Amazonian Kichwas
Napu runas or Amazonian Kichwas are a grouping of indigenous Kichwa peoples in the Ecuadorian Amazon, with minor groups across the borders of Colombia and Peru. Amazonian Kichwas consists of two different ethnic peoples, Napu-Kichwa (living in the Napo and Sucumbíos provinces, with some parts of their community living in Colombia and Peru) and Canelo-Kichwa (also referred to as Kichwa del Pastanza, living in the Pastanza province). There are approximately 419 organized communities of the Amazonian Kichwas. The basic socio-political unit is the ayllu (made up by a group of families). The ayllus in turn constitute territorial clans, based on common ancestry.[1]
These groups speak different dialects of Kichwa, such as Bobonaza (in the Napo province), Tena (in Tena canton, closely related to the Andean Kichwa) and Limoncocha. There are also some groups amongst the Amazonian Kichwa who speak Shuar.[1]
After a powerful protest of the Amazonian Kichwas held in Pastanza in 1992, the Ecuadorian state handed over the rights to 1,115,000 ha of land for their use.[1]