The Kalinago People
The Kalinago are the Caribbean ’ s indigenous people . According to archeological findings , evidence support that they have been occupying the Caribbean archipelago for more than six thousand years . Dominica ’ s indigenous people originated from the Orinoco River Basin of South America and inhabited the island . The name Carib , once used to identify them , was discontinued in 2015 . That name was fraught with negative connotations filtered down through the years since colonialism .
A Kalinago Act governs the Territory which is located on the east north-eastern belt of the island in the parish of Saint David . Approximately 20 % of the national population of Dominica are either Kalinago or a descendant , however far removed .
Even today , the Kalinago continue to build their traditional canoe , make handicraft , fish and farm . Their culture is unique in that they use arts , crafts , cuisine and their traditional way of life as a means of economic sustenance while maintaining their indigenous ethnicity and cultural identity . Through the advent of television , computers , the internet , and road communication , the Kalinago culture is being slowly undermined . Efforts are being made with the cooperation of the young people , to rekindle the essence of what it is to be Kalinago . They are tasked with ensuring their ancestral heritage remains vivid in their minds and is reflected in their lifestyles , for generations to come .
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