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CHAPTER SIX: CITIES, TOWNS, AND THE COUNTRYSIDE
that lived off the land—some even worshipped it. In Brazil, the Amazon is
home to at least seventy-seven indigenous tribes that have never been seen
by other humans. Some, such as the Awa, are hunters and gatherers, moving
from place to place, building and abandoning homes within days. Other tribes,
however, are more settled, living in communal villages where they hunt, fish,
and plant crops.
TRIBAL LIVING
The Aparai and Wayna tribes live in small villages, which traditionally
do not have more than ten people, although some have nearly thirty
residents. In Brazil, the tribes have a population of 415 people, who live in
fifteen villages along the East Paru River. They live in homes called
tapyi
, which
are made of several “houses,” including one that serves as communal kitchen
and another that serves as an “oven house” where manioc bread is baked.
About 20 million live in the Amazon region, most of them in Brazil. The
largest city, with around 2 million people, is Manaus, the capital of the state
of Amazonas, located on the Black River, the largest
tributary
of the Amazon
River. One town, Catalão, is downriver of Manaus. Catalão floods each year,
Aerial view of Manaus in the state of Amazonas.