Abstract
This essay addresses the discussion on indigenous politics and contact strategies from a concrete context: settlements of Kayapo groups in Goiás between 1781 and 1832. Historical documentation from the period suggests that apparent conversion hides processes involving not only changes, but also continuities and creations. While the shock of contact was historically inevitable, indigenous politics during the settlement period showed how these groups acted, between the needs of the circumstances and the contingencies of their choices. As such, in the dialogue between anthropology and history, this article demonstrates how this indigenous history traced different routes and lines of action.
Keywords
Indigenous history; Anthropology and history; Settlements; Southern Kayapo Jê groups