137-493: Guanahacabibes Peninsula is the westernmost point on the island of Cuba . It is located in Pinar del Río Province , in the municipality of Sandino , and is sparsely populated. The waters surrounding the peninsula are important spiny lobster and red snapper fishing grounds. It also boasts the category of Biosphere Reserve , listed by UNESCO in 1987. Its western extremity, Cape San Antonio ( Spanish : Cabo San Antonio ),
274-646: A chieftain , known as cacique , or cacica if the ruler was a woman. Many women whom the Spaniards called cacicas were not always rulers in their own right, but were mistakenly acknowledged as such because they were the wives of caciques . Chiefs were chosen from the nitaínos and generally obtained power from their maternal line. A male ruler was more likely to be succeeded by his sister's children than his own unless their mother's lineage allowed them to succeed in their own right. The chiefs had both temporal and spiritual functions. They were expected to ensure
411-580: A spontaneous protest in Havana. From the start of the crisis until 1995, Cuba saw its gross domestic product (GDP) shrink by 35%. It took another five years for its GDP to reach pre-crisis levels. Cuba has since found a new source of aid and support in the People's Republic of China. In addition, Hugo Chávez , then president of Venezuela , and Evo Morales , former president of Bolivia , became allies and both countries are major oil and gas exporters. In 2003,
548-597: A Somali invasion. On 24 January 1978, Ethiopian and Cuban troops counterattacked, inflicting 3,000 casualties on the Somali forces. In February, Cuban troops launched a major offensive and forced the Somali army back into its own territory. Cuban forces remained in Ethiopia until 9 September 1989. Despite Cuba's small size and the long distance separating it from the Middle East, Castro's Cuba played an active role in
685-505: A bird, a frog , or a reptile, depending on the interpretation of the myth . Zemí was also the name the people gave to physical representations of Zemis, which could be objects or drawings. They took many forms and were made of many materials and were found in a variety of settings. The majority of zemís were crafted from wood, but stone, bone , shell , pottery , and cotton were used as well. Zemí petroglyphs were carved on rocks in streams, ball courts, and stalagmites in caves, such as
822-485: A campaign titled the "revolutionary offensive" was initiated to nationalize all remaining private small businesses, which at the time totaled to be about 58,000 small enterprises. The campaign would spur industrialization in Cuba and focus the economy on sugar production, specifically to a deadline for an annual sugar harvest of 10 million tons by 1970. The economic focus on sugar production involved international volunteers and
959-461: A chief was succeeded by a son of a sister. Las Casas was not specific as to which son of a sister would succeed, but d'Anghiera stated that the order of succession was the oldest son of the oldest sister, then the oldest son of the next oldest sister. Post-marital residence was avunculocal , meaning a newly married couple lived in the household of the maternal uncle. He was more important in the lives of his niece's children than their biological father;
1096-613: A collapse in the price of sugar, political unrest, and repression. Protesting students, known as the Generation of 1930, turned to violence in opposition to the increasingly unpopular Machado. A general strike (in which the Communist Party sided with Machado), uprisings among sugar workers, and an army revolt forced Machado into exile in August 1933. He was replaced by Carlos Manuel de Céspedes y Quesada . In September 1933,
1233-503: A common identity with African and Hispanic cultures. However, many people today identify as Taíno or have Taíno descent, most notably in subsections of the Puerto Rican , Cuban , and Dominican nationalities. Many Puerto Ricans, Cubans, and Dominicans have Caribbean-Indigenous mitochondrial DNA , suggesting Taíno descent through the direct female line. While some communities describe an unbroken cultural heritage passed down from
1370-567: A joint U.S.-Latin American assault on Francoist Spain to overthrow its authoritarian regime. Cuba lost six merchant ships during the war, and the Cuban Navy was credited with sinking the German submarine U-176 . Batista adhered to the 1940 constitution's strictures preventing his re-election. Ramon Grau San Martin was the winner of the next election, in 1944. Grau further corroded
1507-547: A middle class in most urban areas. After finishing his term in 1944 Batista lived in Florida, returning to Cuba to run for president in 1952. Facing certain electoral defeat, he led a military coup that preempted the election. Back in power, and receiving financial, military, and logistical support from the United States government, Batista suspended the 1940 Constitution and revoked most political liberties, including
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#17327795601601644-873: A mixture of Spanish, African, and Taíno heritages. Cuba developed slowly and, unlike the plantation islands of the Caribbean, had a diversified agriculture. Most importantly, the colony developed as an urbanized society that primarily supported the Spanish colonial empire. By the mid-18th century, there were 50,000 slaves on the island, compared to 60,000 in Barbados and 300,000 in Virginia ; as well as 450,000 in Saint-Domingue , all of which had large-scale sugarcane plantations. The Seven Years' War , which erupted in 1754 across three continents, eventually arrived in
1781-399: A receptacle for hallucinogenic snuff called cohoba , prepared from the beans of a species of Piptadenia tree. These trays have been found with ornately carved snuff tubes. Before certain ceremonies, Taínos would purify themselves, either by inducing vomiting (with a swallowing stick) or by fasting . After communal bread was served, first to the zemí, then to the cacique, and then to
1918-510: A sacred mountain on present-day Hispaniola. In Puerto Rico, 21st-century studies have shown that a high proportion of people have Amerindian mtDNA . Of the two major haplotypes found, one does not exist in the Taíno ancestral group, so other Native people are also among the genetic ancestors. DNA studies changed some of the traditional beliefs about pre-Columbian Indigenous history. According to National Geographic , "studies confirm that
2055-499: A separate black republic in Oriente Province, but was suppressed by General Monteagudo with considerable bloodshed. In 1924, Gerardo Machado was elected president. During his administration, tourism increased markedly, and American-owned hotels and restaurants were built to accommodate the influx of tourists. The tourist boom led to increases in gambling and prostitution in Cuba . The Wall Street Crash of 1929 led to
2192-426: A solid rubber ball. Normally, the teams were composed of men, but occasionally women played the game as well. The Classic Taíno played in the village's center plaza or on especially designed rectangular ball courts called batey . Games on the batey are believed to have been used for conflict resolution between communities. The most elaborate ball courts are found at chiefdom boundaries. Often, chiefs made wagers on
2329-467: A strategic point in the middle of the country, fell into the rebels hands on December 31, in a conflict known as the Battle of Santa Clara ). In the 1950s, various organizations, including some advocating armed uprising, competed for public support in bringing about political change. In 1956, Fidel Castro and about 80 supporters landed from the yacht Granma in an attempt to start a rebellion against
