversrettes ved sjeel, ekati'nho ved tidligere sjel,
d.v. s. den afdedes sjel, og ekatinho-kworokjam ved and fortrinsvis dyreand, Ekati opfattes somen
usynlig substans, der er udbredt over hele legemet; den breder sig som ved smitte ud over legemet
til berorte ting. Samtidig med at ekati substansen er delelig, opretholdes der en forbinde1se mellem de
adskilte dele og kilden. Dette er baggrunden for waiwai's sygdoms- og deds-teori, idet magi udevet
over en del ekati vii pavirke helheden.
Medens medicinmanden frivilligt kan sende sin ekati til sine hjrelpeander, sa skilles Ieegfolk kun
ufrivilligt fra deres ekati', dels i dromme de1s ved besrettelse af en and. Beseettelsen, hvorved ekati
trtenges ud, er livsfarlig, hvis ikke ekati snart bringes tilbage. Da spadboms ekati ofte felger faderen
eller moderen og er meget svage, er spsedbern serligt udsatte for besrettelse. Ved en persons ded bliver
ekati til ekati'nho, der normalt "reinkarneres" i dyreform; imidlertid synes waiwai ikke at forestille
sig en individue1 overleven. Ekatinho menes at have sit tilholdssted ved sin ophavsmands grav, men
strejfer ofte omkring; den er meget frygtet.
De fleste landdyr besidder ekati'nho-kworokjam, hvis egenskaber svarer til menneskers ekati. Ogsa
de udbreder sig ved smitte, og da storvildts kworokjam er steerkere end f. eks. speedberns ekati,
repreesenterer de en fare, der affeder spisetaburegler. Foruden ekatrnho-kworokjam, der betragtes
som reinkarnerede menneskesjrele i form af landdyr, eksisterer der en gruppe kakenau-kworokjam,
hvis oprindelse gar forud for menneskets skabelse. De er himmelander, og de har derfor sede specielt
i fuglene, men ogsa i enkelte ejendomme1ige landdyr og optneder endeligsom helt ulegemlige ander.
Kakenau-kworokjam er strerkere og farligere end ekatmho-kworokjam og anvendes derfor navnlig
som hjeelpeander for medicinmanden.
lnden for de overnaturlige vasener horer tildels ogsa gruppen yenna, der betyder folk. Foruden
at veere en almindelig betegnelse for nabostammer, omfatter det rene fabelfolk og forskellige dyre-
folk, der indtager vigtige roller i mytologien. Det eneste folk, der har religies betydning, er anaconda-
folket, okoimo-yenna, hvorfra skaberen Mawari hentede sin hustru.
Enkelte dyrearter og naturfanomener beherskes ifelge waiwai af deres yin eller fader, hvor navnlig
Dansk Resume 251
poinko-yin, vildsvinenes fader er af stor betydning. Kun medicinmanden kan pakalde poinko-yin,
og en pakaldelse er altid nedvendig forud for vildsvinejagter, for ikke at gere poinko-yin vred, sa han
forer vildsvineflokkene bort. Poinko-yin virker som srerlig hjeelpeand for medicinmanden, der har
tabu mod at jage, drtebe eller spise vildsvin. Poinko-yin pakaldes, ved at medicinmanden bleeser tobak
henover en magisk sten, fiukwa, der reprtesenterer poinko-yin. Imedens afsynges forskellige poinko-
eremu, magiske sange til :ere for vildsvinenes fader. Waiwai nterer en vis angst for poinko-yin; de
sknemmer deres bern med ham. Og de hasvder, at skikken med at male hele kroppen red med anatto -
som alle waiwai ger - skyldes, at poinko-yin ikke kan se den rede farve og altsa ikke kan ramme dem,
nar de jager hans bern, Poinko-yin bliver meget vred, nar nogen sarer eller skamskyder vildsvin.
Begrebet yin svarer pa mange mader til en manifestation af artsbegrebet. Medicinmandens funktion
i forhold til vildsvinene og jagten pa dette vigtige vildt giver ham en betydelig position, der bI. a. viser
sig ved, at han selv kaldes vildsvinenes herre. Formodentlig skyldes denne tite1 en identificering af
poinko-yin med medicinmanden; men der er tegn pa, at poinko-yin ville kunne udvikle sig til et gud-
domme1igt vasen.
Hos waiwai findes ogsa forestillinger om fuglenes fader, fiskenes fader, vandets fader og muligvis
om en fader for solen. Solen som personificeret vasen indtager en serstilling i waiwai's religion. Der
findes en fortelling om to medicinmsend, der efter en langvarig regnperiode gik til himmels for at
overtale solen til at skinne. De fandt, at solen har et diadem af sorte fjer, og fik lov til at erstatte de
sorte med stralende rode tukanfjer. Da de kom tilbage til jorden, skinnede solen.
Medicinmanden hos waiwai pakalder under langvarige regnperioder solen gennem sang, der har
karakter af ben, samtidig med at han tilbyder bred og sit eget stralende diadem til solen. Solen er det
eneste overnaturlige vsesen, der kan siges at blive dyrket og ikke blot magisk pakaldt ; den betragtes
som guddommelig.
Waiwai's vigtigste guddom er skaberen Mawari, der ganske vist ikke er genstand for nogen form
for kult eller dyrkelse. Han satte menneskelivet i gang og tradte derefter i baggrunden for aIle de over-
naturlige vresner, der truer livet, og som derfor frygtes og pakaldes langt mere end Mawari. I myterne
er opossum, yawari, opfattet som en kulturhero, der bI. a. Irerte waiwai brugen af det store, runde
fielleshus.
Myler og sagn (p. 38-100)

Tilsyneladende opdeler waiwai ikke deres traditionelle fortrellestof i forskellige kategorier, og ofte
indeholder samme fortelling bade mytiske og eventyragtige afsnit. AIle de her citerede beretninger
handler om overnaturlige heendelser i en fjern fortid. De gar i reekkefelge fra rent mytiske til mere
eventyrpreegede fortrellinger,
Mawari kommer til verden som folge af en seksuel forbindelse mellem en skildpadde-hun, wayam,
og en gneshoppe-han, rataki. Alle skildpaddens reg blev :edt op af jaguar-folket, kamara-yenna, bortset
fra to, som jaguar-bedstemoderen frelste. Ud af det ene kom Mawari, der skjult opdroges af jaguar-
bedstemoderen. Han voksede hurtigt op og enskede sig en kvinde, som han fiskede op af floden. Det
var en kvinde af okoimo-yenna, anaconda-folket, og hun medbragte flere kvindeartikler. Af Mawari
252 Danish Summary
og anaconda-kvindens afkom fremstod de ferste indianere og hvide, medens Mawari's parentetisk

omtalte bror skabte brasilianerne. Mawari blev vred over, at sa mange af hans bern dede, og gik
derfor til himmels ved hjeelp af en pilestige.
Rver myte eller sagn er analyseret efter tre forskellige aspekter, der kaldes henholdsvis motiv,
handlingsforleb og biomstsendigheder. Disse aspekter bliver behandlet sammenhengende og teoretisk
efter gennemgangen af waiwai's fortrellestof. Af motiver i Mawari-myten skal ruevnes: tvillinge-
motivet, jaguarernes drab af kulturheroens modrende ophav, den gamle kvindes frivillige ded, for at
nye kulturplanter kan opsta af hendes knogler, vagina dentata motivet og anacondaen som symbol
pa floden og det seksuelle. Handlingen afspejler muligvis en strerkt forkortet kulturudvikling - for-
modentlig en akkulturationsproces - hvor Mawari selv reprresenterer jeegeren, der tidligt bringes i
forbindelse med primitive agerbrugere (jaguar-folk), men som forst ved sit regteskab med anaconda-
kvinden nar waiwai's nuveerende kulturstade. Andre kilder understetter denne formodning. Af bi-
omsuendigheder med socialt sigte kan nrevnes detaillen om wayam, skildpadde-hunnen, der gar fra
sin han og udsrettes for adskillige tilruermelser fra forskellige dyreander, hvilket til sidst far felger -
nemlig afkommet Mawari. I dag bruger waiwai betegnelsen wayamnu (= min skildpadde) om den
gruppe af seksuelle partnere ud over regtefreIlen, der er socialt anerkendt, og myten retfrerdigger
derved pa en made denne ekstramaritale skik.
Myten om anaconda-folket handler om en ung, netop initieret pige, der - alene hjemme med sin
bedstemor - sendes til floden efter vand, hvor anaconda-folket far eje pa hende og forfelger hende.
Run gemmer sig i hytten under et lerkar og undgar saledes forfolgerne, der imidlertid sretter landsbyen
under vand. Anaconda-folket afleverer aIle deres fjerprydelser til waiwai, inden de gar. Ligesom i
Mawari-myten optrreder anaconda-folket som seksualsymbol i motivet, og i handlingsforlebet op-
trader det som kulturbringer (fjerprydelser). Biomstrendighederne er her mere veesentlige og tager
isrer sigte pa at stabilisere skikkene i forbindelse med unge pigers initiation ved hjrelp af isolation,
flid og lydighed.
Myten om manen fortreller om manen, der onsker sig en kvinde. Rver nat kom han som en fremmed
til sin egen sester og havde seksuel forbindelse med hende. Da hun endelig opdagede, hvem det var,
blev hun hans hustru, og sammen steg de til himmels. I fortellingen er der udtrykt angst for blod-
skarn, medens andre seksuelle forbindelser betragtes med stort frisind. Der er ogsa udtrykt en klar
dualisme mellem sjeel og legeme.
Shodewika-myten tager sit udgangspunkt i en stor dansefest, hvori deltog en mengde forskellige
dyrefolk og et enkelt waiwai-par, Waiwai-parret lavede undervejs til festen mange sangtekster til
dansen. Da dyrefolkene vendte hjem igen, blev de til rigtige dyr; men de af dem, der regtede lokale
kvinder, blev til mennesker. Da det onde jaguar-folk kom, drrebte man dem ved list. Fugle-folkene
fik deres forskelligt farvede fjer af blodet og galden af en drrebt anaconda, der havde slugt en kvinde.
Af jalousi onskede de lokale folk, grib-folket, at ombringe dovendyrs-manden, men hans magiske
evner besejrede dem, og de blev til rigtige gribbe. Shodewika-myten der til dels kan betragtes som en
rammehistorie om sangtekster og lest tilknyttede dyrefable, handler om nabo-stammernes opstaen.
Af motiver skal nrevnes den gamle kvinde, der frivilligt af sit legeme lader fremsta forskellige nytte-
planter (her fiskeforgiftnings-planter), Handlingsforlebet slutter sig til myterne om Mawari og om
Dansk Resume 253
anaconda-folket, idet det antyder en akkulturationsproces, der - strerkt forkortet - illustreres som
blandede regteskaber. Derved at det viser at sig vrere en straf at blive forvandlet til dyr, men at det
sker for aIle dem, de~ ikke eegter en lokal kvinde, fremgar det, at den socialt set rigtige adfrerd ved en
shodewika-dansefest netop er, at fremmede msend gifter sig med lokale kvinder. Dette synes at vere
savel shodewika-festens som -mytens primsere sociale funktion.
Historien om opossum indledes som en dyrefabel, der forklarer opossumens udseende. Denne dade,
men kom atter til live, da en mand med magiske evner begyndte at sktere i dens kadaver. Den blev
levende i form af et menneske, der viste manden og lerte ham brugen af kulturplanten yam samt af
de tre mere fremskredne hustyper, waiwai anvender i dag.
Historien om skovhjorten handler om en hjortemand, der en aften hjemseger en gammel kvinde,
der er alene hjemme. Den viI danse med hende og overtaler hende dertil; men nseste aften, da hendes
slregtninge er tilbage igen, forrader hun hjortemanden og lader ham drebe. Af den dade hjortemand
opstod aIle senere rigtige skovhjorte. Handlingsforlebet ligger her nar shodewika-mytens: et forsmaet
eegteskabstilbud (dansen) ferer til en forvandling til dyr. Hjorte- og opossum-historierne har motiv-
frellesskab i forestillingen: gennem ded til nyt liv.
I historien om arnen er det en erne-mand i menneskeskikkelse, hvis dyriske side afsleres. Derved
oploses hans regteskab med en waiwai-kvinde, og han tager helt dyreform. Han begynder at sla ned
pa bern og gamle og tage dem hjem til sig og sin S0n i reden. Landsbyen ofrer en gammel kvinde,
men hun har et langt reb bundet til sig, sa meendene kan felge amemandens flyverute og drrebe ham.
Af hans vingefjer opstod ernene, af brystdunene hegene. Handling og motiv svarer til historien om
skovhjorten, af biomstrendigheder nrevnes, at det kun er ame-mandens svoger, der kan drebe ham
(hrevndrab), samt skikken at ofre en gammel kvinde for almenvellet.
Historien om den gamle mands himmelrejse handler om en sergende enkemand, der far loy til at
besoge sin afdode hustru i dedsriget i himlen, hvor han oplever den dedes ulegemliggerelse og udede-
Iiggerelse, Derefter vender han tilbage til jorden og de levendes land, der er adskilt fra dedsriget ved
en flod, hvorover en anaconda pa befaling spender bro.
I historien om grib-folket berettes om en fader, hvis S0n var blevet revet af gribbene, og som derfor
indsmurte sig med adsellugtende salve for at lokke gribbene til og fange dem. Da gribbene kom for
at rede ham, sprang han op, men naede kun at fa fat i kidnapperens fjederham og kniv. Grib-manden
- nu i menneskeskikkelse - flygter, men lokker senere sine dyre-attributter fra et barn og flyver bort.
Historien er ntermest at betragte som et eventyr, men det er verd at bemerke, at faderen far ideen til
sin hsevnaktion igennem en dram, Waiwai lader sig i hej grad lede af dromme.
Historien om dragen med lynildsranglen handler om en ung mand, hvis svigerfar var utilfreds med
hans jagtindsats. Svigerfaderen sendte som straf sin svigerson pa jagt nrer dragen Uruperi's bolig,
og efter beregning blev denne slugt af dragen. Han undslap dog til sidst omend rnerket over hele
kroppen i det monster, dragen havde baret til skue. Senere medte svigersennen igen dragen i menneske-
skikkelse, og drage-manden gay ham en rangle, hvis lynild drrebte ethvert dyr, man sigtede pa. Derefter
blev svigersennen landsbyens sterste jeger. Denne historie er utvivlsomt et ret sent Ian hos waiwai,
idet forestillingen om Uruperi som "Herren over aIle skovens dyr" findes hos mange amazon-stammer,
men endnu ikke er trrengt ind hos waiwai.
254 Danish Summary
Visse generelle mytologiske aspekter er lagt til grund ved analysen af waiwai's myter og sagn. Det
belyses, at der ikke altid er mening i en direkte sammenligning af sagnmotiver; ofte viI en sammen-
ligning af de grundlreggende forestillinger, der dirigerer den lokale udvselgelse af tilbudt fortrelle-
materiale, vise sig vresentligere. Hos waiwai kan myte og kult bedst betragtes som parallelle mani-
festationer af religiose forestillinger. Myter og sagn hos waiwai bestar af en kerne, motivet, der ud-
trykker no get almenmenneskeligt og er uafhrengigt af milieuet. Dertil hefter sig en lokal atmosfrere,
der bI. a. bestar af handlingsforlebet, som normalt er stammens fselleseje og ofte henviser til stammens
traditionelle historie. Den lokale atmosfrere bestar desuden af let foranderlige detailler eller biomstren-
digheder, der igennem mytevarianter angiver forskellige samfundsgruppers modstridende interesser.
Mytensynes bedre karakteriseret igennem sin tredelte struktur end gennem sit indhold. Myten udtrykker
som felge af sin struktur ogsa mindst tre tider: nemlig motivernes evige, handlingsforlebets fortidige
og biomsteendighedernes aktuelle tid; f. eks. mangler de europeeiske eventyr (autoriserede og ned-
skrevne) den sidste tidsdimension. Der findes ikke en korrekt version eller en korrekt opfattelse af en
myte; tilhoreren kan efter ojeblikkelig mental og social situation vselge imellem flere muligheder. De
mytiske aspekter, der er udtrykt i mytens biomstrendigheder, synes saledes at ville appellere til til-
hereren i hans holdning som individ, handlingsforlebet i hans holdning som stammemedlem og motivet
i hans holdning som menneske. Flere andre holdninger og tilsvarende myteaspekter kan trenkes ; de
er aIle principielt lige vigtige, sideordnede og uafheengige. Igennem hver af de tre her fremhavede
menneskelige holdninger synes waiwai at placere sig i sine forskellige kosmos ; som individ inden for
stammen, som stammemedlem iblandt folkeslagene og som menneske inden for alt levende. Myten
forklarer og retferdigger for waiwai hans tilstedeveerelse i forskellige sterre sammenheeng,
Kosmologi (p. 101-103)
Kosmos bestar af 5 lag, hvoraf et er under jorden og de tre er himmellag. Der er igennem abninger
mulighed for et vist samkvem mellem lagene. Pa laget under jorden lever cikade-folket, derover .kom-
mer jordlaget med waiwai og andre folk. Pa det forste himmelplan bor visse fuglefolk ; og her tager
afdodes eje-sjele, ekatmho, ophold. Andet himmelplan bebos af himmelanderne, kakenau-kwo-
rokjam, samt eventuelt af tidligere medicinmrends ekatmho. Det everste lag rurnrner grib-folket.
Ethvert dyr og enhver plante har sin himmelske parallel i nastaverste eller overste lag; de er storre
og suerkere.
Praksis praget af de religiose forestillinger (p. 104-132)
Magisk blsesning bestar af en magisk sang, hvis tvingende virkning projiceres ud i en besternt retning
ved hjelp af en pustning. Tono er en primer, dedelig bltesning, hvor udeveren ved bererings- eller
efterlignings-magi tvinger sit offer i deden, Rationelt rna skikken formentlig forklares ved, at offeret
er vidende om den magiske efterstrrebelse og der af psykisk angst, hvis ikke en gendrivelse ophrever
magien. Parawa er en sekundar havn-blesning, der udfores p. gr. a. den hos waiwai herskende blod-
heevns forpligtelse for mermeste slregtning. Den udeves over bI. a. udvalgte knoglerester fra den af-
f·~ -- ~~...- -- - - -- ----='-- -- --------
_.-......:.-. -- - -- .:.--
-_._---,
I
Dansk Resume 255
dede, der skal hawnes, og bestar stedse af en hemmelig magisk sang ledsaget af en pustning samt af
dyrelyds-imitationer. Tono og parawa er i sig selv intensionslose og anses for at kunne drrebe ud-
everen, hvis de ikke er rettet mod et offer. Den, der mener sig udsat for dedelig blasning, feler sig sat
uden for samfundet som opgivet og gribes af en ofte dedelig forvirringstilstand, der gar over i slov
passivitet. Dodelig blsesning kan oplueves, ved at udeveren foretager en magisk renselse, same, over
offeret ved at lede vanddamp fra en ophedet stenekse hen over ham.
Af andre magiske blresninger skal fremhreves lregfolks eremu eller magiske sange, der som funk-
tioner bl. a. har at afvrerge de farer, der specielt kan ramme spadbern. I den forbindelse anvendes
altid desuden enten magiske genstande eller handlinger. Lsegfolks blresning finder ogsa sted i forbindelse
med regnfordrivning og for at veekke elskov.
Medicinmandens blasninger karakteriseres ved en hyppig anvendelse af et magisk apparatur sasorn
tobaksrygning og anvendelse af forskellige flejter, Hans vigtigste eremu har til formal at hidkalde
vildsvinene, pakalde solen, sikre gode afgreder og rigelig fiskebestand, samt at kurere syge. Ved
kurering nedkalder medicinmanden sine hjeelpeander ved hjelp af eremu, for at hjeelpeanden skal
genfinde patientens ekati,
Leegfolks magiske blresning har til formal at fordrive ekatmho-kworokjam, der normalt herer til
pa det nrermeste himmellag. Den finder sted i forbindelse med magiske sange (eremu), magiske hand-
linger (same) eller genstande (kamest), AIle disse virkemidler har en stigende karakter som damp,
balreg, knoglerog, ord eller ande, formodentlig for at drive ekatmho-kworokjam op til det himmellag,
hvor de herer hjemme. Medicinmandens magiske blresning skal pakalde eller fordrive kakenau-
kworokjam ved hjelp af eremu. Da disse Ander bor i det nastfelgende himmellag, er det naturligt,
at han anvender kraftige midler, sasom tobaksrog og flejtelyde, Der findes hos waiwai antydninger af,
at same og kames! er de reldste magiske former; derefter felger simple eremu og endelig eremu i for-
bindelse med brug af tobak og instrumenter.
Af anden magisk praksis skal navnes den rode legemsbemaling, der beskytter mod kworokjam,
samt dyretands-amuletter og bestemte pamalede dyremenstre, Ved sygdom og forestaende kraft-
anstrengelser anvendes myrebeelter som stimulans. Taburegler florerer iser i forbindelse med tarsk-
Ierne for individets livsforleb ; men ogsa ved fremstilling af kurare-gift og maniok-ol er udeveren
underkastet forbud mod visse spiser samt seksuel samkvem. Hundene er inddraget i tabu-reglerne,
hvad angar jagtvildt. Der er forbud mod at navne en mands navn i hans nrerhed. Varsler tages iseer
af fugles adfrerd.
Medicinmanden, yaskomo, repnesenterer de overnaturlige krrefter ved sin forbindelse med sterke
hjeelpeander, hyasm. Vserdigheden opnas kun i kraft af srerlige evner, og efter en kort oplsering i en
speciel medicinmandshytte indsrettes den nye medicinmand af sin lterer ved en demonstration af sine
evner til at falde i trance. Dram og trance er midlerne til at opna den ferste kontakt med hjeelpe-
anderne.; senere er afsyngning af specielle eremu tilstrsekkeligt. Som regel finder kontakten sted fra
medicinmandshytten, hvor yaskomo siddende pa sin skammel ryger tobak og blreser regen hen over
smasten, der reprresenterer hjrelpeanderne, Kworokjam viser sig at have samme smittende egenskab
som ekati', saledes at f. eks. de magiske sten er i stand til at overfore hele hjrelpeandens kworokjam.
Medicinmanden kan fra medicinmandshytten om natten foretage sjeeleflugt til himlen for at pakalde
r 256 Danish Summary
de kakenau-kworokjam, der er hans hjeelpeander, til vildsvinehulen for at pakalde vildsvinenes fader
eller til floden for at radsperge anaconda-folket. Han kan desuden i frelleshuset eller i fri luft nedkalde
sine hjeelpeander. Hans funktioner er navnlig erhvervs-fremmende og sygdoms-begrrensende. Anven-
delsen af plantemedicin er meget sparsom og synes at vrere rent magisk; muligvis har dette forbindelse
med, at waiwai traditionelt kun har kendskab til dyriske hjeelpeander. Medicinmanden har tabu mod
at drrebe eller spise vildsvin. Ligesom sine hjelpeander frygter han redt og blod, og han viI derfor
aldrig foretage kureringer af menstruerende eller fedende kvinder. Ofte modtager han betaling i
naturalier for sine ydelser, men prestige-foregelsen rna anses for vresentligere.
Livscyklus (p. 133-168)

