How many were they? How many will they be?
Marta Azevedo (Rio
Negro Program/ISA) writes about the demographic recovery of the
indigenous peoples:
Estimates about the population of the peoples who lived in the area
that is now called Brazil, vary much more according to the political
interests of their authors than according to the methodology adopted.
Following historian John Monteiro "...any estimate concerning the
global population in year 1500 will have to take into account historical
factors, such as differentiated effects of illnesses on distinct peoples
and the space movements of indigenous groups both as a result of the
contact, among other factors."(1) Some
authors estimate the indigenous population in the 16th century between
2 and 4 million people, belonging to more than 1.000 different peoples;
Darcy Ribeiro states that more than 80 indigenous peoples have disappeared
only during the first half of the 20th century; according to this author,
the total population would have decreased from 1.000.000 to 200.000
people.(2) The extermination
of many indigenous peoples in Brazil due to armed conflicts, epidemics,
cultural and social disorganization lead to a process of depopulation
that cannot be treated without an analysis of the internal characteristics
and the history of each one of these societies. Studies about the different
impacts that one same epidemic had on different peoples are still to
be conducted; the relationship between these peoples and the different
indian offices or fronts of colonization and their impacts on their
population's demographic dynamics have not yet been studied either.
According to demographic and anthropological analysis about autochthonous
populations of different areas colonized by the europeans, we know that,
after a long period losing people becaused of wars, epidemics and slavery,
the indians started a process of demographic recovery, of which they
were, many times, aware. Some exemplary studies show this tendency of
recovery and, therefore, an accelerated growth of these populations,
when we access sources of data with historical series.
Demographic recovery
According to the estimates provided by many scientists, anthropologists,
demographers or health people, we observe that most part of the indigenous
peoples has been growing, on average, 3,5% per year, much more than
the average of 1,6% estimated to the period from 1996 to year 2000 for
the brazilian population in general.
According to studies about the demographic transition of different
peoples from all over the world, after the fall in the death rate, notably
the fall in the infant death rate, due to the epidemiological transition
that takes place with the vaccination of these populations together
with a more efficient and modern health assistance, there is an increase
in population during a certain period that varies according to structural
components of each society.
Many authors point to the variations in the rhythm and profiles of
the demographic transition of each society as a result of their economic
systems, and some studies have already been conducted that point to
components of the social structures, including models of marriage and
family composition as contributors of this dynamics. This period of
increase in population is followed by the fall in the levels of fertility,
that is, a reduction in the average number of children by woman. Those
who study this subject, state, undoubtedly, that the urbanization together
with the change of the feminine status in the societies are important
variants contributing to this fall. Nowadays, the demographic profile
of some european countries shows that, with both the fall in the death
rate and in fertility, there is a deep reduction in the rhythm of population
growth, until there is the so-called demographic suicide, when the levels
of fertility of some populations are below the level of replacement.
The question that is nowadays put to the demographic studies about
indigenous populations in Brazil is whether these peoples are under
accelerated growth due to the fall in the death rate provided by the
improvement of the health assistance, but with their fertility still
in levels very much superior to those of the non-indigenous population
or whether this population growth is actually the result of a conscious
demographic recovery, that is, whether the societies do realize that
they lost people during a certain period of their recent history and
are now trying to recover this population.
Below, there are some case studies about some specific indigenous peoples.
Case studies
Case studies carried out by anthropologists register the vital events
of a given population during a long period of time, what allows to have
some analysis on their population dynamics. That is the case, for instance,
of the work elaborated about the Araweté, by Eduardo Viveiros
de Castro. In his book (3) there
is an appendix with the population data registered by some indianists
or other people since the time of the contact with these indians in
1976. Registers allow us to observe an increase in population due to
the fall in the death rate, notably the infant death rate and a slight
increase in the birth rate, that would still have to be better demonstrated
by further analysis. What calls our attention is the last chart, where
the author compiles data about death before the contact according to
the native categories that may cause it: illnesses; enemies (each people
with whom the Araweté were in war), where most dead people and/or
kidnapped or missing people are; spirits and accidents. This 'emic demography'
would allow the indians to run some of their own politics incorporating
western demographic techniques.
In a study about demographic dynamics of two indigenous peoples - Waiãpi
and Enawenê-nawê - I tried to demonstrate how we could know
the different profiles and dynamics of these autochthonous populations
if we had, as in the case of these two societies, historical series
of data about birth, death, marriages and migration. This study was
published as a poster for the X Encontro de Estudos Populacionais da
Abep (4), (Abep's 10th Meeting
on Population Studies), in 1996, and was based on the data collected
for the Waiãpi population by Dr. Ms. Dominique Gallois and Flora
Dias Cabalzar; and for the Enawenê-Nawê population the data
which were collected by Opan's team that worked with these peoples at
that time.
These peoples had a relatively recent contact with the society around
them, towards the 70's and both have medical assistance since the 80's.
Data about vital events allow us to make some hypothesis about the future
of these populations regarding their population growth.