2466-657: A sugar planter, freed his slaves to fight with him for an independent Cuba. On 27 December 1868, he issued a decree condemning slavery in theory but accepting it in practice and declaring free any slaves whose masters present them for military service. The 1868 rebellion resulted in a prolonged conflict known as the Ten Years' War . A great number of the rebels were volunteers from the Dominican Republic , and other countries, as well as numerous Chinese indentured servants . The United States declined to recognize
2603-459: A term coined by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque in 1836. Taíno is not a universally accepted denomination—it was not the name this people called themselves originally, and there is still uncertainty about their attributes and the boundaries of the territory they occupied. The term nitaino or nitayno , from which Taíno derived, referred to an elite social class, not to an ethnic group. No 16th-century Spanish documents use this word to refer to
2740-550: A total ban on trade between the countries and a freeze on all Cuban-owned assets in the U.S. In February 1960, Castro signed a commercial agreement with Soviet Vice-Premier Anastas Mikoyan . In March 1960, U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower gave his approval to a CIA plan to arm and train a group of Cuban refugees to overthrow the Castro government. The invasion (known as the Bay of Pigs Invasion ) took place on 14 April 1961, during
2877-498: A typical village was a central plaza, used for various social activities, such as games, festivals, religious rituals , and public ceremonies. These plazas had many shapes, including oval, rectangular, narrow, and elongated. Ceremonies where the deeds of the ancestors were celebrated, called areitos , were performed here. Often, the general population lived in large circular buildings ( bohios ), constructed with wooden poles, woven straw, and palm leaves. These houses, built surrounding
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#17327795601603014-583: A vast expedition through the American Southeast , in search of gold, treasure, fame and power. On 1 September 1548, Gonzalo Perez de Angulo was appointed governor of Cuba. He arrived in Santiago, Cuba, on 4 November 1549, and immediately declared the liberty of all Natives. He became Cuba's first permanent governor to reside in Havana instead of Santiago, and he built Havana's first church made of masonry. By 1570, most residents of Cuba comprised
3151-414: A wave of pottery-making farmers—known as Ceramic Age people—set out in canoes from the north-eastern coast of South America starting some 2,500 years ago and island-hopped across the Caribbean. They were not, however, the first colonizers. On many islands, they encountered foraging people who arrived some 6,000 or 7,000 years ago...The ceramicists, who are related to today's Arawak-speaking peoples, supplanted
3288-640: A year, providing training to the Algerian army. In 1964, Cuba organized a meeting of Latin American communists in Havana and stoked a civil war in the capital of the Dominican Republic in 1965, which prompted 20,000 U.S. troops to intervene there. Che Guevara engaged in guerrilla activities in Africa and was killed in 1967 while attempting to start a revolution in Bolivia . Starting in 1968
3425-470: Is associated with extinctions of the islands native fauna, particularly its endemic sloths . The Arawakan -speaking ancestors of the Taíno people arrived in the Caribbean in a separate migration from South America around 1,700 years ago. Unlike the previous settlers of Cuba, the Taíno extensively produced pottery and engaged in intensive agriculture. The earliest evidence of the Taíno people on Cuba dates to
3562-822: Is considered part of Latin America. It is a multiethnic country whose people , culture and customs derive from diverse origins, including the Taíno Ciboney peoples, the long period of Spanish colonialism, the introduction of enslaved Africans and a close relationship with the Soviet Union during the Cold War. Cuba is a founding member of the United Nations, G77 , Non-Aligned Movement , Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States , ALBA , and Organization of American States . It has one of
3699-481: Is separated from the rest of the island by white-sand plains, where one of Cuba's largest lakeside areas lies. A relatively small area holds some 100 lakes and the largest and purest fields of silica sand, which is 99.8% pure. Nature tourism is a major attraction in the 398.26 km (153.77 sq mi) National Park. The area is inhabited by 172 species of birds belonging to 42 families, 11 of which are endemic and 84 are migratory. Experts also believe that four of
3836-520: Is the westernmost point of Cuba. It lies closer to the Pacific than to the easternmost point of the country, Cape Maisí . Its location in the open waters of the Gulf of Mexico makes it vulnerable to hurricanes. The area was severely affected by Hurricane Ivan in 2004 and Hurricane Wilma in 2005. The Guanahacabibes National Park on the peninsula is one of the country's largest natural reserves and
3973-499: The 9th century AD. Descendants of the first settlers of Cuba persisted on the western part of the island until Columbian contact, where they were recorded as the Guanahatabey people, who lived a hunter-gatherer lifestyle. After first landing on an island then called Guanahani on 12 October 1492, Christopher Columbus landed on Cuba on 27 October 1492, and landing in the northeastern coast on 28 October. Columbus claimed
4110-555: The Arawak peoples. Their language is considered to have belonged to the Arawak language family , the languages of which were historically present throughout the Caribbean, and much of Central and South America. In 1871, early ethnohistorian Daniel Garrison Brinton referred to the Taíno people as the Island Arawak , expressing their connection to the continental peoples. Since then, numerous scholars and writers have referred to
4247-567: The Bahama Archipelago on October 12, 1492. The Taíno historically spoke a dialect of the Arawakan language group. They lived in agricultural societies ruled by caciques with fixed settlements and a matrilineal system of kinship and inheritance. Taíno religion centered on the worship of zemis . Some anthropologists and historians have argued that the Taíno were no longer extant centuries ago, or that they gradually merged into
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4384-525: The Cayman Islands . Havana is the largest city and capital. Cuba is the third-most populous country in the Caribbean after Haiti and the Dominican Republic , with about 10 million inhabitants. It is the largest country in the Caribbean by area. The territory that is now Cuba was inhabited as early as the 4th millennium BC , with the Guanahatabey and Taíno peoples inhabiting the area at
4521-640: The Republic of Cuba , is an island country , comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud , and 4,195 islands , islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the northern Caribbean Sea , Gulf of Mexico , and Atlantic Ocean meet. Cuba is located east of the Yucatán Peninsula (Mexico), south of both Florida and the Bahamas , west of Hispaniola ( Haiti / Dominican Republic ), and north of Jamaica and
4658-558: The Sergeants' Revolt , led by Sergeant Fulgencio Batista , overthrew Céspedes. A five-member executive committee (the Pentarchy of 1933 ) was chosen to head a provisional government. Ramón Grau San Martín was then appointed as provisional president. Grau resigned in 1934, leaving the way clear for Batista, who dominated Cuban politics for the next 25 years, at first through a series of puppet-presidents. The period from 1933 to 1937
