people different personal traits; these categories are the Xingu people, the other indigenous people, and the white people. In a Wauja myth, the Xingu are seen as peaceful whereas these other two groups are seen as violent. The Xingu people maintain peace within their own tribes through trade, intermarriage, and ceremonies. Trade Tribes specialize in specific items, such as pottery (Wauja tribe), wooden bowls (Kamayurá tribes), accessories (Kalapalo and Kuikuru tribes) and decorations (Yawalapití tribe) made from shells, and salt (Trumaí and Mehinaku tribes). Intermarriage For the Kuikuru and Mehinaku tribes, the percentages of marriages that occur between members of these tribes and other tribes are 30% and 35% respectively. Members of the Yawalapití tribe try to marry people from the Kamayurá, Kuikuru, Kalapalo, and Mehinaku tribes. Ceremonies, religious practices, and community One religious practice that the Xingu engage in involves fishing, as many people within the Xingu communities depend on eating fish to provide them with protein. Specifically, shamans expel smoke from herbs in an attempt to prevent the fishermen from being harmed by alligators. The community participates in the preparation of the fish, in which many fish are heated on an open fire. Women prepare beiju, which are pancakes that are made of cassava. All of the Xingu tribes attend ceremonies to inaugurate new tribal chiefs and honor deceased chiefs. Kuarup and response to COVID-19 Yawalapiti Chief Aritana and eleven other Xingu people died from the COVID-19 virus. Aritana passed away in August 2020 at the age of 71. The members of the Xingu community commemorated the victims of COVID-19 by putting four painted tree trunks at the center of the village. The spirits are believed to be contained within the tree trunks and are believed to move to the underworld to be with their ancestors. The death of Aritana and three Xingu elders caused women to cry for multiple days. To commemorate Aritana’s death, the Xingu participated in a funeral ceremony called the Kuarup, where ritualistic dances and combat are performed to honor the cycle of life. The combat ritual consists of a competition in which warriors from various tribes perform a dance followed by a wrestling match. The Kuarup also consists of a feast. Men honored the life of Aritana by holding a parade where they blew bamboo trumpets and by painting their bodies black and red. The black paint came from fruit of the jenipapo