Alberto Achacaz Walakial
Encyclopedia
Alberto Achacaz Walakial (1929? - August 4, 2008) was a Chile
an citizen and one of the last full-blooded Kaweskars, who are also known as the Alacaluf
. The Kaweskar are an indigenous
Native American
people who were once found in coastal regions of Chilean Patagonia. There are estimated to be only approximately a dozen full-blooded Kaweskars still living following Achacaz's death in 2008. However, there are no Kaweskar women of fertile age remaining, so the tribe appears to be headed for extinction.
Achacaz lived in a modest home, which lacked a modern drainage system. He had lived alone since his wife died in 1999. He earned a living by crafting small canoes out of sea lion
skins and weaving
traditional baskets.
Achacaz had been hospitalized since in Punta Arenas, Chile
, since late June 2008. Achacaz had arrived at the hospital malnourished, dehydrated and weighing less than 130 pounds. He was admitted to the intensive care unit of the Hospital Naval. Additionally, Achacaz was found to be suffering from septic shock
which affected his gall bladder and lungs.
Alberto Achacaz Walakial died of blood poisoning at the hospital in Punta Arenas on Monday, August 4, 2008, according to reports by the local Chilean newspaper, La Prensa Austral. Official Chilean government documents listed Achacaz's age at 79 years old. However, some believed that Achacaz was closer to 90 years of age.
of southern Patagonia
. They were nomadic hunter-gatherers whose diet consisted of sea birds and seafood
. It is believed that their nomadic way of life may have stretched back 6,000 years.
The Kaweskars did not establish semi-permanent settlements on dry land until the middle of the 20th century. The settled in and around at the hamlet
of Villa Puerto Edén
on Wellington Island
.
The Kaweskars are facing cultural extinction as a distinct group as their surviving, full-blooded members grow older. Since the arrival of Europeans, Chile has lost five of its original fourteen indigenous tribes.
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an citizen and one of the last full-blooded Kaweskars, who are also known as the Alacaluf
Alacaluf
The Alacaluf are a South American people living in Chile on the Strait of Magellan , Chile. Their traditional language is known as Kawésqar.- Economy :They were a nomadic sea-faring people until the twentieth century...
. The Kaweskar are an indigenous
Indigenous peoples
Indigenous peoples are ethnic groups that are defined as indigenous according to one of the various definitions of the term, there is no universally accepted definition but most of which carry connotations of being the "original inhabitants" of a territory....
Native American
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
people who were once found in coastal regions of Chilean Patagonia. There are estimated to be only approximately a dozen full-blooded Kaweskars still living following Achacaz's death in 2008. However, there are no Kaweskar women of fertile age remaining, so the tribe appears to be headed for extinction.
Achacaz lived in a modest home, which lacked a modern drainage system. He had lived alone since his wife died in 1999. He earned a living by crafting small canoes out of sea lion
Sea Lion
Sea lions are pinnipeds characterized by external ear-flaps, long fore-flippers, the ability to walk on all fours, and short thick hair. Together with the fur seal, they comprise the family Otariidae, or eared seals. There are six extant and one extinct species in five genera...
skins and weaving
Weaving
Weaving is a method of fabric production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. The other methods are knitting, lace making and felting. The longitudinal threads are called the warp and the lateral threads are the weft or filling...
traditional baskets.
Achacaz had been hospitalized since in Punta Arenas, Chile
Punta Arenas, Chile
Punta Arenas is a commune and the capital city of Chile's southernmost region, Magallanes and Antartica Chilena. The city was officially renamed Magallanes in 1927, but in 1938 it was changed back to Punta Arenas...
, since late June 2008. Achacaz had arrived at the hospital malnourished, dehydrated and weighing less than 130 pounds. He was admitted to the intensive care unit of the Hospital Naval. Additionally, Achacaz was found to be suffering from septic shock
Septic shock
Septic shock is a medical emergency caused by decreased tissue perfusion and oxygen delivery as a result of severe infection and sepsis, though the microbe may be systemic or localized to a particular site. It can cause multiple organ dysfunction syndrome and death...
which affected his gall bladder and lungs.
Alberto Achacaz Walakial died of blood poisoning at the hospital in Punta Arenas on Monday, August 4, 2008, according to reports by the local Chilean newspaper, La Prensa Austral. Official Chilean government documents listed Achacaz's age at 79 years old. However, some believed that Achacaz was closer to 90 years of age.
Background of the Kaweskar
The Kaweskars were known as the "Nomads of the Sea." They are also known as the Alacaluf. Traditionally, the Kaweskar lived aboard their canoes within the channelsChannel (geography)
In physical geography, a channel is the physical confine of a river, slough or ocean strait consisting of a bed and banks.A channel is also the natural or human-made deeper course through a reef, sand bar, bay, or any shallow body of water...
of southern Patagonia
Patagonia
Patagonia is a region located in Argentina and Chile, integrating the southernmost section of the Andes mountains to the southwest towards the Pacific ocean and from the east of the cordillera to the valleys it follows south through Colorado River towards Carmen de Patagones in the Atlantic Ocean...
. They were nomadic hunter-gatherers whose diet consisted of sea birds and seafood
Seafood
Seafood is any form of marine life regarded as food by humans. Seafoods include fish, molluscs , crustaceans , echinoderms . Edible sea plants, such as some seaweeds and microalgae, are also seafood, and are widely eaten around the world, especially in Asia...
. It is believed that their nomadic way of life may have stretched back 6,000 years.
The Kaweskars did not establish semi-permanent settlements on dry land until the middle of the 20th century. The settled in and around at the hamlet
Hamlet
The Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...
of Villa Puerto Edén
Villa Puerto Edén
Villa Puerto Edén is a Chilean hamlet and minor port located in Wellington Island, in Natales commune, Última Esperanza Province, Magallanes Region. It is considered one of Chile's most isolated inhabited places together with Easter Island and Villa Las Estrellas. The villages is known for being...
on Wellington Island
Wellington Island
Wellington Island is an island west of Southern Patagonian Ice Field, Chile. It has an area of 5,556 km² and most of the island forms part of Bernardo O'Higgins National Park. It is home to the last Kawésqar people, living the village of Puerto Edén, the only inhabited place on the...
.
The Kaweskars are facing cultural extinction as a distinct group as their surviving, full-blooded members grow older. Since the arrival of Europeans, Chile has lost five of its original fourteen indigenous tribes.