£gteskabet hos waiwai er vresentligst ekonomisk motiveret; dels direkte at knyttes til en, der varetager
det andet kens side af det strengt kensdelte erhvervsliv, dels indirekte at sikre sig afkom til senere
aflastning. Man kan kun regte sin wayamnu, d.v.s. en person af modsat ken, der enten er ubeslregtet
med en eller er ens "cross-cousin". Krydsseskendebern vil under den herskende matrilokalitet
betyde ikke lokale fretre eller kusiner. De nrermere omstrendigheder ved et regteskab fastlregges ved
den retslige institution, oho-messen, hvor brudeprisen bestemmes samt varigheden af brudetjenesten,
washma, der ger den nygifte mand afhrengig af sin svigerfamilie. Enhver person har - hvaderrten gift
eller ej - en socialt anerkendt tilladelse til seksuel forbindelse med enhver af sine wayamnu - gifte
scm ugifte - en tilladelse, der kun begrrenses af gensidig tilbejelighed, For at undga komplikationer
kan en person dog begeere midlertidig statusrendring fra f. eks. elskerinde til titulrer sester. Wayamnu-
skikken har i flere tilfrelde fort til polygami, men de frie ekstra-maritale forhold forklarer, hvorfor
personlige tilbejeligheder spiller en ringe rolle som regteskabsgrund.
En fedsel er hos waiwai omgrerdet med mange taburegler, navnlig spiseforbud, der setter ind et
par maneder fer fedslen. Ingen af forreldrene rna bringes i kontakt med farlige dyreander, fordi disse
kan trrenge det ufedte eller sprede barns ekati ud. Fedslen foregar isoleret i en speciel hytte, hvor
moder og barn forbliver i ca. 14 dage. Her foregar aregennemboringen og navngivningen af familie-
navn (opkald) og kworokjam-navn. F0r tilbageflytningen til frelleshuset afsynger forreldrene en eremu
til rere for opossum, der er knyttet til denne hustype, og som er farlig for spredbarnets ekati. Op til
3 ars alderen er spedberns ekati direkte knyttet til foreeldrenes, hvorfor forreldrene principielt er under-
kastet samme forholdsregler som deres sprede bern, Nar reglerne brydes, sikrer man sig ved magi.
Faderen rna i denne periode principielt hverken jage eller fiske eller udvise anden sterre aktivitet, og
for moderen grelder no get tilsvarende bortset fra, at hun fortsat kan arbejde med maniok bade i mark
og husholdning. Denne midlertidige arbejdsfordeling giver manden ekstra fritid, hvori han ofte rna
passe spredbarnet, og der opstar en couvade-lignende situation.
Teorierne angaende natal-skikke og couvade gennemgaes kritisk ikke blot i forhold til waiwai,
men ogsa i forhold til en rrekke typiske sydamerikanske stammer. Herved tilvejebringes et materiale,
der taler imod de to hovedteorier, at couvade opstar i samfund, der er i frerd med at rendres fra moder-
retslige til faderretslige; eller at couvade skyldes en mystisk forbindelse imellem barnet og specielt
Dansk Resume 257
faderen. Baggrunden for waiwai's natal-skikke er: 1) forestillingen om besjeeling ved undfangelsen,
2) reglen om ambivalent arv og bilateral afstamning, 3) ideen om ekatt og kworokjam's smittende
egenskaber, 4) speedberns ubefrestede ekati, 5) teorien om at sygdom forvoldes ved ekatr's fortrreng-
ning af en kworokjam, 6) at kun dyr besidder farlige kworokjam, hvorved specielt mandens erhverv
rammes og 7) at kvindens arbejdsindsats uforandret er knyttet til det dominerende erhverv, ager-
bruget. Waiwai har udviklet en omfattende magisk praksis til brug i tiifeelde af brud pa natal-reglerne,
men denne praksis er baseret pa ideen om couvade. Ved en sammenligning med andre karib- og tupi-
guarani-stammer stillet over for arawak-stammer fremgar det, at amazonlandets couvade hviler pa
animistiske forestillinger og er pneget af halvagerbrugets specielle arbejdsdeling.
Barndommen er hos waiwai pneget af en nrer forening af leg og opleering med kun fa pligter. Dog
vil regtepar uden bern ofte sege at fa en anton, d.v. s. et midlertidigt adopteret barn, der kan hjelpe
med smating.
Initiationsskikken er indsknenket til piger og indledes ved den ferste menstruation. Pigen holdes
isoleret i et indelukke i ca. 2 maneder og klippes ganske kortharet, Hun skal vrere travlt beskreftiget
med at spinde bomuld og holder streng dieet, hvorunder hun navnlig undgar animalske produkter.
Ved indespserringens afslutning treekkes pigen - i en "rite de passage" - ud gennem indelukkets veeg og
beleeres om den rette opfarsels grundregler.
I en periode af ca. 2 ar omkring initiationen, hvor pigen kaldes emasi, serger man for at holde
hende strerkt beskreftiget med hardt arbejde, og en nekke tabu er udstrakt til at geelde hele denne
periode. Senere menstruationer er omgeerdet med specielle tabu for at forhindre forbindelse til jagt-
vildtet. Puberterende drenge far overleveret deres overarmsbind sorn tegn pa modenhed uden videre
ceremoniel.
Deden kan ifelge waiwai almindeligvis have en af tre arsager: spedbern kan de, fordi deres for-
eeldre ikke har formaet at skeerme dem mod poyin, d.v. s. visse kworokjam; gamle dar af feber, eperia,
der ogsa betragtes som en kworokjam; alle andre antages at de som felge af magisk blresning - enten
tono eller parawa. Dog finder voldeligt drab sted i sjeeldne tilfeelde. En deende fares ud af fselleshuset
og overlades i vid udstreekning til sin egen opgivende stemning. K vinder og bern beslregtede med
afdede skerer deres bar kort, og liget beres i hsengekeje ud til Iigbalet. Samtidig med ligbnendingen
bnendes eller destrueres nesten alle den dedes personlige ejendele. Af de bnendte knogler udtages
enkelte til brug ved den obligatoriske heevnblesning, parawa. Resten drekkes til med blade eller -
for barns vedkommende - med et omvendt lerkar. I tilfrelde af en betydelig landsbyftelles ded af-
bnendes fselleshuset, og landsbyen flyttes. Dedsfaldet meddeles officielt til besogende ved en oho-
messe. Sorn nyere element er jordftestelse treengt ind i det nordlige waiwai-omrade, og desuden synes
medicinmrend - pa grund af ensket om forts at forbindelse med deres hjeelpeander - i senere tid selv
at foretrrekke jordfastelse.
Ved en gennemgang af waiwai's fortolkning af livscyklus viser det sig, at religionen, d.v, s. animisme
med magi, isier er knyttet til tilvrerelsens yderpunkter, de individuelle trerskler fedsel og ded, medens
myterne angiver moralkodeks og serlig har forbindelse med socialt betonede institutioner sasom
initiation og eegteskab.
17 Waiwai
'- .- - --_. ---- --.. _--- -
258 Danish Summary
Dansefester (p. 169-181)

Dansefester afho1des, nar man har rigeligt fordid og ansker afveksling, nar man indvier nyt frelleshus,
og nar man ansker at trrekke mandlige partnere til med henblik pa eegteskab. Ved sjeeldne lejligheder
udferes yamo-dansen, som waiwai lerte af anaconda-fo1ket, og som er hemmelig for kvinder. Den
yarer med afbrydelser i to maneder, og danserne er maskerede.
Den almindeligste dansefest er shodewika, hvis afholdelse foruden pa de ovenneevnte motiveringer
ogsa beror pa forpligtelsen til at gengrelde tidligere invitationer. Invitationer overbringes i oho-messe-
form af budbringere. Gresterne indfinder sig - meendene delvis skjulte af bladkapper - ved solnedgangs-
tid og Ieber i en vild dans ind pa pladsen, medens de lader barktrompeter runge. Dansen yarer til sol-
opgang kun afbrudt af talrige drikkepauser og frellesmaltidet. En mandlig og en kvindelig danseleder
gar i spidsen for henholdsvis en ydre mands-krede og en indre kvinde-keede ; de er forsangere til de
korte, rytmiske sangtekster. Neste eftermiddag begynder dansen igen, og den genoptages i 3-7 dage
alt efter tilstedeveerende forrad, men virker stedse mere tilfreldig. Landsbylederen kan afbryde festen
en dag og sende hele selskabet ud pa jagt og fiskeri for at forege forradet og forleenge festen.
I forbindelse med dansefesterne udfores der ofte dyreimitationer. Det er navnlig myresluger, vild-
svin, skildpadde, hjort, tapir og abearter, der efterlignes, og man fremstiller jagten pa og parteringen
af disse - bortset fra myreslugeren - vigtige maddyr.
Arscyklus (p. 182-184)

Waiwai's tidsberegning er knyttet til solen, der angiver tidspunkter og dage, manen, der angiver
maneder, samt plejaderne og de to regntider, der angiver arstider. Waiwai-aret er domineret af maniok-
agerbruget. Det begynder i juli med rydning af et stykke skov, og i september afbrrendes de terre
buske og traer, I december settes maniok-stiklingerne i jorden, og de vokser sig tjenlige henimod
neeste september. Imidlertid behever maniok - p. gr. a. sit giftindhold - ikke at hastes ved modningen,
men holder sig uskadt i jorden. Dette forhold har gjort, at waiwai kunne opretholde en dag-til-dag
akonomi, der ikke bred med den oprindelige jeeger-akonomi.
Social organisation (p. 185-210)

