Kosanovic & Lavely 1

Lexie Kosanovic & Mackenzie Lavely

Dr. Paharik

Anthropology of Tribal Cultures

5 December 2018

The Kogi Tribe

Marcus Garvey once stated, “A people without the knowledge of their past, origin and

culture is like a tree with no roots.” The destruction and lack of preservation of native tribes is a

pain unfortunately experienced by many tribes around the world. Outside forces push their

influence on the delicate and pure nature of those indigenous peoples, and without means to defend

themselves, the indigenous peoples are forced off of their native lands. In researching ways to

prevent these outside influences from negatively impacting the native people, the work of Dr. Mark

Plotkin, an esteemed ethnobotanist, was very compelling. Dr. Plotkin created an organization that

began in a kebab shop and has grown into a multi-continent organization that is saving, educating

and protecting indigenous tribes. The Amazon Conservation Team goes above and beyond the call

of duty to ensure that the indigenous peoples are protected. An example of such a tribe that has

been protected by the Amazon Conservation Team is the Kogi people.

The Kogi tribe is found in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta Mountains in Colombia. These

mountains are home to the Kogi, Wiwa, Arhuaco and Kankuamo tribes. All four of these tribes

are direct descendants of the Tayrona tribe (Soltani and Acre, 2014). Overall, the Kogi tribe is

about 200,000 in number (Reddy, 2013). The Kogi have been able to survive by living a very

secluded lifestyle for the 500 years since the Spanish conquistadors invaded northern Colombia.

The Kogi people have been especially successful at survival because they were one of the few

tribes that defied Spanish conquistadors by moving to a higher elevation.

The men of the Kogi tribe are often found wearing their white tunics and having jet black

hair. Women dress similarly to men but adorn themselves with garlands of beads (“Colombia’s

Kogi Tribe”, 2018). The gender roles in the Kogi society are very interesting. Men, women and

children help tend the fields. This is opposite of many tribes where the men take care of the field

work. In Kogi society, the women harvest while the men use the remaining materials to make bags,

nets and ropes (Mahnke). Additionally, the women and men of the Kogi tribe have ownership of

their possessions. Specifically, women have ownership of bone needles, cooking vessels and

necklaces. Men have ownership of ritual objects. Ownership of objects from mothers is passed on

to daughters while ownership of objects from fathers is passed onto sons (Mahnke).

The Kogi people are a very passive group of people. There is not much serious violence

such as rape and murder. They will interact with neighboring tribes (Mahnke). The marriage

system of the Kogi people is typically monogamous between two members of the Kogi tribe. The

living arrangements of the Kogi tribe is additionally interesting. Families will typically have

multiple houses at different altitudes while the village is usually seen as a place of trade and

socialization (Mahnke). The Kogi people speak the Kogi language which belongs to the Chibchan

language family. Their diet consists of mainly crops such as bananas, cassava, curcurbits, beans

and tree fruits (Mahnke). There is very little access to meats, game or fish. The lack of protein in

the Kogi tribe negatively affects the Kogi people and can oftentimes lead to malnutrition.

Their belief system consists of the Aluna. This is the cosmic consciousness that is the

source of all life and intelligence (Reddy, 2013). The Kogi people believe that as time began, the

planet’s mother laid an invisible black thread linking special sites along the coast which connected

locations to the mountains. Aluna is not just the spiritual world, but a way of thinking and acting

as a life force (“Tairona Heritage Trust”, 2018). The mountain is very vital to the lifestyle of the
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Kogi people. At the core of their beliefs, the Kogi people believe that the mountains are the living

entity which is an extension of the spiritual universe (Soltani and Acre, 2014). There are rituals

that the Kogi celebrate annually. For example, there is a ritual cycle for the start of each rainy or

dry season. Additionally, rituals are held throughout the lifecycle, at birth, puberty and death. All

of these rituals are presided by local priests. There are additionally private rituals which include

making offerings to the creator goddess, public confessions and pilgrimages to sacred sites

(Mahnke). A very important ritual that the Kogi people take part in has to do with keeping the

balance between offerings to the sacred sites and giving back to the earth.

The religious beliefs of the Kogi people consist of various creation beings. The creator

goddess, Mother, is a being that is especially important at the beginning and the end of an

individual life. The creation of a life was believed to begin in total darkness in the sea where the

Mother created the universe. She did so after a number of pre-existent images were in her mind.

From those images, she created a nine-layered universe, a nine-tiered temple and a nine month

phased human gestation period (Mahnke). The Mother impregnated herself with the phallic

hardwood stick, the same stick which she used in her androgynous stage to extract lime. From this,

she gave birth to the first human being.

The Mamos are the priests of the Kogi society. These Mamos maintain the natural order of

the world. This is accomplished through songs, meditations and ritual offerings to the gods. In

order to be a Mamo, training for this important practice takes over eighteen years (Mahnke). The

young Mamo boys are sent into the mountains where they are taught, in solitude, to meditate on

the natural and spiritual world.

In order to survive and gain their own independence, the Kogi have started their own coffee

enterprise. The money gained by the coffee business is used to purchase the rights to their ancestral
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lands (Soltani and Acre, 2014). In addition to beginning their own businesses, the Kogi people rely

on help from organizations like the Amazon Conservation Project to further their chances of

survival and preservation.

Over the course of hundreds of years, the Kogi tribe has been forced to face many obstacles.

