Biblioteca Digital Curt Nimuendajú

The Upper Xingu Basin is situated in northeastern Mato Grosso, Central Brazil. By south, west and east sedimentary plateaus and unhabited savanna isolate it from outside world; to the north the same situation is created by the Xingu River. This is quite shallow, obstructed by rapids and waterfalls which make navigation difficult. The interior of the Basin is characterized by a system of rivers, lakes and «igarapés», easily navigable to Indian craft. Thus a geographic opposition arises (exterior versus interior of the Basin), which reflects in the intertribal relations prevalent in the region.

The settlement of «tropical forest» culture type tribes is favoured by the association of lands good for manioc planting and fish abundant rivers. These are the principal Indian food sources.

Forced by unknown historical events to settle the Basin, tribes there developed through intertribal acculturation an uniform culture, but kept their own languages. These are related to Brazil's main Indian linguistic stocks: Tupi, Arawak, Karib and Gê; there is, also, a linguistically unrelated tribe, the Trumaí.

The tribes culturally Xinguan (Kamayurá, Aweti, Waurá, Mehinaku, Yawalapiti, Kuikuro, Kalapalo, Nahukwá-Matipu and Trumaí) oppose themselves to the Marginal ones (Suyá, Juruna, Kayabi, Txikão and Txukahamãe). Before pacification by Expedição Roncador-Xingu, Serviço de Protecção aos Índios and Parque Nacional do Xingu, hostile and warlike relations prevailed between them. But in the interior of the Basin, the Xinguan tribes created a system of specialization, commerce, marriages and competitive games which established and preserved ties of cultural and social interdependence.

So, war and competitive games are shown here as alternative cultural responses to rivalry between Indian societies, and geography is considered as an indirect, not unique but basic element which conditioned these responses.

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