WHETHER the early Jamaicans were called Arawaks or Tainos depends on the books you read. But the more modern books mostly go with 'Tainos,' describing them as people speaking the Arawak language.

Almost every Jamaican knows that the half-naked couple featured on the country's coat of arms represents these early Amerindian inhabitants. What few probably know though, is that their ancestors can still be found in the region - not in history books or museums, but alive and kicking - most notably in Guyana!

A guest house run by Arawaks in Santa Rosa. The potential for a combo eco-historical vacation is huge but largely untapped. (Photos: Wayne Bowen)

While some worry about the impact Cuba's expected 'opening-up' might have on Caribbean tourism, few see Guyana that way. It is the region's sleeping giant. With oil and gas reserves known to be there, but yet to be exploited, it could perhaps rival Trinidad's production one day.

It is an eco-wonderland in a time when the attraction for such tours is growing, yet few tourists seem to visit. The capital Georgetown, with its white-painted wooden buildings, sort of Dutch-like canals and seawalls, all aligned in a uniquely ordered layout, is a photographer's dream.

Then there are the people, generally warm and helpful. Many are well spoken, educated and eager for an opportunity. If you ever wanted to start a modelling agency, there are several stunning women reflecting the Caribbean melting pot - Amerindian, European, African, East-Indian, Chinese, etc - a mix which is also reflected in the country's food and culture. And Guyana is cheap! Where else could the equivalent of about J$500 get you a half-day's taxi ride and a driver willing to wait patiently while you eat a meal or visit the bank or both?

An Arawak boy studies a poster advertising that weekend's movie. With no steady electricity supply, enterprising villagers stage 'movie night' where they show the films on DVD.

There's also too much petty crime, murder and lots of police and other corruption. This stifles the growth potential. There's a potential that even the least savvy Guyanese can see. Everyone knows instinctively that if the place ever clicks, it could zoom but it just almost never quite makes it. One drawback is the same people who make the place so wonderful. Too many petty leaders playing up the old-fashioned racial divide that guarantees votes along race lines when elections come around so East Indians tend to vote for East Indians and Africans for Africans.

It's a bit like the CARICOM and CSME dreams - lots of people can see the potential, but until people can see themselves as part of a Caribbean/West Indian nation/country/civilisation where one's country is the equivalent of a parish, then progress will be slow.

Progress in Guyana tends to be slow also. It's also where the CARICOM Secretariat has its headquarters. In the same way that Caribbean countries have built borders of nationalism that now stifle moves towards integration; Guyanese have to some extent built borders of race that do the same. The society's worst affected are probably the Amerindians.

They were mistreated by the Europeans and are still being mistreated by many even in spite of the present government's attempts to lessen this by establishing a Ministry of Amerindian Affairs in a new building in Georgetown.

It's a big country and most of the Amerindian villages are in the deep countryside - sometimes on the fringes of jungles - places that the Guyanese call 'the interior' which is basically their way of saying 'outside of Georgetown' the capital. It makes administering these areas challenging. Travelling to these 'interior' areas is much like going on a small safari in the movie versions of Africa.

Recently I was with a group that went to the Amerindian settlement nearest to Georgetown. So near that it involved at least six hours of travel to get there! A part of the journey was overland but the vast majority of it was on boats winding through rivers like the Essequibo and Pomeroon. Rivers here are huge, bigger than hose in Jamaica. You can stand on the bank of one river and not see the other side. Instead you see a horizon of river water, as if you're at the beach looking out to sea. We passed islands bigger than Barbados and Antigua - in a river!

We were headed for the Arawak village on Santa Rosa island, which is/was also a Catholic mission established some years ago. Many of the Arawaks there actually have Spanish surnames.

An Arawak tour guide with offered an explanation. He said that in the days when Simon Bolivar was clearing the Spanish out of Venezuela he also routed groups of Arawaks living over there. At the time they were living across the border from British Guiana in Missions manned by Catholic monks from Spain. The Bolivar freedom fighters believed that these missions and their Amerindian inhabitants were probably loyal to and likely to remain loyal to Spain.

