Maku people

Maku (Macu, Máku, Mácu, Makú, Macú) or Maco (Mako, Máko, Macó, Makó) is a pejorative term referring to several hunter-gatherer peoples of the upper Amazon, derived from an Arawakan term ma-aku "do not speak / without speech". Nimuendajú (1950) notes six peoples of Colombia, Venezuela, and Brazil that are known as 'Maku'. In linguistic literature, it refers primarily to:

• the Nadahup languages, a small language family in Brazil, Colombia, and Venezuela (sometimes disambiguated as Makú or Macú, though that form can apply to any of these, or as Makuan)
• the Maku language of Roraima, a language isolate of Brazil and Venezuela (sometimes disambiguated as Máku, Mácu, or Máko, the Portuguese form of the name)
• the Wirö dialect of Piaroa (sometimes disambiguated as Mako or Maco)

It has also been used for various other languages in the area, such as:

• the Cofán language AKA Mako or Cofán-Makú
• the Arutani–Sape languages
• the Yanomaman languages
• the Carabayo language

Other peoples called Maku include,

• the Marueta people

References

• Francois Correa, Introducción a la Colombia Amerindia