4795-632: The Spanish Caribbean . Spain's alliance with the French pitched them into direct conflict with the British , and in 1762, a British expedition consisting of dozens of ships and thousands of troops set out from Portsmouth to capture Cuba. The British arrived on 6 June, and by August, had placed Havana under siege . When Havana surrendered, the admiral of the British fleet, George Pocock and
4932-573: The Virgin Islands to Montserrat . Modern groups with Caribbean-Indigenous heritage have reclaimed the exonym Taíno as a self-descriptor, although terms such as Neo-Taino or Indio are also used. Two schools of thought have emerged regarding the origin of the Indigenous Caribbean people. Taíno culture as documented is believed to have developed in the Caribbean. The Taíno creation story says they emerged from caves in
5069-448: The cacique , social organization was composed of two tiers: The nitaínos at the top and the naborias at the bottom. The nitaínos were considered the nobles of the tribes. They were made up of warriors and the family of the cacique. Advisors who assisted in operational matters such as assigning and supervising communal work, planting and harvesting crops, and keeping peace among the village's inhabitants, were selected from among
5206-531: The dissolution of the Soviet Union , Cuba faced a severe economic downturn in the 1990s, known as the Special Period . In 2008, Fidel Castro retired after 49 years; Raúl Castro was elected his successor. Raúl Castro retired as president in 2018 and Miguel Díaz-Canel was elected president by the National Assembly following parliamentary elections . Raúl Castro retired as First Secretary of
5343-622: The encomienda system, which resembled the feudal system in medieval Europe. Within a century, the Indigenous people faced high incidence of mortality due to multiple factors, primarily Eurasian infectious diseases , to which they had no natural resistance (immunity), aggravated by the harsh conditions of the repressive colonial subjugation. In 1529, a measles outbreak killed two-thirds of those few Natives who had previously survived smallpox . On 18 May 1539, conquistador Hernando de Soto departed from Havana with some 600 followers into
5480-402: The nitaínos . The naborias were the more numerous working peasants of the lower class. The bohíques were priests who represented religious beliefs. Bohíques dealt with negotiating with angry or indifferent gods as the accepted lords of the spiritual world. The bohíques were expected to communicate with the gods , soothe them when they were angry, and intercede on the tribe's behalf. It
5617-499: The right to strike . He then aligned with the wealthiest landowners who owned the largest sugar plantations , and presided over a stagnating economy that widened the gap between rich and poor Cubans. Batista outlawed the Cuban Communist Party in 1952. After the coup, Cuba had Latin America's highest per capita consumption rates of meat, vegetables, cereals, automobiles, telephones and radios, though about one-third of
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5754-423: The tribe began to occupy the hierarchical position that would give way to the cacicazgo . The Taíno founded settlements around villages and organized their chiefdoms, or cacicazgos , into a confederation. The Taíno society, as described by the Spanish chroniclers, was composed of four social classes: the cacique , the nitaínos , the bohíques , and the naborias . According to archeological evidence,
5891-582: The 1959 Revolution were policemen, politicians, and informers of the Batista regime accused of crimes such as torture and murder, and their public trials and executions had widespread popular support among the Cuban population. The United States government initially reacted favorably to the Cuban Revolution, seeing it as part of a movement to bring democracy to Latin America. Castro's legalization of
6028-486: The 1970s was "extremely spartan" and discontent was rife. Fidel Castro admitted the failures of economic policies in a 1970 speech. In 1975, the OAS lifted its sanctions against Cuba, with the approval of 16 member states, including the United States. The U.S., however, maintained its own sanctions. During the Cold War, Cuban forces were deployed to all corners of Africa, either as military advisors or as combatants. During
6165-522: The 1970s, Fidel Castro dispatched tens of thousands of troops in support of Soviet-backed wars in Africa. He supported the MPLA in Angola ( Angolan Civil War ) and Mengistu Haile Mariam in Ethiopia ( Ogaden War ). In November 1975, Cuba deployed more than 65,000 troops and 400 Soviet-made tanks in Angola in one of the fastest military mobilizations in history. South Africa developed nuclear weapons due to
6302-485: The 19th century, the practice of coartacion had developed (or "buying oneself out of slavery", a "uniquely Cuban development"), according to historian Herbert S. Klein. Due to a shortage of white labor, blacks dominated urban industries "to such an extent that when whites in large numbers came to Cuba in the middle of the nineteenth century, they were unable to displace Negro workers." A system of diversified agriculture, with small farms and fewer slaves, served to supply
6439-517: The Americas for centuries before 1492. Christopher Columbus in his journal described how Indigenous people used tobacco by lighting dried herbs wrapped in a leaf and inhaling the smoke. Tobacco, derived from the Taino word "tabaco", was used in medicine and in religious rituals. The Taino people utilized dried tobacco leaves, which they smoked using pipes and cigars. Alternatively, they finely crushed
6576-541: The Batista government. In 1958, Castro's July 26th Movement emerged as the leading revolutionary group. The U.S. supported Castro by imposing a 1958 arms embargo against Batista's government. Batista evaded the American embargo and acquired weapons from the Dominican Republic. By late 1958, the rebels had broken out of the Sierra Maestra and launched a general popular insurrection . After Castro's fighters captured Santa Clara , Batista fled with his family to
6713-489: The British occupation of the city proved short-lived. Pressure from London on sugar merchants, fearing a decline in sugar prices, forced negotiations with the Spanish over the captured territories. Less than a year after Britain captured Havana, it signed the 1763 Treaty of Paris together with France and Spain, ending the Seven Years' War. The treaty gave Florida to Britain in exchange for Cuba. Cubans constituted one of
6850-574: The Caribbean, they captured and ate small animals such as hutias , other mammals, earthworms , lizards , turtles , and birds . Manatees were speared and fish were caught in nets, speared, trapped in weirs , or caught with hook and line. Wild parrots were decoyed with domesticated birds, and iguanas were taken from trees and other vegetation . The Taíno stored live animals until they were ready to be consumed: fish and turtles were stored in weirs, hutias and dogs were stored in corrals. The Taíno people became very skilled fishermen . One method used
6987-465: The Communist Party and retained broad authority, including oversight over the president. Cuba approved a new constitution in 2019. The optional vote attracted 84.4% of eligible voters. 90% of those who voted approved of the new constitution and 9% opposed it. The new constitution states that the Communist Party is the only legitimate political party, describes access to health and education as fundamental rights, imposes presidential term limits, enshrines
