Panará people
The Panará are an Indigenous people of Mato Grosso in the Brazilian Amazon. They farm and are hunter-gatherers.
Name
They were formerly called the Kreen-Akrore. Other names for the Panará include Kreen Akarore, Kren Akarore, Krenhakarore, Krenhakore, Krenakore, Krenakarore or Krenacarore, and "Índios Gigantes" ("Giant Indians") – all variants of the Kayapó name "kran iakarare", meaning "roundlike cuthead", a reference to their traditional hair style which identifies them.
Language
The Panará speak the Panará language, which is classified as a Kreen-Akarore language, belonging to the Jê language family. It is written in the Latin script.
Origin
The Panará are the last descendants of the southern Cayapós, a large ethnic group which inhabited a vast area in Central Brazil in the 18th century, from the northern borders of the state of São Paulo, Triângulo Mineiro and south of Goiás, stretching eastwards from Mato Grosso, eastern and southeastern portion of Mato Grosso do Sul. The Panará belong to the Jê-speaking group in Central Brazil, a subgroup of the northern Jê, which encompasses the Kayapó, Suyá, Apinayé and the Timbira languages. Latest researches indicate that the southern Cayapó and Panará are in fact one single language.