Waiwai's brug af slegtskabsbetegnelser henviser til et klassifikatorisk sleegtskabssystem af assym-
metrisk type, idet ferste nedadstigende generation i terminologisk henseende felger et ret-system i
modsretning til det i evrigt herskende system, hvor der geres skel mellem parallelt- og kryds-besleegtede.
Skellet mellem de to systemer rna formentlig fork1ares ud fra en disharmoni i lokalitetsreglerne. En
mands egen generation bestar af brodre og svogre, sestre og potentielle regtefreller; kvindens situation
er symmetrisk hermed. Der er ikke noget skarpt generationsskel i terminologierne. Morbror og faster
klassificeres som henholdsvis svigerfar og svigermor, hvilket berigtiger det hyppige regteskab imellem
krydsseskendebern.
Slregtsgrupperingen er generationsbestemt og er seerlig betydningsfuld i ens egen generation. Epeka-
I-
Dansk Resume 259
gruppen omfatter alle klassifikatoriske seskende, d.v. s. bern af samme mor eller af samme far samt
parallel-seskendebern, Denne gruppe dominerer nu det ekonomiske liv i waiwai-landsbyen. Over for
denne gruppe star awale-gruppen, der omfatter de gennem regteskab beslregtede svogre, sviger-
forreldre og -senner. Den nu rudimentrere betegnelse yanan synes at have drekket eksogame, matri-
linerere klaner. Anvende1sen af slregtskabsbetegne1ser rendres hyppigt ved oprettelsen af et broder-
skab mellem to yngre mrend.
Slegtskabsforbindelseme i landsbyen Yakayaka gennemgas, Den udger en social enhed, og alle
dens medlemmer - der pro 1/1-1955 talte 40 individer, eller lidt under en fjerdedel af det samlede antal
waiwai - bor i et stort rundt frelleshus. Hver af frelleshusets syv sektioner bebos af en eta eller hushold-
ning, og af disse er de seks indbyrdes beslregtede. Grundstammen i hver husholdning er enkeltfamilien,
og kernen i husfrellesskabet er epeka-gruppen. Imidlertid hersker der stadig en - i al fald midlertidig -
matrilokalitet, og den fremmede, nygifte mand er ved arbejdsforpligte1ser, washma, afhrengig af sin
svigerfamilie. Herved opretholdes landsby-solidariteten. Washma-pligten kan ophreves ved en brude-
udveksling. Der er hos waiwai spor af en svigermor-undvigelse.
De herskende regteskabsformer er: regteskab mellem krydsseskendebern, avunkulrert regteskab,
monogamt eller polygynt sororat, monogamt eller polyandrisk levirat, samt andre former for mono-
gami og polygami. Enkelte blandede stammeeegteskaber finder ogsa sted. I disse tilfrelde synes barnets
tilhersforhold og linearitet nrermest at vrere afhrengig af lokaliteten under opvreksten. Der er dog spor
af matrilinearitet under den nu herskende bilaterale afstamning. Hertil knytter sig reglen om ambi-
linerer arveret.
Landsbylederen, yayalitomo, er den formelle ejer af rydningen og frelleshuset, som han har taget
initiativ til at realisere. Han opnar og holder sin stilling i kraft af personlig autoritet, men har ingen
specifikke magtbefejelser, Han er den ferste blandt ligemrend. Da landsbyen flyttes jrevnligt - maske
hvert femte ar - er der rig lejlighed til nye sammensretninger af dens medlemmer og fraflytninger.
Yayalitomo kan ved oho-messe sende landsbyfolkene pa arbejde om nedvendigt ; til gengreld har han
visse ekonomiske forpligte1ser over for gamle og grester.
Personlig ejendomsret grelder lige fuldt for bern som for voksne. Genstande ejes normalt af deres
,
fremstiller og bruger, men brugsretten gar forud for den private ejendomsret. Som nrevnt ejer lands by-
!
I lederen frelleshuset og rydningen; men de sektioner, som hver enkeltfamilie bebor eller dyrker, har de
opnaet brugsret over. Visse formelle meddele1ser overgives ikke direkte, men gar f. eks. fta landsby-
~
I,
lederen via en stedfortrreder og en budbringer til adressaten. Denne rangforordning traider srerlig
tydeligt frem i visse oho-messer. I evrigt er arbejdsdelingen hos waiwai kensbestemt, ogder findes
ingen professionelle hiindvrerkere. Sa godt som al kunstnerisk udevelse er knyttet til manden,
f
I:
I' Dagens gang (p.211-2l5)
Ii Det hardeste arbejde med at skaffe foden foregar i morgen- og formiddagstimerne, hvor mrendene
tager pa jagt og fiskeri, og kvinderne henter og tilbereder maniok og andre produkter. Kvinden udever
] navnlig sine sociale rettigheder indirekte igennem sin mand, men det er til gengreld ikke sjreldent, at
hun dominerer ham. Morgen- og aftenmaltid foregar normalt familievis, medens middagsmaltidet er
17°
260 Danish Summary
frellesmaltid. Ved nedlregning af storvildt inviteres eventuelt nabolandsbyen med til feellesmaltidet.
Ved beseg i en fremmed landsby pynter mrendene sig og medbringer helst madgaver. Eftermiddagen
er normalt helliget fredelige sysler.
Oho-messe (p.2l6-230)
Oho-kari betyder ja-tale og drekker en srerlig udtryksform ved officielle meddelelser, forespergsler og
krav, hvor taleren i korte og hurtige sretninger messer sit budskab til sin partner, der besvarer hver
seetning med "oho", ja. Kun to kan deltage i en oho, og de skiftes til at tale og sige ja; de sidder skrat
over for hinanden pa lave skamler. Oho-messen virker som en retslig institution og er et vigtigt middel
til at opna en urban lasning pa et opstaet problem. Dens funktion er at undga interne konflikter,
hvilket opnas ved en streng formalisme, der binder de to parter til at respektere ordstridens konse-
kvenser. Oho-messe anvendes som eegteskabskontrakt og handelskontrakt, som arbejdsoverenskomst
og ved invitationer, for at afvrerge dedelig blresning og efter dedsfald,
Af sammenlignende undersogelser fremgar det, at en til oho-messen svarende skik forefindes over
store dele af Guiana, men at den aldrig er blevet erkendt som retslig institution. Dens udbredelse som
ceremoniel dialog strrekker sig mod vest helt til Andesbjergenes estskraninger og derfra nordpa til
cuna og cagaba og sydpa til jivaro. Meget taler for, at skikken har spredt sig fra det subandine
Columbia til aile sider; dette giver ogsa en forklaring pa, at der hos waiwai i forbindelse med oho-
messen forekommer et rangsystem, der i evrigt virker fremmed i kulturen. En analyse lader formode,
at oho-institutionen, der hos waiwai er en betydningsfuld retslig og social faktor, i form og indhold
genfindes over hele det nordvestlige Sydamerika med samme betydelige funktioner.
Politisk organisation (p.23l-242)

Landsbyen udger den storste politiske enhed hos waiwai, og den er autonom i forhold til hele
stammen. Yayalitomo repnesenterer landsbyen udadtil, men hans politiske magt stnekker sig ikke ud
over hans sociale position og personlige autoritet. Som regel er det medicinmanden, der er landsbyleder.
Den offentlige mening er eneste retslige myndighed. Drab sanktioneres i en nekke tilfselde (nyfedte,
gamle, asociale) men misbilliges i evrigt, uden at man dog skrider ind mod drabsmanden fra sam-
fundets side. Frygten for at blive blandet ind i en strid har ofte fort til en bevidst isolation imellem
landsbyerne.
Waiwai-stammen udger en sproglig-kulturel enhed af yderst los karakter. Sprogfrellesskab (karibisk)
med nabostammer er ikke sa betydningsfuld en faktor for samkvem som det kulturelle frellesskab;
og den nrermeste tilknytning findes mellem waiwai og den sydfor liggende, arawakiske mouyenna-
stamme. Waiwai ansas af sine naboer for at vrere stridbare. Navnlig i begyndelsen af dette arhundrede
er der sket en betydelig opblanding af parukoto i waiwai-stammen, saledes at flertallet af waiwai
hrevdede, at de egentlig var efterkommere af parukoto-folk, der sydfra var rykket op i waiwai-omradet
og var blevet indgiftede lokalt. Waiwai fik pa samme tid forbindelse med deres nordlige naboer, taruma,
og synes at have overtaget flere kulturelementer fra denne hejerestaende stamme, der oprindeligt ud-
Dansk Resume 261
vandrede fra Amazonas, bl. a. bomuld og mytiske elementer. Dele af waiwai's skabe1sesmyte viser
sig herved forbleffende sent udformet, nemlig for ca. 50 ar siden. Samtidigt understettes den myto-
logiske akkulturationsteori af de historiske data. Endelig synes sprog1ige og kulturelle forhold at for-
binde waiwai med de vestlige kariber i det ko1umbianske Caqueta-Uaupes-omrade, hvorfra waiwai
muligvis er udgaet.
Samkvemmet inden for og ud over stammen er hos waiwai begnenset af en bevidst isolation, men
foregar i evrigt igennem en udveksling af meddelelser, yarer og eegtefteller, hvor oho-messen i aile
tilfielde spiller en betydelig rolle. Vigtigst for waiwai synes de blandede eegteskaber at have veret,
der - omend langsomt - har tilfert kulturen en rekke nye elementer sydfra. Af stor betydning var
ogsa hande1ssamkvemmet med de nordlige wapishana, der lrerte waiwai brugen af den udhulede stamme-
kano, en forudsetning for at waiwai kunne rykke ned langs de store floder Essequibo og Mapuera.
Medens waiwai op til ar 1900 rna betragtes som veerende fuldstrendigt upavirkede af civi1isationen,
fandt der fra 1900-1950 en svag, indirekte pavirkning sted, navn1ig via wapishana og taruma i form
af indferelsen af enkelte jernredskaber og kulturp1anter, der isrer har styrket agerbruget. Perioden
1950-55 har veeret preget af oprette1sen af en evangelisk mission, hvor missionererne etab1erede og
orienterede sig. I 1955 afsluttedes vor ekspedition. Derefter skete den forste omvende1se og kort efter
masseomvendelser med deraf felgende dybtgaende eendringer ikke blot i religionen, men ogsa i sam-
fundsliv og okonomi. Flere stammer sam1edes under missionen, hvilket tota1t eendrede den politiske
organisation. Waiwai-kulturen, der sa sent sam i 1955 var livskraftig og i hovedtnekkene upavirket af
civilisationen, eksisterer allerede nu ikke mere.
,
~
APPENDIX I
Music of the Waiwai Indians

by Fridolin Weis Bentzon
The following is an attempt to work up the material illustrating the musical culture of the Waiwai
Indians, collected by the National Museum's expedition to British Guiana in 1954 and 1958, kindly
placed at my disposal by Jens Yde and Niels Fock.
The Waiwai Indians are a primitive agricultural tribe belonging to the Cariban family of languages.
When visited by the National Museum's British Guiana expedition in 1954, it consisted of about 170
individuals dwelling in seven villages on both sides of the Acarai Mountains on the frontier between
British Guiana and Brazil. A missionary station had at that time been opened in the area, but the
material here dealt with was collected before civilization had begun to affect the musical life of the tribe.
At a late period t~e Waiwai Indians extended their area northwards, and they did not. cross the
Acarai Mountains and settle near the sources of the Essequibo until the beginning of this century.
Culturally, therefore, they belong to the north Para area, which goes to explain the fact that their
music has but little specific resemblance to that of their present immediate neighbours, the Makushi,
Wapishana and other tribes.
In the course of the past fifty years the Waiwai, by marriage, have become mixed with the Parukoto
and Taruma, who now no longer exist as independent tribes, though they must have exerted a strong
influence on the Waiwai culture, both in general and on their music.
MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
The musical instruments of the Waiwai will be dealt with by Jens Yde in "Material Culture of the
Waiwai", which I have been permitted to use in its full extent adding to it a certain amount of sup-
plementary information.
Idiophones
The turtle shell friction resonator, (oratin), (Fig. 46) is made from the carapace of a swamp turtle,
(kwochf), with a black lump of wax fastened at the front end of the ventral shell, which is rubbed
with the root of the right hand, the instrument being held under the left arm. Through the rubbing
the wax gets warm and sticky and gives off a little piercing note when the hand is taken from it.
The instrument is used for entertainment at drinking bouts, and is also played during the dances.
Farabee (p. 159) describes it as follows: "After the dance had gone on for some time and the first
drinks had been served, two clowns suddenly appeared and performed their own dance up and down
Musical Instruments 263
Fig. 46. Turtle shell friction resonator. (Nat. Mus. Copen-

