The term Caribbean culture summarizes the artistic, musical, literary, culinary, political and social elements that are representative of Caribbean people all over the world.
As a collection of settlernations, the contemporary Caribbean has been shaped by waves of migration that have combined to form a unique blend of customs, cuisine, and traditions that have marked the socio-cultural development of the area.
History
The two ethnic cultures which are dominant in the music cultures of the English speaking Caribbean
Caribbean culture results from Caribbean history and geography. Most of the Caribbean territories were inhabited and developed earlier than European colonies (1492- ) in the Americas, with the result that themes and symbols of pioneers, farmers, traders and slaves became important in the early development of Caribbean culture. Britishconquests in the Caribbean in 1759 brought a Francophone population under British rule, requiring compromise and accommodation, while in the 1780s the migration of United Empire Loyalists from the Thirteen Colonies[1]
brought in strong British, Spanish, French, African and even Dutch influences.[citation needed]
Although not without conflict, the Caribbean's early interactions between incoming settlers and the indigenous populations were relatively short-lived, compared to the experience of native peoples in (say) the United States or Brazil. Combined with relatively late economic development in many regions, this difficult history has disallowed Caribbean native peoples from having any strong influence on emergent national cultures, even destroying their remaining identity.[dubious – discuss][2]
Multicultural heritage is enshrined in many islands. In parts of the Caribbean, multiculturalism itself is the cultural norm and diversity is the force that unites the community.[citation needed] Although officially a quarter of the Caribbean population is English-speaking, the largest linguistic group comprises Spanish speakers (due to the inclusion of mainland Caribbean states), some 22% speak French while only 1% speak Dutch. Though the Caribbean today features 59 living languages[3] these are not spoken in the "insular Caribbean", but on what is referred to as the "continental Caribbean".
Major influences on Caribbean identity trace back to the arrival of French settlers (from the early-17th century), English settlers (from the early-17th century) and Spanish settlers (from the late-15th century). Indigenous people played a critical part in the development of European colonies in Caribbean: they assisted in European exploration, in the development of the sugar trade and in inter-European power struggles, as well as contributing to the formation of the Afro-Caribbean people. Through their art and culture, indigenous Caribbean and African descendants continue to exert influence on the Caribbean identity or identities.[9]
Along with the gradual loosening of the Caribbean's political and cultural ties to colonial metropoles, in the 20th century immigrants from European, African, Caribbean and Asian nationalities have shaped Caribbean identity, a process that continues today with the arrival of significant numbers of immigrants from non-British or non-French backgrounds, adding to multiculturalism. As of 2019[update] the Caribbean had a diverse makeup of nationalities and cultures and constitutional protection for policies that promote multiculturalism - rather than any single national myth.[citation needed]
Agostino Brunias. Free Women of Color with Their Children and Servants in a Landscape, ca. 1770-1796 Brooklyn Museum
Official symbols of the Caribbean include the parrot, palm, and the shell. Many official symbols of the country such as the flags of the Caribbean have been changed or modified over the past years in order to "Caribbeanize" them and de-emphasize or remove references to the United Kingdom. For example, The Cayman Islands now uses National Symbols that include their indigenous Parrot, Silver Thatch, Palm and the Wild Banana Orchid.[10]
The works of most early Caribbean painters followed European trends. During the mid-1800s, Caribbean painters have developed a wide range of highly individual styles. The arts have flourished in Caribbean since the 1900s, and especially since the end of World War II in 1945.
The Washington Organization of American States (inaugurated in 1976) houses one of the oldest 20th-century art collections representing the Caribbean. For example, one exhibit showcased works included two important pieces by women artists of the Caribbean: El vendedor de andullo (Tobacco Vendor), 1938, by modernist Celeste Woss y Gil of the Dominican Republic, and an oil painting entitled Marpacífico (Hibiscus-Marpacífico is the name used in Cuba for the hibiscus flower), 1943, by Cuban modernist Amelia Peláez. There have even been a rare selection of prints by Haitian artists such as Castera Bazile, Wilson Bigaud, Dieudonné Cedor, Jacques-Enguerrand Gourgue and Gabriel Lévêque, that have not been exhibited since they were part of a traveling exhibition in 1948.
The annual celebration of carnival is an important part of Caribbean culture. Traditionally, most Caribbean islands celebrate carnival on Ash Wednesday or the days leading up to Lent. Barbados celebrates the delivery of the last Sugar Canes called 'Crop Over' better known as the 'Sweetest Summer Festival' which is held in August.
