Cristina Calderón

Cristina Calderón (May 24, 1928 - ) was born at Robalo, Puerto Williams on Navarino Island, Chile. Cristina is the last living full-blooded Yaghan person after the death of her sister Úsula in 2003By 2004, Calderón (often referred to as simply Abuela, Spanish for Grandmother) and her sister-in-law Emelinda Acuña were the only two remaining native speakers of the Yaghan language. After Acuña died at 84 years of age (October 12, 2005), Calderón became the last living full-blooded Yaghan person. With her granddaughter Cristina Zarraga and her sister Ursula Calderon she published a book of Yaghan stories called Hai Kur Mamashu Shis [I Want to Tell You a Story] in 2005.
Cristina Calderón has been officially declared Illustrious Daughter of The Magallanes Region and Chilean Antarctica. She also has been recognized by The National Council of Culture and the Arts (Chile) as a Living Human Treasure in the framework of the Convention for the Safeguard of Immaterial Heritage, adopted by UNESCO in 2003. Likewise, she has been nominated among the fifty women heroines in the celebration of the Bicentennial of Chile.