| Caribbean History |
|---|
| Before Columbus |
| Arrival & Settlement |
| Islands & Tribes |
| Carib Indians |
| Map Of Caribbean |
| Language & Dialect |
| Amerindian History |
First Peoples Of The Caribbean
Before the arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1492, most of the Caribbean was peopled by three types, or groups, of inhabitants: the Ciboney or Guanahuatebey, the Taino or Arawak, and the Caribs.
The cultural distinctions among the three groups are not great; the single greatest differentiating factor appears to be their respective dates of arrival in the region.
The Ciboney seem to have arrived first and were found in parts of Cuba and the Bahamas. They also seem to have had the most elementary forms of social organization skills.
Caribs and Arawaks. Both were tropical forest people, who probably originated in the vast expanse of forests of the northern regions of South America. They were ethnically and linguistically related to such present-day tropical forest peoples as the Chibcha, the Warao, the Yanomamo, the Caracas, the Caquetío, or the Jirajara--in short, the peoples found anywhere from Panama to Brazil.
The most numerous groups were the Arawaks, who resided in most of the Greater Antilles--Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola (presently, Haiti and the Dominican Republic), and Puerto Rico. The smaller eastern island chain was the home of the Caribs, a tropical forest group related to most of the indigenous Indians found in Central and South America. Barbados and a number of smaller islands were not permanently inhabited.
Columbus first landed among the Arawakan-speaking Taino in the southeast Bahamas, called the Lucayos (Leeward Islets) by the Spanish. Columbus' Journal for Oct. 13, 1492 notes "To the first island I gave the name of the blessed Saviour [San Salvador]... But the Indians call it Guanahaní..." (Taino for "iguana").
Leaving Guanahaní on October 15 with native guides aboard, the Spanish ships passed Rum Cay which they named Santa Maria de la Concepción. The next four days (Oct.16-19) were spent at Fernandina, where Columbus witnessed the trading skills of the native Taino.
A short distance east was the island called Samoet (Isabella, now Crooked Island), where the Spaniards anchored from October 20-24. After briefly sailing west, on Oct. 25-26 they ran into shoals (the Islas de Arena), and turned south. On Oct. 27, Cuba (Juana) was sighted and the Spaniards spent the next five weeks (Oct.28-Nov.5) along its northeast coast.
Author's Note: The content of this page is a compilation of data extracted from the archives of various universities, colleges and other sources. This documents was compiled, edited and validated for Html conformity by Anbanet publishings. More articles on the history of the caribbean can be found at centerlink. for Caribbean history.