hagen, H. 4[ 75).
on one side of the dancing ground. Each carried a tortoise shell resonator and a shrill whistle .... The
whistle was blown on the accented beat and the resonator struck on the after beat. The whistles were
of different sizes and tones, as were also the tortoise shells. Each performer danced vigorously in his
own time making all the noise and antic movements possible ... ".
J.
oj It is not possible with this instrument to produce any variation in pitch or stress, and the "music"
,
J resulting consists in a number of completely identical equidistant tones. In a recording transcribed in
example 36, a turtle shell resonator is played with an ordinary flute on which various rhythmical
patterns are played on one note: _. , '_. Y I,J • .,. I,"'''',J. , I J.,,J . .,. I and,J., I J. yJ . .,. I,J • .,. I J..,.,J • .,. I,
i whilst the turtle shell resonator accompanies it in a tempo roughly corresponding in the transcription
I
! to quavers, as the time is not quite the same for the two instruments.
\ The turtle shell resonator has a characteristic distribution that, according to Izikowitz (p. 161)
seems to indicate that it came from Central America to northern South America, as it is found in
\
Guiana, by Rio Tiquie, and with the Choco, Bogota and Maya. After the National Museum's expedi-
tion to British Guiana in 1958, this area may be somewhat extended, as the instrument has been found
amongst the Fishkaruyena, Mawayena, Kashuyena and Sheree in northern Para (Brazil).
A plank drum was formerly known to the Waiwai. Based on reports from John Ogilvie, it is described
by Roth (1924, § 581). It consisted of a wooden plank about three times 6 feet laid over a hole in the
ground. In the plank was a square hole into which one could vomit. It was used to stamp on during
dances. The extension of this probably very ancient instrument in South America coincides with that
of the howler trumpet, to which reference will later be made, as it is found with the Parukoto, Arapai
and Oyana.
tr----
264 Waiwai Music
Small jingle rattles made from seed shells are fastened along the edges of bed aprons and in orna-
mental feather tassels. They are found in all kinds of decorations, and the sound they produce is so
faint as to be hardly audible even at a short distance. It is thus possible that they are mere decorations
and that their sound producing effect is not considered at all.
A bone rattle, (porowk6), (Fig. 47, middle) is made from two detached skull bones of a monkey,
which are drilled through along the edges and assembled with kraua strings tied through the holes.
As rattling elements beads are used, usually blue ones it was related. The acquired specimen is orna-
mented with small tufts of toucan feathers. The bones for these rattles are taken from all kinds of
monkeys, but preferably from howlers; the curved bones of the tortoise (wayam) , may also be used
as material. The rattle is used both by men and women, tied to the ankles at the shodewika and the
ydmo dances. One was tied to the lower edge of a woman's apron acquired among the Fishkaruyena,
Gourd rattles, (mardkdy; are of the usual South American type made from a pear-shaped, globular
or ellipsoidal fruit shell with a stick or a piece of arrow reed as a handle. For children's rattles the
hollowed fruit of an Astrocaryum palm or the entire skull of a small monkey, (wichdru), with a handle
stuck into the occipital opening, may be used. The rattling elements imdrakasiisil yararo; yaruro-
filling), are either glass beads or the small round seeds of a "wild banana", (marakasiisa), a semi-
cultivated plant.
The rattles were seen in use during the dance festivals, where they were played by the two leaders
who head the chains of men and women. They are also used by the medicine men during healing
ceremonies, but not, so far as could be learned, in the preparatory ceremonies for spirit flights or
when working to avert danger, to secure good weather, and to keep game near the settlement, as
described in detail by Niels Fock.
Two recordings were made of songs accompanied by rattles, examples 19 and 20. These must be
assumed to be dance songs. In these recordings we find three ways of striking the rattle:
1. vertically up and down for each beat of the basic pulse, producing a sharply-punctuated rhythm:
Jtln n n nl
2. in a circular movement so that the grains in the rattle follow its inner wall, which results in a
softer rhythm: ;'17 3;,' 7";" 'J 3.;.' ';j"J\'1
3. by shaking the rattle as rapidly as possible without any rational relationship between the rhythm
of the song and the rattle.
M embranophones
Only one type of drum is found with the Waiwai, a double membrane drum, known as samdpura;
a word possibly deriving from the Portuguese or Spanish tambor. The drum acquired is made
from a hollowed piece of tree trunk, (karakuniy, diameter about 23 ems, depth about 20 ems. The
two skins are of sloth, (shoheli), and jaguar, (parnruminikdy; respectively. Skins of other animals can
also be employed, for example the howler monkey, spider monkey, anteater and deer, but it was found
that the agouti or acouri never were. The skins are only depilated on the part that is stretched over
the drum, and are kept in place by bindings made of sections of unsplit bush rope, (mamuri), which
at some places is lashed together with cords of bast impregnated with black rubber (mdnyiv. Parts
of the skin, such as the animal's legs and tail are plaited into the lowest part of the binding, which
are tightened by powerful kraua cords that pass through the lowest binding in the form of a W. To
create extra tension, a kraua cord is bound round the diagonal cords at about the middle of the drum.
When the drum is to be used, the skins are tautened by holding them alternately in front of a fire.
The jaguar skin is painted with a star-shaped figure of urukii stripes. Over this is stretched a thin
kraua cord holding 15 small needles of karatuk6 wood that rattle when the drum is beaten. To the
drum that was purchased belongs a single drumstick of letterwood with which the sloth skin is struck.
The drum is only played on ceremonial occasions, and was seen in use in one single instance during
a shodewika dance festival, where it was beaten by one of the festival leaders, who danced in the last
dance performed by the inhabitants of the village. Perhaps this was a sign to the guests still concealed
in the forest that all was ready for their arrival (for the shodewika dance festival, see p. 174).
Example 35 contains a transcription of a recording of drumming that is extremely clumsy and
primitive, consisting as it does in a series of somewhat irregular beats vaguely connected with each
other, 4 and 4. Periods with rapid and slow tempo succeed each other, and the changes are executed
by an accelerando or ritardando over 4 beats.
The same drum type is found with several other Guiana tribes (Wapishana, Makushi, Warrau,
Carib, Pomeroon) which, like the Waiwai, call it by a name derived from Spanish or Portuguese
tsambura or such like). It is also beaten by one drumstick, and the pelts of various animals are used
for the two skins (Roth 1924, § 578). However, on the lower skin a row of wooden needles is not
stretched, but only a single stick. It is reasonable to assume that the Waiwai have obtained this drum
from tribes living to the north, perhaps at a rather late date.
Even though this drum may be an imitation of a European double-skin drum, the rattling sticks on
the lower skin are probably pre-Columbian as a similar device is found among the Chipaya in south-
west Bolivia (Izikowitz p. 190) and some Northern Algonkin tribes (W. Krickeberg p. 329).
Aerophones
A humming top is made from a hollowed gourd shell pierced by a piece of arrow reed fastened with
lumps of black gum, tmdnyi), where it enters and leaves the shell. In one side of the gourd a fire-
drilled hole is made. The top is started by rapidly unwinding a kraua string, which has been wound
around the upper part of the stick, and the top gives forth a humming sound when it moves around
on the ground. As elsewhere in South America it is a toy. Its area of extension is very large, as it is
found in Central America and with a large number of tribes in the forest area (Izikowitz, p. 267).
Whistles
Natural whistles of several kinds are in use with the Waiwai. During medicine man ceremonies it is a
general practice to whistle in something that is connected with the object one wishes to influence in
connexion with the utterance of a magic formula. Thus one whistles in the claw of an armadillo in
f
\
266 Waiwai Music
Fig. 47. Waiwai whistles and bone rattle: Left mahwo whistle. Middle: bone rattle, porowko. Right: mataco whistle.
(Nat. Mus. Copenhagen, H. 4189, H. 4190 and H. 4186 resp.),
order to retain the peccaries in the vicinity of the settlement, in the claw of a crab to bring on rain, in the
claw of an anteater in order to invoke the anteater spirit. Similarly one whistles in a nut in which holes
have been bored to summon wild pigs, and in a kidney shaped whistle to summon the harpy-eagle.
This whistling has the same function as the simple poohing with the mouth, which is an indispensable
part of every magic action, that is, to impart direction to the magic power (see p. 127).
The mahwo whistle (Fig. 47, left) is a curious instrument blown by men and boys during the ydmo
dances, described p. 170. It is crescent shaped, about 6 em long and 2,5 em broad at the thickest part.
One blows into a hole drilled at right angles to its length, which is closed by a finger on the convex
side. Farabee (Fig. XXXV, A) shows a whistle of this type, though it is considerably larger and has a
gourd shell attached to one of the holes.
The Waiwai possess the following myth about their acquisition of this whistle, here quoted according
to Farabee (p. 175): "A long time ago some men were hunting in the mountains far away from home
and they heard a peculiar whistling noise which they could not understand. They were so frightened
they could not go on and learn the cause of it. At other times other hunters heard the noise and were
afraid. At last a medicine man, a piaima, said he would go and see what it was that made the noises.
He went alone and after several days returned, saying that he had found a peculiar wooden whistle
in the mountains which made a most remarkable sound. He made a whistle like the one he had seen.
It was the first musical instrument the Waiwai's ever had."
The same whistle type is found with the Parukoto (Izikowitz, p. 275).
Mataco whistles are made by the Waiwai from bamboo, (ruuwe), grass or feather quills. The one
end is closed, and at about the middle of the whistle an oval hole is cut. On the inner wall under this
hole a lump of wax is affixed that deflects the air causing it to break against the under edge of the hole
when one blows through the open end of the whistle. Whistles are about 7-8 ems in length and some-
times two or three are bound together into small Panpipes, (krikripu), by the help of two small cross
pins or simply with kraua cord. One of the examples brought back (Fig. 47, right) is embellished with
toucan feathers. Whistles are blown during the dances, though they cannot be used melodically but
merely to make a noise.
The simple mataco whistle is mainly found with South American tribes possessing a marginal culture,
that is to say tribes remote from the big cultural currents, or those that have been forced up against
more advanced areas and have therefore still preserved various older cultural elements that elsewhere
have been either modified or dropped. In Guiana, apart from the Waiwai, it is found only with the
Parukot6 (Izikowitz, p. 335).
Flutes
The Waiwai have two types of finger hole flutes, called ratii, a word that covers all wind instruments.
Both types are notched flutes, like the Peruvian kena, but they differ in regard to the peculiar way of
fashioning the distal end, and in the number of their finger holes, one type having three, the other
four. The three-holed flute may be made both of bone and bamboo, the four-holed only of
bamboo.
The three-holed bamboo flute is open at both ends and its under edge is cut so that it continues in
the form of a stud on the front side of the instrument. On the example brought back, H 4183 (Fig. 48 c)
this has been produced by a long diagonal incision, whereas the stud on H 4182 (Fig. 48d) is rec-
tangular and has been pierced so that it can be hung by a string or in the owner's hair tube. By placing
the hand around this stud the flute can be prolonged and an extra note obtained. The existence of
this practice can be deduced from example 26, recorded on the acquired specimen H 4182, where a
note is found lying about a major second under the deepest note that can be produced without placing
the hand around the stud. The practice, however, was not observed by the members of the expedition.
Between the two upper holes of the flutes a partition of wax or rubber, pierced by three small holes,
is made.
The dimensions of the two three-holed bamboo flutes are:
H 4182. (Fig. 48d).
Inner diameter 1.43 em. Outer diameter 1.77 em.
Greatest breadth of notch 0.85 em. Greatest depth of notch 0.33 em.
Distance from upper edge to uppermost part of lower edge 23.71 em.
Length of stud from uppermost part of lower edge 5.8 em.
268 Waiwai Music
Fig. 48. Flutes and trumpet used by the Waiwai: a. howler trumpet; b. four-holed flute; c. and d. three-holed bamboo
flutes; e. bone flute. (Nat. Mus. Copenhagen, H. 4185, H. 4184, H. 4183, H. 4182 and H. 4188 resp.).
Hole 1 from lower edge of notch to upper edge of hole 9.46 em L. 0.67 em B. 0.61 em.
Hole 2 - - 12.32 em L. 0.60 em B. 0.53 em.
Hole 3 - - 15.66 em L. 0.66 em B. 0.54 em.
The wax partition is about 10-12 em from the upper edge.
H 4183. (Fig. 48 c).
Greatest inner diameter 1.38 em. Greatest outer diameter 1.86 em.
Greatest breadth of notch 0.61 em. Greatest depth of notch 0.30 em.
Distance from upper edge to lowest part of lower edge 21.72 em.
Length of stud from uppermost part of lower edge 10.18 em.
Hole 1 from lower edge of notch to upper edge of hole 8.09 em Diam. 0.57 em.
Hole 2 - - 11.98 em. Diam. 0.57 em.
Hole 3 - - 14.92 em. Diam, 0.52 em.
The wax partition is about 10-11 em from the upper edge.
The bone flute (Fig. 48 e) has, like the three-holed bamboo flutes, a notch and a wax partition between
the two upper finger holes. The upper edge is smeared with wax to ensure a comfortable support for
the under-lip. The lower edge is not cut to a stud, but slit on the front side of the flute. This slit is
presumably used in the same way as the stud of the bamboo flute, though this cannot be deduced
from any of the four examples of the recordings of the bone flutes. Roth (1924, Plate 164) shows two
bone flutes where the shaping of the lower edge is not brought about by what appears to be a hapha-
zard slit, but as a result of a carefully executed trapeze-shaped cut. The length of the flute brought
back is about 15 em and the slit about 1.5 ern. The variations in diameter make it useless to attempt
any more precise measurements.
The four-holed flute differs from the three-holed in the way of fashioning its distal end which is
closed by one of the natural joints of the bamboo, one em over which two longitudinal slits are cut
opposite each other in the sides of the flute. Notch and finger holes are fire-drilled as with the three-
holed bamboo flute. The upper edge is hardened by fire and chamfered inside. Its dimensions are:
H 4184 (Fig. 48b).
Greatest inner diameter 1.69 ern. Greatest outer diameter 2.14 em.
Greatest breadth of notch 0.7 ern. Greatest depth of notch 0.43 cm.
Total length 42.2 cm.
Distance from flute's upper edge to upper edge of slits 38.6 cm.
Dimensions of slits L. 1.51 em Br. 0.29 em and L. 1.65 cm Br. 0.31 em.
Hole 1 from under edge of notch to upper edge of hole 11.59 em Diam. 0.52 em.
Hole 2 - 16.30 cm Diam. 0.60 cm.
Hole 3 - - 20.59 em Diam. 0.55 em.
Hole 4 - - 25.24 em Diam. 0.67 cm.
The notched flute is encountered in South America over a very large area (Izikowitz, p. 312) from
Chaco and Mojos in the south to Motilon in Venezuela, and from Peru over most of the Amazon
area to Guiana. The flutes here described are local variants that are confined to the Waiwai, Parukot6
and Taruma (Roth 1924, § 563 and 1929 p. 88 § 563), and we shall consider their peculiarities one by one.
Parallels to the fashioning of the distal end of the four-holed flute are found in various parts of South
America: The Palikur in Guiana have two different flute types with a closed under edge, one having
three holes (Izikowitz, Fig. 211, p. 348), the other five holes plus an extra opening near the lower
edge made in the side of the flute, as in the Waiwai instrument (Izikowitz, Fig. 206a, p. 345). The
Yekuana have a flute with a closed under edge and five finger holes plus a thumb hole; presumably
the lowest hole is not closed (von Hornbostel 1923, p. 404). From the Oyana de Goeje (p. 23) mentions
a flute of the kena type that has a closed lower edge near which there are two holes connected by a
slit. The flute referred to (Plate VII 9) has three holes, but the device in which we here are interested
is not shown on the drawing. Finally the Gothenburg Museum owns a flute, the origin of which is
only indicated by the word "Brazil", that was purchased at the beginning of the previous century.
The lower edge of this is closed, and it has on 'the front side a slit of the same shape as that on the
Waiwai flute (Izikowitz, Figs. 207a and b, p. 345). If one dare draw a slightly more distant parallel,
one may finally call attention to the bone kenas of north-west Brazil; the lower end of those are
narrowed by a pierced piece of wax that must have the same acoustic effect as the fashioning of the
Waiwai four-holed flute, that is to say to augment the end correction of the flute with all holes closed.
However, we know nothing of the playing technique and acoustic qualities of these flutes.
270 Waiwai Music
Bone kenas have been found in ancient Peru and occur actually in the forest areas north of the
Amazon (Izikowitz, p. 320), their extension thus being somewhat more restricted than is the case with
the bamboo kena. Some tribes fill most of the upper edge with wax, others, like the Waiwai, are
content to grease the upper edge. It is difficult to determine the extension of these details; smearing
with wax appears, at all events, in ancient Peru and in north-west Brazil (Izikowitz, p. 317); it is
presumably also found with tribes in Guiana other than the Waiwai. The filling of the upper edge is
practised by the Makushi, Wapishana, and Yekuana (v. Hornbostel 1923, p. 403) and by the Patamona
and Arekuna (Izikowitz, p. 318).
In fashioning the lower edge of the three-holed flutes we find, as mentioned, a stud on the bamboo
kena and on the bone kena a slit that presumably has the same function: to lengthen the instrument
by a hand or a finger. This method of fashioning the under edge is typical for the bone kenas among
the Guiana tribes all of which let the joint of the bone remain and make a more or less irregular
incision in the front of the flute, whereas, as has been said, in north-west Brazil they cut the lower
edge right off. The musical function of this formation of the lower edge of the bone kena is not known
for certain even among the Waiwai, and is naturally still more dubious in the case of the.other Guiana
tribes whose flute playing is completely unknown.
The stud on the three-holed bamboo kena is only found in connexion with end-blown flutes with
the Waiwai, Parukoto and Tanima. However, it also appears on the howler trumpet, later to be referred
to, and in this form we find it with the Arapai (Deuber, p. 317, Abb. 81,2) and the Oyana (de Goeje,
p. 23 and PI. VII, Fig. 12). It is reasonable to assume that this stud is connected with the hand stop
flute which is a side-blown instrument, closed at one end and with a broad, deep recess at the lower
edge, over which the hand is placed; at times the under edge, in addition to having this recess, is
fashioned like a stud. Its main area of extension is Guiana (Izikowitz p. 279). The principle of tone
variation by means of the whole hand or by closing the instrument in a similar way has a far greater
extension in South America, but apart from the places mentioned above no actual resemblance with
any Waiwai instrument is found.
The wax partition that is put between the two uppermost finger holes in both bone and bamboo
flutes is found in many kenas and simple end flutes in South America. Izikowitz (p. 319) explains them
as a transference to bone of a special detail possessed by many bamboo flutes, namely that instead of
removing completely a bamboo partition in a flute, it was just pierced. At a time when these flutes
began to be made in bone the pierced partition was retained and executed in wax or other material.
The partition appears in ancient Peru and actually in bone flutes in north-west Brazil and also in bone
and bamboo flutes in Guiana. According to Izikowitz the Roroima tribes place this partition between
the two uppermost holes (that is to say as with the Waiwai), whereas in other tribes it is sited above
the uppermost hole. In regard to this a characteristic change seems to have taken place with the Waiwai
within the last 50 years, as they now place the septum in the same position as that adopted by the
Roroima tribes with whom, as mentioned in the introduction, they came into contact at a very late
date. This change presumably took place about the time that Roth visited the area, as on the two
three-holed flutes from the Tanima and the Waiwai he brought back with him (lzikowitz, Fig. 178b
and c, p. 315) we find, respectively, a pierced natural septum and a wax partition, both of which are
i·
...-- __ ~ __ ,_ -... _ ...-.r._ - ".- -_,--_._ - - - - -- ~---~ - ---- ----- --
sited above the finger holes, whereas in his text (p. 457) he mentions that the partition is placed between
the first and the second finger holes.
Some flute types described by Roth who visited the area around 1910 were not observed by the
rI
, members of the expeditions in 1954 and 1957 and may either be out of existence or only very rarely
I
used. This applies to the Panpipe (example in the Gothenburg Museum obtained by Roth (Izikowitz,
Fig. 251, p. 384)) and a transverse flute (Izikowitz, p. 301 and 303).
Trumpets
End-blown trumpets are made of bark of the sardi tree spirally rolled so as to form a cone 70-80 ems
long and 12-15 ems wide at the distal end. The cone is held together by windings in three places with
a slender and pliable bush rope, and reinforced by strips of ite bast tied along three places from one
end to the other.
This instrument is used only at the shodewika dances, which was observed once by the members of
the expedition 1954. The guests who were invited to the dance from another village, arrived at the
landing early in the afternoon. Having disembarked with their whole outfit, among which were coils
of fresh bark bands for the trumpets, they started their preparations for the dance right at the river
bank. Though most of them had finished their preparations already in the afternoon, they did not
make their entre until after dark. Disguised in palm leaf costumes they entered the village plaza as
the dance was opening. They blew their trumpets even before emerging from the forest and went on
blowing for about half an hour moving around the plaza in a circle. After that the trumpets were heard
no more; they were not kept for later occasions for the simple reason that they will fall apart as soon
as the bark dries up.
The main area of extension of bark trumpets is the north-west of Brazil, the Mojos area and Guiana.
There is however, a notable difference in their use in these areas, as in north-west Brazil and the
Mojos area they are objects that must not be seen by women and the uninitiated, but there is no
corresponding taboo in Guiana; thus Roth (1924, § 558, p. 453) quotes John Ogilvie's reports of the
1
r
Wapishana, Tanima, Waiwai and Parukot6: "They are manufactured outside of the village, but the
women are not forbidden to see them". This difference in the social function of the instrument is mainly
j
due to the fact that ceremonialism is not as elaborate with the Guiana tribes mentioned as it is in north-
west Brazil and the Mojos area. Nevertheless, with the Waiwai at all events they have a certain connexion
with the supernatural, as the guests at a shodewika festival are regarded as the beasts of the forest, as
related in the myth about the origin of the shodewika (see p. 72).
A side-blown trumpet (Fig. 48a) which we will call the howler trumpet from its Waiwai name shi-
pururatii; (shipuru-howler monkey, ratii-wind instrument) is made of a piece of bamboo that is closed
at one end by a natural septum in which a hole has been bored and a feather quill stuck through. The
!
I other end is open and continues in the form of a stud as in the three-holed bamboo kenas. The blowing-
~
I'I hole is rectangular and situated near the closed end. An example brought back has the following
'I
II dimensions:
()"
I
272 Waiwai Music
H 4185 (Fig. 48a).

