The Stingray and Taino Culture

Did You Know: Since ancient times, stingrays have been a part of the Caribbean’s marine environment and the cultures of the region’s Indigenous Peoples. Taino and other Caribbean Indigenous Peoples, for example, would traditionally use the barbed spine located toward the bottom of a stingray’s tail in various ways. Stingray barbs would sometimes be used as tips for spears and arrows used for hunting or weapons, as well as for adornments like necklaces and bracelets. Like sharkskin, the rough skin of certain stingrays were  also used as a grating tool to grind yuka (yuca/cassava/manioc) into a fine powder.  Some Taino words for stingrays include Libusa, Sabina, Lebisa, and Chucho (spotted eagle ray). - UCTP Taino News © 2013

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 

Flat Foreheads

Did You Know: A flat forehead was considered very attractive in many Taino communities. Mothers carried their newborn babies on their backs with a padded, wooden board. The board would lay across the child's head and flattened the impressionable forehead.- - UCTP Taino News © 2009