In Tribe of 3 Women, No Men: ‘How Can I Be Pregnant?’
In this photo, Babawru Akuntsu, top, rests beside Akyp, her newborn son, at a hospital in Vilhena, Brazil, on Dec. 9, 2025, one day after his birth. (Altair Algayer/Funai via AP)
Pugapia and her daughters, Aiga and Babawru, have lived for years as the only surviving members of the Akuntsu, an Indigenous people nearly wiped out by government-backed development in the Amazon rainforest. Many feared the Akuntsu would disappear entirely when the women died, but that changed in December, when Babawru—the youngest, in her 40s—gave birth to a baby boy. The arrival of Akyp brought hope not only for the survival of the Akuntsu lineage but also for efforts to protect the fragile rainforest, according to the Associated Press.
The last Akuntsu man passed away in 2017. Since then, Babawru has lived with her mother and sister, maintaining isolation from the non-Indigenous world. In 2006, Brazil’s Indigenous protection agency, Funai, granted territorial safeguards to the Akuntsu, creating a tract of land now shared with the Kanoe people. Once historical rivals, the two groups have maintained cautious contact, often with mediation from officials. Their relationship is complex—cooperation exists, but so do cultural and linguistic differences.
Amanda Villa, an anthropologist with the Observatory of Isolated Peoples, explained that Akuntsu women rely on Kanoe men for tasks such as hunting and clearing fields. The groups have also exchanged spiritual knowledge, but the most significant development for the Akuntsu’s future occurred last year, when Babawru became pregnant by a Kanoe man.
Linguist Carolina Aragon is the only outsider who can communicate with the three women, having spent years studying their language. Aragon supported Babawru remotely during labor and recalled her initial shock at the pregnancy. “She said, ‘How can I be pregnant?’” Aragon said. Babawru had long decided she would not become a mother—a choice influenced both by the absence of men in her community and the belief that their world was not safe for raising a child.
Now, Aragon says, the women are entering a “new chapter,” welcoming the child while adapting their traditions with support from the Kanoe and Funai. Protecting Indigenous territories is considered one of the most effective ways to slow Amazon deforestation, with researchers warning that continued forest loss could accelerate global warming.
“This child is not only a symbol of the resistance of the Akuntsu people but also a source of hope for Indigenous peoples,” said Joenia Wapichana, president of Funai. “He represents how recognition, protection, and careful management of this land are absolutely necessary.”
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