Adaptive Strategies:

Horticulture

2

Functional Consequences

Tribes or Chiefdoms Larger, more stable groups Sendentary or semi-sendentary villages Division of labor by sex & age Some specialization Egalitarian, with some stratification Private ownership of resources Larger kinship groups Recognized leadership positions Territoriality & conflict over land Polytheistic, ancestor worship

3

Horticulture

EXTENSIVE cultivation Forests—requires large expanse of

land, more investment in land Feed 10X

as many as H&G

Hand tools

4

Swidden, Slash-and-Burn, Shifting Horticulture

Clear let dry burn

5

6

Nutrient poor – nutrients are in trees/plantsAsh provides nutrients

(potassium), kills pests

7

Inter-cropping

Symbiotic relationship

8

Cultivate 1-3 years, abandon Long fallow (10-12 years)

9

Kayapó Example Division of labor based on

age groups & gender

Complimentary tasks:

Men & boys fell trees, burn

Women plant, weed, harvest

Exchange of products from gardening, hunting, fishing

10

Cultigens – 100s of Years of Selection

Knowledge of ecology Clouds River stages Mosaic of soil types Timing of burning

(before rains)

11

Circular Fields: Center—Sweet potato high solar

energy efficiency, drought resistant, tolerant of sun Monocrop, more frequent burning,

weeding, soil aeration Second—Manioc, yams, corn, beans,

cotton, sugar cane, annatto (achiote) Diversity, lowest soil fertility, crops

tolerant of low nutrients Outer—Bananas, papaya, nutrient

-rich soils, receive nutrients from forest canopy Long-producing perennials

12

Apêtê (forest islands)A complex form of soil

management Increases biodiversity, attracts

plants, animals LITTER, TERMITE NESTS, ANT

NESTS to create compost

Long fallow for reforestationDispersed fields limit plant

diseases, pests

13

Variety of ActivitiesPlant new gardensTransplant plants to

enhance availability along forest trails

Nuture forest plants by weeding

Also hunt, fish, gather Trekking during dry

season

14

KAYAPO RECOGNIZE 120 SPECIES OF PLANTS:

72% MEDICINAL 40% FOOD 25% FIREWOOD 12% FERTILIZERS 8% SHADE 30% OTHER (DYE FOR BODY

PAINTING, ETC.)

If you were in

a tropical

rainforest, how

well could you

survive?

15

Kayapó Diet & ChangePre-contact: sweet potatoes,

palm hearts, meatPost-contact: manioc, rice,

beans, coffeeManioc is processed into

farinha, is labor intensive, requires machinery

16

Food & Politics Women share harvest with husbands,

children, parents, brothers Men share meat with women But—since fuel & lubricants for the

manioc grinder are dispersed by the chief, men & women are obliged to conform to the organization & tempo directed by the chief

Sweet potatos are independent of chiefly control, thus involve ongoing reciprocity

17

Meat Meat preparation is centralized &

controlled by elder men Men hunt in age grades, deliver meat

to elders, who cook & distribute it Rights to certain parts are inherited,

but conflicts arise; elders must keep the peace Unmarried youth & parents are

prohibited from eating the stomach & intestines

Men also hunt armadillos & tortoises Fish using poison from timbo vines

18

Kayapó Society Population – 200-700 Politically autonomous villages

Rainy season-remain in village

Dry season-trekking Several nuclear families

share a residence & food

19

Kayapó Age Grades Each of 7 or 8 age grades has

privileges & obligations Age 1-3

Receive ritual names 2 groups for boys, 2 for girls

Boys @ age 10 Move into men’s house Each is assigned to a warrior who

teaches the customs

20

Warriors Are initiated at age 15 Have prestige, but no family

obligations Maintain order

Parents Join 1 of 2 cooperative work

groups

21

Men’s Societies & “Chiefs”

Work as a group to hunt, garden, collect Brazil nuts

Men must participate to acquire trade goods needed for their production

The chief owns canoes & provides fuel (+farinha technology) thus men must be in good standing to borrow these

The chief controls collective activities, so household autonomy is illusory

22

Each village has 1-2 chiefs with no authority But they are the ones with access

to outside technology They control by creating loyalties

through distribution of trade goods

23

Kayapó are matrilineal & matrilocal

-Monogamy

-Arranged marriages-Adultery

Kayapó have shamans Sorcery is the cause of illness