Selknam

Selknam Indians lived in the Tierra del Fuego islands, in southern Chile. They were one of the last aboriginal groups in South America to be reached by Westerners, in late 19th century, when the Chilean and Argentine governments began efforts to explore and integrate Tierra del Fuego (literally, the "island of fire" based on early European explorers observing Selknam smoke from their bonfires).

Lifestyle

Selknams were nomadic people and survived by hunting. They dressed sparingly, a remarkable feat given the cold climate of Patagonia.

The relations with whites

Selknams avoided contact with Western colonizers. Westerners killed most of the local animals which were the food source for the Selknams and used a great part of the land of Tierra del Fuego to establish large estancias - sheep ranches. Selknams, who lacked an understanding of sheep herds as private property, hunted sheep, behavior which was perceived as banditry by ranch owners. Ranchers supported armed groups to hunt down and kill Selknams. To receive their bounty, such groups first had to return with their ears. After some earless Selknams were seen to be wandering the grounds the process was changed to exchanging a complete head for bounty.

Demise

Two missions by Christian missionaries were eventually established to save the Selknams. The missions were meant to provide housing and food for the natives. In spite of the help, Selknams were unable to survive without their traditions and lifestyles, and they dwindled in numbers, particularly falling ill to diseases for which they had no immunity. The first mission closed, and the second one was forced to close later due to the limited number of Selknam remaining. While Selknams numbered in the thousands before Western colonization, by the early twentieth century only several hundreds remained, and the last ethnic Selknam died in the mid twentieth century.

Culture and religion

Despite of the fact that the missions weren't able to save the Selknam people or their traditions, the missions did a remarkable job in collecting information about Selknam religion and traditions (even a short dictionary of Selknam language was made).

Religion

Selknam religion was quite different from other typical "primitive" systems of beliefs. It more or less denied the existence of a supreme being, these beings only were mentioned in one legend as a part of past (World's creation legend).

Initiation ceremonies

Selknam male initiation ceremonies, called Hain were probably one of most fascinating parts of their culture. Some other nearby nations also had quite similar initiation ceremonies. Basically it went this way:

Young males were called to a dark hut. There they would be attacked by "spirits" - actually people disguised as ones. The kids were taught to fear these spirits at childhood and were threatened by them in case they misbehaved. These now young men did not know these spirits weren't real, and they had to go to them and unmask them. After they seen that these "spirits" are the same human beings, they were being told a story of world creation about Sun and Moon. As well there was a story told (actually part of same story) that once women used these spirits to control men, they were disguising themselves as spirits and threatening men, while men did not know that spirits aren't real. But once they found out, so now it's done vice-versa - women do not know that the spirits are real, while males find out at the intiation age. However it was more like a joke at these times, without males actually using spirits to control women, unlike women supposedly did in the past. After this first day, there used to be various related ceremonies - males showing their "strength" in front of women by fighting spirits (who were other males but women did not know it) in some theatrical fights. Each spirit had its typical actions, words and such as well as typical outside looks. Therefore Selknams were perhaps the only Amerindian nation to have a theater tradition - best actors from previous Hains were used to be called again to impersonate spirits in latter Hains. The Hain used to take a very long time, maybe even a year sometimes, at the times when Selknam weren't in touch with white people. It would end with the last fight against the "worst" spirit which would come by then. Usually Hains were started when there was enough food (for example a whale was washed on coast), and by then all the Selknam from all the tribes used to gather at one place, male and female camps. "Spirits" were sometimes going to female camp to scare them as well as going around the place and doing various things related to their characters. The last Hain was held in one of the missions in early XX age, and it was photographed by the missionary. It was of course a much shorter and smaller ceremony than it used to be when Selknam were still free, but it still provides a good insight into traditions of this nation. The photos depict various "spirit" clothings too.

Heritage

Pictures of Selknam people made by the missionary are available in Puerto Williams museum. There are also a few books on the subject, including Selknam tales, collected by mentioned missionary, and a dictionary of the Selknam language, also made by him. Due to the early contact by mentioned missionary it was possible to gather much more information about the Selknam people than about other nations of the region. The same missionary also attempted to collect information about other local nations - but unlike with Selknams, where he went when they were still high on numbers, the missionary visited and spent some time with people of other cultures only when their nations were already at a demise and consisted only of a few people, therefore it wasn't possible to write down as much about them as it was written about Selknams.