Before the contact with the colonizers, the indigenous peoples lived
in areas where the limits were given by the very environment and by
other native peoples who lived in neighboring areas, with whom they
traded or fought. When the brazilian state is born, the land is demarcated
and the indians find themselves in a new situation: they now have to
live in that area, with well-known and demarcated limits. From this
moment on, to some indigenous populations that had only their home cells
demarcated as I.L.s (as in the south of Brazil) the question that is
put is to find out how they are going to survive in a tiny area with
the traditional technology and a growing population. Regarding the indigenous
peoples of Amazon, whose land is demarcated, including areas to exploit
natural resources, it is necessary to think the increase in population
(which happens, in general, after a decrease, soon before, and after
the contact) together with the technology and the environment they occupy,
structuring elements of their cultures.
Evolution of the population
As to the evolution of the total population, table1 and graph 1 and
2 prove that both populations show an increase from 1985 on, which is
confirmed by the evolution of the number of births, possibly caused,
not only because the absolute number has increased but also due to the
fall in the infant death rate, provided by the vaccination programs
on which both peoples can count.
Table 1 - Evolution of the total Enawenê and Waiãpi
populations
Enawenê |
Waiãpi |
year |
men's population |
women's population |
total |
year |
men's population |
women's population |
total |
1985 |
75 |
82 |
157 |
1985 |
159 |
149 |
308 |
1987 |
88 |
89 |
177 |
1987 |
175 |
168 |
343 |
1989 |
94 |
97 |
191 |
1989 |
190 |
184 |
374 |
1991 |
108 |
107 |
215 |
1991 |
206 |
200 |
406 |
1993 |
114 |
124 |
238 |
1993 |
228 |
216 |
444 |
1995 |
128 |
130 |
258 |
1995 |
239 |
222 |
461 |
Graph 1
Graph 2
Gender ratio
The gender ratio - proportion of women and men in a certain population,
in a certain year, in different age groups -, for the two populations,
shows that, in the elderly ages the proportion of men increases in comparison
with that of women, although it is difficult to visualize a pattern,
because the absolute number of the cohorts (that is , generations) over
60 years is still very small. In the younger ages, it seems that, among
the Enawenê-Nawê, the proportion of women is slightly bigger
than among the Waiãpi. See graphs 3 and 4:
Graph 3
Graph 4
Parturition
With regard to the parturition, the average number of children per
woman is 4, considering the total population along the different years,
observed by the average and the median in both cases. For the Enawenê-Nawê
the custom is 2 and for the Waiãpi, 1. Probably, among the latter
it is due to the number of young mothers with only one child. To both
peoples, it is more common to see the woman having her first child when
she is between 15 and 19 years old, in average. Among the Enawenê,
the women seem to have their first child a little later than among the
Waiãpi, which is confirmed according to what the indians themselves
report, the young women who are not married make use of a contraceptive
(beverage made out of some plant) so that they will not get pregnant.
The same contraceptive is used by the women who do not want to have
children any more, according to the reports, after having had 7 children.
The ideal number of children must be 10, since that, according to their
own perception about infant mortality, out of these 10, only 7 survive.
Parturition begins between 10 and 14 years, and the largest number
of births occurs between 15 and 19 years old, to both populations. Among
the Waiãpi, if we confirm that the women have children younger,
the proportion of women having children between 10 and 14 years is a
little bigger than among the Enawenê-Nawê; in a second study,
an age pattern will be introduced in order to check this hypothesis.
With regard to the intergenetic interval, the average and the median
for both populations is 3, and the custom in both cases is 2.
Indigenous conceptions, academic studies and public politics
According to the Waiãpi, their population must grow even more
so that they will be able to occupy all of their land. They say that,
because in the past many waiãpi died, now many will die again.
It seems that the Enawenê-Nawê are also aware of their increase
in population. They say that the women must have a lot of children (10,
as an ideal number). The fact that both tribes have lost a lot of people
prior to the contact seems to encourage their wish of increasing in
number in different ways. The fact that the land still has a lot of
natural resources to be used by the whole population does not lead them
to question the idea of constantly increasing their number. What worries
those who study these peoples is the pression they make to keep on increasing
in number now that the land and its resources are limited.
This example of a preliminary demographic study attempts to show, in
the scope of this article, the possible tools for academic, anthropological
and demographic studies, besides other important studies such as analysis
about the interface of the population dynamics and the exploitation
of natural resources as well as the planning of public politics directed
to these populations. (Marta Azevedo, december/ 2000).
NOTES
(1) Jonh Monteiro: “A Dança dos
Números” in Tempo e Presença, São Paulo: CEDI, ano 16,
n. 273, 1994.
(2) Darcy Ribeiro: “Culturas
e Línguas Indígenas do Brasil”, in Educação e Ciências Sociais,
1957.
(3) Eduardo Viveiros de Castro:
Araweté - o povo do Ipixuna, São Paulo: CEDI, 1992.
(4) Marta Azevedo, Márcia Pivatto
e Isabella Carneiro: “Análise demográfica de duas populações indígenas
no Brasil” - X Encontro de Estudos Populacionais, 1996.