A member of an indigenous people of the Amazon region, or the language spoken by this group.
From the Cocama people themselves; the word enters English ethnography through Portuguese contact with South American indigenous groups. The etymology within the native language may relate to river systems or tribal identity.
The Cocama people developed sophisticated river-based cultures along the Amazon and its tributaries, but their population was devastated by slavery and disease during European colonization—today only a few hundred fluent speakers of Cocama remain.
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