Misak

Misak (autonymously Wam, also known as Guambiano) is a Barbacoan language of southwestern Colombia, spoken by around 25,000 indigenous Misak people in the Cauca Department, primarily in the Misak Resguardo de Guambía at Silvia, Cauca. Linguistically, Misak is part of the Barbacoan family alongside Awa Pit (kwi) of Colombia/Ecuador, Cha'palaa (cbi) of Ecuador, and Tsafiki (cof) of Ecuador. The Misak are notable for their strong cultural autonomy and distinctive cultural traditions, including their hat-wearing tradition and their political activism — the Misak community has been one of the most prominent indigenous voices in Colombian national politics since the 1970s, with leaders like Lorenzo Muelas serving in the 1991 Constitutional Assembly that recognized indigenous rights in the new Colombian Constitution.