Curt Nimuendajú
Encyclopedia
Curt Unckel, better known as Curt Nimuendajú (April 18, 1883 - 10 December 1945), was a German-Brazilian ethnologist, anthropologist and writer. His works are fundamental for understanding the religion and cosmology
of many native Brazilian Indians, especially the Guarani people. He earned the surname
Nimuendajú from the Apapocuva branch of the latter, who, in a formal adoption
ceremony
, gave him the name, meaning 'the one who made himself a home,' a mere 1 year after his arrival among them. He gave it as part of his official name when taking Brazilian citizenship in 1922. In an obituary, his Brazilian-German colleague, Herbert Baldus called him 'perhaps the greatest Indianista of all time.’
in Germany in 1883. Orphaned at an early age. From early youth he dreamed of living among a primitive people. While still a schoolboy, he organized an 'Indian gang' among his fellow students that hunted in the woods outside his native city. After completing his secondary schooling, he worked in a camera factory run by Carl Zeiss
, lacking the financial means to progress to university level. In his spare time, he devoted himself to studying maps and the ethnography the Indian populations of North and South America. He realized his dream of emigrating to Brazil in 1903, at the age of 20, with the help of his half-sister, who was a teacher, and who assisted him in covering the expenses for his journey to South America.
In 1905, two years after his arrival in Brazil, he established contact with the Guaraní people in the State of São Paulo. A substantial literature existed concerning them, going back to the 17th century, but their religious outlook and rituals were poorly understood. Nimuendajú familiarized himself thoroughly with the existing literature. He moved to Belém in 1913, and his first professional articles date from this time., with a groundbreaking publication on the mythology
and religion of the Guarani Apapokúva, accepted by the Zeitschrift für Ethnologie in 1914. He became the ranking specialist on a large number of Indigenous peoples, particularly those belonging to the Gê group of Central Brazil, in Brazilian tribes
, the Apapocuva-Guaraní, Tukúna, Kaingang
, Apinaye, Xerente, Wanano and Canela
among them, all classic monographs which laid, in the words of one recent writer
One of the effects of his work was to shift interest from the tribes living along the coast or in large towns, to the tribes hidden in the interior, and to arouse the interests of anthropologists like the young Claude Lévi-Strauss
, in communities that, though living in poverty, had managed to develop societies of considerable complexity, and religious cosmologies of great complexity.
Over 40 years of fieldwork, much of it self-financed, he published some 60 monographs, articles and vocabularies dealing with native tribes.
Between 1929 and 1936 he spent some 14 months with the Canela Indians, a Gê-speaking people on the northeastern edge of the central plateau
of Brazil, and his monograph on them, translated and annotated by Robert Lowie
, was published posthumously in 1946. His work on the Apinaye drew attention because it had many features that made it anomalous to the genre structure of the Gê societies to which it belonged in classification. This Apinaye anomaly was one that, while sharing the marked dualism of other related tribal societies, maintained a prescriptive marriage system, with sons incorporated into their father's group and daughters into their mothers' group, that did not fit the Crow-Omaha pattern that he, and Lowie had observed in the Gê tribal system generally.
Despite failing health and warnings from his doctors, he set forth on what was to prove to be his last ethnographic survey in 1945 and died on the 10th of December, among the Tukúna people, by the Solimões river
, near Manaus
.
Cosmology
Cosmology is the discipline that deals with the nature of the Universe as a whole. Cosmologists seek to understand the origin, evolution, structure, and ultimate fate of the Universe at large, as well as the natural laws that keep it in order...
of many native Brazilian Indians, especially the Guarani people. He earned the surname
Surname
A surname is a name added to a given name and is part of a personal name. In many cases, a surname is a family name. Many dictionaries define "surname" as a synonym of "family name"...
Nimuendajú from the Apapocuva branch of the latter, who, in a formal adoption
Adoption
Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting for another and, in so doing, permanently transfers all rights and responsibilities from the original parent or parents...
ceremony
Ceremony
A ceremony is an event of ritual significance, performed on a special occasion. The word may be of Etruscan origin.-Ceremonial occasions:A ceremony may mark a rite of passage in a human life, marking the significance of, for example:* birth...
, gave him the name, meaning 'the one who made himself a home,' a mere 1 year after his arrival among them. He gave it as part of his official name when taking Brazilian citizenship in 1922. In an obituary, his Brazilian-German colleague, Herbert Baldus called him 'perhaps the greatest Indianista of all time.’
