Warao (Waroa, Guarauno, Guarao, Warrau): 18,000 in Venezuela (1993 UBS). A few elderly speakers on
both sides of the Guyana-Surinam border. On the delta of the Orinoco River,
Delta Amacuro, Sucre, Monagas.
The Warao Indians
(wah-row-oh; say row as in
cow) live on the Orinoco River Delta in Venezuela (Map). The Orinoco is wider than the Mississippi.
When it reaches the Delta emptying into the Atlantic Ocean, it creates a
huge land area composed of many small rivers with numerous islands and
marshes. The Warao Indians live in huts on stilts which usually have a thatched
roof but no walls. A fire pit made of clay is in the center and the
Indians sleep in hammocks. One year after Columbus discovered the Orinoco Delta,
Alonso de Ojeda sailed into the area, saw the huts on stilts over the water
and named the area Venezuela or "Little Venice. The only mode of
transportation for hundreds of miles is by bongo, or dugout canoe. The name Warao
means literally "Boat People." Children here learn to paddle
before
they can walk.
Origin Myth - The Warao believe men first lived in a
sky world
where the only animals were birds. Then one day a hunter shot a bird with such
force that his arrow pierced the ground of the sky world and continued to the
earth below. Peering through the hole and seeing a rich land beneath them,
teeming with all manner of game, the hunter attached a long cotton rope to a
tree and lowered himself to earth. There he was ultimately joined by his
fellows, who finally decided to abandon the sky world and settle permanently on
earth. (from Robert
L. Carneiro, American Museum of Natural History)
Photos property of Hands Around the World.
The Warao are considered very fine basket makers. Their
baskets are often lidded with a carrying strap. They also make
basket trays. They wrap the fibers around a coil of a palm branch similar to
the sweet grass baskets of Afro-Americans in the Charleston, South Carolina
area. The baskets are woven using centuries-old skills handed down from
mother to daughter. The entire family contributes to the work on the
baskets. The men gather the reeds from the marshy areas near the coast. Some
reeds are dyed with natural vegetable dyes to add color and pattern. The
younger children assist by sorting the reeds, while the older ones assist in
gathering, weaving, or dyeing.
These baskets are hand woven
so tightly that they are very stiff and hard, woven with natural palm fibers.
Some are dyed pale turquoise, coral, and pale green using natural dyes.
11" diameter
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