When las Casas wrote this in 1542, there were only 200 Taíno left on Hispaniola. Across the Caribbean, he claimed the Spanish were responsible for the deaths of 12 to 15 million indigenous people.
What caused the death of the Tainos?
“Their culture was interrupted by disease, marriage with Spanish and Africans, and so forth, but the main reason the Indians were exterminated as a group was sickness ,” he told me. He ran through the figures from his native island: “By 1519, a third of the aboriginal population had died because of smallpox.
Who killed the Tainos in Puerto Rico?
For instance, a smallpox epidemic in Hispaniola in 1518–1519 killed almost 90% of the surviving Taíno. The remaining Taíno intermarried with Europeans and Africans, and became incorporated into the Spanish colonies. The Taíno were considered extinct as a people at the end of the century.
Who did the Tainos worship?
Taíno religion, as recorded by late 15th and 16th century Spaniards, centered on a supreme creator god and a fertility goddess . The creator god is Yúcahu Maórocoti and he governs the growth of the staple food, the cassava.
What happened to the Tainos in Dominican Republic?
The Taíno became nearly extinct as a culture following settlement by Spanish colonists , primarily due to infectious diseases to which they had no immunity. The first recorded smallpox outbreak in Hispaniola occurred in December 1518 or January 1519.
Are there any Tainos left in Puerto Rico?
Ancient Taíno Indigenous Group Still Present in Caribbean , DNA Finds. Taínos from Puerto Rico and the U.S. gather for a ten-day spiritual peace and dignity run to specific ceremonial sites in Puerto Rico. Portraits show young Taíno dancers.
What is the name of the Tainos leader?
Cacique comes from the Taíno word kassiquan, meaning “to keep house”. In 1555 the word entered the English language as “prince”. In Taíno culture, the cacique rank was hereditary and sometimes established through democratic means.
Did the Tainos have tattoos?
“As a pre-columbian society the Taino had no written alphabet. Instead they had a language called Arawakan, which consisted of petroglyphs, artistic symbols that were carved on rocks. These artful symbols were also tattooed. Taino men had tattoos for spiritual purposes , the women had piercings.”
What gods did the Tainos believe in?
The Arawak/Taíno were polytheists and their gods were called Zemi . The zemi controlled various functions of the universe, very much like Greek gods did, or like later Haitian Voodoo lwa. However, they do not seem to have had particular personalities like the Greek and Haitian gods/spirits do.
How did the Tainos behave?
The culture of the Taino was very well organized. They practiced shifting agriculture , had a religion where they worshiped spirits, and had a social hierarchy that put hereditary chiefs at the top.
What was the Tainos Favourite dish?
Their daily diet consists of vegetables and fruits such as papaya, yams, guavas, and cassava. The Taino began the process of preparing meat and fish in large clay pots. The Carib Indians introduced spices and lemon juice to their meat and fish recipes. In general, the favorite Caribbean dish is seasoned jerk chicken .
Did the Tainos fight back?
The Taínos fought back . Their resistance began as early as Columbus’ first trip back to Spain.
Are there still Arawaks in Jamaica?
Today, more than 70% of Jamaica’s populace are descended from African slaves . Tragically, descendants of the Tainos have all but disappeared.
What does Taíno mean in Spanish?
The name Taíno was given by Columbus. When he met some native men, they said “Taíno, Taíno”, meaning “ We are good, noble “. Columbus thought that taíno was the name of the people. Rouse divides the Taínos into three main groups. One is the Classic Taíno, from Hispaniola and Puerto Rico.
Why is Puerto Rico called Boricua?
1 day ago · Puerto Ricans often proudly identify themselves as Boricua, loosely based on Boriqueño (archaic), both words originating from the Taíno word Boriken (also known as Boriquén, Borinquen, or Borinquén), to illustrate their recognition of the island’s original Taíno heritage . The word olé! means bravo!
How did the Tainos get to the Caribbean?
A distinct migration began when pottery-makers traveled down the Orinoco River in present Venezuela and out to the Caribbean islands, populating islands from Trinidad to Puerto Rico between 500 BC and 200 BC. ... A new pottery tradition is called Ostionoid, which persists into the Taino period.
