Region
The Caribbean, Trinidad and the Guianas
16 nations of The Caribbean, Trinidad and the Guianas, each with its own name first and checked facts with sources.
16 nations
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Akawaio
Also known as Kapon
Lands Upper Mazaruni area and nearby river valleys of western Guyana, with Akawaio also counted in Venezuela's census
Akawaio is one of the nine Indigenous languages covered by Guyana's language revival programme, which the government moved to restart in 2021.
Source: Department of Public Information, Government of Guyana (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Barí
Also known as Motilón Barí
Lands Serranía de los Motilones and the Catatumbo and Oro river basins in Norte de Santander, Colombia, and Zulia state, Venezuela
Census counts put the Barí at about 2,841 people in Venezuela in 2011 and 3,018 in Colombia in 2018.
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Parikwene
Also known as Palikur
Lands The Urukauá River in the Uaçá basin of Amapá, Brazil, and Saint-Georges-de-l'Oyapock, Cayenne and the lower Oyapock in French Guiana
Parikwene families have villages in both Brazil and French Guiana and travel across the border often to visit kin and to trade.
Source: Instituto Socioambiental (ISA), Indigenous Peoples in Brazil (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Patamona
Also known as Kapon
Lands North and South Pakaraima Mountains and the Essequibo region of Guyana, including villages near Kaieteur Falls
Chenapou is the Patamona village closest to Kaieteur National Park, and Patamona communities hunt, fish and gather plants in the lands around Kaieteur.
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Pemón
Also known as Arekuna
Lands Savannas of southeastern Venezuela, the Kamarang River area of Guyana, and Roraima state in Brazil
In Venezuela's 2011 census, where people self-identified, the Pemón made up about 4.2 percent of the country's Indigenous population.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE), Venezuela (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Santa Rosa First Peoples Community
Also known as Santa Rosa Carib Community
Lands Arima, Trinidad, Trinidad and Tobago
The community works to pass its culture on to younger generations and the wider public, serving as cultural ambassadors for Trinidad's First Peoples.
Source: National Trust of Trinidad and Tobago (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Taíno
Lands Puerto Rico, Cuba, the Dominican Republic and other islands of the Greater Antilles, and diaspora communities in the United States
Over about four decades a Taíno movement has grown in Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico, as more families and groups affirm their Native ancestry.
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Tarëno
Also known as Trio
Lands Southern Suriname along the Sipaliwini, Tapanahony and Paloemeu rivers, and the Tumucumaque Indigenous Park in Pará, Brazil
Suriname's association of Indigenous village leaders counts the Trio among the country's four large Indigenous peoples, living mainly in the south.
Source: Vereniging van Inheemse Dorpshoofden in Suriname (VIDS) (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Teko
Also known as Émerillon
Lands Camopi on the Oyapock River and Cayodé on the upper Maroni, French Guiana
France lists Teko, formerly called Émerillon, among French Guiana's six Amerindian languages recognized as languages of France.
Source: Ministère de la Culture, Direction des affaires culturelles de Guyane (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Uwottüja
Also known as Piaroa
Lands The Autana, Cuao, Sipapo and Guayapo rivers and the middle Orinoco, Amazonas state, Venezuela
In 2020 Uwottüja communities of the Autana, Cuao, Sipapo and Guayapo rivers met at Pendare and declared themselves guardians of their territory.
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Wai Wai
Also known as Waiwai
Lands Kanashen in the far south of Guyana, and Indigenous lands in Pará, Amazonas and Roraima states, Brazil
In 2007 the Wai Wai of Kanashen in southern Guyana made their titled forest a Community Owned Conservation Area; in 2017 it became a national protected area.
Source: Protected Areas Commission, Guyana (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Wajãpi
Also known as Wayãpi
Lands Wajãpi Indigenous Land in Amapá, Brazil, and the middle and upper Oyapock River in French Guiana
UNESCO lists the oral and graphic expressions of the Wajãpi, including the kusiwa graphic art, on its Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage.
Source: UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Warao
Also known as Warrau
Lands Orinoco Delta of Venezuela, the North West District of Guyana, and communities in Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago's government names the Warao Nation of Trinidad and Tobago among the country's own Indigenous groups.
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Wayana
Lands Upper Maroni River and its tributaries in French Guiana, the Tapanahony and Paloemeu rivers in Suriname, and the East Paru River in Pará, Brazil
France recognizes Wayana as one of six Amerindian languages of French Guiana with the status of a language of France.
Source: Ministère de la Culture, Direction des affaires culturelles de Guyane (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Ye'kwana
Also known as Ye'kuana
Lands Amazonas and Bolívar states in southern Venezuela, and the Auaris and Uraricoera rivers of Roraima, Brazil
The name Ye'kwana, which the people use for themselves, entered Venezuela's census in 1982 and has almost fully replaced the outside name Makiritare.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE), Venezuela (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Yukpa
Lands Sierra de Perijá on both sides of the border: Zulia state, Venezuela, and Cesar department, Colombia
Census counts put the Yukpa at about 10,640 people in Venezuela in 2011 and 3,610 in Colombia in 2018.