Outer diameter 2.38 em. Inner diameter 1.85 em.
Distance from closed end to upper part of lower edge 30.3 em. Length of stud 7.9 em.
Distance from closed end to upper edge of blowing-hole 8.3 em.
Dimensions of blowing-hole L. 1.95 em. Br. 1.45 em.
In a recording that is transcribed in example 37, three notes are used, notated a c d, which are
played in a rhythmical and melodic pattern which is exactly the same as that which runs through the
flute numbers examples 27 and 28. Tests showed that all three notes could be produced by tightening
or loosening the lips, but that the deep note was produced less forcedly when a finger was held in front
of the feather quill and the tube thus changed from an open to a closed pipe.
The howler trumpet was considered by Izikowitz (p. 277) to be a side-blown flute, and can in fact
be played in that way; from the recording made with the Waiwai, however, it appears quite clearly
that it is a trumpet, and the same must certainly be the case at the two other places where it appears:
with the Arapai (Deuber, p. 317, Abb. 81,2) and the Oyana. Writing of the last-mentioned tribe, de
Goeje (p. 24) says that he agrees with Coudreau's description of the sound of the instrument which is
likened to "le mugissement d'un taureau" - which I think covers it admirably. Furthermore, the feather
quill would serve no purpose were the instrument to be played as a flute, as it does not influence the
tone if it is shut or opened when played in this way. A feather quill does not appear in the illustrations
of the instrument by Deuber and de Goeje, though the latter refers to it.
The only fairly close parallel to the howler trumpet is a side-blown trumpet with the Tukuna and
Parintintin (Izikowitz, Fig. 97, p. 218), which likewise consists of a piece of bamboo cut off over a
natural partition, with a square blowing-hole. However the lower edge is cut straight off and there
is no stud.
The howler trumpet is the sole example in South America of a trumpet that can be used melodically
(Izikowitz, p. 243). Even though its function with the Waiwai, where it is a very rare instrument, has
not been determined, it is not likely that it is used for signalling as its sound is not very powerful, nor
that it is connected with religious life, where at any rate Niels Fock did not come across it in his
investigations.
If we briefly review the areas of extension of the Waiwai's musical instruments, certain features stand
out. Firstly, we see that most instruments are a common cultural possession with the Taruma and
Parukoto, with whom they have been closely related; and some instruments are quite uniformly
fashioned among these three tribes. This applies to the mahwo whistle, the two bamboo kenas, and
the simple mataco whistle, which latter though found over large parts of South America, does not
appear in other parts of Guiana.
Further we find two instruments, the howler trumpet and the plank drum, that particularly link the
Waiwai to two other tribes, the Arapai and the Oyana with the latter of whom they are closely related
also in regard to other sides of their musical culture (see p. 284).
In common with other Guiana tribes, including those dwelling to the north, the Waiwai have the
transverse flute, the placing of the partition in the three-holed kena, and the peculiar shaping of the
Vocal Music 273
lower edge of the bone kena. As opposed to this, other features point to north-west Brazil and dis-
tinguish the Waiwai from the northern tribes. This applies to the bark trumpets - though these are
found with the Wapishana - and the smearing of wax on the upper edge of the bone kena.
Finally, there are some instruments such as the turtle shell resonator, Panpipe and bone kena, that
are common to the whole of northern South America.
VOCAL MUSIC
In the material recorded three kinds of songs are represented: dance songs, magical songs, and songs
that imitate flute numbers.
All the dance songs available to us must be assumed to belong to the type of dance festivals known
as shodewika. These are almost purely of a social character, as one village invites another to come for
a few days to dance and drink, for general amusement and for the promotion of mutual relations.
r
The course of a shodewika dance festival and the multifarious ways this institution is linked to the
,I Waiwai culture has been thoroughly described by Niels Fock, p. 172, and we shall therefore only refer
to the aspects which have a musical interest.
During the dance men and women pass round, each in their own circle, the women inside. Each
circle is headed by a chorus leader shaking a rattle and directing the dance. At times everybody in
4
the circle turns and moves in the opposite direction, shortly afterwards resuming the original direction.
These movements are obviously led by the chorus leader, perhaps through signals with the rattle. A
phrase in the dance song is first sung once solo by the leader, after which the others chime in and
repeat it a given number of times; now and again they begin before the leader has quite finished, though
no polyphony results from it, as the leader merely stops and begins to sing with the others. It is
curious to note that men and women simultaneously sang different phrases with varying texts, so that
a form of polyphony was heard, the character of which was quite mysterious. The dance is enlivened
by the rhythmical blowing of flutes and whistles, and, in the first dance in which the guests participate,
also by bark trumpets (see above p. 271).
The dance step consists in placing one foot forward and the other to the side of it, one foot forward
and the other to the side of it, each step corresponding to a crotchet in the transcriptions. This step
appears to have a very wide extension in South America, and is described with the Uitoto, Bora and
Muinane (Bose p. 5), the Makushi, Wapishana and Yekuana (v. Hornbostel 1923, p. 415), Fuegians
(v. Hornbostel 1948, p. 74) and the Mataco (report from Niels Fock).
In addition to the shodewika festivals dancing also takes place during the religious yamo festivals.
These are very seldom held and we possess no material about them.
The dance songs, examples 3-18 derive from a recording of a myth that deals with the origin of the
dance festivals. It is reproduced on page 57 seq. and the transcriptions are arranged in the sequence here
followed. The Waiwai possess several stories of this kind. They are used as the frame around a number
of dance song texts that allude to the events described, and are sung after each other during a dance
festival. Two other recordings, examples 19 and 20 must be assumed to be dance songs, as they agree
with examples 3-18 in their musical characteristics, though this was not determined in the field.
18 Walwal
--
274 Waiwai Music
None of the recordings were made during a dance festival, and it must be doubted that they give an
adequate image of the way in which these songs are sung when things really get going. This is due to
the fact that the melodic elaboration of the dance songs has a direct connexion with their all-over
structure, phrases being knit together by reducing their ambitus over the tonic. This elaboration must
necessarily take place in different ways during dance festivals and solo performances, as in the former
case a phrase is first sung once by the chorus leader and then repeated a given number of times by the
dancers, whereas in the latter the phrases may be altered at each repetition.
Two of the recordings, examples 1 and 2, are magical songs, eremus. An eremu is a magic formula
that can either be declaimed or sung. Essential for the magic power of such a formula is a poohing
performed either at its end or between its single parts. This poohing was deliberately omitted by the
singer in his two recordings, as they were not intended to have any effect.
The Waiwai have certain eremus, which are exclusively used by medicine men, and others that are
employed by everybody. Example 1, which is to call forth the sun, is one of the first type, whilst example
2, which is to avert danger from infants, is of the second. Both were sung by the chief and medicine
man, Ewkd. In their musical characteristics they do not fundamentally differ. During the 1954 expedi-
tion there was one single opportunity of hearing an eremu sung by a medicine man in order to heal a
sick person, and on these ¥ccasions a free-rhythmical, recitative manner of singing seems to be used,
quite different in character from that in the two examples recorded.
The third type of songs with the Waiwai, those that imitate flute numbers, are represented by two
recordings, examples 21 and 29, which imitate examples 22 and 28 respectively.
The three types of song of which we thus have knowledge, differ mainly in regard to form and
metre, as the dance songs, with one exception, are given in a sustained bipartite metre, whereas the
two magic songs have a freer alternation between metrical units of different length, and the two songs
that imitate flute numbers copy the free composition of flute playing, the strictly melodic character-
istics remaining identical.
Songs are hardly heard outside the situations to which they are functionally linked, and in the
musical life of the Waiwai vocal music occupies no prominent position.
Intonation and style
There is nothing much to be said about the performance of the Waiwai songs. Vocal technique is
quite relaxed and "emphatic modes of singing", which at times we find stressed as a "Rassenmerkrnal"
of the Amerindians, we only find in one dance song with rattle accompaniment, example 19; all the
other songs are sung without any marked dynamic fluctuation.
The pitch of a song may rise or fall without any discernible tendency in one direction or another
that could be considered distinctive for the style. The intonation is subject to the oscillations always
encountered with untrained voices, certain steps however, being particularly shaky. This applies to
the thirds which may be due to the fact that in most of the scales it is optional whether a major or minor
third is used, and to the tritone, which sometimes also produces unsteadiness in the intonation of the
adjacent notes.
Vocal Music 275
All-over structure, metre
The dance songs and the two magical songs are built up in isorhythmic phrases whose rhythmic pattern
is filled out with various tonal material. The only exception to this principle appears in example 8,
where the isorhythmic phrase structure is broken by a section consisting of juxtaposed motives of
4/4 length, marked B.
In the transcriptions, sections with different phrase patterns are indicated by capital letters, and the
individual phrases by Arabic figures. For practical reasons a definite phrase in an example is shown
by the formula: example/phrase number. Example 20 phrase 3 is thus marked 20/3.
The metrical construction of the phrases is quite simple, as they consist of units of 2,3, and rarely
4 beats. Wider divisions are of minor importance although there is a tendency to divide 6 beats into
2+4 or 4+2, 8 beats into 4+4, and 12 beats into 4+4+4.
Units of 3 beats appear in the magical songs and in a single dance song, example 8, which present
a problem, as the dance step is carried out in bipartite form. It might well be imagined that it is here
a matter of a phrase type in which there is a conscious shifting of the accentuations of the dance step
in relation to those of the song, but it is more probable that the tripartite unit must be considered as a
liberty that the singer has been able to take, as he has not been bound by consideration for the dance
step.
In a majority of the dance songs all phrases have the same rhythmical pattern throughout the number,
though there are exceptions. In example 10 there thus appear phrases of a -Length of both 6 and 8
beats; in example 16 the singer experiments in finding a fixed form that suits his text, and phrases of
4,6 and 8 beats alternate. In example 17 he sings the result he has arrived at consisting of a fixed
juxtaposition of a phrase of 8 beats with one of 4. For the two different texts in example 11 there is
a phrase of 6 beats with an upbeat, and a phrase of 8 beats where the upbeat to the second phrase is
transformed to a complete unit of 2 beats.
In the two magical songs the composition is naturally freer than in the dance songs; we thus find
in example 1 three sections with various texts whose phrases are not musically related, whereas in
example 2 there are two alternating sections each with its own text, that are adapted to two patterns,
which are related in the following manner: A lid I ~ ~ I J. til B J> ~ I ~ n ~ I ~ ~ I d•• B being derived
from A by the insertion of an extra beat in the first "measure", and the addition of an upbeat to
the whole phrase.
In the two songs that imitate flute numbers, the singer attempts to imitate the instrumental phrases,
though he often has to alter them in order to make them singable, and the metre and all-over structure
are somewhat amorphous.
In cases Where the material contains songs with phrases of various length that are derived from each
other, it is remarkable that the motives are as often added or subtracted at the beginning of phrases
as at their end. This applies to the various forms in examples 10 and 16, plus example 11, where in
phrases 1 and 3 there is a form of 6 beats with an upbeat, which latter in phrases 2 and 4 is extended
to a full metrical unit of 2 beats that are no longer felt to be accessory, but rather as the commence-
ment of the whole phrase. This method of prolonging or curtailing forms already sung by simply
ISO
276 Waiwai Music
adding or removing beats or motives is extremely typical of the metrical feeling in all Waiwai music,
both vocal and instrumental, and must be regarded as a feature of fundamental importance for both
the form and the melodic construction.
Rhythm
The individual beats in the basic pulse of the songs are not subdivided into more than 2 parts; the
most common is an equal division, that tends towards the distribution 'J.3.J...... , which seems to be
characteristic for songs in large sections of South America (von Hornbostel 1923, p. 415, 1948, p. 76).
With the Waiwai this figure is executed as a bipartition where the first note is stressed, but cut short,
whilst the second is more weakly emphasized but lasts longer and with greater body. The purely
temporal ratio 1/3-2/3 is not the most important feature.
The other bipartite form of the individual basic beat is transcribed 7 11 ;;" which covers a more languid
type of singing that often appears in connexion with syncopation.
Syncopation is found within 2/4 in the forms J>.J J> and 7 ];' 7 3F, corresponding to the two above-
3
mentioned ways of subdividing the individual beats of the ground rhythm; in addition, in example 4,
we find the following distribution of notes within 4 beats: n cJ .- •
Simple as may be the main outline of the rhythm in the vocal music of the Waiwai, there is in aU
songs a certain amount of laxity in the performance, variations in tempo from phrase to phrase,
abbreviations or prolongations of pauses and final notes etc. which contributes to the general impres-
sion of the style, but have not in all cases been accounted for to avoid overburdening of the tran-
scriptions.
Tonal structures
There is only one instance in the material of pure "Distanzmelodik", the dance song, example 19,
that has the notes abc with b as the central tone. In the second bar the a drops towards g under the
influence of the very common structure c b g. The tonal structures of the Waiwai are otherwise governed
by related fourths and triads, and the scales employed are found all over the world.
In a single song, example 3, only two notes are used, a fourth distant from each other, with the
deeper as the final.
A fourth filled in with a minor third and major second, or a major second and minor third provides
the nucleus of most of the melodies.
The tetrachord notated a c d reigns supreme in example 7.
By augmenting the tetrachord a c d under the tonic g or e are most frequently used. Thus g is used
in example 1 section A, example 8 and example 15; e is used in example 10. In example 13 both notes
are employed but in different parts of the number, for e occurs in phrases 1-6, whilst g enters in phrase 8
and is used instead of e in the rest of the number.
In example 20 the tetrachord a c d is augmented under the tonic with the tones g and d.
The tetrachord notated gad with g as a tonic is found in example 9, and forms the nucleus of
examples 4 and 5 where it is augmented to fti g a c d.
Vocal Music 277
There is no sharp division between the structures where a tetrachord is augmented above with the
fifth, and structures governed purely by triads. Thus the tetrachordal character dominates in example 1
section B, whereas in examples 6 and 11 we find triad structures where the fourth appears as a passing
note.
In songs with triad structures the tonal material consists of a section of the tone sequence e a c
or etl e, where a is the tonic. All four notes are employed in examples 6 and 11 with a minor third,
and in example 17 with a major third. e a c appear in examples 18/1, 2 and 6. The same section, but
with a major third appears in examples 2 and 16.
Scales dominated by major thirds and small seconds are found in the songs in various forms. In
certain cases it appears to be a matter of choice whether one fills in a fourth with a major or minor
third. In example 21 the singer thus uses a major third in the recording transcribed, but it appears
from a small fragment that has been left after an unsuccessful recording that he has sung the same
song with a minor third; and a minor third is played in the flute number, example 22, forming the
pattern for his song. In example 29, which also imitates a flute number, the core of the tonal material
is the tetrachord c b g with b as the central note - a typical instrumental structure that also appears in
the imitated flute number example 28 - this core is augmented by quite irregular tonal steps where the
singer is unable to imitate the complicated flute phrases.
In the dance song, example 14, the tetrachord bee is used with c as the tonic. In phrase 1 a d ap-
pears as a passing note.
The tritone does not seem to be well established in the Waiwai songs and always appears secon-
darily as a raising or lowering of another note. In example 21 a tritone appears in phrases 4,12, 17,
and 21, where its presence is clearly due to the singer finding it difficult to copy phrase 7 in the flute
number, example 22. In example 21 tritones are likewise found in phrase 23, where they correspond
to thirds in phrases 10 and 18. At this place the raising of the pitch occurs due to self-consciousness
and high spirits; during the whole number the singer sings half laughingly. In example 12 the tritone
appears in phrases 6 and 7 corresponding to the fifth in phrases 1-3, thus again being secondary. In
example 18 we find a tritone in phrases 3 and 5, where it appears in a working out of the structure
e ace with a as a tonic to a c dtl e ftl in phrase 3, and a c dtl in phrase 5, the intonation in these
phrases being very shaky.
M elodics, form
Within individual phrases the melodies of Waiwai songs are not markedly descending for falling and
rising movements occur with roughly the same frequency. On the other hand a descending tendency
manifests itself when the individual phrases are grouped to form larger melodic units. This lowering
is not achieved by transposition, but by a limitation of the phrases' ambitus over the tonic and an
adjustment of the melodic movements to the new ambitus. A Waiwai song is thus usually divided
into groups of two or three phrases, whose ambitus over the tonic is limited within each group, and
where each group commences with a somewhat lower phrase than the one that introduced the previous
group.
278 Waiwai Music
Besides the reduction of the ambitus another means is employed for grouping the phrases together,
namely opposed melodic movements within two consecutive phrases. In the clearest cases a phrase
with an ascending movement through the greater part of its length is followed by one with descending
movements at corresponding places. In other cases matters are not so simple, as this opposition may
be found only within a smaller part of the two phrases, a motif or a few single notes within a motif.
All phrases in the dance songs and magical songs are ended by a long note or by a two-note motif
to which the beginning of the phrase leads up. In some examples these endings are not altered but
remain identical all through the song, in others they are transposed as the other parts of the phrases,
and by their positioning assist in forming balanced melodic patterns in the single groups.
In a great many of the songs the grouping of phrases is quite fixed, they being placed together in
twos or threes all through the song.
A grouping of the phrases in pairs is found in examples 6, 7, 13, and 18. In examples 6 and 7 there
is an ascending movement in the first phrase of each pair, and a descending one in the second. In
example 18 we find opposed movements between phrases 1 and 2. In phrases 3 and 4 a tonal material
with an extended ambitus is employed; phrases 5 and 6 imitate phrases 3 and 4 at a lower pitch.
Examples 4, fl, 8 section A, 14 and 15 consist of two groups each of three phrases, where there are
opposed movements between the first two phrases in each group, whilst the third phrase forms a
neutral conclusion. In all these examples the second group begins at a lower pitch than the initial
group, whose phrases are imitated with the changes in the melodic movements that may arise owing
to the limited ambitus.
In the other songs there is no obvious grouping of the phrases. In examples 1, 2, 12, 16, 17 and 20
the reduction of the phrases' ambitus above the tonic and opposed melodic movements is practised,
but without the phrases being arranged in marked groups. Examples 3, 9 and 10 consist of phrases
that are almost unchanged. In example 11 there is an a b b a form, phrase 1 being like phrase 4, and
phrase 2 being like phrase 3; however, only these four phrases appear, and this peculiar form is
probably fortuitous.
Phrase - text relation
The relation between the musical phrase and the text is quite simple. In examples 4, 6, 7 and 8 section A
there are the same text lines all through the song with the same length as a single phrase. In examples
3, 5, 12 and 18 the text lines are of the same length as the individual phrases, but various texts appear.
A text line corresponding to a pair of phrases is found, for instance, in examples 9 and 13; a text
line corresponding to three consecutive phrases is found in examples 14 and 15. In examples 16 and
17 the texts correspond to a musical unit consisting of two phrases whose patterns are of different
length.
In examples 2, 10 and 11 are found texts of different lengths, some words being added to a text, or
a word with a different number of syllables being substituted. The musical pattern is prolonged or
curtailed to correspond with these differences in text. In example 10, the text "pinipic' yana he he"
is thus sung in phrases 1, 2,4 and 6 over a musical phrase of 6 beats, and the augmented text "pinipic'
~ -- -- ....
_~ - - ----- -. ..-__ _ __ ... ~ _ .-..1"-_ _ ._ _• _
Flute Playing 279
yana kuruntka he he" over a musical phrase of 8 beats in phrases 3 and 5. Phrases 7 and 8 are related
in the same way, but have other texts. In example 11 there are two texts, where the one is sung to a
phrase of six beats with an upbeat, and the other to a phrase of eight beats. In example 2 there are
different texts to section A and section B.
There is a single example in the material of the same text being adapted to different musical patterns.
In examples 14 and 15 the text "kayaritomo rorona pona kepataka pa" is sung over three phrases each
of four beats. In example 13 the same text augmented by the meaningless syllables "he he" is sung
over two juxtaposed phrases, each of 6 beats. In examples 4 and 5 the reverse may be observed as
they have a similar musical content but different texts.
Songs imitating flute numbers
There are two examples in the song material, that quite obviously have flute numbers as pattern,
and which were sung after the flute number they imitate - examples 21 and 29.
Example 21 which is based on the flute number, example 22, consists, like the original, of 3 sections
that are reminiscent of our conception of verse. Each section consists of a given number of phrases,
which, however, do not possess the fixed rhythmical pattern of the dance songs and eremus, but
follow the more varied phrase construction of the flute number. The three sections are of varying
length, as the phrases can very freely be repeated or omitted, though, in the all-over structure, an
influence can be traced from the flute numbers where it is customary for the phrases to succeed each
other in a definite sequence.
The second recording of a song imitation of a flute number, example 29 has as its pattern example 28,
which is composed of sections of short motives with the following rhythmical pattern rJ t J I d, called A,
that alternate with more irregularly formed sections in a quicker tempo, called B. In the sung version
the pieces regularly divided into motives are formed as in the flute number, though naturally without
there being any question of an exact imitation, whilst the other parts almost become recitative and
bear little resemblance to their prototype in the flute number.
FLUTE PLAYING
The most important part of Waiwai music is flute playing, which is far more popular than the songs
that are hardly heard outside situations in which they have a definite function. Flute playing thus
possesses a far richer musical content and variation than does vocal music.
With the Waiwai it is almost only young, unmarried men who play the flute, and the genre has no
very close connexion with definite situations that can be linked with social or religious conditions.
The playing of the flute is for entertainment, and is often heard, for example, early in the morning
when people prepare to begin the day, and it is not unusual for the men to go playing into the forest.
Furthermore, there is in flute playing a touch of infatuation and romance. This is evinced in the
evenings when the young men sit outside the collective house and play to their young women, a feature
280 Waiwai Music
of flute playing perhaps general in wide sections of South America (Izikowitz, p. 313). In this connexion
it is worth observing that much suggests that the flute melodies are programmatic. Several of the
recordings have titles. Example 30 was called "The deer", example 27 "The deer is going to eat",
and example 28 "The deer is going to bathe". These titles may be due to the fact that there are texts
to these numbers, but it is not impossible that the music itself describes various situations; this would
at all events explain the musical course of many of these numbers. In examples 27 and 28 are thus
found alternating sections with slow, heavy phrases and small, gay melodies, and in example 25 there
is, in phrases 10-14, a sudden, very dramatic, insertion that contrasts with the rest of the number.
Tonal material and structures

