Wapixana, Vapidiana in Guyana
Photo Source:
Inclusive Security - Flickr
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| People Name: | Wapixana, Vapidiana |
| Country: | Guyana |
| 10/40 Window: | No |
| Population: | 7,500 |
| World Population: | 15,300 |
| Primary Language: | Wapishana |
| Primary Religion: | Christianity |
| Christian Adherents: | 60.00 % |
| Evangelicals: | 12.00 % |
| Scripture: | New Testament |
| Ministry Resources: | Yes |
| Jesus Film: | No |
| Audio Recordings: | Yes |
| People Cluster: | South American Indigenous |
| Affinity Bloc: | Latin-Caribbean Americans |
| Progress Level: |
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Introduction / History
The Wapishana (AKA, Vapidiana) have a language by the same name. It is from the Arawak family of languages. They live in Guyana and Brazil.
They were among the first people in the New World to encounter Westerners. They encountered Columbus on his third voyage in 1498. They traded with the Spaniards, but the Portuguese immediately attacked their settlements with the desire to enslave them. By the late 1700s, they were working for the Portuguese. Eventually, the Brazilian government established the Wapixanas in new settlements.
What Are Their Lives Like?
Wapixana farmers grow cassava as their staple food, as well as green onions, root vegetables, squash, peppers, tomatoes, and other crops. Women spend hours grinding cassava to extract the liquid and then use the dried part to bake a thick, flat bread.
Everyone goes fishing, but the men hunt wild game. The men also craft goods such as baskets, sieves, and squeezers for cassava preparation. Women produce clay pots for cooking and woven goods for baby slings and hammocks.
They usually have Catholic marriages. Either party can initiate a divorce, and village leaders try to keep the couple together. Families are typically nuclear, although they often include grandparents. A patriarch frequently surrounds his home with smaller homes for each of his sons households.
What Are Their Beliefs?
Though the Wapixanas are mainly Roman Catholic or Evangelical, they hold onto old practices involving rituals to cure or curse others.
What Are Their Needs?
The Wapixanas need better health care, medical clinics, and schools. Those who live in Brazil are in danger of losing control of their land.
Prayer Points
Pray for their physical and spiritual needs to be met by the King of Glory.
Pray for a Holy Spirit-sent revival to affect Wapixana churches and families, blessing them in every way.
Pray that they may understand that Jesus came to give them abundant life.
Pray that soon Wapixanas will be reaching remote tribes in Brazil.