Man of the Hole

Man of the Hole
The Man of the Hole in 2018
Born	c. 1960s
Died	c. July 2022 (aged c. 60) Tanaru Indigenous Territory, Rondônia, Brazil
Known for	Last member of an uncontacted people of Brazil

The Man of the Hole^{[note 1]} (c. 1960s – c. July 2022),^[1][2] or the Tanaru Indian,^{[note 2][3]} was an Indigenous person who lived alone in the Amazon rainforest in the Brazilian state of Rondônia. He was the sole inhabitant of the Tanaru Indigenous Territory,^{[note 3]} a protected Indigenous territory demarcated by the Brazilian government in 2007.

It is not known what language the Man of the Hole spoke, what his people called themselves, or what his name was. He was the last surviving member of his people following their genocide by Brazilian settlers in the 1970s–1990s and chose to remain isolated until his death in 2022. Living primarily by hunting and gathering and moving frequently, he left behind a deep hole of unknown purpose in each of his former homes, giving rise to his nickname. After surviving a further attack by armed ranchers in 2009, he was found dead in his home in August 2022.

Surviving genocide

The Man of the Hole was not a voluntary recluse;^[6] he was forced to live alone after his people were killed in the ongoing genocide of Indigenous peoples in Brazil.^[2][7][8][9] The majority of his people are believed to have been killed by settlers in the 1970s,^[1] around the same time that nearby peoples such as the Akuntsu and Kanoê experienced similar massacres.^[10] The remaining survivors, apart from the Man of the Hole, were killed in an attack by illegal miners in 1995.^[1] The Fundação Nacional do Índio (FUNAI), Brazil's government agency for Indigenous interests, later discovered the remains of their village, which had been bulldozed in 1996.^[10] They had remained isolated up until this point, so it is not known what they were called, what language they spoke, or what the Man of the Hole's name was.^[11]

Life in isolation

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Location of the Tanaru Indigenous Territory, officially demarcated for the Man of the Hole in 2007, in Rondônia.^[12]

FUNAI first became aware of the Man of the Hole's isolated existence in 1996.^[1] They observed that he periodically moved his home, building straw huts for shelter. He hunted wild game, collected fruits and honey, and also planted maize and cassava. Over the years, more than 50 huts built by him were identified by FUNAI.^[1] His nickname derives from the deep hole found in each home that he abandoned. It was originally believed that these holes were used to trap animals or to hide in,^[11][13][10] but some observers have also speculated that they might have been of spiritual significance.^[6] The holes were narrow and more than 1.8 m (5 ft 11 in) deep.^[6][11] 14 similar holes were found in the ruined village discovered by FUNAI in 1996.^[10]

Under Brazil's constitution, Indigenous peoples have the right to lands they "traditionally occupy". In 2007, FUNAI officially demarcated 8,000 hectares (31 sq mi) of his land as a protected Indigenous territory,^[10] the Tanaru Indigenous Territory.^[11] After its establishment, FUNAI monitored him and tried to prevent intrusions into the area.^[6] Despite this, the Man of the Hole was attacked by gunmen in November 2009 but managed to survive.^[13][14][15]

Although he avoided further direct contact with others, the Man of the Hole was aware that he was monitored by outsiders. FUNAI occasionally left gifts of tools and seeds for him, and thus "engendered a certain level of trust".^[7] He sometimes signaled to observing teams to avoid pitfalls he had dug either as defense or to trap animals. In 2018, FUNAI released a video of him in order to raise global awareness of the threats to the uncontacted peoples in Brazil.^[6] In the video, the man, who was presumed to be in his 50s at the time, appeared to be in good health.^[16][17]

Death

On 24 August 2022, the Man of the Hole was found dead in his last home by FUNAI agent Altair José Algayer.^[1] He was found "lying down in the hammock, and ornamented [with macaw feathers] as if waiting for death".^[2] There were no signs of violence or any other disturbance before his corpse had been discovered by FUNAI. It was estimated that he had died in July and was about 60 years old at the time of his death.^[1] The body was transferred to the state capital Porto Velho for autopsy, in an attempt to establish the cause of death.^[2] The man's burial, originally scheduled for 14 October, finally took place on 4 November after a court order to FUNAI to release his body.^[18] He was buried in a traditional indigenous funeral at the same location where his body had been found in August. His burial place was desecrated by farmers shortly after, leading to renewed calls for permanent protection of the land where he and his people had dwelled.^[19]