The music of the Caribbean reflects the multi-cultural influences that have shaped the Caribbean and these are mainly African. The first historical figures to influence Caribbean musicians were from the South Americas and to some degree Africa. Nevertheless, the Caribbean's first peoples, the East Indias, the Chinese, the Arabs, the Jews, the Spanish, the French, the British, the Portuguese, the Danish, the Dutch, Germans, and the Italians have all made large contributions to the musical heritage of the Caribbean as well. Since Italian explorer Columbus arrived and established the permanent colonies, the islands have produced their own composers, musicians and ensembles. From the 17th century onwards, the Caribbean has developed a music infrastructure that includes church halls, performing arts centers, record companies, radio stations and television music video channels. The music has subsequently been heavily influenced by American culture because of its proximity and migration between the two regions.
The Caribbean has produced a variety of internationally successful performers and artists. These individuals are honoured at The Awards, recognizing Caribbean achievement in popular music. In addition, the Caribbean is home to a number of popular summertime folk festivals. The Caribbean has also produced many notable composers, who have contributed in a variety of ways to the history of Western classical music.
There are the Anthony N Sabga Caribbean Awards for Excellence (ANSCAFE) launched in October 2005 to awards in the Arts (and other areas). Up to 2010, they were made biennially, but as of 2011, the awards will be made yearly in ceremonies in Trinidad.
Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham (late President of Guyana) facilitated the first Caribbean Festival of the Arts (CARIFESTA) in 1972 in Georgetown, Guyana.
Caribbean theatre
The Caribbean has a thriving stage theatre scene. Judy Stone writes: "In addition to the conventional drama of social realism and the yard theatre, the range includes popular farce and roots theatre, musical folk theatre, pantomime, community theatre, Jamaica's Gun Court theatre, political theatre, church theatre, children's theatre, storytelling, the street theatre of Carnival and carnival theatre, calypso theatre, theatre of ritual, and the poetic theatre of St Lucia's Derek Walcott. There is also a considerable body of dramatic work written for film, television and radio. Cuba, in particular, has a comparatively vibrant film industry."[17] Theatre festivals draw many tourists in the tourist months. As an example - Ruprecht[18] argues that Creole Theatre would take one on a tour to a chain of islands in the Caribbean, and he offers an analysis of the contemporary Creole theatre of the Caribbean and of the work of some of the playwrights associated with Creole theatre, such as Frankétienne and Cavé in Haiti, José Exélis and Arthur Lérus in Guadeloupe, as well as Boukman and Placoly of Martinique.[19][20]
The Trinidad Theatre Workshop (established in 1959).[21]
The Caribbean film market was dominated by the American film industry for decades, although that film industry has since inception seen a prominent role for actors, directors, producers and technicians of Caribbean origin. Filmmakers from the Caribbean began to challenge Hollywood by making innovative and relevant documentary, dramas and feature films.
Some Caribbean islands have developed a small but vigorous film industry that has produced a variety of well-known films, actors, and auteurs. Also, the distinct French-Caribbean and Spanish-Caribbean society permits the work of directors to contribute very different film-forms. Some have become the Caribbean's first films to win the Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Many Caribbean people are employed in the film industry, and celebrity-spotting is frequent throughout many Caribbean cities.
Caribbean television, especially supported by the Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation, is the home of a variety of locally produced shows. French- and Spanish-language television, is buffered from excessive American influence by the fact of language, and likewise supports a host of home-grown productions. The success of French and Spanish-language domestic television and movies in Caribbean often exceeds that of its English-language counterpart.
Caribbean Media Awards honor the best feature broadcast placements, print and photography from Caribbean-based media outlets.
Caribbean vernacular architecture exhibits a blend of African, European, and Indigenous architectural influences considering the history of the region. Homes are typically constructed from locally available materials like thatch, bamboo, or even mud. These houses are often constructed with steeply pitched roofs and deep overhangs to guard against the region's notoriously heavy rains and strong winds.[22] Large, open verandas are also a frequent trait of Caribbean homes, taking advantage of cooling breezes in a region with a lot of heat and humidity.[23] To mitigate against the impact of hurricanes, low, rectangular designs are favoured to withstand the winds. Shutters are also frequently fixed to windows.[23]
Caribbean humor
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (August 2010)
Caribbean humor is an integral part of the Caribbean identity. There are several traditions in Caribbean humor in English, Spanish and French. While these traditions are distinct and at times very different, there are common themes that relate to Caribbeans' shared history and geopolitical situation in North America and the world. Various trends can be noted in Caribbean comedy. One trend is the portrayal of a "typical" Caribbean family in an ongoing radio or television series. Examples include a mix of drama, humor, politics, religion, and sitcoms. Another major trend tends to be political and cultural satire: television shows such as Royal Palm Estate, monologists and writers, draw their inspiration from Caribbean society and politics. Another trend revels in absurdity and musician-comedians. Satire is arguably the primary characteristic of Caribbean humor, evident in each of these threads, and uniting various genres and regional cultural differences. Caribbean humor has taken on a modern interpretation, due to the advent of social media and the rise of many popular comedians that hail from the Caribbean and the Caribbean diaspora.
