The Carib sky - article ; n°1 ; vol.68, pg 105-132

Fabiola Jara, Edmundo Magaña

Description

Journal de la Société des Américanistes - Année 1982 - Volume 68 - Numéro 1 - Pages 105-132
Edmundo MAGANA et Fabiola JARA. Ciel caribe. Cet article présente les résultats d'une recherche effectuée au Surinam, en 1980, dans trois communautés caribes. Un relevé exhaustif des étoiles et des constellations des indiens Caribs et une représentation graphique de celles qui ont pu être identifiées sûrement sont donnés. L'article inclut d'autres informations concernant les «tiempos de emergencia» des étoiles et la mythologie stellaire en général. Outre les données recueillies en 1980, les auteurs rappellent les sources connues depuis le XVIe siècle et discutent brièvement les théories caribes relatives à l'origine des étoiles. L'article représente la première publication exhaustive sur l'astronomie caribe — deux publications antérieures, limitées, datant de 1907 et de 1931.
Cielo caribe. Este artículo tiene como objeto la presentación de los resultados de una investigación de campo realizada en Surinam en 1980 en très aldeas de los indios Caribes. Se hace una recopilación exhaustiva de las estrellas y constelaciones de los Caribes y la representación gráfica de aquéllas positivamente identificadas. Incluye otřas informaciones générales concerniendo los tiempos de emergencia de las estrellas de acuerdo a los Caribes mismos y otras noticias sobre mitología estelar. Además de los datos recogidos en 1980, se présenta la información anterior - desde el siglo XVI - sobre astronomía caribe, la revisión de estas fuentes y una discusión breve de las teorías caribes sobre el origen de las estrellas. Este artículo constituye el primer trabajo exhaustivo sobre astronomía caribe. Dos trabajos anteriores, de alcance muy limitado y muy breves, datan de 1907 y 1931.
The Carib sky. This article gives the results of an investigacion made in Surinam, in 1980, in three Carib communities. An exhaustive account of the stars of the Carib s and a graphic representation of these that could be identified are given. Other informations concern the «tiempos de emergencia» of the stars and the stellar mythology relative to them. Besides the data collected in 1980, the authors quote informations known since the 16th century and comment briefly the Carib theories about the origin of the stars. It is the first exhaustive publication about Carib astronomy — two previous ones, limited, dating from 1907 and 1931.
28 pages
Source : Persée ; Ministère de la jeunesse, de l’éducation nationale et de la recherche, Direction de l’enseignement supérieur, Sous-direction des bibliothèques et de la documentation.

Sujets

• Sociologie, société et politique

Informations

• Publié par: JOURNAL_DE_LA_SOCIETE_DES_AMERICANISTES
• Publié le: 01 janvier 1982
• Nombre de lectures: 28
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 2 Mo

