No calendars, no clocks, no years! Inside the Amondawa tribe where life is measured by stages, not time
Times of India
by TOI WORLD DESKFebruary 26, 2026
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The Amondawa tribe, a small community in the Amazon rainforest, offers a unique perspective on time as a concept. Unlike most cultures, their language lacks terms for months, years, or ages, instead organizing life around stages, roles, and events rather than dates. Researchers from institutions like the University of Portsmouth and the Federal University of Rondonia have found that while the Amondawa can discuss past and future events, they do not abstract time into independent periods like weeks or months. Instead, their understanding is tied to physical actions and achievements.
The tribe’s perception of time differs significantly from global norms. They do not use spatial metaphors for time, such as referring to the past as behind or the future as ahead. Their language focuses on concrete descriptions of movement in relation to natural features like rivers and hills, rather than abstract temporal concepts. This absence of spatial mapping for time is linked to their lack of calendars or clocks, which researchers suggest may have hindered the development of a distinct concept of time.
Despite these differences, the Amondawa are capable of understanding sequences of events and planning for the future. They use Portuguese, introduced through interactions with outsiders, to incorporate temporal concepts like “tomorrow” or “yesterday.” This ability highlights their cognitive flexibility but also underscores how deeply cultural practices shape language and thought.
The study raises important questions about the relationship between language, culture, and cognition. While some experts argue that the absence of time-related terms in Amondawa reflects a fundamental lack of understanding, others caution against overinterpreting these findings. Pierre Pica, a linguist at CNRS in France, notes that spatial terms like “upstream” or “downstream” are common in small societies and do not necessarily translate to abstract concepts like time.
As the Amondawa become increasingly exposed to external influences, their traditional way of life—and its unique approach to time—faces potential
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Originally published on Times of India on 2/26/2026