Guaymí

▪ people

      Central American Indians of western Panama, divisible into two main groups, the Northern Guaymí and the Southern Guaymí. The Guaymí language is one of the Chibchan group. The Northern Guaymí live in a tropical forest environment in which hunting and gathering of wild foods are nearly as important as agriculture. The Southern Guaymí also gather wild plants but are more heavily dependent on agriculture. Staple crops are corn (maize), beans, sweet manioc (cassava), papaya, plantain, banana, pigeon peas, and occasionally rice. Slash-and-burn agriculture is common, with men doing the clearing of fields and women the planting, using digging sticks. Hunting is done with guns if available, otherwise with bow and arrow or blowgun. Traps and snares are also used. Fishing is important, particularly to the Southern Guaymí.

      Houses may be round, square, or rectangular, with thatched roofs and generally with walls of upright poles. The Guaymí commonly wear traditional clothing, consisting of a breechclout, a short poncho or full cotton shirt, and sometimes sandals and a straw hat for men, and a breechclout and a long, full-skirted dress for women. Beads, feathers, and necklaces are worn as jewelry. Men also paint their faces. Among their crafts are basket weaving, net making, and pottery; textile weaving has almost died out.

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