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#17327795601607124-565: The Communist Party in 2021 and Díaz-Canel was elected. Cuba is a socialist state , in which the role of the Communist Party is enshrined in the Constitution . Cuba has an authoritarian government where political opposition is not permitted. Censorship is extensive and independent journalism is repressed; Reporters Without Borders has characterized Cuba as one of the worst countries for press freedom. Culturally, Cuba
7261-506: The Communist Party and the hundreds of executions of Batista agents, policemen, and soldiers that followed caused a deterioration in the relationship between the two countries. The promulgation of the Agrarian Reform Law , expropriating thousands of acres of farmland (including from large U.S. landholders), further worsened relations. In response, between 1960 and 1964 the U.S. imposed a range of sanctions, eventually including
7398-610: The Cuban Revolutionary Party in New York City in 1892. The aim of the party was to achieve Cuban independence from Spain. In January 1895, Martí traveled to Monte Cristi and Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic to join the efforts of Máximo Gómez . Martí recorded his political views in the Manifesto of Montecristi . Fighting against the Spanish army began in Cuba on 24 February 1895, but Martí
7535-514: The Cuban government had imposed broad restrictions on travel to prevent the mass emigration of people after the 1959 revolution; it approved exit visas only on rare occasions. Requirements were simplified: Cubans need only a passport and a national ID card to leave; and they are allowed to take their young children with them for the first time. However, a passport costs on average five months' salary. Observers expect that Cubans with paying relatives abroad are most likely to be able to take advantage of
7672-553: The Cuban military involvement in Africa was the significant presence of black or mixed-race soldiers among the Cuban forces. According to one source, more than 300,000 Cuban military personnel and civilian experts were deployed in Africa. The source also states that out of the 50,000 Cubans sent to Angola, half contracted AIDS and that 10,000 Cubans died as a consequence of their military actions in Africa. Soviet troops began to withdraw from Cuba in September 1991, and Castro's rule
7809-581: The Dominican Republic on 1 January 1959. Later he went into exile on the Portuguese island of Madeira and finally settled in Estoril, near Lisbon. Fidel Castro's forces entered the capital on 8 January 1959. The liberal Manuel Urrutia Lleó became the provisional president. According to Amnesty International , official death sentences from 1959 to 1987 numbered 237 of which all but 21 were carried out. The vast majority of those executed directly following
7946-783: The Government. Most resistance came from Cuban construction workers, while the Grenadan People's Revolutionary Army and militia surrendered without putting up much of a fight. 24 Cubans were killed, with only 2 of them being professional soldiers, and the remainder were expelled from the island. U.S. casualties amounted to 19 killed, 116 wounded, and 9 helicopters destroyed. During the 1970s and 1980s, Castro supported Marxist insurgencies in Guatemala , El Salvador , and Nicaragua . Cuba gradually withdrew its troops from Angola in 1989–91. An important psychological and political aspect of
8083-482: The Greater Antilles are sometimes referred to as Island Arawaks . At the time of European contact in the late 15th century, they were the principal inhabitants of most of what is now Cuba , the Dominican Republic , Jamaica , Haiti , Puerto Rico , the Bahamas , and the northern Lesser Antilles . The Lucayan branch of the Taíno were the first New World peoples encountered by Christopher Columbus , in
8220-533: The Greater Antilles as Taíno (except the western tip of Cuba and small pockets of Hispaniola), as well as those of the Lucayan Archipelago and the northern Lesser Antilles . He subdivides the Taíno into three main groups: Classic Taíno , from most of Hispaniola and all of Puerto Rico; Western Taíno , or sub-Taíno , from Jamaica, most of Cuba, and the Lucayan archipelago; and Eastern Taíno , from
8357-532: The Indigenous group as Arawaks or Island Arawaks . However, contemporary scholars (such as Irving Rouse and Basil Reid) concluded that the Taíno developed a distinct language and culture from the Arawak of South America. Taíno and Arawak have been used with numerous and contradictory meanings by writers, travelers, historians, linguists, and anthropologists. Often they were used interchangeably: Taíno
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#17327795601608494-415: The OAS". Fidel Castro wrote that Cuba would not rejoin the OAS, which, he said, was a "U.S. Trojan horse" and "complicit" in actions taken by the U.S. against Cuba and other Latin American nations. Effective 14 January 2013, Cuba ended the requirement established in 1961, that any citizens who wish to travel abroad were required to obtain an expensive government permit and a letter of invitation. In 1961
8631-598: The Republic of Cuba. Under Cuba's new constitution, the U.S. retained the right to intervene in Cuban affairs and to supervise its finances and foreign relations. Under the Platt Amendment , the U.S. leased the Guantánamo Bay Naval Base from Cuba. Following disputed elections in 1906, the first president, Tomás Estrada Palma , faced an armed revolt by independence war veterans who defeated
8768-446: The Taíno islands were able to support a high number of people for approximately 1,500 years. Every individual living in the Taíno society had a task to do. The Taíno believed that everyone living on their islands should eat properly. They followed a very efficient nature harvesting and agricultural production system. Either people were hunting, searching for food, or doing other productive tasks. Tribal groups settled in villages under
8905-429: The Taíno permission to engage in important tasks. The Taíno had a matrilineal system of kinship , descent, and inheritance. Spanish accounts of the rules of succession for a chief are not consistent, and the rules of succession may have changed as a result of the disruptions to Taíno society that followed the Spanish intrusion. Two early chroniclers, Bartolomé de las Casas and Peter Martyr d'Anghiera , reported that
9042-539: The Taínos as a physically tall, well-proportioned people, with noble and kind personalities. In his diary , Columbus wrote: They traded with us and gave us everything they had, with good will ... they took great delight in pleasing us ... They are very gentle and without knowledge of what is evil; nor do they murder or steal...Your highness may believe that in all the world there can be no better people ... They love their neighbors as themselves, and they have
9179-579: The United States declared war on each other in late April 1898. After the Spanish–American War , Spain and the United States signed the Treaty of Paris (1898) , by which Spain ceded Puerto Rico , the Philippines , and Guam to the United States for the sum of US$ 20 million and Cuba became a protectorate of the United States. Cuba gained formal independence from the U.S. on 20 May 1902, as
9316-465: The United States. Additionally, while the embargo between the United States and Cuba was not immediately lifted, it was relaxed to allow import, export, and certain limited commerce. Raúl Castro stepped down from the presidency on 19 April 2018 and Miguel Díaz-Canel was elected president by the National Assembly following parliamentary elections . Raúl Castro remained the First Secretary of
