Community elder committed to preserving language of her ancestors
IAN STALKER
Little Fish has lofty linguistic goals.
Bilingual Maria Rodrigues of the Brazilian Amazon settlement of Mirituba — found on the Rio Negro river — wants to see children in her community grow up speaking both Portuguese and the Indigenous language of their ancestors and so she’s happy to provide language instruction.
And Rodrigues is also happy to tell visitors about lifestyles in her Indigenous community, which can be visited by Katerre Expedition clients on jungle cruises that depart from an area near Manaus.
Small Mirituba doesn’t have road access.
Those visiting the settlement will see the likes of a school that has around a dozen students, and homes, with Rodrigues happy to show tourists her own home.
Rodrigues — who arrived in the area after a family dispute prompted her to leave home elsewhere in the sprawling Amazon — says she wants to preserve Indigenous traditions, including her ancestral language, adding her own Indigenous name — Katymyry — translates as Little Fish.
Area Indigenous names often have bird, fish or animal references.
The remote community,which only has electricity three hours a day, is eager to benefit from tourism, among other things offering visitors locally made handicrafts, including necklaces and wooden carvings, such as miniature canoe paddles.
“It’s fascinating to get a glimpse into a completely different way of life. And uplifting to witness their efforts to preserve their culture and native language. I find it special when I can interact with the kids and was happy to find a unique necklace one of the talented boys had made with local seeds and materials,” says travel agent Patricia Monahan of Our Whole Village, who recently visited Mirituba with Katerre Expedition.
Meanwhile, Katerre is helping fund local schooling, donating to dozens of schools in remote communities in the area.
Monahan serves as a North American representative for Katerre and can be reached by emailing [email protected].
More information can be found at katerre.com/us.
