page_title: Kankuamo people
hierarchical_section_title: Kankuamo people
context_page_description: The Kankuamo, Kankuaka, Kankui or Kankuané are an indigenous people of Colombia, living on the southern slopes of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta up until the north of the César department. The Kankuamo people, estimated at around 15,000 individuals, speak Sánha, a dialect of the Atanque language of the Chibcha family. Their laws are borne from nature and they consider the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, the highest mountain range closest to the sea, as sacred. In their native tongue they call this Umunukunu. Many Kankuamo, mostly merchants, do not speak their native language.
context_section_description: The Kankuamo, Kankuaka, Kankui or Kankuané are an indigenous people of Colombia, living on the southern slopes of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta up until the north of the César department (corregimientos: Atánquez, Guatapurí, Chemesquemena, Los Haticos, La Mina and Rio Seco). The Kankuamo people, estimated at around 15,000 individuals, speak Sánha, a dialect of the Atanque language of the Chibcha family. Their laws are borne from nature and they consider the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, the highest mountain range closest to the sea, as sacred. In their native tongue they call this Umunukunu. Many Kankuamo, mostly merchants, do not speak their native language.
caption: Map of the percentage of Colombian indigenous people (2005)
  The Kankuamo are located in the north of Colombia; the dark brown "J"