Curumins – The guardians of the land

The children of the Kiriri Indigenous people, from the village of Mirandela in the municipality of Banzaê (Bahia), grow up immersed in a history of struggle and resistance for the recovery and preservation of their ancestral territory. For decades, the Kiriri faced expulsions and disputes over their land; only in the 1990s did they achieve the official demarcation of the Kiriri Indigenous Territory and reclaim Mirandela as their home—a victory celebrated annually by the community as a moment of memory and collective identity.

From an early age, the children take part in cultural traditions, learning ceramic craftsmanship, dances, songs, and traditional games such as archery and maracá races during festivals that honor ancestral knowledge.

They also live alongside subsistence farming, which includes the cultivation of cassava, corn, and other crops that connect new generations to the land and to the sustainable practices of their ancestors.

These experiences strengthen ethnic pride, respect for elders, and the preservation of customs that define Kiriri identity in Bahia. In each portrait, a face that represents the mark and legacy of Brazil’s Indigenous peoples.