9453-415: The attacks on the Cuban government, manufacturing a reason for the United States to invade Cuba. This plan was rejected by President Kennedy. By 1963, Cuba was moving towards a full-fledged communist system modeled on the USSR. In 1963, Cuba sent 686 troops together with 22 tanks and other military equipment to support Algeria in the Sand War against Morocco. The Cuban forces remained in Algeria for over
9590-406: The back, and they occasionally wore gold jewelry, paint, and/or shells. Taíno men and unmarried women usually went naked. After marriage, women wore a small cotton apron, called a nagua . The Taíno lived in settlements called yucayeques , which varied in size depending on the location. Those in Puerto Rico and Hispaniola were the largest and those in the Bahamas were the smallest. In the center of
9727-421: The base of the already teetering legitimacy of the Cuban political system, in particular by undermining the deeply flawed, though not entirely ineffectual, Congress and Supreme Court. Carlos Prío Socarrás , a protégé of Grau, became president in 1948. The two terms of the Auténtico Party brought an influx of investment, which fueled an economic boom, raised living standards for all segments of society, and created
9864-470: The central plaza, could hold 10–15 families each. The cacique and their family lived in rectangular buildings ( caney ) of similar construction, with wooden porches. Taíno home furnishings included cotton hammocks ( hamaca ), sleeping and sitting mats made of palms, wooden chairs (dujo or duho) with woven seats and platforms, and cradles for children. The Taíno played a ceremonial ball game called batey . Opposing teams had 10 to 30 players per team and used
10001-505: The cities with produce and other goods. In the 1820s, when the rest of Spain's empire in Latin America rebelled and formed independent states , Cuba remained loyal to Spain. Its economy was based on serving the empire. By 1860, Cuba had 213,167 free people of color (39% of its non-white population of 550,000). Full independence from Spain was the goal of a rebellion in 1868 led by planter Carlos Manuel de Céspedes . De Céspedes,
10138-468: The commander of the land forces George Keppel , the 3rd Earl of Albemarle , entered the city, and took control of the western part of the island. The British immediately opened up trade with their North American and Caribbean colonies, causing a rapid transformation of Cuban society. Though Havana, which had become the third-largest city in the Americas, was to enter an era of sustained development and increasing ties with North America during this period,
10275-527: The common people, the people would sing the village epic to the accompaniment of maraca and other instruments. One Taíno oral tradition explains that the Sun and Moon came out of caves. Another story tells of the first people, who once lived in caves and only came out at night because it was believed that the Sun would transform them; a sentry became a giant stone at the mouth of the cave, and others became birds or trees. The Taíno believed they were descended from
10412-402: The earlier foraging inhabitants—presumably through disease or violence—as they settled new islands." Taíno society was divided into two classes: naborias (commoners) and nitaínos (nobles). They were governed by male and female chiefs known as caciques , who inherited their position through their mother's noble line. (This was a matrilineal kinship system, with social status passed through
10549-500: The female lines.) The nitaínos functioned as sub-caciques in villages, overseeing the work of naborias. Caciques were advised by priests/healers known as bohíques . Caciques enjoyed the privilege of wearing golden pendants called guanín , living in square bohíos, instead of the round ones of ordinary villagers, and sitting on wooden stools to be above the guests they received. Bohíques were extolled for their healing powers and ability to speak with deities. They were consulted and granted
10686-469: The first Taíno mythical cacique Anacacuya, whose name means "star of the center", or "central spirit". In addition to the guanín, the cacique used other artifacts and adornments to serve to identify his role. Some examples are tunics of cotton and rare feathers , crowns, and masks or "guaizas" of cotton with feathers; colored stones, shells, or gold; cotton woven belts; and necklaces of snail beads or stones, with small masks of gold or other material. Under
10823-565: The fish would be stunned and ready for collection. These practices did not render fish inedible. The Taíno also collected mussels and oysters in exposed mangrove roots found in shallow waters. Some young boys hunted waterfowl from flocks that "darkened the sun", according to Christopher Columbus. Taíno groups located on islands that had experienced relatively high development, such as Puerto Rico, Hispaniola, and Jamaica, relied more on agriculture (farming and other jobs) than did groups living elsewhere. Fields for important root crops , such as
10960-614: The frequent absence of essential drugs. A 2023 study by the Cuban Observatory of Human Rights (OCDH), estimated 88% of the population is living in extreme poverty. The traditional diet is of international concern due to micronutrient deficiencies and lack of diversity. As highlighted by the World Food Programme (WFP) of the United Nations, rationed food meets only a fraction of daily nutritional needs for many Cubans, leading to health issues. Historians believe
11097-555: The gourd broke, an accident caused by Deminán Caracaracol, and all the water of the world came pouring out. Taínos believed that Jupias, the souls of the dead, would go to Coaybay, the underworld, and there they rest by day. At night they would assume the form of bats and eat the guava fruit. Columbus and the crew of his ship were the first Europeans to encounter the Taíno people, as they landed in The Bahamas on October 12, 1492. After their first interaction, Columbus described
11234-554: The government arrested and imprisoned a large number of civil activists, a period known as the "Black Spring" . In February 2008, Fidel Castro resigned as President of the State Council due to the serious gastrointestinal illness which he had suffered since July 2006. On 24 February, the National Assembly elected his brother Raúl Castro the new president. In his inauguration speech, Raúl promised that some of
11371-502: The ingression of the surrounding seawater. Bottlenose dolphins can be found in the waters as well. The peninsula was one of the last refuges of aboriginals fleeing from the Spanish conquistadors and also holds some 140 archeological sites linked to the life of aborigines, who were known as Guanahatabeyes . This Cuban location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Cuba Cuba , officially
11508-446: The island followed. The U.S. battleship USS Maine was sent to protect American interests, but soon after arrival, it exploded in Havana harbor and sank quickly, killing nearly three-quarters of the crew. The cause and responsibility for the sinking of the ship remained unclear after a board of inquiry. Popular opinion in the U.S., fueled by active yellow press , concluded that the Spanish were to blame and demanded action. Spain and
11645-463: The island for the new Kingdom of Spain and named it Isla Juana ("John's Island") after John, Prince of Asturias . In 1511, the first Spanish settlement was founded by Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar at Baracoa . Other settlements soon followed, including San Cristobal de la Habana , founded in 1514 (southern coast of the island) and then in 1519 (current place), which later became the capital (1607). The Indigenous Taíno were forced to work under