Life and work
Nimuendajú was born in Wagnergasse 31 in JenaJena
Jena is a university city in central Germany on the river Saale. It has a population of approx. 103,000 and is the second largest city in the federal state of Thuringia, after Erfurt.-History:Jena was first mentioned in an 1182 document...
in Germany in 1883. Orphaned at an early age. From early youth he dreamed of living among a primitive people. While still a schoolboy, he organized an 'Indian gang' among his fellow students that hunted in the woods outside his native city. After completing his secondary schooling, he worked in a camera factory run by Carl Zeiss
Carl Zeiss
Carl Zeiss was a German maker of optical instruments commonly known for the company he founded, Carl Zeiss Jena . Zeiss made contributions to lens manufacturing that have aided the modern production of lenses...
, lacking the financial means to progress to university level. In his spare time, he devoted himself to studying maps and the ethnography the Indian populations of North and South America. He realized his dream of emigrating to Brazil in 1903, at the age of 20, with the help of his half-sister, who was a teacher, and who assisted him in covering the expenses for his journey to South America.
In 1905, two years after his arrival in Brazil, he established contact with the Guaraní people in the State of São Paulo. A substantial literature existed concerning them, going back to the 17th century, but their religious outlook and rituals were poorly understood. Nimuendajú familiarized himself thoroughly with the existing literature. He moved to Belém in 1913, and his first professional articles date from this time., with a groundbreaking publication on the mythology
Mythology
The term mythology can refer either to the study of myths, or to a body or collection of myths. As examples, comparative mythology is the study of connections between myths from different cultures, whereas Greek mythology is the body of myths from ancient Greece...
and religion of the Guarani Apapokúva, accepted by the Zeitschrift für Ethnologie in 1914. He became the ranking specialist on a large number of Indigenous peoples, particularly those belonging to the Gê group of Central Brazil, in Brazilian tribes
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, the Apapocuva-Guaraní, Tukúna, Kaingang
Kaingang
The Kaingang people are a Native American ethnic group spread out over the four southern Brazilian states of São Paulo, Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul. They are also called Caingang and Aweikoma, though some sources list Kaingang and Aweikoma as separate groups...
, Apinaye, Xerente, Wanano and Canela
Canela language
-External links:**...
among them, all classic monographs which laid, in the words of one recent writer
'the indispensable groundwork from which dozens of doctoral dissertations and books have been elaborated by Brazilian and American anthropologists.'
One of the effects of his work was to shift interest from the tribes living along the coast or in large towns, to the tribes hidden in the interior, and to arouse the interests of anthropologists like the young Claude Lévi-Strauss
Claude Lévi-Strauss
Claude Lévi-Strauss was a French anthropologist and ethnologist, and has been called, along with James George Frazer, the "father of modern anthropology"....
, in communities that, though living in poverty, had managed to develop societies of considerable complexity, and religious cosmologies of great complexity.
Over 40 years of fieldwork, much of it self-financed, he published some 60 monographs, articles and vocabularies dealing with native tribes.
Between 1929 and 1936 he spent some 14 months with the Canela Indians, a Gê-speaking people on the northeastern edge of the central plateau
Brazilian Highlands
The Brazilian Highlands or Brazilian Plateau are an extensive geographical region, covering most of the eastern, southern and central portions of Brazil, in all approximately half of the country's land area, or some 4,500,000 km²...
of Brazil, and his monograph on them, translated and annotated by Robert Lowie
Robert Lowie
Robert Harry Lowie was an Austrian-born American anthropologist. An expert on North American Indians, he was instrumental in the development of modern anthropology.-Biography:...
, was published posthumously in 1946. His work on the Apinaye drew attention because it had many features that made it anomalous to the genre structure of the Gê societies to which it belonged in classification. This Apinaye anomaly was one that, while sharing the marked dualism of other related tribal societies, maintained a prescriptive marriage system, with sons incorporated into their father's group and daughters into their mothers' group, that did not fit the Crow-Omaha pattern that he, and Lowie had observed in the Gê tribal system generally.
Despite failing health and warnings from his doctors, he set forth on what was to prove to be his last ethnographic survey in 1945 and died on the 10th of December, among the Tukúna people, by the Solimões river
Solimões
Solimões is the name often given to early stretches of the Amazon River from the border of Brazil and Peru to its confluence with the Rio Negro.Further upstream from the border, the name of the river seems to depend on the speaker...
, near Manaus
Manaus
Manaus is a city in Brazil, the capital of the state of Amazonas. It is situated at the confluence of the Negro and Solimões rivers. It is the most populous city of Amazonas, according to the statistics of Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics, and is a popular ecotourist destination....
.
Works
- The Šerente, (ed.Robert H. Lowie), The Southwest Museum, 1942
- The Eastern Timbira, (ed.Robert H.Lowie), University of California Press, 1946
- The Tukuna, (ed.Robert H.Lowie) University of California Press, 1952
- The Apinayé, (tr.and ed. Robert H.Lowie, John M. Cooper), Catholic University of America Press, 1939