WHO YOU ARE....pt.1
The Taínos were pre-Columbian inhabitants of the Bahamas, Greater Antilles, and the northern Lesser Antilles. It is believed that the seafaring Taínos were relatives of the Arawakan people of South America. Their language is a member of the Maipurean linguistic family, which ranges from South America across the Caribbean. Arawak Indian people of the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea. They also inhabited 
Puerto Rico and the eastern tip of Cuba. Traditionally they grew cassava and corn (maize), hunted birds and small animals, and fished. They were skillful at working stone and wood. Their society consisted of three tiers — nobles, commoners, and slaves — and they were ruled by hereditary chiefs and sub-chiefs; religious beliefs centered on a hierarchy of nature spirits and ancestors. Their population was decimated during the Spanish conquest. The Taino population slowly increased during the succeeding centuries.
The word "Taíno" comes directly from Columbus. The indigenous peop
le he encountered in his first voyage called themselves "Taíno", meaning "good" or "noble", to differentiate themselves from Island-Caribs. This name applied to all the Island Taínos including those in the Lesser Antilles. Locally, the Taínos referred to themselves by the name of their location. For example, those in Puerto Rico called themselves Boricua (which means people from the island of the valiant noble lords) their island was called Borike'n (Great land of the valiant noble lord) and those occupying the Bahamas called themselves Lucayo (small islands). Cristóforo Colombo wrote in his journal that Taínos had beautiful, tall, slender bodies. Their color was dark or olive, and they wore short haircuts with a long hank at the back of the head. They were clean-shaven and hairless. The islands were densely populated. According to Cristóbal Colón, the Taíno tongue was "gentle, the sweetest 
in the world, always with a laugh."
In spite of having been almost completely wiped out within two decades, the Taínos left us their heritage - a legacy. Traces of Taíno physical characteristics are found in Taíno descendants clustered in areas of Borinquen. The names of many towns (Mayagüez, Coamo), foods (mamey), instruments, trees and plants are original Taíno names. We have little detailed knowledge of Taíno culture, religion and daily life. What we know comes from Spanish documents and from recent excavations.
Much has been said of the Taínos lately, but it wasn't until the early 1900's that the study of the Taínos took off. The origin of the Taínos was not proven until 1950 when scientists were able to trace them through their unique white-on-red pottery. Their origins are in the Orinoco and Amazon River basins - what is now Venezuela and Guianas. The Taínos began their migration, in waves, through the Caribbean Islands in approximately 900 BC. Their origins have been traced to the Village of Saladero in Venezuela.
As the years passed, the Arawakans, who landed in the Greater Antilles developed a distinct culture that we now call Taíno. This distinct culture was somewhat different from the original Arawak culture and different from that of their brothers, the fierce Caribs of the Lesser Antilles.
......Dr. Juan Martinez Cruzado, a geneticist from the University of Puerto Rico Mayaguez designed an island-wide DNA survey, The study funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation, shows that 61 percent of all Puerto Ricans have Amerindian mitochondrial DNA, 27 percent have African and 12 percent Caucasian. (Nuclear DNA, or the genetic material present in a gene's nucleus, is inherited in equal parts from one's father and mother. Mitochondrial DNA is inherited only from one's mother and does not change or blend with other materials over time.)
Puerto Rico and the eastern tip of Cuba. Traditionally they grew cassava and corn (maize), hunted birds and small animals, and fished. They were skillful at working stone and wood. Their society consisted of three tiers — nobles, commoners, and slaves — and they were ruled by hereditary chiefs and sub-chiefs; religious beliefs centered on a hierarchy of nature spirits and ancestors. Their population was decimated during the Spanish conquest. The Taino population slowly increased during the succeeding centuries.
The word "Taíno" comes directly from Columbus. The indigenous peop
le he encountered in his first voyage called themselves "Taíno", meaning "good" or "noble", to differentiate themselves from Island-Caribs. This name applied to all the Island Taínos including those in the Lesser Antilles. Locally, the Taínos referred to themselves by the name of their location. For example, those in Puerto Rico called themselves Boricua (which means people from the island of the valiant noble lords) their island was called Borike'n (Great land of the valiant noble lord) and those occupying the Bahamas called themselves Lucayo (small islands). Cristóforo Colombo wrote in his journal that Taínos had beautiful, tall, slender bodies. Their color was dark or olive, and they wore short haircuts with a long hank at the back of the head. They were clean-shaven and hairless. The islands were densely populated. According to Cristóbal Colón, the Taíno tongue was "gentle, the sweetest 
in the world, always with a laugh."
In spite of having been almost completely wiped out within two decades, the Taínos left us their heritage - a legacy. Traces of Taíno physical characteristics are found in Taíno descendants clustered in areas of Borinquen. The names of many towns (Mayagüez, Coamo), foods (mamey), instruments, trees and plants are original Taíno names. We have little detailed knowledge of Taíno culture, religion and daily life. What we know comes from Spanish documents and from recent excavations.
Much has been said of the Taínos lately, but it wasn't until the early 1900's that the study of the Taínos took off. The origin of the Taínos was not proven until 1950 when scientists were able to trace them through their unique white-on-red pottery. Their origins are in the Orinoco and Amazon River basins - what is now Venezuela and Guianas. The Taínos began their migration, in waves, through the Caribbean Islands in approximately 900 BC. Their origins have been traced to the Village of Saladero in Venezuela.
As the years passed, the Arawakans, who landed in the Greater Antilles developed a distinct culture that we now call Taíno. This distinct culture was somewhat different from the original Arawak culture and different from that of their brothers, the fierce Caribs of the Lesser Antilles.
......Dr. Juan Martinez Cruzado, a geneticist from the University of Puerto Rico Mayaguez designed an island-wide DNA survey, The study funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation, shows that 61 percent of all Puerto Ricans have Amerindian mitochondrial DNA, 27 percent have African and 12 percent Caucasian. (Nuclear DNA, or the genetic material present in a gene's nucleus, is inherited in equal parts from one's father and mother. Mitochondrial DNA is inherited only from one's mother and does not change or blend with other materials over time.)
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