Language of the Voiceless: Traces of Taino Language, Food, and Culture in the Americas From 1492 to the Present
by Leonardo Nin
by Leonardo Nin
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common item <strong>to</strong> give <strong>and</strong> trade among <strong>the</strong> <strong>Ta<strong>in</strong>o</strong>. Therefore, <strong>to</strong> f<strong>in</strong>d a foot soldier that<br />
far <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> chronology <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> narrative us<strong>in</strong>g a <strong>Ta<strong>in</strong>o</strong> cus<strong>to</strong>m <strong>of</strong> exchange <strong>and</strong> courtship<br />
seems <strong>to</strong> h<strong>in</strong>t <strong>to</strong> a possible familiarity <strong>of</strong> <strong>Ta<strong>in</strong>o</strong> practices among <strong>the</strong> lower ranks <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong><br />
Spanish army. As a matter <strong>of</strong> fact, this type <strong>of</strong> naguas or e-maguas as a traditional<br />
gift can be traced back <strong>to</strong> a gift from cacique Anacahona <strong>to</strong> Bar<strong>to</strong>lome Colón.<br />
Accord<strong>in</strong>g <strong>to</strong> de Las Casas:<br />
<strong>Present</strong>ó esta señora á D. Bar<strong>to</strong>lomé muchas sillas, las más hermosas, que eran <strong>to</strong>das<br />
negras y bruñidas como si fueran de azabache; de <strong>to</strong>das las otras cosas para servicio de<br />
mesa, y naguas de algodón (que eran unas como faldillas que traían las mujeres desde<br />
la c<strong>in</strong>ta hasta media pierna, tejidas y con labor es del mismo algodon) blanco á maravilla,<br />
cuantas quiso llevar y que más le agradaban. Dióle cuatro ovillos de algodón hilado que<br />
apenas un hombre podía uno levantar 106 .<br />
The symbolism beh<strong>in</strong>d <strong>the</strong> details <strong>of</strong> this gift is <strong>of</strong> extreme cultural importance<br />
when it comes <strong>to</strong> <strong>Ta<strong>in</strong>o</strong> traditions <strong>and</strong> culture. The fact that Anacahona gave duho<br />
chairs, naguas <strong>and</strong> cot<strong>to</strong>n bundles <strong>to</strong> Bar<strong>to</strong>lomé Colón 26 years prior <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> events<br />
recorded by Bernal Diaz del Castillo seems <strong>to</strong> place <strong>the</strong>se items <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Ta<strong>in</strong>o</strong> cultural<br />
context prior <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> discovery <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> ma<strong>in</strong>l<strong>and</strong>. Moreover, only chiefs could sit <strong>in</strong> duho<br />
chairs. Therefore, giv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong>m <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> same symbolic context that naguas, illustrates <strong>the</strong><br />
importance <strong>of</strong> this item among <strong>the</strong> <strong>Ta<strong>in</strong>o</strong>.<br />
O<strong>the</strong>r Primary Sources Mentions <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> possible <strong>Ta<strong>in</strong>o</strong> orig<strong>in</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> word<br />
nagua:<br />
a) _ Fernández de Oviedo’s His<strong>to</strong>ria general y natural de las Indias:<br />
106<br />
(Las Casas, His<strong>to</strong>ria de Las Indias, 1527 | 1986 Edition from origial publication )