Life in Pre-British Jamaica: The Taíno World

Before Columbus (1494) and British conquest (1655), Jamaica was home to the Taíno — Arawakan-speaking people who had inhabited the island (Xaymaca, "land of wood and water") for ~1,000 years.

🏛️ Society & Governance

• Cacicazgos: Chiefdoms led by caciques (hereditary, male/female)
• Hierarchy: Nobles (nitaínos), warriors, artisans, commoners (naborias)
• Matrilineal descent — lineage through mother
• Collective decisions in batey (plaza/council space)

🌽 Agriculture: Conucos & Cassava

• Conuco system: Mounded raised beds — drainage, fertility, erosion control
• Staples: Cassava (yuca) → casabe (flatbread), sweet potato, maize, beans, peppers, pineapple, guava
• Shifting cultivation — sustainable in low density

🎣 Protein: Sea & Forest

• Fishing: Canoes (canoa), nets, hooks, traps — reef & deep water
• Hunting: Iguana, hutia (rodent), birds, manatee (coastal)
• No large game — island biogeography

🙏 Spirituality: Zemís & Ancestors

• Polytheistic: Yocahú (cassava/creator), Atabey (freshwater/fertility), Guabancex (storms)
• Zemís: Sacred objects (stone, wood, cotton) housing spirits
• Cohoba ritual: Hallucinogenic snuff (Anadenanthera) for divination
• Ancestor veneration — bones kept in baskets, consulted

🎨 Art & Technology

• Wood carving: Zemís, duhos (ceremonial seats), canoes (dugout, up to 50 people)
• Pottery: Thin-walled, incised, red/white slip
• Cotton weaving: Hammocks, belts, skirts
• Gold/copper alloys (guanín) — ornaments, not tools

🗣️ Language

Taíno (Arawakan) — contributed canoe, hammock, hurricane, tobacco, barbecue, savanna to English/Spanish.

💥 The Collapse

• 1494: Columbus arrives → encomienda, forced labor, disease
• 1509: Spanish settlement (Sevilla la Nueva)
• 1655: British capture → African slavery replaces Taíno labor
• By 1600: Taíno effectively extinct as distinct population (disease, violence, assimilation)

Legacy: Place names (Ocho Rios, Moneague), words, genes (mtDNA studies show 60%+ Taíno maternal lineage in Puerto Rico; Jamaica less studied). The forest remembers.