Tapirapé

The Tapirapé are a Guaranian people indigenous to the Mato Grosso state in Brazil. They also have their own language, also called Tapirapé.1

Like many indigenous groups in the tropical forest, the Tapirapé traditionally combined farming with hunting, fishing, and gathering. Their culture, common to many farmer-foragers, did not involve writing, large-scale stone structures, or centralized political organizations. Their tools and belongings were primarily made from natural materials like plants and animals, as stone was scarce in many areas.2

The Tapirapé, like other tropical forest peoples, believed their well-being was connected to controlling numerous supernatural powers that permeated the natural world. They used shamanistic rites and ceremonies to maintain harmony with the universe, believing human actions influenced the effects of these powers. Magical practices and precautions were often considered more important than religious rituals themselves.2