In the mad dash to escape the rampaging wrath of Bolivar's men, the Amerindians fled across the border and stopped when they came across another Amerindian village many miles away in Guiana.

They were welcomed with joy by the villagers who spoke the same Arawak language. The British insisted that they come no further into Guiana and forced them to remain in the Santa Rosa area - sort of like the reservation system that the Americans later imposed on the Amerindians in North America. So today's Arawaks speak about the time long ago when the 'Spanish Arawaks' joined them.

To visit the Amerindian areas you need a special pass or 'passport' from the Minsistry of Amerindian Affairs in Georgetown. You have to present this on arrival to the police and also to the village captain who is an elected official - the modern version of the tribal Chief.

The people are extremely polite, friendly and full of humility. The older among them lament the poor manners of the younger ones, yet everywhere we went the children in their hundreds would pass us and all say 'Good Afternoon" or "Good Morning" in unison to us.

It became a situation where we felt obligated to individually acknowledge each and every salutation.

The guide who seemed to be in his mid-20s said when he was 10 it was customary for Amerindian children passing adults to bow before them and ask for a blessing. This was especially true if the adult was grey-haired and in the grandmother sort of age group. These people are so pleasant now they must have been even more accommodating in the days of Columbus, one imagines.

While walking through the village, a group of Arawak boys was spotted playing a dangerous game of jumping over the flames of a fire. There was no use persuading them to refrain from the dangerous activity: they'd reset the fires each time the flames died down. The youngest ones eventually heeded the pleas while the older ones continued 'fire dancing' for at least another 20 minutes. Finally they stopped all smiles, rolling on the ground. The explanation came later: the boys had made up the 'ancient pastime' on the spur of the moment and were prolonging the game when the cameras began rolling in a bid to amuse the group.

A few years ago the Caribs from Dominica made a pilgrimage to meet Amerindian groups in Guyana. They travelled from Dominica on traditional dugout canoes. It has been said that the Caribs in Dominica are very serious about trying to preserve their bloodlines. Maybe they were seeking Amerindian wives and husbands as part of their mission then.

The Arawaks in Santa Rosa seem to not be as 'race-conscious' since many of them appear to be the products of mixed parentage.
Caribbean history books tell a story of indigenous people slowly populating the region from their hinterlands in Guyana/South America. They also speak of Amerindians in the Greater Antilles becoming extinct following Christopher Columbus's arrival.

Besides the Arawaks/Tainos, there were other early peoples, most notably the Caribs who were 'talked up' as being cannibals and the mortal enemies of the Arawaks. They are stereotypically described as being warlike probably because they persistently fought against the Europeans.

This contrasts with the Arawak/Tainos who are generally called peace-loving and friendly. Caribs can be found living today in St Vincent, Dominica, Trinidad and Guyana. It's from them that the CARIB-bean, got its name.

There are about nine Amerindian tribes scattered throughout Guyana. Most are modernised and wear westernised clothes. The traditional dress they used to wear is now only hauled out for special cultural events. One of these occurs every year during the month of September. Amerindians from all over the country converge on Georgetown and sell crafts, food and other cultural displays where they meet at a specially built giant hut known as the Umana Yana .

It was originally built as a meeting place for government Ministers attending a conference in Guyana during the 1970s. The group who built this giant hut are known as the Wai Wai tribe. Umana Yana is an Amerindian word which means 'People's Meeting Place'.

Just like the boys in the village jumping through fires, Guyana's Amerindians have jumped history's stark fires and survived. Today their resilient humanity glows triumphantly, like the fiery sunrise of still mornings on Moruca savannahs. It is the Caribbean Story - survival - against all odds. And that's why today, in places like Santa Rosa, the Arawaks Live!

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