The Aweti people likely formed from several other tribes which entered the Xingu region in the 17th or 18th century. It wasn't until the late 19th century that the Aweti and other tribes in the region were documented by European explorers, coming from Germany. Although there was not much communication between the Aweti and European settlers from then onward for several decades, the brief expeditions into the jungle from explorers were enough to introduce diseases into the community to which the Aweti and their neighbors had no acquired immunity. By the time of the 1950 census, the Aweti counted only 23 people. Despite this, the Aweti did not become extinct or merge with other tribes like some of their neighbors.