As the Older Brothers of the world, The Kogi tribe believe that they are spiritually obligated to put

a stop to the Little Brothers’ (outside world influences) disastrous wrongdoings. This never-ending

struggle has been consistent since the beginning. Dating back 500 years ago, the Kogi tribe was

first introduced to the problematic nature of colonization. With the early arrival of Spanish

conquistadors, the then isolated tribe was viciously attacked. Cities were destroyed, chiefs and

priests slaughtered, and their sacred lands left abandoned (Mahnke). To flee from the mayhem, the

only way to go was up. The members of the tribe settled higher up in the Sierra Nevada de Santa

Marta Mountains, close to the traditional lands located there. However, as time passed, their sacred

lands in the mid to low ranges of the mountains have been lost to capitalist countries (Soltani and

Acre). Little Brother’s oppression continued into the 18th century as missionaries were introduced

to convert the population to Catholicism - an attempt to alter the tribe’s rich culture. As a result,

the Kogi people became “nominal Catholics,” but continued to practice their traditions and rituals

based on pleasing Aluna (Mahnke). To this day, the Kogi tribe still strives to regain their lost

ancestral lands - about 6,500 km to be exact. Considered as one of the most outspoken Amazonian

tribes, the Kogi have been quite vocal with protests and legal action (Soltani and Acre).

Besides the fight to regain their righteous territories, the tribe is heavily affected by Little

Brother’s lack of attention towards environmental conservation. With the Kogi’s spiritual duty, it

is only right for them to express disappointment in Western capitalism. Businesses such as mining,

logging, and construction are simply destroying not only their home, but everyone’s home as well
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(Reddy). This is evident in the rapidly evolving Amazonian rainforests. The number of natural

disasters continues to grow, as well as unpredictable weather patterns. After noticing the

devastating change in their environment, the Kogi set out to make a difference. Contacting the

outside world, the tribe met with BBC to produce a documentary film to address the dangers of

industrialization. This was later followed up with a second film to further elaborate on the Kogi

culture and cosmic belief system (“Colombia’s Kogi Tribe”).

To assist the Kogi tribe in its battle to gain proper recognition, several organizations such

as the Amazon Conservation Team (ACT) have worked with their case. ACT was originally

founded by ethnobotanist, Dr. Mark Plotkin, and conservationist, Liliana Madrigal. This

organization primarily works in both the northwest and northeast Amazon, as well as the country

of Brazil. Over the last 20 years of their work, ACT has teamed up with about 25 indigenous

groups and 78 partner communities in order to protect tropical rainforests while preserving

traditional Amazonian culture (“Protecting the Amazon”). In this process, ACT strives to benefit

these communities through several different initiatives. This involves sustaining the forest, the

livelihood of local people, and self governance. To protect the lands of indigenous tribes, the

organization focuses on recognition, legal protection, and management of special biological and

cultural areas. This is quite frankly the first step to defending tribes as it allows them to remain in

their rightfully owned lands and live to their own degree of isolation. Preserving the livelihood of

tribal groups introduces methods of securing their economic status while ensuring they have access

to food, clean water, proper healthcare, and appropriate equipment to provide energy. Finally, ACT

plans to strengthen the voice of each community as long as it is what they feel comfortable doing.

It is the tribe that will make important decisions, choose how they will interact with the outside

world, and what they need to reach their goals (“Our Strategies).
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Aldo Leopold emphasized, “Conservation is a state of harmony between men and land.”

Through organizations like the Amazon Conservation Team, indigenous tribes and their homes are

better protected from the dangers of capitalism. Through the introduction of new technology such

as energy management, and offering multiple forms of legal protection, the ACT has helped

preserve the livelihood and culture of numerous tribes that otherwise could have vanished. With

so many unique customs, rituals, and nuances of everyday life, indigenous tribes, like the Kogi,

deserve to be appreciated and understood. For it is simply diversity that makes the world such a

vivacious and exciting place to live. We must truly open our eyes to the beauty of tribal livelihood

and to the preservation of all humanity.

Bibliography

“Colombia’s Kogi Tribe Are Protecting Our Planet - Here’s Everything You Need to Know
about Them.” Irish Examiner, 15 Mar. 2018,
https://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/lifestyle/colombias-kogi-tribe-are-
protecting-our-planet-heres-everything-you-need-to-know-about-them-832646.html.

Mahnke, Michelle. “Questionnaire: KOGI.” Database for Indigenous Cultural Evolution,

“Our Strategies.” Amazon Conservation Team, Amazon Conservation Team , 2018,

“Protecting the Amazon in Partnership with Indigenous and Other Local Communities.”
Amazon Conservation Team, www.amazonteam.org/.

Reddy, Jini. “What Colombia’s Kogi People Can Teach Us about the Environment.” The
Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 29 Oct. 2013,
https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/colombia-kogi-environment-
destruction.
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“Tairona Heritage Trust.” About The Kogi, Tairona Heritage Trust, 2018,
www.taironatrust.org/about-the-kogi.

“Soltani, Atossa, and Acre Evelyn. “The Kogi of Colombia: An urgent Call from Guardians of
The Heart of the World.” Cultural Survival, Mar. 2014,
https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/kogi-colombia-
urgent-call-guardians-heart-world.

Attached is a screenshot of the email that Mackenzie and I sent to the Amazon
Conservation Team office in Colombia and the general team. The email was sent on November 8,
2018. We are still waiting on a response from either the Colombian team or the general information
team. We will keep you updated with our progress.