E niha wa ti’ö dama rówaihu’u’wa hã ãma ĩmrõ A’uwẽ Uptabi te nahã?

Abstract

This work is a testimony about the educational journey of a Xavante man who became a mathematics teacher. Narrated in the first person, the text recounts each stage in the development of a Xavante man, from the author’s birth in 1982 to the fulfillment of his dream of pursuing a master’s degree at the Federal University of Goiás. In telling his story, the author revisits the history of his people, focusing especially on the demarcation of the Marãiwatsédé Indigenous Land, showing how the group divided so that some would remain in São Marcos taking care of the women and children and maintaining the school and other services, while another group organized to reclaim the territory. Over the course of this account, the author also shares a community narrative about their collaboration with the Salesians in creating a written form of the Xavante language, and he also describes the formation of a Xavante person both through internal community rituals—such as ear piercing—and through his education in the community’s schools.