Jívaro << HEE vuh roh >> are a Native American tribe famous for their fierceness and for their head shrinking. They live in tropical forests on the eastern slopes of the Andes Mountains in Ecuador. Although the Jívaro are spoken of as a tribe, they are split into many small groups which used to fight among themselves.
In early times, the Jívaro lived like other tropical-forest groups of the Amazon Valley. They planted corn, tobacco, and cassava, a root crop. They hunted with blowguns and darts and with spears. The Jívaro fished with traps and with barbasco, a drug that stupefies fish so they can be speared easily. The Inca of Peru probably taught the Jívaro how to keep llamas and guinea pigs. Jívaro men usually wore a wrap-around skirt and sometimes a poncho. Jívaro women wore a full-length robe or dress.
A typical Jívaro village had only one large dwelling, which housed 40 to 80 people. Each village might be fortified with trenches filled with spears. The Jívaro were famous warriors who fought mainly to avenge the death of a relative. A victorious warrior beheaded his victim and shrank the head. This tsantsa became a trophy. Today, most Jívaro have given up warfare and live peaceably among themselves and with their neighbors.
See also Headhunter.
