Tsáchila

The Tsáchila tribe of Ecuador live in the canton of Santo Domingo in the province of Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas. The men of the tribe are notable for shaving the sides of their heads and shaping the remaining hair into cap-like form with a mixture of grease which is dyed bright red with achiote seeds.

They speak the Tsafiki or Tsáchila language of the Barbacoan linguistic family.

Their common name “Colorado” (meaning red) was given to them by the Spanish due to their hair color, and the main city of the area is known as Santo Domingo de los Colorados in tribute to this people..

Ironically, it was the Spanish who caused the tradition of dying the hair. A leader asked the gods for a remedy that would ward off the death caused by the arrival of the Europeans illnesses. The legend goes that when he awoke, the sun shown on the achiote plant.