Household ecology, environments and technical processes among the Potiguara of Jaraguá village (Paraíba, Brazil)

Abstract This article focuses on the technical activities carried out by members of Potiguara households within the diverse environments that constitute the territory inhabited by these indigenous people. Such activities are the result of choices and strategies organized to meet the needs of these households (family groups of at least three generations), properly conforming a household ecology. The technical processes that result from this ecology are centred on individual and collective experiences in mangroves, floodplains and the patchy remnants of the Atlantic Forest, as well as in urban contexts, enabling the development of diversified skills and the acquisition of knowledge about techniques and materials. In this way, the Potiguara at present engage in fishing, agricultural, grazing and extractive activities, building on a local traditional knowledge that allows them to effectively associate materials of diverse origins, both those found locally and those of industrial provenance.

摘要 本文聚焦于波蒂瓜拉（Potiguara）原住民所栖息的多元领地内，其家庭群体成员开展的各类技术活动。此类活动系为满足至少包含三代人的家庭群体之需求，经由统筹规划形成的选择与策略组合，进而构建起完整的家庭生态系统。由该生态系统衍生出的技术流程，核心围绕红树林、泛滥平原、零散残存的大西洋森林（Atlantic Forest）以及城市环境中的个体与集体实践展开，进而助力多元技能的培育与技术、材料相关知识的掌握。在此基础上，当下的波蒂瓜拉族群依托本土传统知识，开展捕鱼、农耕、畜牧与资源采集活动，能够有效整合各类来源的材料——既包括本土天然获取的物料，也涵盖工业来源的制品。