Trumai people

For the language, see Trumai language.

The Trumai (or Trumaí; native name: Ho kod ke)^[3] are an indigenous people of Brazil. They currently reside within the Xingu Indigenous Park, in the state of Mato Grosso. They have a population of 258 in 2014.^[1] They were 97 in 2011 and 120 in 2006,^[2] up from a low of 26 in 1966.

Trumai

Total population
258 (2014)[1]
Regions with significant populations
Brazil ( Mato Grosso)
Languages
Trumai[2]
Religion
Traditional tribal religion

Background

The Trumai are one of the last groups to have settled on the upper Xingu River, moving there in the 19th century^[1] from the region between the Xingu and Araguaia Rivers, as a result of attacks from another people.^[4] They currently live in four villages in the Xingu Indigenous Park, Terra Preta, Boa Esperança, Steinen and Terra Nova, situated halfway from the Leonardo Villas-Bôas Post and the Diauarum Indigenous Post, where some families also live.

The Trumai are one of the ethnicities included in the standard cross-cultural sample.

They are considered the ones who introduced the jawari ritual ("hopep" in the Trumai language), that is, along with the kwarup, one of the most important inter-tribal festivals in the Upper Xingu cultural complex.^[5]

Subsistence

The Trumai are farmers, growing primarily manioc, peppers, and beans.^{[2] [verification needed]}

Language

The Trumai language is not closely related to other languages, and it is considered a language isolate.^[2] It is severely endangered, as children are becoming native speakers of Awetï, Suyá, or Portuguese.