The four-holed flute
Two recordings, examples 22 and 23, were made with a flute of this type which furthermore was
brought back. These concern H 4184, the dimensions of which are given on p. 269. We find on this
flute a scale notated, rtt abc d, a lying very close to c 264 hz, and the intervals indicated do not
vary notably from the European. Blowing tests showed that the various notes are obtained in the
following manner: Fourth hole - rtt. Third hole - a. Second hole - c. First hole - e. With all holes
closed d was obtained by over-blowing. By closing the first and third holes b could be taken.
In example 22 the scale a c d e is used with a as tonic, a structure well known from the songs that
also appears in two recordings with a three-holed flute, examples 24 and 25. In the second recording
made with H 4184, example 23, the scale rtt abc d (e) was taken, with rtt as the tonic and b as the
top note in the tetrachord rtt - b, whilst c is used in motives between d and a. This mysterious scale
appears only once in the material, and can perhaps have its starting point in a scale with the notes
r~ a b d, where b is raised to c in motives between d and a, perhaps on account of purely technical
reasons connected with the flute, as the notes a c d are also employed with a as tonic, as is the case
for instance in example 22.
Three-holed flutes
The three-holed flutes produce two different types of scales, an anhemitonic pentatonic scale, notated
g a c d e with a as keynote, and one that ideally consists of skips of major thirds and semitones in its
central area, e g b c (d) e. The first type is taken in the following manner: all holes closed and a hand
around the stud of the flute - g. All holes closed - a. Third hole - c. Second hole - d. First hole - e.
This tonal material is used in examples 24-26, which were recorded on a bamboo flute, H 4182, the
dimensions of which are given on p. 267. The intervals do not quite correspond with the European,
as the fourth is a little too low and the fifth a shade too high.
The second type of scale raises many problems. Fortunately it is represented in the material by
recordings made with three different flutes, as examples 31-33 are recorded on the bamboo flute
brought back, H 4182, examples 27, 28 and 30 are all played on the same bone flute, and example 34
is played on another bone flute. There are such great divergencies in the intervals of these three flutes
Flute Playing 281
that it must be assumed that there is no definite feeling of a narrowly-defined ideal scale, but that a
tone sequence which in its core consists of two tetrachords that overlap each other by approx. a semi-
tone is all that is roughly aimed at. It has not been possible to undertake any exact determination of
the pitches, and the specifications below have been drawn up by the help of the ear, supported by a
monochord.
Bone flute, example 34 . . . . . g b-l- c~-;.- d

Bone flute, examples 27, 28 and 30 g b c-;.- d-]-
H 4182, examples 31-33 . . . . . e g+ b c e+
The note b on the two bone flutes is nearly the same and lies very close to e 333 hz. Notated b on
H 4182 is about 1/4 tone higher.
We find that the two highest notes are a whole tone higher on the bamboo flute, H 4182, than on
the two bone flutes. How these differences between the tunings of the flutes are handled, appears by a
comparison of examples 30, 31 and 34 which represent the same melody as performed on each of
the three flutes. In all three examples the lower tetrachord remains the same, but in the upper area
it is optional whether the tones d c b or e c b are used; the former is found in example 30, the latter
in examples 31 and 34. We further see that in example 30 and 31 the highest hole but one has been
used to obtain the highest tone, respectively d and e, whereas in example 34 the uppermost hole is used
giving e (compare with the table above of the tones of the three flutes). That on all three flutes it is
the same two holes that are used can be seen from the introductory figure to these numbers, which
consists of a trill between the two highest notes of the instruments, and here, in examples 30 and 34,
the notes used are d and e, while in example 31 they are e and f~.
In addition to the above-mentioned cases, the structure g b c d e with g as keynote is also used in
examples 32 and 33, in the latter augmented by an e under the tonic. In examples 27 and 28 the same
tonal material is made use of, but with b as keynote.
It has not proved possible to decide by blowing tests how the scales under discussion are taken on
the flutes, but it appears from a comparison of the pitches in examples 31-33 with those in examples
24-26, all recorded with H 4182, that the notated deep e is taken with all holes closed. g corresponds
to the third hole, c the first hole. Top e is taken by overblowing with all holes closed. Here a problem
arises in that notated c - e+ in examples 24-26 corresponds to the interval g+ - c in examples 31-33.
It has an intermediate value between a fourth and a major third, and we have chosen to regard this
as the one thing in the one case and as the other in the other. This can be criticized as an inadmissible
liberty, but if we look at the two structures individually no other interpretation is possible on the data
available. It must also be remembered that a divergence of a quarter tone from a given ideal interval
does not exceed the Waiwai margin for intonation accuracy in instrumental music.
282 Waiwai Music
Rhythm
In the flute playing both free and fixed rhythms are found. Thus a constant time unit is felt only over
very short stretches in examples 28, 30, 31 and 34, whereas a fixed continuing pulse is found all through
examples 22, 23, 24 and 33. Free and fixed rhythms occur in distinct parts of examples 25, 27 and 32.
The individual beats or time units may be both bi- and tripartite.
What might look like polyrhythmics appears in example 26 where a shift from "3/4" to "6/8"
occurs in phrases 2 and 5. However, this shift is felt more as a prolongation of the fundamental beat
than as a counter rhythm, maybe because the feeling of time is very weak in Waiwai music.
Metrics
As a whole accentuation is weak in Waiwai flute playing and the metrical units are often distinguished
more by their rhythmical and melodical pattern than by accents, the placing of "bar lines" is therefore
only tentative in many examples, especially where free rhythm prevails.
The feeling of time is weak i.e. beats are simply ranged without any recurring stress pattern, and a
beat may be added or taken out without bringing about any violent feeling of a change in time.
As is the case in the music of so many other South American tribes the upbeats present a particular
problem. True upbeats are by no means absent but the character of the Waiwai metrical feeling is
prevalently trochaic and dactylic: movements from accented to unaccented beats are preferred. As a
result it sometimes occurs that a figure obtains an intermediate position between upbeat and first
beat. This applies to example 25/12 and 13 and example 30/2 where the first beat melodically acts as
an upbeat but does not quite obtain this character as the beat to which it leads up does not bear any
particular accent.
Many other intriguing features appear in the material but without sufficient frequency to allow for
a general treatment.
All-over structure
The flute numbers are introduced and ended by fixed figures. A trill is thus used between the two
highest notes to end all numbers with a scale of g bee, and to introduce three of them: examples
30, 31 and 34. The same trill is used in three places in example 31, which thus becomes divided into
sections. In numbers with an anhemitonic pentatonic scale there is no fixed introductory figure, but
they are all ended - with the exception of example 26 - by a free rhythmical slur that begins on the
flute's top note and is sustained over about 4 beats, whereafter it drops through an ornamental figure
to the third which is held somewhat shorter, and then glides down to the tonic.
Like the songs, the flute numbers are built up of short, juxtaposed phrases, interrupted in some of
the numbers by short stretches devoid of phrase construction that act as alternating interludes. In
example 27 a little melody has been inserted, marked 7, 12 and 19, in three places between the parts
built up regularly in phrases. In example 28, which is very reminiscent of example 27, we find similar
.>: .--
Flute Playing 283
breaks in the phrase construction in the sections marked B, which, however, are longer than the little
melody in example 27 and act as independent sections. Finally, we meet an interruption of the phrase
construction in example 25/10 - 14. We mentioned on p. 280 that it is possible that these interludes
possess programmatic content.
Rhythmical congruence between phrases is not of so great an importance in the flute numbers as in
the songs. It is found in examples 25, 27 and 33, and in two of these, examples 25 and 33 there is an
interplay between the melodic elaboration of the phrases and the all-over structure that is very similar
to that of the dance songs and eremus, as they are divided into sections of two or three phrases knit
together by a reduction of the ambitus over the tonic.
In the other numbers the principles governing the construction are not so regular. In examples
26, 27 and 28 phrases are juxtaposed as variants of a small number of forms without any interplay
between their melodic pattern and the all-over structure. In the remaining numbers we find an inter-
esting principle that consists in grouping phrases into sections where they have a fairly fixed sequence.
With repetition of such sections a phrase can be omitted or repeated some extra times, or two successive
phrases can be repeated, so that the principle of a fixed sequence is only a general one. In some numbers
the position of the phrases is governed by their pitch, so that the lowest phrases come at the end of a
section, but often a falling tendency only asserts itself in that the sections are ended with a small
number of low-pitched phrases.
The clearest examples of an all-over structure where the phrases are placed according to their pitch
in a fixed sequence are examples 30, 31 and 34. If the "upbeats" be ignored, the phrases in these
numbers have the following tones in their core: c b g, b g, g b g and g, that are played free-rhythmically,
and always come in the order mentioned. At several places the longer sections are introduced by a
phrase between e and b with the same rhythmic pattern as that used in the phrasal pieces in example
27: eJ t J I J • The clearest form is found in example 34, the course of which is indicated in the table
below, where the individual sections are placed in horizontal columns under each other. The sign R:::
indicates a relationship but not complete identity.
ecb cbg bg g
3 4 5
6=4,7R:::4 8 9=5
lOR::: 4 11=8 12=5
13=3 14=4 15R:::8, 16=8
17R:::4 18R:::8 19=5
21 & 22=4 23=8 24=5
Example 30 is built up in the same way, though sections are inserted with alternating phrases containing
the notes c b g and b g. The course of this number is as follows:
deb cbg bg gbg g

2&3 4 5 6 cbg bg cbg bg gbg
8=3 9=6 10&11 12 13 14 15
17&18R:::2 19=11 20=12 21=13,22R:::13 23=14 24R:::15
284 Waiwai Music
Example 31 proceeds in accordance with the same principles as example 30 and 34, but the rhythmic
patterns of the phrases are considerably freer.
In example 32 there is a fixed feeling of tempo until phrase 11, and the phrases in this section are
formed over two fixed patterns: in phrases 1, 2, 6 and 10 with 2+2+2 beats in phrases 3-5, and in
7-9 with 3+3 beats. Phrases 12-22 completely correspond in construction with example 30/10-24,
with rubato execution and changing rhythmic-metrical pattern. In phrases 23 and 24 phrase 1 is
resumed, and the number ends with phrases executed rubato.
In example 22 and 23 the phrases are ranged together in long sections with a fairly definite sequence.
In example 22 there are three sections which proceed as follows:
A 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
B 10~2 11-12=5 13-14=6 15=7 16=8 17 18=9
C 19=2 20=3 21=5 22-23=6 24~7 25 26=8 27=9
In example 23 there are two long sections, each of which is divided into sub-groups with lowerings
of the pitch of the phrases. The number proceeds as follows:
A1 2 3 4 5 6 7=1 8=2 9 10 11 12=1 13=3 14

