Yanomami

noun

Ya·​no·​ma·​mi ˌyä-nō-ˈmä-mē 

variants or less commonly Yanomamo

ˌyä-nō-ˈmä-mō 

or Yanomama

ˌyä-nō-ˈmä-mə 

plural Yanomami also Yanomamis or Yanomamo or Yanomama

1

: an indigenous people inhabiting the rainforests of southern Venezuela and northern Brazil

also : a member of the Yanomami people

2

: the family of four closely related languages spoken by the Yanomami

Examples of Yanomami in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The gold miners’ numbers now approach those of the roughly 30,000 Yanomami. —Sheri Linden, The Hollywood Reporter, 20 May 2024

Up until the early 1970s, the Yanomami had existed in relative isolation. —Carlos Aguilar, Variety, 19 May 2024

Today, about thirty thousand Yanomami live in the Brazilian Amazon. —Jon Lee Anderson, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024

Violence, hunger, and disease have exploded in the Yanomami’s territory since 2019, spiraling into a crisis that has captured headlines at home and abroad. —Ana Ionova, The Christian Science Monitor, 15 Mar. 2024

Some of the Yanomami and their defenders praise Cartier’s promotion of Yanomami causes. —Fabiano Maisonnave, Fortune, 15 May 2023

The Yanomami didn’t come into regular contact with the outside world until the 1940s. —João Paulo Pires, Washington Post, 18 Apr. 2023

Keen to send a clear message from the start, Lula made expelling the wildcat miners from the Yanomami reserve one of his first major acts since taking office on Jan. 1. —Ana Ionova, The Christian Science Monitor, 17 Apr. 2023

Later, the two visited the territory of the Yanomami people, a huge reserve in the northern Amazon. —Jon Lee Anderson, The New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Yanomamɨ (language of the western Yanomami) yanomamɨ, a self-designation

First Known Use

1967, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

Yanomami

noun

Ya·​no·​ma·​mi ˌyän-ō-ˈmäm-ē 

plural Yanomami

: a member of the Indigenous people living in the rain forests of southern Venezuela and northern Brazil