The Awajún People

Who Are the Awajún?

The Awajún (also known as Aguaruna) are one of the largest indigenous groups in the Peruvian Amazon, numbering over 80,000 people living along the upper Marañón River and its tributaries in northern Peru. Members of the Jivaroan language family, they share cultural traits with the Shuar of Ecuador, including historical practices of trophy head-taking (tsantsa). The Awajún maintained their independence against Inca expansion, Spanish conquistadors, and Peruvian government control through fierce warrior traditions and intimate knowledge of their rainforest territory. Today they are internationally recognized for environmental activism, particularly the 2009 Bagua protests where Awajún communities blockaded roads to stop oil drilling and logging on their lands, resulting in violent confrontations that brought global attention to Amazonian indigenous rights. They continue to practice sustainable agroforestry, maintain their language, and fight for territorial autonomy against extractive industries.

History of Resistance and Independence

The Awajún successfully resisted conquest by the Inca Empire, Spanish conquistadors, and later Peruvian authorities through a combination of fierce military resistance, strategic alliances, and rainforest expertise. Spanish missions established in Awajún territory in the 17th-18th centuries were repeatedly destroyed in uprisings. The rubber boom (1880s-1920s) brought violence and slavery, but Awajún communities fought back against rubber barons more successfully than many Amazonian groups. Peru's government only began successfully establishing control in the mid-20th century through missionary schools and military posts. However, the Awajún never fully surrendered autonomy. Their warrior ethos transformed into political and environmental activism—the 2009 Bagua massacre where police killed Awajún protesters defending their territory shocked Peru and strengthened indigenous rights movements across the Amazon.

Traditional Warfare and Cultural Practices

Historically, Awajún society centered on warfare and revenge. Inter-group conflicts, often triggered by accusations of shamanic attack or disputes over territory, resulted in raids where warriors sought to kill enemies and take trophy heads. The tsantsa (shrunken head) ritual involved removing the skull, shrinking the skin through elaborate processing with hot sand and stones, and sewing the lips shut to trap the victim's vengeful spirit. Possession of tsantsa brought prestige and spiritual power. Vision quests using ayahuasca and other plants allowed young men to encounter ajútap (spiritual power beings) who granted warrior abilities. Women held important roles as agriculturalists and peacemakers, though male warriors dominated public life. These practices have largely ceased, replaced by modern conflict resolution, though the warrior identity remains central to Awajún cultural pride.

Agroforestry and Forest Knowledge

The Awajún are master tropical forest managers, practicing sophisticated swidden agriculture (slash-and-burn farming) that maintains biodiversity while producing food. They clear small forest plots, plant manioc (cassava), plantains, corn, and dozens of other crops in multi-story gardens mimicking forest structure, then allow plots to regenerate after 2-3 years. Their territory includes hundreds of useful plant species—foods, medicines, fibers, dyes, and poisons. Barbasco and huaca plants poison fish for easy harvesting. Curare poison on blowgun darts paralyzes game animals. Hunting provides protein from peccaries, monkeys, tapirs, and birds. River fishing uses hand-woven nets, traps, and poison. This subsistence system supports permanent villages while maintaining forest health, contrasting sharply with destructive logging and oil extraction activities they oppose.

Shamanism and Spiritual Beliefs

Awajún cosmology centers on wakan (souls or spirits) inhabiting humans, animals, plants, and natural features. Death doesn't end the wakan—it transforms into potentially dangerous spirits requiring proper burial rituals. Iwishin (shamans) mediate between human and spirit worlds, using ayahuasca, toe (datura), and other visionary plants to diagnose illness, counter sorcery attacks, and communicate with spirit beings. Most illness is attributed to shamanic attack by enemy shamans or violation of social norms angering spirits. Shamans extract illness-causing objects through sucking and restore stolen souls. The ajútap vision quest remains important—adolescent boys seek encounters with spirit beings who grant special powers for hunting, warfare, or shamanism. Awajún Christianity (primarily evangelical) has spread widely but often coexists with traditional beliefs in a syncretic system.

Modern Activism and Environmental Defense

The Awajún emerged as powerful voices for Amazonian indigenous rights in recent decades. Peru's government titled 2 million hectares of Awajún territory in the 1970s-80s, giving them legal standing to oppose extractive industries. The Bagua conflict (June 2009) occurred when President Alan García's government passed decrees opening indigenous lands to oil and mining without consultation, violating ILO Convention 169. Awajún and Wampis people blockaded the Fernando Belaúnde Terry Highway. Police attacked the blockade, killing 33 protesters and police in violent clashes broadcast internationally. The protests forced Peru to repeal the decrees and strengthened legal protections for indigenous consultation. Today Awajún organizations like ODECOFROC monitor illegal logging, operate bilingual schools teaching Awajún and Spanish, run ecotourism projects, and participate in regional governance while maintaining cultural traditions threatened by modernization and youth migration.