Metyktire Explained

The Metyktire are a subgroup of the Kayapo people of Brazil. They live on the Menkregnoti reservation in the Amazon River basin.[1] They are estimated to have about 87 members. They were discovered in May 2007 when two tribesmen entered a Kayapo village in the Menkregnoti reservation. The Metyktire form part of the Kayapo people and speak an archaic version of the Kayapo language.[2]

When discovered, they had not had any known contact with Western civilization. This was attributed to their location on the 12100000-2NaN-2 reservation, in an area difficult to access due to dense jungle and lack of nearby rivers. The Metyktire had had little to no recent contact with other Kayapo until the 2007 visit.[3] The Kayapo believe the Metyktire formed when several families fled deeper into the jungle in the 1950s.

Neither men nor women wear clothes. Men wear penis-protection. The women shave their heads.

Notes and References

  1. http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2007/0601/breaking72.htm Reuters via the Irish Times, "'Unknown' tribe found in Amazon" 1 June 2007
  2. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2007/06/01/international/i194021D74.DTL Associated Press via the San Francisco Chronicle, "Indian Tribe Found in Brazil's Amazon", June 1 2007
  3. News: Uncontacted Indian tribe found in Brazil's Amazon. Associated Press. 2007-06-01.