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Did Orellana Really Meet the Legendary Amazon Women Warriors?
Orellana and his expedition were warned by one of the tribes they met about a group of women warriors along the river. A few days later, the expedition came across and fought with these women warriors, shooting seven or eight.
Where did the legend of the Amazons originate? In Greek mythology, the Amazons were a nation of female warriors ruled by a queen. Men were not permitted to live with them and baby boys born there were sent away to live with their fathers, the Gargareans, in a neighboring country. The Amazon girls were trained in agriculture, hunting, and war.
Did Orellana really meet the Amazons? No one knows for sure, but members of the Yagua tribe of Brazil wear a costume that looks like a skirt. They live near where the Napo and Amazon Rivers meet, but Friar Carvajal in the Orellana expedition journal describes the Amazons as living further downstream. However, the Yagua did move from time to time.
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