A Cinta Larga village traditionally consisted of a single communal house occupied by an agnatic lineage. As a consequence of intensified contact with representatives of the national (i.e., nonindigenous) society, the Cinta Larga founded, near FUNAI posts, villages composed of nuclear families belonging to different lineages. Both kinds of settlements are found—nucleated villages near FUNAI landing strips and individual houses scattered in the forest according to the traditional pattern. These patterns of concentration and dispersal are partially regulated by internal relations between families and by contact between Indians and FUNAI. Friction and disagreement encourage dispersal.
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