| Total population |
|---|
| approx. 1,200[1] |
| Regions with significant populations |
| Mato Grosso, Brazil |
| Languages |
|
Nambikwara, some also speak Portuguese. |
| Religion |
| Related ethnic groups |
|
none |
The Nambikwara (also called Nambikuára) is an indigenous people of the Brazilan Amazon. Currently ca. 1,200 Nambikwara live in federal reservations in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso along the Guaporé and Juruena rivers. Their villages are accessible from the Pan-American highway.[1]
The Nambikwara were first contacted in 1770 but did not experience prolonged contact with Europeans until the early 20th century, when Brazilian army official Marechal Cândido Rondon passed through Nambikwara territory to extend the telegraph lines. He estimated that there were around 10,000 Nambikwara. Shortly after contact with European Brazilians epidemics of measles and smallpox decimated the population to only 500 around 1930.[1]
The culture of the Nambikwara was the subject of studies by French anthropologist Claude Lévi-Strauss, which were later analyzed by French philosopher Jacques Derrida in his work Of Grammatology.
The Nambikuara Nation is composed of many smaller bands which each have their own name.