B 15-17=2 18=3 19=4 20=5 21=6 22=7 23-24=8 25=9 26 27
Example 24 contains three sections with fixed phrase sequence, apart from the fact that the first
section is introduced by a piece that is not played in the next two, which, on the other hand, possess
a number of concluding phrases not appearing in the first section. It proceeds as follows:
A 1-2 3-4 5=1 6 7-9 10-11 12 13-14=1 15 16 17

B 18-20=7 21=12 22 23=12 24 25 26 27
C 28-29=7 30-31=10 32=12 33=24 34=25 35
RELATIONS OF WAIWAI MUSIC TO THAT

OF OTHER TRIBES
The music of the Waiwai is closely related to that of their immediate neighbours to the East, the
Oyana, as appears from the grammophone record, "Tumuc Humac", BAM LD 314, which on side B
contains 15 instances of Oyana music recorded by F. Maziere, D. Darbois and W. Ivanov. I shall
here briefly resume what seems to be the common traits in the music of these two tribes.
In the vocal music the Waiwai and the Oyana share all basic features. The tonal material and the
main trends of the melodic movements are roughly the same, although it may be noted that the tritone,
which is not very common with the Waiwai, appears frequently in the Oyana songs, and that two of
these, instances X and XI, have a far wider ambitus over the tonic than any found in the Waiwai
examples. The rhythmic outline and the singing style are identical as is also the inner structure of the
phrases, where the division into a final motif and a beginning leading up to it, which is so characteristic
Musical Affinities 285
for the Waiwai material, appears in many of the Oyana songs. Finally we find the same principles
governing the all-over structure, and although a reduction of the ambitus over the tonic of the phrases
is not so frequently encountered in the Oyana songs as with the Waiwai, it is found clearly in instances
X and XI.
In the field of instrumental music the Oyana record gives two instances of turtle shell resonator
played together with respectively two and three flutes, and two of solo flute playing.
The flute number, instance II, performed on a three-holed bone flute similar to that of the Waiwai,
is fairly close to the Waiwai style and bears similarities to example 22. The flute number, instance
XIII, is identical with our example 23.
The two instances of turtle shell resonator and flutes, the introductory instance (not numbered)
and instance IX, are considerably more complex than our example 36, the manner of playing the
turtle shell resonator being the same, but the flutes performing intriguing polyrhythmic patterns.
i One more link between the music of the Waiwai and the Oyana can be established by the transcrip-
l
tions of Oyana music by de Goeje (p. 24) where two examples of howler trumpet playing are found
which are very similar to our example 37.
The Oyana is the only tribe whose music can be regarded with any certainty as closely related to
that of the Waiwai. An examination of the music of those very few other South American tribes among
whom this aspect of culture has been investigated, yields the result that they share a number of general
features with the Waiwai, in the tonal structures, rhythm, metrics, singing style etc., but that they
differ in regard to the most important element for determining a closer relationship i.e. the form and
all-over structure. The principle of grouping isorhythmic phrases into sections by a reduction of their
ambitus over the tonic, is thus only found in a few instances among other tribes where furthermore it
has an inferior position compared to many other formal principles. This applies to the Makushi,
Taulipang and Wapishana, where it appears in some of the songs belonging to the pariserd dance
festival (von Hornbostel 1923 examples 3, 4, 5, 22, and 23).
Summing up, the following conclusions about the relation of the musical culture of the Waiwai
to that of other South American tribes, can be established:
It belongs to a musical area which includes the Oyana, and on account of similarities of instruments,
the Parukoto, Tanima and probably also the Arapai.
The similarities to the music of the Makushi, Taulipang, and Wapishana are too general to allow
us to group these tribes together with the forementioned, although they seem to be closer related to
each other than to the more distant Uitoto (Bose 1934), Matto Grosso tribes (Schneider 1952) and
Venezuelan Caribs (Collaer 1956).
286 Waiwai Music
Litterature
BOSE, FRITZ 1948 The Music of the Fuegians. ETHNOS vol. 13.
1934 Die Musik der Uitoto. Zeitschrift fUr verglei- Stockholm.
chende Musikwissenschaft II. IZIKOWlTZ, KARL GUSTAV
COLLAER, PAUL 1935 Musical and other Sound Instruments of the
1956 Musique caraibe et maya. Studia Memoriae South American Indians. Goteborg,
Belae Bart6k Sacra. Budapest. KRICKEBERG, W.
DE GOEJE, C. H. 1935 Beitrage zur Frage der alten kulturgeschicht-
1905 Bijdrage tot de Ethnographie der Surinaamsche lichen Beziehungen zwischen Nord- und Sud-
Indianen 1906. Supplement zu Internationales arnerika. Zeitschrift fur Ethnologie Bd. 66.
Archiv fUr Ethnographie XVII. Leiden. Berlin.
DEUBER, ARNOLD ROTH, W. E.
1926 Musik und Musikinstrumente der Arapai. In 1924 An introductory study of the arts, crafts, and
Speiser: Im Duster des Brasilianischen Urwaldes. customs of the Guiana Indians. 38. Annual
Stuttgart. Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology
FARABEE, W. C. 1916-17. Washington.
1924 The Central Caribs. University of Pennsylvania 1929 Additional studies of the arts, crafts, and customs
Anthropological Publications X. Philadelphia. of the Guiana Indians. Bureau of American
VON HORNBOSTEL, ERICH M. Ethnology, Bulletin 91. Washington.
1923 Musik der Makushi, Taulipang und Yekuana. SCHNEIDER, MARIUS
• <
In Theodor Koch-Grunberg: Vom Roroima zum 1952 Contribuci6n a la musica del Matto Grosso.
Orinoco III. Stuttgart. Annuario Musical VII.
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Musical Examples 287
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288 Waiwai Music
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290 Waiwai Music
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292 Waiwai Music
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294 Waiwai Music
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296 Waiwai Music
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298 Waiwai Music
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300 Waiwai Music
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302 Waiwai Music
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APPENDIX II
Translation of two Oho chants from Waiwai

by Robert E. Hawkins
In connexion with the treatment of the Waiwai's oho chant (p. 216 this volume) two oho examples
will here be given:
"Oho before a hunt", and "Oho after a death".
Explanatory notes:
Each line constitutes one intonation contour with a rising tone.
A single question mark indicates one word which cannot be heard or translated; a pair of question
marks indicate more than one word which cannot be heard or translated.
Words within parentheses are given to help the sense.
The tape records from which the translations are derived are deposited with the Ethnographical
Department of the National Museum, Copenhagen.
OHO AFTER A DEATH
Churuma speaking: She ceased being for the time being

What happened, partner, what happened? She in her turn ceased being
What was the cause of her trouble? More or less that way
I felt like I wanted to say to you
With her, I believe,
Ewka speaking: That's the way, I believe, I spent my time,
Nobody knows what happened, partner, With little (?)
I suppose the disease just came upon her suddenly That's what, I believe, I will say
All sorts of things can happen to us Evidently it was not to be so,
If we are not strong, I believe that somebody,
But if we are strong Not liking her,
(?) I believe they were
We will become infirm, I believe that, partner,
I believe, partner Let us keep on (in order) to hear the end of the
Let us keep on (in order) to hear the end of the matter
matter A few words like this for now,
Now let's let it be I believe I will say for now
304 Translation of Oho chants
(1) That sort of people for now

I believe I am for now The ones who are not strong at all
I am in tum now Because they are that way for now
Feeling a lack of her (1)
(1) a little bit for now Right away for now
(Something about children) They die, I suppose, for now
After being left alone, Now it was evidently she
We feel a lack of each other Her own constitution, I suppose,
(1) we are for now, A little bit susceptible
That's the way you are Because we are, I suppose.
Like that, I believe, We die
Because of being left now, I suppose I will say, partner,
(1) a little bit for now, Let us keep on to hear the end of the matter
Like that, I believe, That's the way they are for now
(1) Even trees
Somewhere else, I suppose Not being strong, I suppose,
The little spirit that was hers They fall over
Because of going away for now, I suppose She was just like that
Jumping along for now And because she was a person
The little one got left alone, That's why this happened to her
We will cry One like her, I suppose
Not feeling the lack of her perhaps Towards a little one like her
I say, I suppose, for now A curse, I suppose for now
We will spend the days now, Got hungry for meat, I suppose
We will be happy, I suppose Possibly its meat, I suppose,
(1) a little bit Ran out, I suppose, for now
Having some disease, I suppose In its tum, perhaps, for now
But this was something different, A little tapir, for the time being,
Now that sort of thing For its meat, a little bit for the time being,
Being angered Ran out, I suppose, for the time being,
That sort of thing, I suppose When our little bit of meat for the time being,
(1) a little bit Runs out in tum,
That which concerns eating it (vegetables) We get hungry for meat,
I believe I will say, partner, Maybe that is what happened to it,
Let us keep on to hear the end of the matter It got hungry for meat, I suppose,
That is what happened, alas! The curse, a little bit for the time being
The dear one ceased being That's what I think, partner,
I suppose she was just that way Let's keep on (in order) to hear the end of the
Evidently there are that sort of people matter
Not strong, I suppose. A little one like her, for the time being,
Oho after a Death 305
Let's pass our days, I suppose, When we are not lying (the word used here means
Her bones, I suppose, to smell bad, but it is used as a metaphor for
I shot a little bit for the time being, lying)
Right here, I suppose, When we are not lying
In her tracks, for the time being, Then let me say it for the time being
:1
I In order to be, I suppose, Now we will talk
I
I Still not rising up, Just here and there, I suppose,
~
<:' Jumping for the time being, Now just her, I suppose,
Perhaps later she (?) we will say
Will rise up, I suppose, for the time being, Jumping for the time being,
An old drinking pot a little bit, (?) we will do,
I suppose I shot for the time being, Possibly other people
Let's pass our days, I suppose, Let us decide to talk "f
(or, Let's let time pass, I suppose) They make words a little bit
So she can rise up for the time being, About various things, I suppose,
That's what we think for the time being, Within their hearts, I suppose,
But alas! it isn't so, Old words, I suppose,
She does not rise up, I suppose, They tell it a little bit,
A little one of that sort, Now that's the way you (are)
And she will not later, for the time being, That sort of things, I suppose,
A curse, I suppose, for the time being, Things to be heard now,
An old curse, a little bit, (About) a little one like her,
Later, I suppose, for the time being, If he gets angry,
It will help me, I suppose Gossip, I suppose, for the time being,
(?) be a little bit, I suppose, Without any basis now,
My vegetable food, a little bit, for the time being, That which is to be heard, I suppose,
This right here, I suppose, for the time being, Eating each other (spiritually)
Old meat broth, I suppose, (Talking) about that for the time being,
I am in a bad way (i.e., without much good food) They may deny it later,
t One like her I suppose, (I) don't know about it, I suppose,
Not biting me, she said, A little bit late for the time being,
That's what I suppose, partner, I will fix it for the time being,
Right here, I suppose, That's what I suppose I will say, partner,
I believe I will talk I will say just that little bit,
Now I am talking (?) let us be, I suppose,
Just this little bit, I propose that we let time pass for now,
(?) in turn we will say Here we will bring it,
We might continue talking Pass the time, I propose,
In vain, I suppose You in turn will not exist later,
(?) You, I suppose, for the time being,
20 Waiwai
After you get in trouble, Here and there now

I say a little bit again for now, Let's pass the time, I propose,
Later, I propose for now, The old forest, I propose,
Listen a little bit, Just in the center of it, I propose,
Like that likewise, Going to move about, I propose,
Exactly those same things likewise, That's what I suppose I will say, partner,
I will talk, I rather wanted to say it.
Later, I propose for the time being, My vegetable food, I suppose, for the time being,
In our turn, for the time being My vegetable food, I suppose, for the time being,
We can talk, (I was) expecting ita little bit for the time being
We will increase in numbers, I suppose, for the (Thus) I passed my time, I suppose,
time being, Let it be as it is, I suppose, for the time being
Here he will say it all, Completely unused.
Eey for the time being (This expression seems to Other people's vegetable food, I suppose,
be used when they can't think for the moment From it, I suppose, for the time being,
what to say next) I received a little bit, for the time being
Just like their songs (I will be) near you, I suppose,
Maybe his songs even Therefore in turn for the time being,
We will increase in numbers, I suppose for the (?)
time being, From other people's vegetable food,
That's the way you (are), In order to eat it, I propose,
Let us talk You are with people,
We are talking From my vegetable food, I suppose,
Just that much, I suppose, In order to eat it, I suppose,
Here and there now, In order to come, I suppose,
One just like her, You are in their midst for the time being
(She, he, or it) is, I suppose for the time being, Just that much,
I propose to say that, partner (Are) my words in turn for the time being
A little bit of meat broth We will say it, I suppose,
(?) (This statement probably concerned his ex- Just that much,
pectations that the deceased would have been I suppose I will say it, partner,
one to prepare meat broth for him) Let's continue on to hear the end of the matter,
But it was not so to be, Let us listen on to the end,
She ceased to be, I suppose, (?)
A little one like her (?)
(?) I had the opportunity of being (?) I am
Right by her, I suppose, for the time being, The words which you spoke
By one like her They heard them, I suppose,
I spent my time, I suppose, They may make jokes for the time being
I was a long time, I suppose, The people, I mean, for the time being,
We will scold each other, I spent my time, I suppose,

! I understand for the time being, I was (there) for a long time, a little bit,
l1
. And we will eat each other Here, a little bit,
With curses, I suppose Let me spend my time, I proposed,
If they want to, I suppose, My sister, a little bit, (or my little sister)
They will make jokes for the time being, Let me build a house for her, I propose,
I am not like that, Our little house for the time being
I do not make curses, I suppose, I will build it, I propose, for the time being,
I am just as I am a little bit Look out, they are that way,
Without curses a little, My little sister,
I am having to do without, Look out, they will eat her, for the time being,
I, in tum, I suppose for the time being, Wait a moment,
Desiring to have her (or him) A plot to grow my food for now,
A friendly one for the time being, Let me cut the trees down for it, I propose, for
He would let us pass our time, I suppose, the time being,
Let us be that way a little bit, I would have spoken thus more or less for the
Right here a little bit, time being,
Let us spend our time, I suppose, Evidently it wasn't to be so, alas!
Right here, I suppose, To here, I suppose,
Let us spend our time, I suppose, To right here, a little bit,
(?) again for the time being Because she was my sister,
(?) Evidently they came to my grief,
At home for the time being Just their curses,
If we are, perhaps for the time being They move them about only,
I will be afraid, I suppose, Evidently to here,
I suppose I will say, partner, I am not that way for the time being,
(?) let us be, I suppose, To here, a little bit,
Let us pass the time, I suppose, To the midst of people, I suppose,
I thought it was possibly that way, Ifl move,
(?) I will try and see what it is like to move about,
Here and there for the time being, 1 suppose,
Let me move about, I propose, A good one, I suppose, (I am)
My child, I suppose, 1 move about a little bit
Let me carry him a little bit for the time being, Through the midst of people, 1 suppose,
Here and there I propose, (I am) friendly, 1 suppose for the time being,
(?) behind him, I suppose, They are evidently not so,
(?) I was recently for the time being Through the midst of each other,
My sister, oh! If they move about, evidently,
My former little sister, Right here, 1 suppose,
Near her, I suppose for the time being, Just their curses,
20·
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They just move them about, The sun has set, alas!
Their badness, That which will endure longer than we,
They evidently move it about, I in turn for the time being
I suppose I will say that, partner, In her tracks
Let us continue on to the end of the matter, The sunset (followed by expression of surprise)
(?) for the time being, It is (setting) a little bit for the time being
I should stop to hear for the time being, Likewise like that, for the time being,
I will become completely like him. Let us spend time, I propose,
Your old words, Likewise like that the sun
Let us hear, I propose, In our tracks (expression of surprise)
Right next to each other, for the time being, That which we did not make at all
(?) if he is, oh! That little thing for the time being,
You were better, for the time being, (?) a little bit, I suppose for the time being
My words in preference, (?)
Here, a little bit, That which he himself made
If I am I suppose, (?) possibly
( ?) I am, partner We will spend our time, I suppose,
To you, I suppose, for the time being. The little old sun
You are Throughout, I suppose, for the time being (This
Possibly it is really you for the time being, line and the one above mean, "all day long")
Possibly little you, Friendly, I suppose,
You made him discontented, I suppose, We will pass the time a little bit,
(?) a little bit, Likewise like that for the time being
(?) now, The one with whom I traded
To you, I suppose, for the time being, Friendly to him I suppose
Just that much We will be all the time possibly
My words, I suppose, We are, I suppose, for the time being
I say it a little bit, for the time being, We are not like that, alas!
Not being ignorant either, Whoever it may be for the time being
Likewise like that for the time being. Who made the little thing,
You a little bit for the time being, I suppose I will say for the time being
You will say it for the time being The sunrise, I suppose,
To me, I suppose, for the time being (?) a little bit for the time being
Your little pet (possibly referring to his wife who In our tracks, I suppose, (meaning, "after us")
may have been the speaker's sister) I suppose I will say that, partner,
The little one ceased to be, I suppose, Let us continue on to the end of the matter
I suppose I will say it, partner, I should stop (talking) for the time being (to wait
Let us continue on to the end of the matter for you to speak)
The sunset To where, do we propose, in turn
One like little her (?) we will be again for the time being
I in turn for the time being I am not that way

