Miskito

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For other uses, see Mosquito (disambiguation).
Miskito
Total population 150,000-200,000
Regions with significant populations Nicaragua, Honduras
Language Miskito, Spanish, Miskito Creole English
Religion Christianity
Related ethnic groups Garifuna, Maroons, Afro-Caribbeans


The Miskito are a Native American people in Central America. Their territory expands from Cape Cameron, Honduras, to Rio Grande, Nicaragua along the Miskito Coast. There is a native Miskito language, but large groups speak Miskito creole English, Spanish, Rama and others. The creole English came about through frequent contact with the British. Many are Christians.

There are few (if any) pure-blooded Miskito alive today, as over the centuries, escaped slaves have sought refuge, and intermarried with the Miskito. Traditional Miskito society was highly structured, with a defined political structure. There was a king but he did not have total power. Instead, the power was split between him, a governor, a general, and by the 1750s, an admiral. Historical information on kings is often obscured by the fact that many of the kings were semi-mythical.

Spanish settlers first began to arrive in Miskito land in 1787, but the Miskito continued to dominate the area because of their numbers and the experienced military. Also, the Miskito territory is very inaccessible, and was therefore little affected by the Spanish conquest of the area. Their political structure allowed the Miskito people to retain their independence all through Spanish rule and through the Federation of Central American States. However, they were absorbed into Nicaragua in 1894. The Miskito never felt controlled by the Nicaraguan government, and many Miskito today don't consider themselves Nicaraguans.

Distribution of Miskito
Enlarge
Distribution of Miskito

Due to British economic interest in Central America (particularly British Honduras, now called Belize), the Miskito were able to acquire guns and other modern weapons. After Nicaragua was declared in 1821, combined Miskito-Zambo raiders began to attack Spanish settlements in Honduras, often to rescue enslaved Miskitos before they were shipped to Europe, but often also to enslave other Amerindians to sell to the British to work in Jamaica. They also enslaved women from other tribes. Due to the allowance of polygamy and the added number of women from these slave raids, the Miskito population boomed. These raids continued well after any animosity between Britain and Spain ended. The Miskito, for a long time, considered themselves superior to other tribes of the area, whom they referred to as "wild". It is thought by historians that the Miskito sought a British identity; indeed, European dress was popular among the Miskito, and the Miskito kings even had English names.


Contents

[edit] History

coat of arms of the Miskito Nation
coat of arms of the Miskito Nation

The Miskito Nation came into being as a state sometime before 1625. Its first recorded king was Oldman, son of an unnamed king of the Miskitos. First contact with the British was made in the reign of the father of King Oldman, who sent him to Britain where Oldman received an audience with King Charles I.

The Miskito King and the British concluded a formal Treaty of Friendship and Alliance in 1740 followed by the appointment of a resident Superintendent in 1749. A protectorate was established over the Miskito Nation, often called the Mosquito Coast.

The kingdom of Miskito served during the American Revolutionary War by attacking Spanish colonies and gained several victories alongside the British. However, at the conclusion of the peace in 1783, Britain had to relinquish control over the coast. The British withdrawal was completed at the end of June 1787. Despite the withdrawal, Britain maintained an unofficial protectorate over the kingdom, often intervening to protect Miskito interests against Spanish encroachments.

From the middle of the nineteenth century onwards, British interest in the region began to wane. The state ceased to exist in 1894 when it was occupied by Nicaragua. It was restored by the British in July that same year but reoccupied by Nicaragua in August.

[edit] Rulers

[edit] Turtle Harvesting and Miskito Economy

Miskito Indians living off the coast of Nicaragua once hunted green turtles in the context of a traditional subsistence economy. Turtle fishing was combined with agriculture, hunting, fishing and gathering. Subsistence activities were timed to harmonise with seasonal fluctuations and resource availablility.

Turtles were traditionally harpooned. The harpoon was eight to ten feet in length and attached to a strong line. Turtlemen travelled in a small, seagoing canoe, often in hazardous weather conditions, using complex metal maps and systems of navigation to locate the turtles. A hunting party consisted of two men: a "strikerman" in the bow, and the "captain" in the stern. Turtles were intercepted in the area between their sleeping shoals and feeding banks as they surfaced for air. When the turtle had been harpooned, it would pull the canoe along at high speeds in an effort to escape, until it tired and could be pulled alongside the canoe.

Exposure to international markets led to a change in hunting methods. Hunting activities became market focused instead of subsistence focused. Commercial enterprises were established by foreign companies, and the skills of Miskito turtlemen were utilised to facilitate intensive harvesting of green turtle populations. A series of economic booms and busts led to serious depletion of green turtle populations, and villagers were confronted with rising social tensions and an increased dependence on a scarce resource.

Nietschmann, B. (1997). Subsistence and market: When the Turtle Collapses in James Spradley and David McCurdy (eds) Conformity and conflict: Readings in Cultural Anthropology.

[edit] See also

[edit] External reference

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