Ka'apor narratives and songs: translation and knowledge

• Grant number: 24/05588-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: October 01, 2024
• End date: September 30, 2028
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Anthropology - Indigenous Ethnology
• Principal Investigator: Pedro de Niemeyer Cesarino
• Grantee: André Sanches de Abreu
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Filosofia, Letras e Ciências Humanas (FFLCH). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The aim is to study the verbal arts of the Ka'apor (a Tupi-speaking people who live in the northwestern region of the state of Maranhão) especially the songs and narratives of the ancients. To this end, the research, which is essentially ethnographic, uses the tools of documentation, systematization, transcription and translation of these verbal performances. This research proposal is a continuation of the study carried out during my master's degree. Based on preliminary studies, the proposed research hypothesizes that the narratives of the ancients (ymanihar ke ma'e panduha) and the songs (jyngariha), two manifestations of the Ka'apor verbal arts, are privileged manifestations in which Ka'apor reflections on the forest, the beings that inhabit it, and the relationship that is established between them, appear. In this sense, these manifestations could be considered the Ka'apor ways of doing and knowing. Therefore, the research aims to contribute to reflections on translation and on Amerindian verbal arts, especially considering their aesthetic resources.