| André Cognat | |
| Birth Date: | 21 February 1938 |
| Birth Place: | Pierre-Bénite, Metropolitan Lyon, France |
| Death Date: | 15 October 2021 (aged 83) |
| Death Place: | Antecume Pata, French Guiana, France |
| Occupation: | Tribal chief, memoirist |
André Cognat, also known as Antecume, (21 February 1938 – 15 October 2021) was the French Guianese chief of a Wayana tribe in Antecume Pata, French Guiana, France.
André Cognat was born on 21 February 1938 in Pierre-Bénite near Lyon, in metropolitan France.[1]
Cognat moved to French Guiana in 1961, at the age of 23.[1] His boat capsized on the Litani near Maripasoula, and he was rescued by a Wayana from the Amazonia.[1] Cognat decided to stay there, and he married a Wayana woman called Alasawani in 1973; they had a son and a daughter.[1] By 1985, he took the name of Antecume.[1] He also founded a new settlement called Antecume Pata,[2] and he became the chief of the local Wayana tribe.[1]
Cognat founded Yepe, a non-profit organization to protect the rights of the Wayanas, in 1990.[1] In particular, he had interceded for them in Cayenne to retain their access to water against Brazilian gold dredgers.[1]
Cognat is the author of two memoirs about his life as a tribal chief.
Cognat died on 15 October 2021 at the age of 83 at his home in Antecume Pata, French Guiana, France.[3]