11782-422: The largest labor union privileges in Latin America, including bans on dismissals and mechanization. They were obtained in large measure "at the cost of the unemployed and the peasants", leading to disparities. Between 1933 and 1958, Cuba extended economic regulations enormously, causing economic problems. Unemployment became a problem as graduates entering the workforce could not find jobs. The middle class, which
11919-426: The leaves and inhaled them through a hollow tube. The natives employed uncomplicated yet efficient tools for planting and caring for their crops. Their primary tool was a planting stick, referred to as a "coa" among the Taino, which measured around five feet in length and featured a sharp point that had been hardened through fire. Contrary to mainland practices, corn was not ground into flour and baked into bread, but
12056-486: The many diverse units which fought alongside Spanish and Floridan forces during the conquest of British-controlled West Florida (1779–81). The largest factor for the growth of Cuba's commerce in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century was the Haitian Revolution . When the enslaved peoples of what had been the Caribbean's richest colony freed themselves through violent revolt, Cuban planters perceived
12193-524: The meager government forces. The U.S. intervened by occupying Cuba and named Charles Edward Magoon as Governor for three years. Cuban historians have characterized Magoon's governorship as having introduced political and social corruption. In 1908, self-government was restored when José Miguel Gómez was elected president, but the U.S. continued intervening in Cuban affairs. In 1912, the Partido Independiente de Color attempted to establish
12330-483: The men made wooden war clubs, which they called macanas . It was about one inch thick and was similar to the coco macaque. The Taínos decorated and applied war paint to their face to appear fierce toward their enemies. They ingested substances at religious ceremonies and invoked zemis. The Taíno were the most culturally advanced of the Arawak group to settle in what is now Puerto Rico . Individuals and kinship groups that previously had some prestige and rank in
12467-420: The mobilization of workers from all sectors of the Cuban economy. Economic mobilization also coincided with greater militarization of Cuban political structures and society in general. The ten million ton harvest goal was not reached. The Cuban economy feell into decline after large sectors of the economy were neglected when large amounts of urban labor mobilized to the countryside. The standard of living in
12604-405: The name Cuba comes from the Taíno language ; however, "its exact derivation [is] unknown". The exact meaning of the name is unclear, but it may be translated either as 'where fertile land is abundant' ( cubao ), or 'great place' ( coabana ). Humans first settled Cuba around 6,000 years ago, descending from migrations from northern South America or Central America. The arrival of humans on Cuba
12741-562: The new Cuban government, although many European and Latin American nations did so. In 1878, the Pact of Zanjón ended the conflict, with Spain promising greater autonomy to Cuba. In 1879–80, Cuban patriot Calixto García attempted to start another war known as the Little War but failed to receive enough support. Slavery in Cuba was abolished in 1875 but the process was completed only in 1886. An exiled dissident named José Martí founded
12878-399: The new policy. In the first year of the program, over 180,000 left Cuba and returned. As of December 2014 , talks with Cuban officials and American officials, including President Barack Obama , resulted in the release of Alan Gross , fifty-two political prisoners, and an unnamed non-citizen agent of the United States in return for the release of three Cuban agents currently imprisoned in
13015-535: The old Taíno peoples, often in secret, others are revivalist communities who seek to incorporate Taíno culture into their lives. Scholars have faced difficulties researching the native inhabitants of the Caribbean islands to which Columbus voyaged in 1492, since European accounts cannot be read as objective evidence of a native Caribbean social reality . The people who inhabited most of the Greater Antilles when Europeans arrived have been called Taínos ,
13152-409: The people depended on. The men also fished and hunted, making fishing nets and ropes from cotton and palm . Their dugout canoes ( kanoa ) were of various sizes and could hold from 2 to 150 people; an average-sized canoe would hold 15–20. They used bows and arrows for hunting and developed the use of poisons on their arrowheads. Taíno women commonly wore their hair with bangs in front and longer in
13289-419: The population was considered poor and enjoyed relatively little of this consumption. However, in his " History Will Absolve Me " speech, Fidel Castro mentioned that national issues relating to land, industrialization, housing, unemployment, education, and health were contemporary problems. In 1958, Cuba was a well-advanced country in comparison to other Latin American regions. Cuba was also affected by perhaps
13426-495: The possible outcome of a game. Taíno spoke an Arawakan language and used an early form of proto-writing in the form of petroglyph , as found in Taíno archeological sites in the West Indies . Some words they used, such as barbacoa ("barbecue"), hamaca ("hammock"), kanoa ("canoe"), tabaco ("tobacco"), sabana (savanna), and juracán ("hurricane"), have been incorporated into other languages. For warfare,
13563-667: The presence of a Cuban tank brigade in the Golan Heights , which was supported by two brigades. The Israelis and the Cuban-Syrian tank forces engaged in battle on the Golan front. In 1979, the U.S. objected to the presence of Soviet combat troops on the island. Following the 1983 coup that resulted in the execution of Grenadian Prime Minister Maurice Bishop and establishment of the military government led by Hudson Austin , U.S. forces invaded Grenada in 1983, overthrowing
13700-586: The region during the Cold War. In 1972, a major Cuban military mission consisting of tank, air, and artillery specialists was dispatched to South Yemen . Cuban military advisors were sent to Iraq in the mid-1970s but their mission was canceled after Iraq invaded Iran in 1980. The Cubans were also involved in the Syrian-Israeli War of Attrition (November 1973–May 1974) that followed the Yom Kippur War (October 1973). Israeli sources reported
13837-436: The region's changing circumstances with both a sense of fear and opportunity. They were afraid because of the prospect that slaves might revolt in Cuba as well, and numerous prohibitions during the 1790s of the sale of slaves in Cuba who had previously been enslaved in French colonies underscored this anxiety. The planters saw opportunity, however, because they thought that they could exploit the situation by transforming Cuba into
13974-469: The restrictions on freedom in Cuba would be removed. In March 2009, Raúl Castro removed some of his brother's appointees . On 3 June 2009, the Organization of American States adopted a resolution to end the 47-year ban on Cuban membership of the group. The resolution stated, however, that full membership would be delayed until Cuba was "in conformity with the practices, purposes, and principles of
14111-445: The right to labor and health care. Batista was elected president in the same year, holding the post until 1944. He is so far the only non-white Cuban to win the nation's highest political office. His government carried out major social reforms. Several members of the Communist Party held office under his administration. Cuban armed forces were not greatly involved in combat during World War II—though president Batista did suggest
