André Cognat, also known as Antecume, (21 February 1938 – 15 October 2021) was the French Guianese chief of a

Wayana The Wayana (alternate names: Ajana, Uaiana, Alucuyana, Guaque, Ojana, Oyana, Orcocoyana, Pirixi, Urukuena, Waiano etc.) are a Carib-speaking people located in the southeastern part of the Guiana highlands, a region divided between Brazil, Surin ...

tribe in

Antécume-Pata Antécume-Pata is a village in French Guiana, France. It was founded by André Cognat, a Pierre-Bénite-born Wayana tribal chief. It is home to a nursery and primary state school. Even though French is taught at the school, Sranan Tongo is still ...

French Guiana French Guiana, or Guyane in French, is an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France located on the northern coast of South America in the Guianas and the West Indies. Bordered by Suriname to the west ...

, France.

Early life

André Cognat was born on 21 February 1938 in Pierre-Bénite near

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

, in metropolitan France.

Adult life

Cognat moved to

in 1961, at the age of 23. His boat capsized on the Litani near

Maripasoula Maripasoula (), previously named Upper Maroni, is a commune of French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France located in South America. With a land area of , Maripasoula is the largest commune of France. The commune is slightly lar ...

, and he was rescued by a Wayana from the

Amazonia The Amazon rainforest, also called the Amazon jungle or Amazonia, is a moist broadleaf tropical rainforest in the Amazon biome that covers most of the Amazon basin of South America. This basin encompasses , of which are covered by the rainf ...

. Cognat decided to stay there, and he married a Wayana woman called Alasawani in 1973; they had a son and a daughter. By 1985, he had taken the name of Antecume. He also founded a new settlement called

, and he became the chief of the local Wayana tribe. Cognat founded Yepe, a non-profit organization to protect the rights of the Wayanas, in 1990. In particular, he had interceded for them in

Cayenne Cayenne (; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and capital city of French Guiana, an overseas region and Overseas department, department of France located in South America. The city stands on a former island at the mouth of the Caye ...

to retain their access to water against Brazilian

gold dredge A gold dredge is a placer mining machine that extracts gold from sand, gravel, and dirt using water and mechanical methods. Original gold dredges were large, multi-story machines built in the first half of the 1900s. In modern times the term r ...

rs. Cognat is the author of two memoirs about his life as a tribal chief.

Death

Cognat died on 15 October 2021 at the age of 83 at his home in

, France.

Works

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References

1938 births 2021 deaths People from Pierre-Bénite 20th-century French memoirists 20th-century French male writers French male non-fiction writers Writers from Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes French Guianan writers Wayana people French Guianan people of indigenous peoples descent {{France-nonfiction-writer-stub