Roseau – Establishing a sense of cultural identity has been on the rise as various ethnic communities around the globe begin the process of preserving their traditions, beliefs, and society. A similar movement has been happening with the Kalinago people of Dominica. For decades, their people have been trying to revive their culture. What made them move forward with this action? Let’s find out.
History and People
Back in the time of numerous European conquests, Christopher Columbus sailed to the Caribbean in hopes of finding gold and other treasures. He chanced upon what he would name as Dominica, yet was not able to set foot as he and his crew failed to overcome the jagged coast. The stories of his adventure throughout the decades influenced others to follow in his footsteps. However, they did not find gold; instead, Dominica’s rich natural gifts welcomed them along with the indigenous people of the island, the Kalinago.
Initially, the ethnic people were called Carib Indians, which they do not identify with. The people do not wish to be associated with what the Spanish settlers call caribales, meaning “cannibal.” The indigenous people prefer to be called Kalinago.
At Present
The Kalinago is the largest minority in Dominica. As many have witnessed movements toward more modern practices, the prospect of losing their ethnic culture came to the people’s attention. To assuage their concern, there have been different cultural renewal projects implemented starting from the 1980s.
The members of the Kalinago ethnic community believe that retaining and reclaiming their people’s traditional knowledge ties them to their ancestors. Through this connection, can they preserve their indigenous identity? An essential part of such efforts is that of preserving their language.
Language and Struggles
As language serves as the primary means of sharing and preserving culture, the Kalinago people use their language to represent their way of life. However, it was not an easy task to maintain its constant use. The ethnic communities gradually moved to accommodate and understand the various European people who came to their lands.
With such a need to understand and communicate, fewer people became fluent speakers of the Kalinago language and leaned more on learning various European languages. This process gave birth to the French Kweyol used on the island together with the English language.
Sadly, most Kalinago people now would say that they cannot speak a word of their native language. However, there is still hope as the younger members of the communities now see how they are still connected to their ancestors’ language. Many of the Kalinago names did not change to more European ones throughout the decades. This ethnic connection gave way to various studies that identify the lost language as close to other Caribbean languages, but with a closer Arawakan connection. Such ideas and connections can be an opportunity for future studies to better understand the real language structures used by the Kalinago ancestors for their attempt at cultural renewal to be successful.
Photo by Anita Denunzio on Unsplash, https://unsplash.com/@dronepilot
