The Yanomami Tribe

M. Lucia Coquies
Laura M. Correa
The Yanomami Tribe

The Yanomami are the largest relatively isolated tribe in South America.
They live in the rainforests and mountains of northern Brazil and southern
Venezuela.
At over 9.6 million hectares, the Yanomami territory in Brazil is twice the
size of Switzerland. In Venezuela, the Yanomami live in the 8.2 million
hectare Alto Orinoco Casiquiare Biosphere Reserve. Together, these areas
form the largest forested indigenous territory in the world; today their total
population stands at around 35,000.
Strange customs

The Yanomami are known for their strange customs and their fierceness. One
of the most curious customs is the practice of inbreeding cannibalism as
sacred ritual. This is a funeral collective ceremony in which the ashes of the
dead relative are eaten, due to the belief that their vital energy resides in
the bones and that eating it passes to their relatives..
This strange ritual consists of wrapping the corpse in leaves and allowing the
insects to feed on it. Between 30 and 45 days later, the bones are collected,
pulverized and mixed in a banana soup that is consumed by all. According to
tradition, ritual helps to ensure that souls find their way to paradise.