Extrait

Edmundo Magaña
Fabiola Jara
The Carib sky
In: Journal de la Société des Américanistes. Tome 68, 1982. pp. 105-132.
Citer ce document / Cite this document :
Magaña Edmundo, Jara Fabiola. The Carib sky. In: Journal de la Société des Américanistes. Tome 68, 1982. pp. 105-132.
doi : 10.3406/jsa.1982.2212
http://www.persee.fr/web/revues/home/prescript/article/jsa_0037-9174_1982_num_68_1_2212Résumé
Edmundo MAGANA et Fabiola JARA. Ciel caribe. Cet article présente les résultats d'une recherche
effectuée au Surinam, en 1980, dans trois communautés caribes. Un relevé exhaustif des étoiles et des
constellations des indiens Caribs et une représentation graphique de celles qui ont pu être identifiées
sûrement sont donnés. L'article inclut d'autres informations concernant les «tiempos de emergencia»
des étoiles et la mythologie stellaire en général. Outre les données recueillies en 1980, les auteurs
rappellent les sources connues depuis le XVIe siècle et discutent brièvement les théories caribes
relatives à l'origine des étoiles. L'article représente la première publication exhaustive sur l'astronomie
caribe — deux publications antérieures, limitées, datant de 1907 et de 1931.
Resumen
Cielo caribe. Este artículo tiene como objeto la presentación de los resultados de una investigación de
campo realizada en Surinam en 1980 en très aldeas de los indios Caribes. Se hace una recopilación
exhaustiva de las estrellas y constelaciones de los Caribes y la representación gráfica de aquéllas
positivamente identificadas. Incluye otřas informaciones générales concerniendo los tiempos de
emergencia de las estrellas de acuerdo a los Caribes mismos y otras noticias sobre mitología estelar.
Además de los datos recogidos en 1980, se présenta la información anterior - desde el siglo XVI -
sobre astronomía caribe, la revisión de estas fuentes y una discusión breve de las teorías caribes sobre
el origen de las estrellas. Este artículo constituye el primer trabajo exhaustivo sobre astronomía caribe.
Dos trabajos anteriores, de alcance muy limitado y muy breves, datan de 1907 y 1931.
Abstract
The Carib sky. This article gives the results of an investigacion made in Surinam, in 1980, in three Carib
communities. An exhaustive account of the stars of the Carib s and a graphic representation of these
that could be identified are given. Other informations concern the «tiempos de emergencia» of the stars
and the stellar mythology relative to them. Besides the data collected in 1980, the authors quote
informations known since the 16th century and comment briefly the Carib theories about the origin of
the stars. It is the first exhaustive publication about Carib astronomy — two previous ones, limited,
dating from 1907 and 1931.THE CARIB SKY
by Edmundo MAGANA and Fabiola JARA*
with the collaboration of Chief Max Langaman, Johannes Awarajari,
Carlos Awakaru, Louis Tapoka, Delfride Irikujamo, Marinus Arupa
L'observation & cognoissance de l'Astrologie
est chose naturelle en l'homme, puis que ces
gens sans lettres, & presque sans raison, en
sont imbuez.
(A.Thevet :909b-910a)
The collection of materials concerning South American Indian astronomy l and the
Indian theories accounting for the origin of the stars and star constellations has been very
uneven. The first writers following the coming of Europeans to South America gave but
minute attention to this subject, and never too seriously. And, of course, tribal societies,
as distinguished from state societies whose astronomy has been thoroughly studied, were
not yet fully known.
The Carib Indians occupy a somehow special place : inhabitants of the Caribbean
Islands and of the South American northeast coast, they were the first to be contacted
and very early mentions of their astronomy can be found. However, more detailed
accounts of their astronomy and star-lore began only recently to appear at the beginning
of this century. Even so, as we shall see later, there is much to be done on this subject.
Many different factors can be said to have contributed to this amazing gap in ethno
graphic literature. We can distinguish three periods : one extending from the discovery to
the end of the eighteenth century during which very sensitive, fundamental debates took
place concerning the aboriginal peoples ; a second period from the eighteenth to the end
* We are much indebted to all the persons who helped us carry out the field-research on which
this paper is based and who helped us complete this article. Among others to Dr. Bob Scholte, our
supervisor; Drs. Henk Essed, our field-director; Drs. R. Artist, N. Aluman, and A. Cirino who helped
open many doors which greatly facilitated the research ; our interpreters S. Aloema, W. Mande, and
A. Aroepa, and Dr. J. Carrière who helped with the language editing. Field-research was carried out in
three Carib villages (Konomerume, Karawasinde, and Kubarimye) in Surinam from June to September
1980 by permission of the Research Department of the Ministry of Education of Surinam and in
agreement with the local authorities of the villages. 106 SOCIÉTÉ DES AMÉRICANISTES
of the nineteenth century during which scientific theories overruled the previous discourses
of «ideologists» and «cosmographers», and a third period from 1900 to the 1940's during
which even if scientificism was predominant, a more serious concern for native cultures
developed. Developments in Europe have left definite imprints on the ethnographic
surveys up to the present.
In the first period there is much concern about the very nature of the Americans and
the whole period is dominated by issues such as cannibalism, physical anthropology as
part of «moral anthropology», religious practices and general morality. Europe itself had
just come out of a struggle between Good and Evil, and America was the new continent
opened to continue this fight. The world was over-connoted then, and everything was a
sign that had to be worked out in the context of religious faith.
Missionaries, for example, effectively refused to write down those bits of Indian lore
which were told them in order not to be «complices du diable» (Clastres : 138 ; he writes
this, however, with respect to the missionaries' unwillingness to record the shaman's
knowledge and practices but it applies as well to other aspects of Indian culture) as much
of what the Indians thought was believed to be the product of Satan's suggestions.
It is in this context that astronomy and astrology were then easily confounded and
that many astronomical phenomena like the passing of comets and eclipses were not
considered to be natural — this was an atheistic assertion — but signs of God to make
known his disposition towards mankind (see Thevet : 995b ; he showed much sympathy
for the Indians with regard to the «sign» interpretation of the comets which was indeed
similar in France and in Mexico ; see Biet : 1 1 1).
The Indians were considered to be descendants of the «lost tribes of Israel» or, in any
case, to have been in touch with Old World civilisations in a remote past so that whenever
the travellers found evidence of Indian astronomy they assumed that the Indians merely
recalled fragments of the old knowledge. This can be seen in the way in which some
authors mention this subject : «(...) ils en connoissent quelques-unes des principales
[constellations], comme la grande Ourse et les Pléiades» (Barrère : 179). In another
author we find the following formulation :«(...) dit hebben zy noch van deze wetenschap
[astronomy] overbehouden, waar van men de beginselen aan Prometheus, Atlas en
Lycaon toeschryft» 2 (La Fiteau : 411). Finally, another writer pointed out : «(...) mais
les unes et les autres se ressemblent en quelques points, parce qu'ils ont conservé plusieurs
usages innocents qui leur venoient de la plus haute antiquité, et de la famille de Noé, de
laquelle les unes et les autres sont sortis» (Plouche, 1 : 7 ; see II : 497) («les unes» are the
Jews, «les autres» the Heathens; among the heathens are comprised, too, the Indians).
Of course, the people who collected these bits of Indian lore belonged to the most
diverse occupations and had the most diverse interests : missionaries, soldiers, travellers,
merchants, pirates, adventurers, convicts, etc., a fact which has to be taken into account
when explaining the nature of the ethnographic knowledge of this period.
Ethnographers also developed many theories to explain the most striking things in Indian
astronomy and star-lore in the second period (nineteenth century). The forming and naming
of constellations — leaving aside, of course, their practical use with respect to navigation and
agriculture3 — are explained as being the hazardous product of the «confused primitive
mentality » (Lang : 136). The resemblances between the primitive and the Greek star mythol
ogies, for example, should be understood