14248-507: The right to legal representation upon arrest, recognizes private property, and strengthens the rights of multinationals investing with the state. Any form of discrimination harmful to human dignity is banned under the new constitution. Raúl Castro announced at the Eighth Congress of the Communist Party of Cuba , which began on 16 April 2021, that he was retiring as secretary of the Communist Party. His successor, Miguel Díaz-Canel,
14385-541: The rural population into what he called reconcentrados , described by international observers as "fortified towns". These are often considered the prototype for 20th-century concentration camps . Between 200,000 and 400,000 Cuban civilians died from starvation and disease in the Spanish concentration camps, numbers verified by the Red Cross and United States Senator Redfield Proctor , a former Secretary of War . American and European protests against Spanish conduct on
14522-453: The sea and the mountains". He was considered the spirit of cassava, the zemi of cassava – the Taínos' main crop – and the sea. Guabancex was the non-nurturing aspect of the zemi Atabey who was believed to have control over natural disasters. She is identified as the goddess of hurricanes or as the zemi of storms. Guabancex had twin sons: Guataubá, a messenger who created hurricane winds, and Coatrisquie, who created floodwaters . Iguanaboína
14659-488: The seven species of marine turtles living on the planet have survived in the Guanahacabibes Peninsula. The coastline also contains preserved coral reefs , with the northern coast being lined by the cays and isles of the western Colorados Archipelago . The area in the southwestern plain shows a considerable development of the karst structures that limits the existence of superficial waters but permits
14796-500: The shore that they were taíno , i.e., important people, from elsewhere and thus entitled to deference. If taíno was being used here to denote ethnicity, then it was used by the Spanish sailors to indicate that they were "not Carib", and gives no evidence of self-identification by the native people. According to José Barreiro , a direct translation of the word Taíno signified "men of the good". The Taíno people, or Taíno culture, have been classified by some authorities as belonging to
14933-610: The slave society and sugar-producing "pearl of the Antilles" that Haiti had been before the revolution. As the historian Ada Ferrer has written, "At a basic level, liberation in Saint-Domingue helped entrench its denial in Cuba. As slavery and colonialism collapsed in the French colony, the Spanish island underwent transformations that were almost the mirror image of Haiti's." Estimates suggest that between 1790 and 1820 some 325,000 Africans were imported to Cuba as slaves, which
15070-443: The staple crop yuca , were prepared by heaping up mounds of soil, called conucos . This improved soil drainage and fertility as well as delayed erosion while allowing for the longer storage of crops in the ground. Less important crops such as corn were cultivated in clearings made using the slash-and-burn technique. Typically, conucos were three feet high, nine feet in circumference, and were arranged in rows. The primary root crop
15207-599: The term Taíno should refer to all the Taíno/Arawak nations except the Caribs , who are not seen as belonging to the same people. Linguists continue to debate whether the Carib language was an Arawakan dialect or a Creole language . They also speculate that it was an independent language isolate, with an Arawakan pidgin used for communication purposes with other peoples, as in trading. Rouse classifies all inhabitants of
15344-661: The term of President John F. Kennedy . About 1,400 Cuban exiles disembarked at the Bay of Pigs . Cuban troops and local militias defeated the invasion, killing over 100 invaders and taking the remainder prisoner. In January 1962, Cuba was suspended from the Organization of American States (OAS), and later the same year the OAS started to impose sanctions against Cuba of similar nature to the U.S. sanctions. The Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962 almost sparked World War III . In 1962 American generals proposed Operation Northwoods which would entail committing terrorist attacks in American cities and against refugees and falsely blaming
15481-469: The term to indicate that they were the "good men", as opposed to the Caribs. According to Peter Hulme, most translators appear to agree that the word taíno was used by Columbus's sailors, not by the islanders who greeted them, although there is room for interpretation. The sailors may have been saying the only word they knew in a native Caribbean tongue, or perhaps they were indicating to the "commoners" on
15618-549: The threat to its security posed by the presence of large numbers of Cuban troops in Angola . In 1976 and again in 1988 at the Battle of Cuito Cuanavale , the Cubans alongside their MPLA allies defeated UNITA rebels and apartheid South African forces. In December 1977, Cuba sent its combat troops from Angola, the People's Republic of the Congo, and the Caribbean to Ethiopia, assisted by mechanized Soviet battalions, to help defeat
15755-461: The time of Spanish colonization in the 15th century. It was then a colony of Spain , through the abolition of slavery in 1886, until the Spanish–American War of 1898, when Cuba was occupied by the United States and gained independence in 1902. In 1940, Cuba implemented a new constitution , but mounting political unrest culminated in the 1952 Cuban coup d'état and the subsequent dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista . The Batista government
15892-565: The tribal affiliation or ethnicity of the natives of the Greater Antilles. The word tayno or taíno , with the meaning "good" or "prudent", was mentioned twice in an account of Columbus's second voyage by his physician, Diego Álvarez Chanca , while in Guadeloupe . José R. Oliver writes that the Natives of Borinquén, who had been captured by the Caribs of Guadeloupe and who wanted to escape on Spanish ships to return home to Puerto Rico, used
16029-485: The uncle introduced the boys to men's societies in his sister and his family's clan. Some Taíno practiced polygamy . Men might have multiple wives. Ramón Pané, a Catholic friar who traveled with Columbus on his second voyage and was tasked with learning the Indigenous people's language and customs, wrote in the 16th century that caciques tended to have two or three spouses and the principal ones had as many as 10, 15, or 20. The Taíno women were skilled in agriculture, which
16166-413: The union of the cultural hero Deminán Caracaracol and a female turtle (who was born of the former's back after being afflicted with a blister). The origin of the oceans is described in the story of a huge flood that occurred when the great spirit Yaya murdered his son Yayael (who was about to murder his father). The father put his son's bones into a gourd or calabash . When the bones turned into fish,
16303-542: The unity of the Indigenous communities in a territory; they would band together as a defensive strategy to face external threats, such as the attacks by the Caribs on communities in Puerto Rico. The practice of polygamy enabled the cacique to have women and create family alliances in different localities, thus extending his power. As a symbol of his status , the cacique carried a guanín of South American origin, made of an alloy of gold and copper. This symbolized
16440-409: The welfare of the tribe and to protect it from harm from both natural and supernatural forces. They were also expected to direct and manage the food production process. The cacique's power came from the number of villages he controlled and was based on a network of alliances related to family , matrimonial, and ceremonial ties. According to an early 20th-century Smithsonian study, these alliances showed