Our disease, I suppose, Not talking (badly about others)
Might come upon us again for the time being, Because I am more or less
Our diseases to some extent My words
Exist a little bit for the time being They do not pick up, I suppose,
Whoever may it be for the time being I am a little bit for the time being
Whoever it may be in a bad humor An old woman possibly
May move about, I suppose, (?) now for the time being
There may be for the time being, An old woman, I suppose
Those who would put disease on us Not like that a little bit for the time being,
Maybe somebody for the time being, An old woman possibly
I suppose I will say that, partner, (1) wanting now
Let us continue on to the and of the matter, I may talk, I suppose
I should stop for the time being (and let you talk) He is lying (?)
That's enough completely Now just you, I suppose,
There exist a good bit, I suppose, I suppose I will say that, partner
There are right now Let us continue on to the end of the matter
Very bad ones I should stop now (and let you talk)
(?)
I will talk a little bit
Here and there now Churuma responding:
(?) That's it partner
I will talk a little bit That's the way it was
Now, I suppose, for the time being One like the deceased one, I suppose,
I am not that way at all, Your little sister
Just a little bit like this, (?) we are
Like an old wasp, I suppose, (?) away from it evidently
(?) because it is for the time being One like her, I suppose,
More or less ready (or "experienced") I suppose, (?)
Because it is here for the time being, One like little her,
Just on the surface, I suppose, She became lost
We get angry for the time being, One like her, I suppose
Others perhaps, Your deceased sister,
Become angry, I suppose I will say for the time being,
Not on the surface, for the time being Evidently we are remaining here
(?) I suppose One like little her,
We get angry a little bit, Evidently she got lost
(?) now for the time being, One like her, I suppose
Our words (expr. of surprise) (?)
They pick up, I suppose They saw me
Evidently as being good to look at, We will imitate

But it wasn't me Perhaps one like this is it,
It was she One like her, 1 suppose, for the time being
(?) for the time being Not avenging the little one,
Concerned with her for the time being One like little her for the time being
She (or "he") was for the time being (We are becoming) diminished in numbers, 1
(?) suppose,
Now more or less (?) for the time being
Evidently you are saying it (?) partner
You are saying it to me, partner, She, rather,
1 am not like that 1 suppose 1 will say for the time being
One like her One like little old her
Along beside her An old curse, 1 suppose
One like the little deceased girl 1 am anxious about it
He saw her, 1 suppose, for the time being 1 suppose 1 will say for the time being
Your deceased sister 1 thought thus, partner,
(?) for the time being Just to here for the time being
One like little her That's all, 1 suppose for the time being
Good to look at, 1 suppose, One like little her
1 saw her a little bit for the time being Died, 1 suppose, for the time being
1 suppose 1 will say it for the time being Your deceased little sister
1 want this one Got lost, 1 suppose
That is all for the time being, (?) for the time being
One like this deceased one 1 in turn am completely
Not concerned with her for the time being The little one died for the time being
1 was, 1 suppose, for the time being That which endures long after us, 1 suppose
One like this little one Has arisen, 1 suppose,
(?) she was in turn The old sky, a little bit
They evidently say now 1 suppose 1 will say for the time being
Now for the time being Enduring long after us, 1 suppose
(?) 1 am 1 say it, partner,
(?) 1 suppose for the time being A few words like that for the time being,
Old curses maybe That's all, 1 suppose for the time being
(I) do not know, 1 suppose (?) you
The group of old songs She got lost, 1 suppose,
1 do not know them Your former little sister
1 suppose 1 will say it. (?) completely for the time being
Did you understand, partner? One like little her for the time being
That's the way we are 1 say the same thing likewise,
Our songs perhaps The little one got lost
It was a taking away for the time being She was, I suppose, for the time being
One like little her for the time being She was here
One like her got lost, I suppose One like her, I suppose, for the time being
Your deceased little one They will eat again (spiritually)
You, more or less for the time being Just others, I suppose
Little she again (?? Long blank)
I suppose I will say it for the time being A real curse now
You know her (?), I suppose
(You) feel the lack of her Just very quickly
Your sister, I suppose, (?) we are
That's the way we are Not diminishing in numbers very much
(We) feel the lack of the little ones One like little old her
(Our) sisters, I suppose for the time being (?), I suppose
(We) feel the lack of the little ones One like little her
We scold them, I suppose Possibly his own songs
Because they are, I suppose, for the time being (?), I suppose,
Now that way (This line is uncertain of trans- (?) a little bit for the time being
lation) That's more or less the way we are
I thought, partner, An old song, I suppose,
This one was here, We may really jump now
The deceased little one like her for the time being (?)
(There were) many, I supposed, a little bit Not knowing how, I suppose, for the time being
It seemed to me, I suppose, for the time being (?) for the time being
Your sister (?) I understood, partner;
She was here, She was here
One like little her more or less for the time being She was not good to look at (in their estimation)
That's the way we are for the time being With you, I suppose, for the time being
Not in a good humor, I suppose, Your deceased sister
When we see her (or "them") a little bit You all were, I suppose, for the time being
I
" Having curses for a change (?) we are again for the time being
(?), I suppose, She appeared to me, I suppose, for the time being
Not in season a little bit As one who should continue to exist
(?), partner One like little her, for the time being
Not like that (Long blank here)
I was, I suppose, for the time being, Just other people
A little one like her for the time being Other people rather
She was, I suppose, for the time being Evidently picked her up (refers to picking up
In good health for the time being, peelings of food she had eaten or something
She was, I suppose, for the time being else and laying a curse on her through it)
A little one like her for the time being Like them a little bit for the time being
(?) Just that much likewise

I say, partner I will talk a little bit for the time being
One like little deceased her for the time being Just that much likewise for the time being'
I
You are one who will not get lost (?) somewhat for the time being
One like deceased her, I suppose, for the time That's what we say
being That is it, I suppose, for the time being
(Three blank spaces here) (Six blanks here)
Right afterwards, I suppose, Just that much likewise
We will go back again, I suppose, I will talk, partner
We, I suppose, for the time being (?)
Her former brother now She got lost, I suppose, for the time being
I truly am now One like little her, for the time being
Her former brother (plus expression of condem- I am saying such things now
nation) I thought, partner,
Here (?) now (?)
,(?), I suppose, for the time being One like little her, for the time being
Evidently he (or she) is here (Long blank)
Later, a little bit, for the time being To here for the time being
They will give her food, I suppose, We will stop being (i.e., we will go somewhere
One like little her, I suppose, else now) for the time being
Your former sister, I suppose, Later we evidently
His (or her) former grandchild (or niece) (Will talk) still about your sister.
(Long blank) Rather liking her
There are again for the time being (Two or three blanks here)
(Long blank) They say she died for the time being
That's what happened to her, I suppose Alone, I suppose, for the time being
Things like that a little bit for the time being You will pass the time for the time being.
OHO BEFORE A HUNT

Ewka speaking:
It is reported that they asked for meat, partner - Just exactly that is what we would say
It is just hearsay kyam* But only after knowing it
(??) They will say the same thing
That sort k Only the other people
That's what we would say It is too bad, but we are lazy
Only if we put on (a feast) So as not to go k
.. When the letter k occurs it stands for the Waiwai word kyam, the meaning of which is uncertain, but may
imply a decision to do something or purpose to do something.
Oho before a Hunt 313
We are the kind that stay close to our wives Here a little bit
Pretty soon, all the others only Busy with sweet potatoes k
They will look for it later if they want to To here k
Meat for now k Little I, wandered
Let's look for that sort of thing Long ago now k
Let's just hear each other k The sun (?) a little bit
A little bit of that sort It brought me for a while k
Just that which is to be heard Go away, my child, it said
We will only listen k You are mine
Still without our own words You are my own grandchild k
We will listen for now k Little you k
Whatever subjects there are (?) a little bit
Which will be told All day long k for the time being
That now To here more or less
A little bit of that sort During my childhood k
That which is to be heard k (??)
Because this time it is such a thing as meat Let us go in search of k
I say k, partner A knife for us a little bit
Let us continue a while To the same place k
Let us hear each other for a while in order to The people (are)
know To the first of them k
That sort of thing k Let us go k
In order to look for it a little bit Wander about k
Nevertheless, they asked for it a long time ago (11)
Our late big brother's people a little bit They killed your mother
(Came) to drink the drink Here a little bit
If there is a little bit Without a mother for the time being
They fought together k (ceremonial bouts) Without a father k for the time being
The drink of us all k I grew up k
Its associated food Having a little child in the womb for the time
We are not that way k being
We are hungry for meat (11)
(11) because we are for now To here k
Not dying a little bit I say k, partner
Because we haven't yet k Here a little bit
We want meat k We are k
I say (this) a little bit for now We are probably just like that
I say it k, partner Here k
Let us continue k for the time being to know it Not moving around much k
It is a hearing k for the time being to know it That's what he says
He ate him without mixing I will relate k

Let us rather not be (so) To you a little bit for the time being
Here k Words k for the time being
Let us spend the time a little bit The words of our whole group k for the time
(We are) both the same way k for the time being being
(We are) both children k Thus we will listen a little bit
Let us spend the time k My meat (I want) a little bit for the time being
(?) we are again for the time being For the little bit of drink
With fathers k The associated food k
If we are k (?) k they say
Of our fathers possibly It's really not that way I'm sorry to say
We would be afraid k (11)
Later on it would be for the time being (?) we will be again for the time being
He might eat me, oh my! If (we) shoot straight
Things like that k Maybe we will listen for the time being
About our fathers k We will look for it k
We all say possibly Whatever sorts of little animals (there may be)
I say k, partner If we go hunting k
I myself say it k Let us go hunting rather
Not moving around much k (??)
I spend the time a little bit Because possibly if we hunt
Concerning big brother's people Meat for us a little bit for the time being
I am speaking k for the time being We will shew k for the time being
Let us be somewhat like that I say k, partner
Good k Let us continue a while to find out (all the matter)
Let us spend the time k It is only to listen k
Eating each other k (spiritually) Here we are again (?)
Not worried about k Later k for the time being
Now on the other hand this is the way we are If we are still lazy
We will eat each other (spiritually) k We will not go k
Having fathers k That sort of thing is for the time being
If we grow up a little bit Full of laziness (produces laziness)
Possibly with our fathers Let us go hunting k
Our fathers possibly for the time being There would be something for the time being
Spirit songs (eremu) a little bit k We will hurt ourselves
I say, k, partner Hither and yon
Let us continue k a while to find out (all the If we go hunting
matter) That is probably what you think about it
Let us listen k a while to find out (all the matter) It will be to our harm k
That sort of thing k Whatever sort of old thing
Oho before a Hunt 315
(Failed to hear three lines here) I say k, partner

An old anaconda snake k for the time being If it is said k for the time being
We will see at time k To the people a little bit for the time being
The spirits k (??)
I will see a little bit A long time ago now
I say k, partner A long time ago they decided for the time being
Hither and yon a little bit They agreed to do it a little bit
(??) They say they are the kind that agrees
If we go k for the time being With our words k
(?) let us go for the time being I say k, partner
(??) Let us continue k for a while to know (all the
He will be sent on the errand matter)
If anyone is sent on the errand Let us spend the time k for a while to know (all
(??) the matter)
We will get hurt at times Here a little bit
I say k, partner That sort of old thing k
Let us continue k for a while to find out (all the (??)
matter) He heard k for the time being
Let us hear k for a while to find out (all the You rather for the time being
matter) On the other hand you are for the time being
They asked for some fish In possession of that sort of thing
That sort of thing k In possession of shooting arms a little bit
(?) we will say k In possession of an old gun
Exactly that little bit for now That sort of little shooting arms
Exactly that much you are That sort of animals
i Quite a while ago now Whatever sort of little animals
~
They asked k for the time being If they enter k (into their dens)
The chief's group We will shoot them a little bit
They asked for it a little bit for the time being I say k, partner
As for me I am just not that way Let us continue k for a while to know (all the
(I am) not the chief matter)
Because of that for the time being Let us listen k for a while to know (all the
They don't obey at my mouth matter)
(?) we are again for the time being Later it will be (time to go) I'm sorry to say
(?) I say Our old fish hooks
We would talk If we throw them out (into the water)
As old men Without any luck k
Old men We will throw them for the time being
If we were Hands that are just not sweet (to the fish)
I say know We have k for the time being
They have for the time being (?) he went away

That is just the other people Harm to us ourselves
Sweet hands (to the fish) There won't be any
They will catch the fish k We will find (the animals) a little bit
I say k, partner I thought, partner
Let us continue k for a while to know (all the (Missed two lines)
matter) That sort of little animals
Let us hear k for a while to know (all the matter) Will not die maybe for the time being
Concerning that sort of things it is reported A little old frog k
They asked for k for the time being (Missed two lines here)
Nnn (This sound signals the end of one man's I thought for the time being
speech) That k for the time being
I knew it a little bit
Let me just listen to find out for the time being
Churuma answering: (I thought)
Truth, partner (Missed three lines here)
For that reason I listened That sort of thing k for the time being
(Failed to hear several lines here) Spirits for the time being
We will be lazy That sort of things for the time being
We will probably be that way We will hear for the time being
That way k That sort of little old thing
I am lazy k Something to hear k
(1?) Spirits a little bit for the time being
We must have gotten lazy Now for the time being
(? ?) Our vegetable food k for the time being
Possibly those who are old men (?) they asked for
(? ?) That's the way we are for the time being
We will listen a little bit That sort of thing k for the time being
That sort of things k If we hear it k
I thought, partner Concering that sort of thing a little bit
(? ?) We will hear k for the time being.
That's the way we would be k (The rest is not understandable)
later k a little bit

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NATIONALMUSEETS SKRIFTER

Etnografisk Rakke, VIII

RELIGION AND SOCIETY OF AN

THE NATIONAL MUSEUM

Denne afhandling er af det matematisk-naturvidenskabelige fakultet ved Keben­

Kebenhavn, den 4. maj 1962. T. W. BacHER

Printed in Denmark by Andelsbogtrykkeriet i Odense

Cover drawing by Jens Rosing, technical drawings by Henning 0rsnes

Photos by Lennart Larsen, Jens Yde and the author

Blocks by Schmidt & Johansen, Copenhagen

Copenhagen, April 1963 NIELS FOCK

The Soul Concept 14

The Ordinary Soul, Ekati . 14

The Former Soul, Ekatlnho . 18

The Sun Cult . . . . . 33

How Yaskomo Procured Sunshine. 33

Invocation of the Sun 34

Other Divine Beings . . . . 35

The Creator, Mawari. . . 35

The Culture Hero, Yawari 36

Myths and Legends . 38

The Creation Myth, Mawari 38

The Anaconda-People, Okoimo-Yenna 48

Notes and Aspects. 51

The Moon, Nuiii . . 54

Notes and Aspects. 55

The Shodewika Myth 56

Notes and Aspects. 67

The Opossum, Yawari 74

Notes and Aspects. 75

The Forest Deer, Koso . 78

Notes and Aspects . . 78

The Harpy Eagle, Yaimo 79

Notes and Aspects. . 82

The Old Man's Trip to the Sky 82

Notes and Aspects. . . . . 84

The Buzzard-People, Kurum-Yenna 86

Notes and Aspects. 90

The Dragon, Uruperi. . . . . 91

Notes and Aspects . . . . . 92

General Mythological Aspects. 93

Practice Stamped by Religious Concepts. 104

Fatal Blowing, Tono and Parawa

Other Blowing, Eremu .

of the Medicine Man.

Various Lay Practices

The Medicine Man, Yaskomo .

Life Cycle 133

Comparative Aspects of the Natal Custom 145

Adolescence, Emasl 158

Male Adolescence 159

Age Groups of Adults 160

Dance Festivals . . . . 169

The Yamo Dance . . 170

The Shodewika Dance 172

Animal Imitations 179

Annual Cycle . . . . . 182

Social Organization . . 185

Kinship Terminology 185

Kinship System . . 189

Forms of Address . . 193

Kinship Groupings. . 194

The Village of Yakayaka 195

Denne afhandling er af det matematisk-naturvidenskabelige fakultet ved Keben

Fig. 2. Map showing the loca