Family farmers in settlements in Araguatins/TO

identity and relationship with the land

Abstract

Rural settlements in Brazil influence the economic and social dynamism in the municipalities and regions where they are introduced. It is challenging to understand this reality as a social organism, complex and strongly intertwined with the territory through its relations of production and consumption and the overcoming of problems. The objective of this article is to identify the profile of rural farmers settled in Araguatins/TO and verify their relationship with the land, contributing to a social analysis of the rural space. The research methodology is a case study and has a qualitative-quantitative approach. We interviewed 63 families distributed in 21 rural settlements in Araguatins, between December/2020 and January/2021. The results show that rural families have a family trajectory around agriculture; the time of living in the settlements is varied; there was a deep affective connection with the land and this directly influences the identification with the activity, with the majority identifying themselves as farmers and none as peasants or settlers. Despite all the existing difficulties, the level of satisfaction of the settlers with the rural way of life is notorious.