Wednesday, 17 January 2018 11:27

Enlhet

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The Enlhet and Enenlhet Peoples

According to archaeological data, the Enlhet and Enenlhet peoples, also known as the Maskoy peoples, arrived in the Paraguayan Chaco from a sub-Andean region in the northwest. They gradually moved southeast, populating large areas of the Central and Lower Chaco. During this migration and settlement process, at least six subgroups emerged, each eventually occupying its own habitat. These subgroups are the Sanapaná, Toba-Maskoy, Angaité, Guaná, Northern Lengua, and Southern Lengua.

Their recent history is told through their oral traditions. Economically adapted to the environment of the Central and Lower Chaco, they maintained good trade relations among themselves and with their Nivaclé and Maká neighbors. Their main enemies were the Chamacoco, Ayoreo, and Toba-Guaicurú. They recall the time of the great migrations of the Guaicurú groups, who exerted significant pressure on their territories in the Lower Chaco. This led to what they describe as a prolonged "Indigenous World War."

In the 18th century, when both the Payaguá and the Mbayá gradually abandoned the banks of the Paraguay River, the Maskoy groups expanded their territory to the river. This marked the beginning of their contact with white settlers. While it provided opportunities to acquire iron tools and domesticated animals, it also ushered in a long period of suffering due to diseases brought by Europeans, such as influenza, measles, smallpox, and tuberculosis.

By the late 19th century, a series of foreign companies purchased vast expanses of Chaco land. As a result, the indigenous inhabitants were effectively dispossessed without realizing it. However, they did take note of the establishment of various ports along the river, where tannin factories were soon built. These ports became centers of attraction for indigenous people, who sought employment to obtain goods from white civilization.

At the beginning of the 21st century, most of the Enlhet and Enenlhet peoples managed to secure some legally recognized land for their communities. Although these areas are minimal compared to their ancestral territories, several communities in the Central Chaco have adopted a sedentary economy, engaging in agriculture, livestock farming, and local labor markets. Other communities have settled in urban areas or as worker neighborhoods within large ranches, relying on wage labor.

The Enlhet-Enenlhet peoples are in the process of building new ethnic identities around life projects that include reclaiming part of their ancestral lands, developing a new subsistence base through agriculture and livestock, and establishing more satisfactory relationships with surrounding society and national and local governments. They aspire to political participation as a means to advocate for the recognition of their ethnic agendas. Across all groups, the preservation or recovery of their native languages is also a key part of their identity-building process.

An integral aspect of these new life projects is the organization of family life, which is based on economic solidarity within extended kinship groups. Other cultural values maintained in this new context include social harmony, prioritizing social relationships over economic gain, community organization based on equality, rejecting coercion as a means of social control, and idealizing kindness, generosity, and soft-spoken discourse. New values incorporated into their evolving social identity have been influenced by the adoption of the Christian faith, which is now prevalent in most groups.

In a 2003 seminar attended by 65 leaders from various Central Chaco communities, discussions centered on the sense of community security, particularly in economic terms. Several factors were highlighted as contributing to a sense of stability: titled land, which provides legal security for their settlements; access to natural resources within their communities; large home gardens; and easily accessible community stores.

Other factors contributing to security included community harmony, which was fostered by an active spiritual life among most residents. Additionally, community services such as mutual hospital aid and seed credit programs were recognized as elements that promoted a sense of security and stability in communal life.

However, the seminar participants concluded that the core factor for a harmonious life was the set of cultural customs related to solidarity. This solidarity manifests primarily within extended families, where there is an absolute responsibility to help one another. When needed, individuals can request food, assistance with tasks, or support in times of conflict. Those with steady employment or a successful harvest are expected to demonstrate kindness by sharing with others.

The practice of sharing was emphasized as a fundamental virtue, identified as a biblical truth and a value that must never be lost. It was deemed essential to teach younger generations about this commitment. While saving was also acknowledged as important, seminar participants stressed that an empathetic person would never hoard resources while others around them were in need.

The desired economic system is one of diversified production. This includes vegetable gardens, cash crop farming, collectively managed livestock, poultry farming, beekeeping, gathering wild resources, temporary jobs in nearby agricultural farms, and stable employment either within or outside the community. Not every individual is expected to engage in all these economic activities; instead, participation is based on each member’s interests and skills. The income generated through these diverse activities is shared collectively within extended kinship groups.

Enlhet-Enenlhet (Maskoy) Language Family

Dialect Group Selected Communities
Northern Enlhet Yalve Sanga, Campo Largo, Pozo Amarillo, Paz del Chaco, Monte Palmeras
Southern Enlhet Armonía, La Esperanza, El Estribo, La Herencia, Maklhawaya
Toba Pozo Amarillo, Casanillo, Laguna Porá
Sanapaná La Esperanza, Anaconda, Nueva Promesa, Diez Leguas, Karanda'y Puku
Angaité Diez Leguas, Kora'í, La Patria, San Carlos
Guaná Machete Vaina, Riacho Mosquito, Apa Costa

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