Bribri people

"Bribri" redirects here. For other uses, see Bribri (disambiguation).
Bribri
Map of Costa Rica showing, in blue, the three most important Bribri reserves[image reference needed]
Total population
12,200 (2000)[1]
Regions with significant populations
 Costa Rica
(Buenos Aires, Turrialba, Matina, and Talamanca)
Languages
Bribri, Spanish,[2] Bribri Sign Language
Related ethnic groups
Boruca, Cabécar[2]

The Bribri (also Abicetava)[3] are an Indigenous people in eastern Costa Rica and northern Panama.[4] Today, most Bribri people speak the Bribri language or Spanish.

There are varying estimates from government officials of the group's population. Estimates of the total Bribri population range as high as 35,000 people, although official estimates assert there are about 11,500 Bribri people in Costa Rica, and about 1000 Bribri people in Panama.[5][6] According to a census by the Ministerio de Salud of Costa Rica however, there are 11,500 Bribri living within service range of the Hone Creek Clinic alone, suggesting the total Costa Rican Bribri population is larger. They are also a voting majority in the Puerto Viejo de Talamanca area.

The Bribri historically struggled to remain on their land and preserve their culture, though the Costa Rican government currently recognizes their use of designated Indigenous Territories, and they are one of the formally recognized Indigenous peoples of Panama. Political struggles by some Bribri activists for the legal recognition of further claims to the land they inhabit and autonomy are ongoing in both countries.[7][8][9]

  1. ^ Bribri language at Ethnologue (16th ed., 2009) Closed access icon
  2. ^ a b "Boruca, Bribri, and Cabécar - Orientation." Countries and Their Cultures. (retrieved 30 Nov 2011)
  3. ^ Clark, Patricia Roberts (21 October 2009). Tribal Names of the Americas: Spelling Variants and Alternative Forms, Cross-Referenced. McFarland. p. 10. ISBN 978-0-7864-5169-2.
  4. ^ For a book-length study see Alanson Skinner, Notes on the Bribri of Costa Rica (Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation, 1920).
  5. ^ "Costa Rica: Bribri Culture Under Threat". Pulitzer Center. Retrieved 2022-07-01.
  6. ^ Romero, Matt. "Indigenous People of Panama: The 7 Groups and Cultures Guide". Panama Life Insider. Retrieved 2022-06-17.
  7. ^ "Panama - IWGIA - International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs". www.iwgia.org. Retrieved 2022-06-17.
  8. ^ "Costa Rica - IWGIA - International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs". www.iwgia.org. Retrieved 2022-06-17.
  9. ^ Rodríguez, Mariana (2019). "Social–ecological memory and responses to biodiversity change in a Bribri Community of Costa Rica". Ambio. 48 (12): 1470–1481. Bibcode:2019Ambio..48.1470R. doi:10.1007/s13280-019-01176-z. PMC 6882959. PMID 30963464.