16577-430: The wild. Taíno spirituality centered on the worship of zemis (spirits or ancestors). Major Taíno zemis included Atabey and her son, Yúcahu . Atabey was thought to be the zemi of the moon , fresh waters, and fertility. Other names for her included Atabei, Atabeyra, Atabex, and Guimazoa. The Taínos of Kiskeya (Hispaniola) called her son, "Yúcahu|Yucahú Bagua Maorocotí", which meant "White Yuca, great and powerful as
16714-553: The world's few planned economies , and its economy is dominated by tourism and the exports of skilled labor, sugar, tobacco, and coffee. Cuba has historically—before and during communist rule—performed better than other countries in the region on several socioeconomic indicators, such as literacy, infant mortality and life expectancy. Cuba has a universal health care system which provides free medical treatment to all Cuban citizens, although challenges include low salaries for doctors, poor facilities, poor provision of equipment, and
16851-675: The zemi carved into a stalagmite in a cave in La Patana, Cuba. Cemí pictographs were found on secular objects such as pottery, and tattoos . Yucahú, the zemi of cassava, was represented with a three-pointed zemí, which could be found in conucos to increase the yield of cassava. Wood and stone zemís have been found in caves in Hispaniola and Jamaica. Cemís are sometimes represented by toads , turtles, fish, snakes , and various abstract and human-like faces. Some zemís were accompanied by small tables or trays, which are believed to be
16988-473: Was a time of "virtually unremitting social and political warfare". On balance, during the period 1933–1940 Cuba suffered from fragile political structures, reflected in the fact that it saw three different presidents in two years (1935–1936), and in the militaristic and repressive policies of Batista as Head of the Army. A new constitution was adopted in 1940, which engineered radical progressive ideas, including
17125-758: Was applied to the Greater Antillean natives only, but could include the Bahamian or the Leeward Islands natives, excluding the Puerto Rican and Leeward nations. Similarly, Island Taíno has been used to refer only to those living in the Windward Islands , or to the northern Caribbean inhabitants, as well as to the Indigenous population of all the Caribbean islands. Many modern historians, linguists, and anthropologists now hold that
17262-568: Was comparable to that of the United States , became increasingly dissatisfied with unemployment and political persecution. The labor unions, manipulated by the previous government since 1948 through union "yellowness", supported Batista until the very end. Batista stayed in power until he resigned in December 1958 under the pressure of the US Embassy and as the revolutionary forces headed by Fidel Castro were winning militarily (Santa Clara city,
17399-451: Was cooked and eaten off the cob. Corn bread becomes moldy faster than cassava bread in the high humidity of the Caribbean. Corn also was used to make an alcoholic beverage known as chicha . The Taíno grew squash , beans , peppers , peanuts , and pineapples . Tobacco , calabashes (bottle gourds), and cotton were grown around the houses. Other fruits and vegetables, such as palm nuts , guavas , and Zamia roots, were collected from
17536-557: Was four times the amount that had arrived between 1760 and 1790. Although a smaller proportion of the population of Cuba was enslaved, at times, slaves arose in revolt. In 1812, the Aponte Slave Rebellion took place, but it was ultimately suppressed. The population of Cuba in 1817 was 630,980 (of which 291,021 were white, 115,691 were free people of color (mixed-race), and 224,268 black slaves). In part due to Cuban slaves working primarily in urbanized settings, by
17673-728: Was overthrown in January 1959 by the 26th of July Movement during the Cuban Revolution . That revolution established communist rule under the leadership of Fidel Castro . The country was a point of contention during the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States, and the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 is widely considered the closest the Cold War came to escalating into nuclear war . Following
17810-509: Was severely tested in the aftermath of the Soviet collapse in December 1991 (known in Cuba as the Special Period ). The country faced a severe economic downturn following the withdrawal of Soviet subsidies worth $ 4 billion to $ 6 billion annually, resulting in effects such as food and fuel shortages. The government did not accept American donations of food, medicines and cash until 1993. On 5 August 1994, state security dispersed protesters in
17947-482: Was the goddess of good weather. She also had twin sons: Boinayel, the messenger of rain, and Marohu, the spirit of clear skies. Minor Taíno zemis are related to the growing of cassava, the process of life, creation, and death. Baibrama was a minor zemi worshiped for his assistance in growing cassava and curing people of its poisonous juice. Boinayel and his twin brother Márohu were the zemis of rain and fair weather, respectively. Maquetaurie Guayaba or Maketaori Guayaba
18084-409: Was the zemi of Coaybay or Coabey, the land of the dead. Opiyelguabirán', a dog-shaped zemi, watched over the dead. Deminán Caracaracol, a male cultural hero from whom the Taíno believed themselves to be descended, was worshipped as a zemí. Macocael was a cultural hero worshipped as a zemi, who had failed to guard the mountain from which human beings arose. He was punished by being turned into stone, or
18221-420: Was their duty to cure the sick, heal the wounded, and interpret the will of the gods in ways that would satisfy the expectations of the tribe. Before carrying out these functions, the bohíques performed certain cleansing and purifying rituals , such as fasting for several days and inhaling sacred tobacco snuff. Taíno staples included vegetables, fruit, meat, and fish. Though there were no large animals native to
18358-408: Was to hook a remora , also known as a suckerfish, to a line secured to a canoe and wait for the fish to attach itself to a larger fish or even a sea turtle. Once this happened, someone would dive into the water to retrieve the catch. Another method used by the Taínos involved shredding the stems and roots of poisonous senna plants and throwing them into nearby streams or rivers. After eating the bait,
18495-406: Was unable to reach Cuba until 11 April 1895. Martí was killed in the Battle of Dos Rios on 19 May 1895. His death immortalized him as Cuba's national hero. Around 200,000 Spanish troops outnumbered the much smaller rebel army, which relied mostly on guerrilla and sabotage tactics. The Spaniards began a campaign of suppression. General Valeriano Weyler , the military governor of Cuba, herded
18632-416: Was voted in on 19 April. Taino Taíno is a term referring to a historic Indigenous people of the Caribbean , whose culture has been continued today by their descendants and Taíno revivalist communities. Indigenous people in the Greater Antilles did not refer to themselves as Taínos , as the term was coined by the anthropologist Constantine Samuel Rafinesque in 1836. The Indigenous peoples of
18769-421: Was yuca or cassava , a woody shrub cultivated for its edible and starchy tuberous root . It was planted using a coa , a kind of hoe made completely from wood. Women processed the poisonous variety of cassava by squeezing it to extract its toxic juices. Roots were then ground into flour for bread. Batata ( sweet potato ) was the next most important root crop. Tobacco was grown by pre-Columbian peoples in
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