Usos do Nheengatu na Comunidade São Sebastião Rio Tarumã-Mirim: Micropolíticas e Trajetórias de seus falantes

Abstract

This research presents a discussion about the memories of some indigenous social agents of the Baré people residing in the São Sebastião Community, located on the Tarumã Mirim River in the city of Manaus, Amazonas, regarding the use of the Nheengatu language during their childhood and now while residing in other spaces. The research problem is to understand whether the use of the Nheengatu language contributes to the reconstruction of territoriality and to the sociolinguistic, cultural, and identity processes of indigenous people in the community, where approximately 80% of the residents are of the Baré ethnicity, originating from the Upper Rio Negro. We seek to understand the dynamics of the use of the Nheengatu language, considering political mobilization and the reaffirmation of ethnicity and territory, exploring practices such as Yanekêrupi (our dream), Kasimãho (the first menstruation), Mutawarisá (healing through cigarette smoking), and Saruãsawa (the enchanted ones). Under Marisa Peirano's immersion theory, based on participant observation, with oral and photographic records, the research helped to elucidate the problem. The interlocutors were the people who live in the São Sebastião Community, from young to old, as well as the community leaders. The research clarifies that the Nheengatu language is indeed an instrument that contributes to the maintenance of the Baré territory, but it is also a tool for ethnic reaffirmation and political organization.