Message from the Minister of Youth Sports and Culture
May 5, 2010
Today we celebrate Taino Day and focus attention on the contribution that the Tainos have made to our unique Jamaican culture and identity. The Tainos were the first people to inhabit our island centuries ago, but we still feel their influence. It is there in the things that we do and say: in the foods we eat; in the way we construct our houses; in the names of some famous places; and in the stories that we've been telling for generations.
Constant archaeological and anthropological research is helping us to know more about our Taino ancestors and the way they lived. We know that they were a peaceful people who lived in an organised society that adhered to a system of law and order. We also know that they exhibited athletic prowess, competing against each other on the playing field during their ball game of batos.
We are also understanding that they participated in trade with their Caribbean neighbours using canoes as transport, centuries before it was popular to develop trading blocs and treaties. They had a thriving trade with islands such as Cuba and Hispaniola in commodities such as cotton. The Tainos were also technologically savvy, building houses with thatched roofs that could withstand the strongest storms.
Today affords us the opportunity to remind ourselves and our children that our history did not begin with the arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1494. When Columbus came, he found a thriving civilisation. Though most of the Taino population died under harsh conditions within 50 years of the Spanish occupation, those who survived continued the rich Taino traditions and left us a rich legacy that we now celebrate.
We can be proud of our Taino heritage.
Our national motto is 'Out of Many, One People'; and it is in observation of occasions such as Taino Day, that we are truly able to appreciate the its meaning.
Happy Taino Day.
Olivia Grange, MP
Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture
