Apalainchi - Los saberes de un grupo de niños y niñas wayuu respecto al territorio que habitan

Abstract

Knitting a hammock as a metaphor is the starting point of this research, which offers an approach to understanding a group of boys and girls who are members of the indigenous Wayuu community Apalaanchi3 in Cangrejito, located in La Guajira, Colombia, in the district of Riohacha, as active subjects, enunciators, and knowledge constructors regarding the territory they inhabit. Historically, the coloniality of knowledge marginalized the perspectives of indigenous childhoods in the construction of knowledge, even in matters that directly concern them. In Latin America and Colombia, there is a progressive increase in studies that position the child from an active and knowledgeable role. However, research supported by oral storytelling as a mediator of children's knowledge about territories appears as an emerging field. From a qualitative approach and the narrative analysis, "la mochila viajera" device was implemented as a generator of stories. This device facilitated artistic and literary experiences, which, combined with semi-structured interviews and fields record, constituted the methodological instruments. Considering their culture, worldview, and the notion of Wayuu childhood as a socio-historical construction, the inquiry into the knowledge embedded in children's narratives started from the premises of Souza Santos. The result is that, based on their relationships and forms of participation in community practices, which are influenced by different dynamics inherent to their territory of residence, they configure themselves as subjects of knowledge.