Out of the jungle: what happens when a Stone Age people leaves the South American wilderness for the modern world?

The Nukak-Maktu have lived a Stone Age life for eons, roaming across hundreds of miles of isolated and pristine Amazon jungle, killing monkeys with poison-tipped darts, and scouring the forest floor for berries.

But recently, and rather mysteriously, a group of nearly 80 Nukak people wandered out of the wilderness, half-naked, a gaggle of children and pet monkeys in tow, and declared themselves ready to join the modern world.

"We do not want to go back," explains one man, who uses the sole name Ma-be, and who arrived with the others in San Jose del Guaviare in southern Colombia in March.

While it's not known for sure why they left the jungle, it's clear that the Nukak's experience as nomads and hunter-gatherers has left them unprepared for the modern world.

The Nukak have no concept of money, property, the role of government, or even of the existence of a country called Colombia. They ask whether the planes that fly overhead are moving on some sort of invisible road. "The Nukak don't know what they've gotten themselves into," says Dr. Javier Maldonado, 27, a physician who has been working with them.

When asked if the Nukak are concerned about the future, Belisario--the only Nukak who had been to the outside world before and speaks Spanish--seems perplexed, less by the word than by the concept. "The future," he says. "What's that?"

The Nukak are one of a few dozen indigenous peoples living in relative seclusion in the Amazon basin--the South American region where the Amazon river drains. (See map, p. 33.)

Few Nukak had gone beyond the borders of their jungle world until 2003, when dozens of Nukak left the wilderness and arrived in San Jose. They said that Colombia's relentless civil war had encroached on their reserve, and forced them to seek safety.

ASTONISHED BY THIS WORLD

It's unclear how big the Nukak population once was. But scientists believe their numbers have likely been reduced by diseases from what little outside contact they've had. The Nukak have no natural defenses to Western diseases like influenza and the common cold. (These and other diseases wiped out many of the native people of North and South America after the arrival of Europeans in the 15th and 16th centuries.)

What little is known about this latest group is that it abandoned the Nukak National Park, which is nearly half the size of New Jersey, and journeyed almost 200 miles to San Jose. They arrived malnourished, exhausted, and astonished by a world of buildings, jeeps, and paved roads.

The newly arrived Nukak say little about why they left, just that "the Green Nukak"--possibly a reference to Marxist guerrillas who wear camouflage--told them to leave. (Guerrillas and paramilitary groups have waged war against Colombia's government for decades.)

Colombian officials wonder if farmers growing coca, the crop used to make cocaine, may also have displaced the Nukak, who are peace-loving and unlikely to fight.

But because it is assumed that they fled the civil war, the Nukak are classified as displaced people, requiring the government to provide food and clothing.

Even as the aid arrives, however, in a forest clearing outside San Jose, the donors are well aware that the aid could doom the Nukak to a life of dependency. Those who arrived in 2003 live in another clearing nearby--lolling in their hammocks, awaiting food from the state. They do not work, nor have they learned Spanish.

On a recent day, the scene among the new arrivals was full of commotion and laughter. Naked children offered foreign journalists big smiles and hugs, while the men quickly welcomed visitors into a makeshift shelter.

Are they sad? "No!" cries a Nukak named Pia-pe, to howls of laughter. Used to long marches in search of food, they are amazed that strangers would bring them sustenance free.

The men still go into the jungle to search for monkeys, a Nukak delicacy. They are grilled, dismembered, and boiled, then eaten piece by piece. The women still weave intricate wristbands and hammocks, using threads from palm leaves.

Ma-be says he wants the Nukak to grow plantains and yucca and take the crops to town. "We can exchange it for money," he says, "and exchange the money for other things."

But first they need to learn how to cultivate crops. The Nukak say they would like their children to go to school. They also say they do not want to lose traditions, like hunting or speaking their language. "We do want to join the white family," Pia-pe says, speaking of Colombian society, "but we do not want to forget words of the Nukak."

By Juan Forero in Columbia

Juan Forero covers South America for The New York Times.

QUIZ 1 > INTERNATIONAL

1. The place where the Nukak-Maku lived before leaving the jungle was

a a government training area.

b an isolated farming community.

c a national park.

d a U.N. wildlife refuge.

2. One explanation for the recent migration of the Nukak from their longtime home is

a their curiosity about the world at large.

b pressure from Colombia's civil war.

c the failure of their crops.

d their need for medical services.

3. One result of the Nukak's contact with the outside world has

a left them with a fear of modern society.

b led them to become Colombian citizens.

c induced them to travel even farther.

d exposed them to Western diseases.

4. Colombia's government is legally obligated to care for the Nukak because

a they are classified as displaced people.

b as a signatory to the U.N. Human Rights Convention, Colombia is obligated to care for native peoples.

c of agreements governing such matters between the government and the Catholic Church.

d of treaties with other South American governments about the care of such people.

5. Which of the following statements describes the aspirations of the newly arrived Nukak? They want

a to continue to live on the charity of the Colombians of the village.

b to move out of Colombia.

c to farm and send their children to school, but they do not want to lose their culture or language.

d to return to jungle life.

IN-DEPTH QUESTIONS

1. If you worked for the Colombian government or an international, aid organization, how would you go about trying to integrate the newly arrived Nukak into the modern world?

2. Based on your reading of the article, what aspects of modern-day life do you think the Nukak will find most pleasing? What aspects might they find most troubling?

ANSWER KEY

QUIZ 1

1. [c] a national park.

2. [b] pressure from Colombia's civil war.

3. [d] exposed them to Western diseases.

4. [a] they are classified as displaced people.

5. [c] to farm and send their children to school, but they do not want to lose their culture or language.