See also

• Shanawdithit and Demasduit, the last members of the Beothuk people of Newfoundland and Labrador
• Ishi, the last known member of the Yahi people of California
• Squanto, the last member of the Patuxet people of Massachusetts

Notes

1. Portuguese: índio do buraco, lit. 'Indian of the Hole'
2. Portuguese: Índio Tanaru
3. Named after the nearby Tanaru River, itself a hydronym from the Kanoê or Kwazá language isolates^[4][5]

References

1. Buschschlüter, Vanessa (29 August 2022). "Last member of indigenous tribe dies in Brazil after resisting contact for decades". BBC News. Archived from the original on 29 August 2022. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
2. Valente, Rubens (27 August 2022). "Símbolo da resistência dos indígenas isolados no país, "índio do buraco" é achado morto" [Symbol of the resistance of isolated indigenous people in the country, "Indian of the Hole", is found dead] (in Brazilian Portuguese). Agência Pública. Archived from the original on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
3. "Nota de pesar – Índio Tanaru" (in Brazilian Portuguese). Fundação Nacional do Índio. 27 August 2022. Archived from the original on 29 August 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
4. "Excelentíssimo(a) Senhor(a) Doutor(a) Juiz(íza) Federal da Vara Federal da Subseção Judiciária de Vilhena/RO" (PDF). mpf.mp.br (in Portuguese). p. 4. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
5. "Dicionário da língua Kwazá" (PDF). etnolinguistica.wdfiles.com (in Portuguese). 2013. p. 147. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
6. Scott, Wallace (31 August 2018). "Why Revealing Uncontacted Tribes May Help Save Them". National Geographic. Archived from the original on 20 June 2021. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
7. Downie, Andrew (28 August 2022). "Amazon activists mourn death of 'man of the hole', last of his tribe". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 29 August 2022. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
8. Rocha, Camilo; Ehlinger, Maija (28 August 2022). "Last member of indigenous tribe dies in Brazil after resisting contact for decades". CNN. Archived from the original on 29 August 2022. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
9. Milhorance, Flávia; Spigariol, André (29 August 2022). "One Man Dies, and an Entire Uncontacted Tribe Vanishes in Brazil". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 30 August 2022. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
10. Reel, Monte (20 August 2010). "The Most Isolated Man on the Planet". Slate. Archived from the original on 21 July 2018. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
11. Watson, Fiona (2005). "The Last of His Tribe". Survival International. Archived from the original on 21 July 2018. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
12. "Terra Indígena Tanaru". Terras Indígenas no Brasil (in Portuguese). Instituto Socioambiental. Retrieved 2 March 2017.
13. "Man in the Hole: lone survivor of Amazon tribe hunted by Brazilian ranchers". The Telegraph. 11 December 2009. Archived from the original on 22 May 2018. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
14. Carroll, Rory (9 December 2009). "Amazon's 'man of the hole' attacked by unknown gunmen". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 10 May 2017. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
15. "'Man in the Hole', lone survivor of Amazon tribe massacre, escapes ranchers' bullets". Amazon Rainforest News. 11 December 2009. Archived from the original on 18 March 2017. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
16. Phillips, Dom (19 July 2018). "Footage of sole survivor of Amazon tribe emerges". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 12 April 2020. Retrieved 8 September 2018.
17. Baker, Vicky (20 July 2018). "Last survivor: The story of the 'world's loneliest man'". BBC News. Archived from the original on 6 November 2021. Retrieved 6 November 2021.
18. Brown, Sarah (9 November 2022). "Delayed Indigenous 'Man of the Hole' burial reveals dispute over his land". Mongabay. Retrieved 14 June 2024.
19. Zuker, Fabio (22 November 2023). "The coveted legacy of the 'Man of the Hole' and his cultivated Amazon forest". Mongabay. Retrieved 14 June 2024.

External links

• Sole survivor' of tribe in Amazon builds houses in holes on YouTube (New Scientist)