In 1957, mento artist Lord Flea stated that: "West Indians have the best sense of humor in the world. Even the most solemn song, like 'Las Kean Fine' ('Lost and Can Not Be Found'), which tells of a boiler explosion on a sugar plantation that killed several of the workers, their natural wit and humor shine though."[24]
Sport
Plaquita, a Dominican street version of cricket. The Dominican Republic was first introduced to cricket through mid-18th century British contact,[25] but switched to baseball after the 1916 American occupation.[26]
The regional football governing body is the Caribbean Football Union. National teams have competed in the CFU Championship from 1978 to 1988 and the Caribbean Cup since 1989. The top 4 teams in the tournament qualify for the CONCACAF Gold Cup. Cuba qualified to the FIFA World Cup in 1938, Haiti in 1974, Jamaica in 1998 and Trinidad and Tobago in 2006.
Cuba ranks second in Olympic boxing and fifth in judo, whereas Jamaica has been a power in Olympic sprint running. At the Pan American Games, Cuba ranks second in the medal table, Dominican Republic ranks 10th, Puerto Rico 11th and Jamaica 13th. At the Central American and Caribbean Games, Cuba ranks first, Puerto Rico fifth, Dominican Republic sixth, Jamaica seventh and Trinidad and Tobago 11th.
The Caribbean Awards Sports Icons (CASI) are based on accomplishments made over the last 60 years (1948–2008), for those who have made their mark in the various fields of sports.
Great achievements in Caribbean sport are recognized by Caribbean's Sports Hall of Fame, while trophies are awarded annually to top athletes by a panel of journalists.
Popular dishes in the Caribbean reflect the cultures that have influenced the region - Indigenous, African, European, Indian and Chinese. One dish common to many Caribbean countries is pelau, a mixture of saltfish, beef, rice and peas, pigeon peas, and other vegetables. A prominent African-influenced Caribbean dish, callaloo, combines leafy greens with okra.
References
^
For example:
Childs, Becky; Wolfram, Walt (10 December 2008). "Bahamian English: phonology". In Schneider, Edgar W. (ed.). The Americas and the Caribbean. Kortmann, Bernd; Schneider, Edgar W.: Varieties of English. Vol. 2. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter (published 2008). p. 241. ISBN9783110208405. Retrieved 19 May 2019. After the American Revolutionary War in the 1780s, many British loyalists fled the newly formed United States for both the major islands and the out islands of The Bahamas.
^Paul, L. M. (ed.), Ethnologue: Languages of the World, 16th edn, Dallas, Texas (2009).
^Aceto, Michael, and Jeffrey P. Williams (eds), Contact Englishes of the Eastern Caribbean, Varieties of English around the World, Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins, 2003.
^Solomon, Denis, The Speech of Trinidad: A Reference Grammar, St. Augustine: School of Continuing Studies, University of the West Indies (1993).
^Corne, C., From French to Creole: The Development of New Vernaculars in the French Colonial World, London: University of Westminster Press (1999).
^McWhorter, J. H., The Missing Spanish Creoles: Recovering the Birth of Plantation Contact, Los Angeles: University of California Press (2000).
^Allsopp, R., Dictionary of Caribbean English Usage, with a French and Spanish Supplement, Oxford: Oxford University Press (1996).
^
Griffith, Glyne A., ed. (2001). Caribbean Cultural Identities. Bucknell review, ISSN 0007-2869: G - Reference, Information and Interdisciplinary Subjects Series. Vol. 44. Cranbury, New Jersey: Bucknell University Press. ISBN9780838754757. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
†Physiographically, these continental islands are not part of the volcanic Windward Islands arc, although sometimes grouped with them culturally and politically.
#Bermuda is an isolated North Atlanticoceanic island, physiographically not part of the Lucayan Archipelago, Antilles, Caribbean Sea nor North American continental nor South American continental islands. It is grouped with the Northern American region, but occasionally also with the Caribbean region culturally.
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