Society-MATACO

The Mataco (Mataguayo) are an American Indian ethnic group located
in the western part of the Argentine-Bolivian Gran Chaco, between
the Rio Pilcomayo and the Rio Bermejo. They are divided into three
main regional groups: (1) the Mataco-Vejos, the most acculturated
group, who live in the northern Argentine, bounded on the west by
Tartagal and on the south by the Rio Bermejo; (2) the Mataco-Guisnay,
who inhabit the right bank of the Pilcomayo, about thirty miles south
of Fortin Guachalla; and (3( the Mataco-Noctenes, the least acculturated
group, who occupy the triangle formed by the lines connecting the
villages of Yucuiba, Villa Montes, and Crevaux. In contrast to other
Chaco groups, the Mataco have had more exposure to Whites and they
have exhibited a remarkable adaptability to the new situations created
by contact.

Greenberg (1966) classifies the Mataco language within the Macro-Panoan
subfamily of the Ge-Pano-Carib language family. Dialectual differences
occur among the three regional groups. The Choroti, the Ashluslay,
the Maca, and the Lengua-Enimaga peoples are all closely related linguistically
to the Mataco (Steward and Faron 1959: 22, 415).

There is very little information available on Mataco demography. An
early missionary account by the Franciscan Father Jose Cardus, published
in Barcelona in 1886, estimated that the Mataco population around
that time was 20,000 (Pelleschi 1896: 42-43).  Current population
figures are unavailable, but it is probable that a few thousand Mataco
Indians survive today. Next to the Toba, they are the largest of the
Argentine Chaco groups.

Because of the inhospitable geographic and climatic conditions of
the Gran Chaco, exploration of this area was slow and sporadic. The
western Chcao in particular is noted for its aridity, soil salinity,
very hot summers, and locust plagues. Wild plant foods were generally
the basis of subsistence, but a vital supplement was provided by seasonal
fishing in the Bermejo, Pilcomayo, and Salado Rivers (Steward and
Faron 1959: 413-16).

The Mataco are primarily hunters and gatherers. Various roots and
seeds, wild honey, and wild fruits are collected, the most important
food source being the wild fruit, especially algarrobo, which is preserved
and stored for later use. A beer used in the practice of magic is
made from algarrobo. Because of unfavorable ecological conditions,
there is limited agricultural activity. Beans, watermelons, manioc,
and maize are grown, but the most important crop is squash. Domesticated
animals include sheep, goats, dogs, and fowl. Fishing is the most
important economic activity. Fish is the favorite food of the Mataco,
and any surplus fish is dried and stored. Fishing with nets is common.
The Mataco hunt tapir, wild pig, and various small animals with bows
and arrows. Tools are made from bone and shell. Stone is not available.
The Mataco weave fabrics, nets, and baskets; they also make cereamics.

The Mataco are seminomadic  A village is always located near a convenient
water supply, pasturage, and wild fruit trees. The village usually
consists of 6 to 12 houses arranged in a circle around an open area,
which is used for sheep and goats or for games or ceremonies. The
traditional Mataco house is a circular hut, with a frame made from
saplings, canes, etc. and covered with rushes, grass, or palm leaves.

In traditional Mataco villages there is no real political authority.
The chief of the village is selected for his wisdom by the village
elders. A war chief is selected whenever the village goes to war against
another village; when several villages are involved in warfare, a
council of allied chiefs is formed. The cacique system is found in
acculturated Mataco villages. The cacique has greater power, especially
judicial, than the traditional chief does, and he acts as an agent
in dealing with the Whites. The cacique also mediates differences
between local groups.

Village exogamy is practiced. Girls usually marry between the ages
of 12 and 14; the final decision regarding the choice of the husband
is left to the girl's mother. The mataco also have the custom of bride
service. After this service has been completed and until their first
child is born, the married couple live in the husband's village. Thereafter,
residence is matrolocal. Descent is matrilineal, and kinship terminology
is of the Hawaiian type.

Ceremonies are important to the Mataco. Some of the ceremonies performed
are associated with disease, hunting and fishing, agriculture (especially
to ensure the algarrobo harvest), religion, weddings, and puberty
for girls. During ceremonies, dancing, drum playing, drinking, and
chanting are all thought to ward off evil spirits. The Mataco pray
to guardian spirits for supernatural aid. In ceremonies performed
to prevent disease, the Mataco tattoo their bodies using soot or ashes
as pigment. Bleeding and scarification, as well as the ownership of
sacred objects, are also believed to be effective in preventing disease.
The Mataco believe that evil spirits manifest themselves in the form
of disease in humans as the result of witchcraft. To cure disease,
the shaman is called upon to dance, make noise, suck out the evil
object, and use spells and charms. Herbs, especially in poultices,
are also used to cure disease.

The Mataco believe that there is an upper world, composed of the earth
and the sky, and a lower world, where the dead live. They also believe
that spirits inhabit many natural objects, plants, and animals. Other
types of spirits, "free floating" spirits, are associated with thunder
and lightning, etc. Some of these spirits are good, but others are
evil.

Summaries of Mataco culture may be found in Karsten (1932) and Moore
(1965).

Culture summary by Robert O. Lagace and Heather M. Fellows



Greenberg, Joseph H. The languages of Africa.
 Bloominton, Indiana University, 1966.
 Karsten, Rafael.
 Indian tribes of the Argentine and Bolivian Chaco;
 ethnological studies.
 Helsingfors, Akademische Buchhandlung, 1932.
 10, 236 p. illus., map.
 Moore, Frank W. Mataco cultural summary.
 10 l. map.
 Typescript.
 Unpublished manuscript -- New Haven, Human Relations Area Files, 1965 Pelleschi, Juan.
 Los Indios Matacos y su lengua [The Mataco Indians and their language].
 Introduction by Samuel A. Lafone Quevedo.
 Instituto Geografico Argentino, Boletin, 17 (1896): 559-622;
 18 (1896): 173-350.
 Steward, Julian H. Native peoples of South America.
 By Julian H. Steward and Louis C. Faron.
 New York, McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1959.


7861