Guayiga and Marunguey are Taino

Did You Know: Traditionally, Taino People made special use of a type of cycad plant species in the Zamia family that grows in several varieties throughout the Caribbean, the Bahamas, and even Florida (Zamia pumila, Zamia debilis, Zamia amblyphyllidia, Zamia integriflora, etc). This plant is known as guayiga in Kiskeia(Dominican Republic), it also is known as marunguey in Borikén (Puerto Rico). The indigenous Seminole Peoples of Florida call it Coonti. In Kuba (Cuba) these plants are known as Yuquilla de ratón or Yuquilla de paredón. While guayiga/marungueyis extremely poisonous, the Taino learned to make a bread called Chola or Cholla, out of its roots. The production of this bread is similar to that of Taino kasabe(yuka/cassava/manioc bread). According to local traditional knowledge, once the bread is made, it is left outside, and when insects begin to land on it, the bread is deemed ready to be consumed as the poisons have been sufficiently extracted. Today, on the island of Kiskeia, the communities of Higuey and Haina produce most of the chola bread made on the island. – UCTP Taino News © 2013 

Batea is Taino

Did You Know: Batea are oval or circular wooden trays used traditionally by Taino to carry food, wash clothes, or pan for gold. Today, Taino and others in Kiskeia (Dominican Republic) continue to make and use them for these same purposes, still calling them batea, which is its Taino name. - UCTP Taino News (c) 2013 

Taíno Political Organization

Did You Know: Taíno society was organized in two sectors - nitaíno (community leaders) and naboria (general community members).  Community life was administrated by chiefs and sub-chiefs called kasike(cacique), who in turn were supported and often advised by other community and spiritual leaders called behike and buhiti among other names. The traditional territories (called cacicazgosby the Spaniards) controlled by kasike were actually confederations of iukaieke (yucayeque) communities with populations that ranged from several hundred to thousands of people. As Taíno society developed over time, powerful kasike (caciques) united these communities into political states that were ultimately guided by a grand or paramount chief. In 1492, Kiskeia (Hispaniola) was organized under five confederations. Boriken(Puerto Rico) was organized under 20, with the Guainia (Guaynia) territory being the largest and most politically powerful. -  UCTP Taíno News © 2013

Kasabe: Bread made from Yuka

DID YOU KNOW - Traditionally, bread made from yuka or cassava is known in the Taino and Lokono Arawak language as kasabe or kasabi. It was created by kneading yuka (cassava/manioc) flour into flat disks and roasting them on flat ceramic griddles called buren over a cooking fire. Today, the baking of kasabe has been modernized for increase production but it is still presented in the original flat, round style. Whether made from bitter or sweet varieties of yuka/manioc, kasabe is known to preserve exceedingly well with a preservative-free shelf life of about 8 months. In the time of the ancient Taino, it was taken on long journeys over land and sea without spoiling, providing a sometimes a much-needed burst of carbohydrates. The bitter cassava is said to produce a kind of kasabe that was virtually “unassailable by vermin” since it retained a small amount of hydrocyanic toxin harmless to humans but harmful or deadly to insects and rodents. Hab jao (jab jao) is the Taino name still given to the thinnest kasabe in Kiskeia (Dominican Republic). According to Taino tradition hab hao or hau hau (xau xau) was reserved for community leaders and dignitaries. Since the 1970s kasabe production in Kiskeia has expanded the availability of this ancient Taino culinary tradition from the local to international markets. - UCTP Taino News © 2012

Guaikano

DID YOU KNOW: The term guaikano (guaicano) is a Taino word for the remorafish (scientific name Echeneidae). Sometimes called a suckerfish, the guaikano (remora) is best known for its distinctive dorsal fin, which takes the form of an oval, sucker-like organ allowing them to take a firm hold against the skin of larger marine animals and even boats. Usually found in tropical or temperate waters, guaikano are known to grow between 1-3 ft long (30–90 cm). Among the Taino, the guaikano was once used by fisherman, specifically, because of its abilities to attach on to larger animals such as turtles and sharks. A cord or “kabuia (cabuya)” would be tied to the guaikano’s tail, and once the fish attached, a Taino fisherman could simply haul in both the guaikano and its host. - UCTP Taino News © 2011

Illustration: Modesto Garcia 

Hatuei...

DID YOU KNOW: Hatuei (Hatuey) was a Taíno kasike (chief) from the island of Kiskeia (Hispaniola), who lived in the early sixteenth century. Hatuei fled Kiskeia with about 400 followers to warn the Taino of Kuba about the Spaniards. Bartolomé de Las Casas later attributed the following speech to Hatuei while he was showing a basket of gold to the Sibonei Taíno community of Kaobana. Hatuei declared “Here is the God the Spaniards worship. For these they fight and kill; for these they persecute us and that is why we have to throw them into the sea... They tell us, these tyrants, that they adore a God of peace and equality, and yet they usurp our land and make us their slaves. They speak to us of an immortal soul and of their eternal rewards and punishments, and yet they rob our belongings, seduce our women, violate our daughters. Incapable of matching us in valor, these cowards cover themselves with iron that our weapons cannot break...” As a result of Hatuei’s guerrilla tactics against the Spaniards, he was able to confine them to their fort at Baracoa for a time. He was finally captured and before he was burnt alive at the stake, a priest asked him if he would accept Jesus and go to heaven. Hatuei asked the priest “if Christians went to heaven.” The priest answered “yes” to which Hatuei is said to have replied “I do not want to go there, but to hell so I will not be anywhere where they are and where I would not see such cruel people”. Hatuei was executed by the Spaniards on February 2, 1512. He is celebrated as "Cuba's First National Hero." – UCTP Taino News © 2011

The West Indian Boa: MAHA

Did You Know: West Indian boas (Epicrates) snakes that are found throughout the Caribbean islands. In the Major Antilles, some species are still known by their Taino name MAHA (Maja). These snakes range in size and coloration. Maha are primarily ground-dwellers, although they may also climb trees. On several Caribbean islands Maha gather at cave entrances at night, snatching bats out of the air as they exit or enter the cave. As in other boas, the Maha young feed on small animals such as lizards, whereas the large adults tend to feed on larger mammals and birds. Generally speaking, each island has a single, unique species. The exception is the island of Kiskeia (Haiti and the Dominican Republic), which has three species. The Cuba Boa is one of the largest of the boa group or genus and it is the primary predator of the hutia (Capromys Pilorides), an indigenous island rodent. Like many Maha, they are endangered today not only by natural phenomenum like hurricanes but also from deforestation. Maha also also endanger from local island residents who kill these snakes thinking they are a threat to poultry. The Maha can be seen depicted in ancient Taino art forms from stone work to wood and clay. For the ancient Taino, the Maha was not seen as an ill omen but part of the nature world with its own unique lessons to share. - - UCTP Taino News © 2009

Quiskeya is a Taino Name

Did You Know: Quisqueya or Kiskeia (Kiskeya) is one of the Taino names for the island of Hispaniola, or what is now the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The name, is said to mean "Mother of the Earth," and is still used to this day. Many Dominicans still refer to their island as La Isla Quisqueya, and refer to themselves as Quisqueyano. – UCTP Taino News (c) 2007

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