The Taino also made pottery, baskets, and implements of stone and wood. A favourite form of recreation was a ball game played on rectangular courts. The Taino had an elaborate system of religious beliefs and rituals that involved the worship of spirits (zemis) by means of carved representations.

What did the Tainos do?

Despite the small Spanish military presence in the region, they often used diplomatic divisions and, with help from powerful native allies, controlled most of the region. In exchange for a seasonal salary, religious and language education, the Taíno were required to work for Spanish and Indian land owners.

What was the Tainos lifestyle?

Lifestyle of Arawak / Taíno The Arawak/Taíno society was basically a very gentle culture. It was characterized by happiness, friendliness and a highly organized hierarchical, paternal society, and a lack of guile. Each society was a small kingdom and the leader was called a cacique.

Who were the Taino for kids?

Taíno facts for kids

• The Taínos were an indigenous people that lived in the Americas before Columbus arrived there.
• When Christopher Columbus came to the Americas, the Taínos were living in the Bahamas, the Greater Antilles (Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola and Puerto Rico), and some islands of the northern Lesser Antilles.

What did the Tainos do for relaxation?

There is also the use of tobacco, which is not just a part of Jamaica but (is used) right throughout the world. The Tainos used tobacco in a number of their religious ceremonies and rituals and in their daily life for relaxation,” Dr. Cresser says.

What did the Taino eat?

Taíno staples included vegetables, fruit, meat, and fish. There were no large animals native to the Caribbean, but they captured and ate small animals, such as hutias and other mammals, earthworms, lizards, turtles, and birds.

What was the Taínos Favourite dish?

The Taino began the process of preparing meat and fish in large clay pots. The Carib Indians introduced spices and lemon juice to their meat and fish recipes. In general, the favorite Caribbean dish is seasoned jerk chicken. This spicy cuisine is unique.

What was the Taínos dress?

Tainos wore very little clothing. Taino men were virtually naked save for loincloths, while Taino married women wore a short skirt called a naguea.

Are the Taino extinct?

The Taino people were declared extinct in 1565, but a DNA study last year found that 61% of all Puerto Ricans and roughly a third of Cubans and Dominicans have Native American mitochondrial DNA. By carefully examining historical records, descendants of the Taino have begun piecing together clues to their ancestry.

What did Taino children do for fun?

The Taínos had fun in many different ways. and a ball game called batú. They would play batú in an area called the batey (pictured below). They played the game with a ball made of tree gum, leaves, and roots.

What color were Taínos?

In appearance the Taino were short and muscular and had a brown olive complexion and straight hair. They wore little clothes but decorated their bodies with dyes. Religion was a very important aspect of their lives and they were mainly an agricultural people although they did have some technological innovations.

Did the Taino have gold?

He died two years later. Columbus was finally able to communicate his desire to find the source of certain amulets and nose rings worn made from a yellow metal, which the Taino called guanin and the Spanish called oro. No gold was found.

What did the Tainos bring to the Caribbean?

In Jamaica, the Tainos established an estimated 200 villages by the time Christopher Columbus set foot on the island in 1494 and numbered around 60,000 people. They thrived for thousands of years by cultivating corn, gathering local fruits, and catching fish and turtles for food.

What did the Tainos contributed to Jamaica?

What has the Tainos contributed to Jamaica? Many of the delectable fruits and vegetables that we enjoy today was also once enjoyed by the Taino people. They practiced subsistence living, hence they had no food in surplus. As such, farming and cultivating crops was a part of the Tainos daily life.

How did the Tainos reach to Jamaica?

They reached Jamaica via the Dominican Republic and soon absorbed the Saladoid culture into their own. The Tainos enslaved the Saladoids, making them a labouring underclass that was denied Taino luxuries such as hammocks and cassava. The Spanish later noted this ‘underclass’ calling them the Naborias.