Caracoles
Encyclopedia
The Caracol
people are an English-based creole
speaking people who have been established in Northern Honduras
(specifically, the Bay Islands) since the early 19th century and are mainly of European
British
-Caribbean descent. Caracol is a Spanish
term that literally translates as conch
, snail or shell, and relates the people of the Bay Islands to their unique environment and their sea faring culture. In its current usage, the term Caracol refers to all people born in the Bay Islands region, and their descendants. The region of the Bay Islands encompasses the three major islands of Roatán
, Útila
, Guanaja
, and the smaller Islands or keys.
-speaking groups to settle in the Bay Islands are believed to have originated from the Cayman Islands near Jamaica. They arrived in the 1830s shortly after the end of slavery in British territories disrupted the economic structure that had maintained Caymanian
culture. Caymanians were largely a seafaring culture and were familiar with the area from turtle fishing ventures and other activities.
The islands' population grew steadily in the latter half of the 19th century, and new settlements became established all over Roatán and the other islands. Individual settlers came from all over the world and played a part in developing and shaping the face of the Caracol culture. A fruit trade industry started by islanders became very profitable and by the 1870s was taken over by American interests, most notably the New Orleans and Bay Islands Fruit Company. Later companies, the Standard Fruit and United Fruit Companies, became the foundation for modern day fruit companies, the industry which gave Honduras the sobriquet "banana republic
".
on his fourth voyage to America
in 1502. They were later claimed, and successively held, by Great Britain
, Spain
, and the Dutch United Provinces
. Britain finally took control in 1643 and, with the exception of a one-month period of Spanish dominance in 1780, held onto them as a Crown colony, dependent on Jamaica
. In 1860, in the aftermath of the William Walker filibustering affair, the British crown recognized Honduran sovereignty and ceded possession of them. The department of "Islas de la Bahía" was officially incorporated to Honduras on 14 March 1872.
, remittances from merchant marine activities, and, more recently, tourism
.
but also in pronunciation and accent and, to a lesser extent, in syntax and vocabulary, from that of the other British Colonies, although the languages are still similar enough to be mutually intelligible.
Caracol
Caracol is the name given to a large ancient Maya archaeological site, located in what is now the Cayo District of Belize. It is situated approximately 40 kilometres south of Xunantunich and the town of San Ignacio Cayo, and 15 kilometers away from the Macal River. It rests on the Vaca Plateau at...
people are an English-based creole
Bay Islands Creole
Bay Islands Creole is a linguistic entity of Honduras. It mainly is spoken on the Islas de la Bahia .At ISO 639-2 it is counted among the linguistic entities bearing the code cpe....
speaking people who have been established in Northern Honduras
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
(specifically, the Bay Islands) since the early 19th century and are mainly of European
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
British
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
-Caribbean descent. Caracol is a Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
term that literally translates as conch
Conch
A conch is a common name which is applied to a number of different species of medium-sized to large sea snails or their shells, generally those which are large and have a high spire and a siphonal canal....
, snail or shell, and relates the people of the Bay Islands to their unique environment and their sea faring culture. In its current usage, the term Caracol refers to all people born in the Bay Islands region, and their descendants. The region of the Bay Islands encompasses the three major islands of Roatán
Roatán
Roatán, located between the islands of Útila and Guanaja, is the largest of Honduras' Bay Islands. The island was formerly known as Ruatan and Rattan...
, Útila
Útila
Utila is the third largest of Honduras' Bay Islands, after Roatán and Guanaja, in a region that marks the south end of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System, the second-largest in the world...
, Guanaja
Guanaja
Guanaja is one of the Bay Islands of Honduras, and is in the Caribbean. It is about 70 km off the north coast of Honduras, and 12 km from the island of Roatan. One of the cays off Guanaja, also called Guanaja or Bonnaca or Low Cay , is near the main island, and contains most of the...
, and the smaller Islands or keys.
History
The first known EnglishEnglish language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
-speaking groups to settle in the Bay Islands are believed to have originated from the Cayman Islands near Jamaica. They arrived in the 1830s shortly after the end of slavery in British territories disrupted the economic structure that had maintained Caymanian
Culture of the Cayman Islands
-Population:The main influences on the culture of the Cayman Islands come from the United Kingdom, North America, and Jamaica. In total, there are approximately 113 nationalities on the three islands that make up the country. The total population of the Cayman Islands consists of just over 52,000...
culture. Caymanians were largely a seafaring culture and were familiar with the area from turtle fishing ventures and other activities.
The islands' population grew steadily in the latter half of the 19th century, and new settlements became established all over Roatán and the other islands. Individual settlers came from all over the world and played a part in developing and shaping the face of the Caracol culture. A fruit trade industry started by islanders became very profitable and by the 1870s was taken over by American interests, most notably the New Orleans and Bay Islands Fruit Company. Later companies, the Standard Fruit and United Fruit Companies, became the foundation for modern day fruit companies, the industry which gave Honduras the sobriquet "banana republic
Banana republic
In political science, the pejorative term Banana Republic denotes a politically unstable country dependent upon limited primary productions , which is ruled by a plutocracy, a small, self-elected, wealthy group who exploit the country by means of a politico-economic oligarchy...
".
The Bay Islands
The Bay Islands were first discovered by Christopher ColumbusChristopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus was an explorer, colonizer, and navigator, born in the Republic of Genoa, in northwestern Italy. Under the auspices of the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, he completed four voyages across the Atlantic Ocean that led to general European awareness of the American continents in the...
on his fourth voyage to America
Americas
The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...
in 1502. They were later claimed, and successively held, by Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, and the Dutch United Provinces
Dutch Republic
The Dutch Republic — officially known as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands , the Republic of the United Netherlands, or the Republic of the Seven United Provinces — was a republic in Europe existing from 1581 to 1795, preceding the Batavian Republic and ultimately...
. Britain finally took control in 1643 and, with the exception of a one-month period of Spanish dominance in 1780, held onto them as a Crown colony, dependent on Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
. In 1860, in the aftermath of the William Walker filibustering affair, the British crown recognized Honduran sovereignty and ceded possession of them. The department of "Islas de la Bahía" was officially incorporated to Honduras on 14 March 1872.
Economy
Traditionally, the economy of the Bay Islands region has consisted of industrial fishingFishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
, remittances from merchant marine activities, and, more recently, tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
.
Language
The English language spoken by the Caracol changed over time from the English spoken by the first European settlers to arrive in Roatán. The language differs mostly in morphologyMorphology (linguistics)
In linguistics, morphology is the identification, analysis and description, in a language, of the structure of morphemes and other linguistic units, such as words, affixes, parts of speech, intonation/stress, or implied context...
but also in pronunciation and accent and, to a lesser extent, in syntax and vocabulary, from that of the other British Colonies, although the languages are still similar enough to be mutually intelligible.