Amerindian Legacies in the Caribbean
Topic: “The Amerindians have left a legacy that forms part of the Caribbean Civilization.” Discuss.
The Amerindians have left a legacy that forms part of the Caribbean Civilization. The Amerindians were two groups of people having completely different personalities. One group was the Arawaks or Taino which occupied the Greater Antilles and the other was the Caribs or Kalinago which occupied the Lesser Antilles. The Arawaks were a very peaceful group of people; slim and short, but firmly built. The Caribs on the other hand were very aggressive people and were taller and had a bigger built than the Arawaks. The Caribs were also cannibals and some people assume that is why they were bigger than the Arawaks. Despite their differences in personalities, they had a similar way of living. They were both excellent fishermen, craftsmen, farmers, handymen and doctors. Since they were naturalists and believed in the environment, they made use of the natural resources they had in order to survive. After the Europeans settled on Amerindian territories, they raped their females, killed and overworked their men and ate their produce. Disease and famine resulted in a rapid decrease in the Amerindian population. Hundreds of years after, Caribbean people still benefit and utilize the legacy of the Amerindians such as place names/words, food/cuisine, architecture and handmade materials.
Long before Christopher Columbus arrived in the Caribbean Sea, the Caribbean was still relatively “new”. This allowed the early settlers; the Amerindians, to give names to countries, places inside those countries, animals, food and other objects for the first time. Some of these names are still utilized. The Amerindians called Barbados “Ichirouganaim”, St.Vincent “Hairoun”, Dominica “Waitukubuli”, Jamaica “Xaymaca” and named a lot of other Caribbean territories. They gave names to places in Venezuela, such as Tacarigua, and in Trinidad such as Piarco and Tunapuna. They still have their names. The
The Amerindians have left a legacy that forms part of the Caribbean Civilization. The Amerindians were two groups of people having completely different personalities. One group was the Arawaks or Taino which occupied the Greater Antilles and the other was the Caribs or Kalinago which occupied the Lesser Antilles. The Arawaks were a very peaceful group of people; slim and short, but firmly built. The Caribs on the other hand were very aggressive people and were taller and had a bigger built than the Arawaks. The Caribs were also cannibals and some people assume that is why they were bigger than the Arawaks. Despite their differences in personalities, they had a similar way of living. They were both excellent fishermen, craftsmen, farmers, handymen and doctors. Since they were naturalists and believed in the environment, they made use of the natural resources they had in order to survive. After the Europeans settled on Amerindian territories, they raped their females, killed and overworked their men and ate their produce. Disease and famine resulted in a rapid decrease in the Amerindian population. Hundreds of years after, Caribbean people still benefit and utilize the legacy of the Amerindians such as place names/words, food/cuisine, architecture and handmade materials.
Long before Christopher Columbus arrived in the Caribbean Sea, the Caribbean was still relatively “new”. This allowed the early settlers; the Amerindians, to give names to countries, places inside those countries, animals, food and other objects for the first time. Some of these names are still utilized. The Amerindians called Barbados “Ichirouganaim”, St.Vincent “Hairoun”, Dominica “Waitukubuli”, Jamaica “Xaymaca” and named a lot of other Caribbean territories. They gave names to places in Venezuela, such as Tacarigua, and in Trinidad such as Piarco and Tunapuna. They still have their names. The