What do you know about the Arawakians? Describe the facts with regard to their culture.
The Arawakan Lucas lived on a cluster of hundreds of small islands in the Caribbean Sea, today is known as the Bahamas, and the Greater Antilles. They had been expelled from the Lesser Antilles by the Caribs, a fierce tribe.
In contrast to them, the Arawaks were a people who preferred negotiation to conflict. Skilled boat-builders, they sailed the open sea in dugout canoes (canoes made from hollow tree trunks). They lived by hunting, fishing and agriculture, growing corn, sweet potatoes, tubers and cassava.
A central cultural value was the organisation of people to produce food collectively and to feed everyone in the community. They were organised under clan elders. Polygamy was common. The Arawaks were animists.
As in many other societies, shamans played an important role as healers and intermediaries between this world and that of the supernatural.
The Arawaks used gold for ornaments but did not attach the value to the metal that the Europeans did. They were quite happy to exchange gold for glass beads brought by the Europeans because these seemed so much more beautiful.
The art of weaving was highly developed - the hammock was one of their specialities and one which captured the imagination of the Europeans.
The Arawaks were generous and were happy to collaborate with the Spanish in their search for gold.
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