Asháninka Influencer Nadaena Preserves Culture Through Free Online Language Lessons

“Ishinchi no Ishinchi. Either of the two is valid to refer to the hair or the hair Did you score already? Carmelocia Mahuanca, better known on the Internet as I saidin one of the virtual classes that he offers for free through his social networks that are looking for people to learn the basic words of the language of their ancestors. We are, therefore, facing a real hitman an Ashan woman.

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“I currently teach from Monday to Friday, from seven to nine at night, and on Saturdays I take exams. They are virtual and currently free. “Our fans are very enthusiastic, we have around 300 students in each session,” the 26-year-old proudly details, the only one who in 2020 wasn’t sure about starting this project for fear of people making fun of her roots.

What would at first seem like the insecurity of any teenager takes on another dimension when we refer to the indigenous people of Peru. Although our country is one of the richest culturally – because together with Mexico, Guatemala and Bolivia we concentrate more than 80% of the indigenous population of Latin America according to the World Bank – it is also one of does discrimination abound.

According to a study conducted by Ipsos in 2017 in this regard, 53% of Peruvians have felt discriminated against at some point, the second most common reason is their way of speaking (26%). This is one of the factors that explains why more and more young members of indigenous people are willing to give up their roots – including their native language – to join the cities big

Another important factor is the difference in opportunities and services that a young person who grew up in an indigenous community can access to someone who lives in a city. Carmelocia, for example, grew up in the Indigenous Community of Unión Alto Sanibeni, a population center with 340 inhabitants located on the border of the districts of Mazamari and Pangoa, in Junín.

“I have 10 siblings, three of them are younger than me. My mother died when I was 7 years old and I had to take care of my younger siblings, so I missed a year at school. I really enjoyed studying, but my father did not support me in my studies. I don’t hold a grudge against him for that, now I realize it was part ignorance“, said the young woman.

The same ignorance led to her being offered in marriage to a 30-year-old man who was only 12 years old, because “He had plantations of yucca, bananas, oranges and a car. I could bring my brothers and he was going to support us. But I didn’t want that life, I had seen older sisters getting married and having children, I didn’t want to be a part of that. I wanted to learn“.

In Unión Alto Sanibeni there is only an elementary school and an elementary school, so Carmelocia had to make a difficult decision for her daughter. He left behind his biological family and the community in which he had grown up in search of better opportunities.

Life would bring her to her new family.

“Samuel Ramos and his whole family guided me and helped me to get an education. We met at church and when he found out that I wanted to study high school, he offered me to work in his house, taking care of his young children, in exchange for housing , food and education. So I moved to New Jerusalem, a larger population center” he explains.

Carmelocia transformed her strong desire to learn into great perseverance, to the extent that she spent her last year of high school on a scholarship at a private school in the city of Pangoa. There he also received a scholarship to study Psychology at the Universidad Peruana Unión, but he had to give up “for things in life” – he mentions without going into details.

– Access to networks –

However, Edith’s friendship was the most valuable thing he achieved in that school, he thinks. “She is the niece of my adoptive parents, from the Ramos family. When we were girls we didn’t get on. I was a country girl, harvesting coffee and looking for jobs of that nature, while she was a city girl. I think we even liked each other” – smile – “But when she saw that I arrived at her school with a scholarship, she noticed that I was a special student and we started to be friends, we became best friends and now I like her say she is my sister, because that’s how I feel. about her.”

At 17 years old, Carmelocia arrived in Lima and started working.

“I did everything to raise money and decide what career to study. Then Edith came too and we decided to move together, so we rented an apartment in Comas, I started studying Tourism and Hospitality Management, when the pandemic suddenly hit“, remember.

Both young women had to suspend their studies, but luckily they kept their jobs. Along with a runway, however, a major project would emerge.

“Hey Carmen, why don’t we make content? Didn’t your family have an Asháninka?” – asked Edith one day.

“Yes, but I didn’t talk about it for a long time. Also, he gives me roche” – replied Carmelocia.

“If it was me a while ago I would have picked it up and done many things” – asked the young woman.

“Yes? Your mother speaks Quechua, why didn’t you learn?” – Carmen questioned.

The discussion ended with an agreement: “I’m starting to remember everything I know about Asháninka, but you help me record and everything else“.

And so was born Nadarina (Look at me, in Asháninka), a channel on YouTube, Facebook and TikTok that aimed to spread the Asháninka language and preserve the traditions of these ancient people.

Today, on Victory Day, the young woman reflects on her goal as a content creator.

“I would say that it reevaluates culture and rescues the roots of my ancestors.“.

For Carmelocia, moreover, this project meant reconciliation with her roots that made her a reference within her family.

“I never lost contact with my brothers, in fact I took one of them to study with me. The thing is that we always spoke in Spanish, that’s why I felt like I had forgotten Asháninka. Over time I picked it up and now I’m mastering it again. I am a certified translator from the Ministry of Culture and the job also gives me the opportunity to help the rest of my siblings to continue learning. I even have sisters who call me and tell me that they want to be like me, that they want to study and I explain to them that they can do it with programs like Beca 18. This year I graduated and I dream that I am the inspiration. for the younger members of the family.“, admits the young woman.

One of Carmelocia’s greatest joys is not seeing her brothers dating older men but telling her what they will study when they grow up.

“I’m excited because we’ve broken a barrier”, he admits before saying goodbye quickly. “I have to keep working until then the class starts and there is also a video I have to release“.

The video call will end, but the class will start soon and I assure you that you will not want to miss it.