Rite and history in the Paraguayan Chaco Guaraní. Notes about arete guasu

The arete guasu is an indigenous ritual celebrated annually during the carnival season by the Guaraníes and Chanés from Western Chaco region. This text describes the recent history of Paraguay's western Guaraní people, who were displaced from southern Bolivia after Chaco War (Bolivia-Paraguay, 1932-1935). In every community founded by the Guaraníes in Paraguay, they kept on celebrating their ancient ritual, despite the restrictions imposed in the Catholic missions and in the Mennonite colonies where the Guaraníes lived. Based on this observation, I examine the importance of the rite in their social life. It is argued that the rite has a key role in the definition of a time and a place for the northern Paraguayan Chaco Guaraní in the complex interethnic situation that they faced after the Chaco War.