Cultural and linguistic affinities of the foraging peoples of northern Amazonia: a new perspective

摘要: In pre-Colonial t imes, the region of Orinoco/Rio Negro watershed was an important link in trade network that extended from Ucayali to Orinoco Delta and, as such, it provided channel for many cultural well economic exchanges. But after eighteenth century, formal establishment international boundary between Hispanoand lusophone colonies, coupled with dislocation or destruction Upper indigenous communities by slave-trading, missionization and a variety extractive fronts, had effect breaking chain contacts. Indigenous groups on both sides frontier were induced turn their attention downstream, towards local colonial entrepots, relative neglect former partners other side (Hill & Wright 1988:84-85, Dreyfus 1992:84-87). This rupturing Rio has also been reflected certain degree anthropological studies since connections peoples two river basins are often overlooked (Henley 1990:191). A case point concerns foraging basins, i.e. those