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The Caribbean

The history of the Caribbean reveals the significant role the region played in the colonial struggles of the European powers between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries. In the twentieth century the Caribbean was again important during World War II, in the decolonization wave in the post-war period, and in the tension between Communist Cuba and the United States (US). Genocide, slavery, immigration and rivalry between world powers have given Caribbean history an impact disproportionate to the size of this small region. Image File history File links Emblem-important. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 783 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (1392 × 1066 pixel, file size: 1. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 783 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (1392 × 1066 pixel, file size: 1. ... “West Indian” redirects here. ... For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ... (15th century - 16th century - 17th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 16th century was that century which lasted from 1501 to 1600. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s The 20th century lasted from 1901 to 2000 in the Gregorian calendar (often from (1900 to 1999 in common usage). ... “West Indian” redirects here. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... Colonialism in 1945 Decolonization refers to the achievement of independence by the various Western colonies and protectorates in Asia and Africa following World War II. This conforms with an intellectual movement known as Post-Colonialism. ... This article is about communism as a form of society and as a political movement. ...

The Caribbean before European contact

The oldest evidence of humans in the Caribbean is in southern Trinidad at Banwari Trace where 7,000-year-old remains have been found. These pre-ceramic sites, which belong to the Archaic (pre-ceramic) age, have been termed Ortoroid. The earliest archaeological evidence of human settlement in Hispaniola dates to about 3600 BCE, but the reliability of these finds is questioned. Consistent dates of 3100 BCE appear in Cuba. The earliest dates in the Lesser Antilles are from 2000 BCE in Antigua. A lack of pre-ceramic sites in the Windward Islands and differences in technology suggest that these Archaic settlers may have Central American origins. Whether an Ortoiroid colonisation of the islands took place is uncertain, but there is little evidence of one. Look up Trinidad in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Banwari Trace, an Archaic (pre-creamic) site in southwestern Trinidad, is the oldest archaeological site in the Caribbean. ... The Ortoiroid people are first human settlers of the Caribbean. ... Early map of Hispaniola The island of Hispaniola (from Spanish, La Española) is the second-largest island of the Antilles, lying between the islands of Cuba to the west, and Puerto Rico to the east. ... The 4th millennium BC saw major changes in human culture. ... The 4th millennium BC saw major changes in human culture. ... Location of the Lesser Antilles (green) in relation to the rest of the Caribbean Islands of the Lesser Antilles The Lesser Antilles, also known as the Caribbees,[1] are part of the Antilles, which together with the Bahamas and Greater Antilles form the West Indies. ... The Windward Islands are the southern islands of the Lesser Antilles. ... For other uses, see Central America (disambiguation). ...

Between 400 BCE and 200 BCE the first ceramic-using agriculturalists, the Saladoid culture, entered Trinidad from South America. They expanded up the Orinoco River to Trinidad, and then spread rapidly up the islands of the Caribbean. Some time after 250 CE another group, the Barrancoid entered Trinidad. The Barancoid society collapsed along the Orinoco around 650 and another group, the Arauquinoid, expanded into these areas and up the Caribbean chain. Around 1300 a new group, the Mayoid entered Trinidad and remained the dominant culture until Spanish settlement. The Saladoid are a native people of the Caribbean and Venezuela. ... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... For other uses, see Orinoco (disambiguation). ...

At the time of the European discovery of most of the islands of the Caribbean, three major Amerindian indigenous peoples lived on the islands: the Taíno in the Greater Antilles, The Bahamas and the Leeward Islands, the Island Caribs and Galibi in the Windward Islands and the Ciboney in western Cuba. The Taínos are subdivided into Classic Taínos, who occupied Hispaniola and Puerto Rico, Western Taínos, who occupied Cuba, Jamaica, and the Bahamian archipelago, and the Eastern Taínos, who occupied the Leeward Islands.^[1] Trinidad was inhabited by both Carib speaking and Arawak-speaking groups. Territories in the Americas colonized or claimed by a European great power in 1750. ... Native Americans (also Indians, Aboriginal Peoples, American Indians, First Nations, Alaskan Natives, or Indigenous Peoples of America) are the indigenous inhabitants of The Americas prior to the European colonization, and their modern descendants. ... The term indigenous people has no universal, standard or fixed definition, but can be used about any ethnic group who inhabit the geographic region with which they have the earliest historical connection. ... Reconstruction of a Taíno village in Cuba The Taíno are pre-Columbian indigenous inhabitants of the Bahamas, Greater Antilles, and some of the Lesser Antilles. ... The Greater Antilles, an island group in the Caribbean Sea, are part of the Antilles. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The Galibi were a Cariban-speaking people who lived in the Lesser Antilles and northern South America at the time of European settlement. ... The Windward Islands are the southern islands of the Lesser Antilles. ... Ciboney (also Siboney) is a word derived from the Caribbean Indian language of the Arawak. ... Look up Trinidad in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The Carib languages are an indigenous language family of South America. ... The Arawakan languages are an indigenous language family of South America and the Caribbean. ...

The colonial era

Christopher Columbus was the first European explorer to travel to the Americas, but soon afterward both Portuguese and Spanish ships began claiming territories in Central and South America. These colonies brought in gold, and other European powers, most specifically England, the Netherlands, and France, hoped to establish profitable colonies of their own. Colonial rivalries made the Caribbean a cockpit for European wars for centuries. Christopher Columbus (1451 – May 20, 1506) was a navigator and colonialist who is one of the first Europeans to discover the Americas, after the Vikings. ... World map showing the Americas CIA political map of the Americas The Americas are the lands of the Western hemisphere or New World, consisting of the continents of North America[1] and South America with their associated islands and regions. ... For other uses, see Central America (disambiguation). ... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ...

Spanish conquest

See also: Spanish colonization of the Americas

During the first voyage of the explorer Christopher Columbus (mandated by the Spanish crown to conquer) contact was made with the Lucayans in the Bahamas and the Taíno in Cuba and the northern coast of Hispaniola, and a few of the native people were taken back to Spain. Small amounts of gold were found in their personal ornaments and other objects such as masks and belts. The Spanish, who came seeking wealth, enslaved the native population and rapidly drove them to near-extinction. To supplement the Amerindian labour, the Spanish imported African slaves. [[:Template:Seealso]]Although Spain claimed the entire Caribbean, they settled only the larger islands of Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Jamaica and Trinidad. The Spanish colonization of the Americas began with the arrival in the Western Hemisphere of Christopher Columbus in 1492. ... Christopher Columbus (1451 – May 20, 1506) was a navigator and colonialist who is one of the first Europeans to discover the Americas, after the Vikings. ... The Lucayan were those Arawak which inhabited the Bahamas at the time of Christopher Columbus landing. ... Reconstruction of a Taíno village in Cuba The Taíno are pre-Columbian indigenous inhabitants of the Bahamas, Greater Antilles, and some of the Lesser Antilles. ... For the Korean music group, see Jewelry (group). ... A world map showing the continent of Africa Africa is the worlds second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. ... Slave redirects here. ... Early map of Hispaniola The island of Hispaniola (from Spanish, La Española) is the second-largest island of the Antilles, lying between the islands of Cuba to the west, and Puerto Rico to the east. ... Look up Trinidad in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Other European powers

The other European powers established a presence in the Caribbean after the Spanish Empire declined, partly due to the reduced native population of the area from European diseases. An anachronous map of the Spanish Empire (1492-1898). ...

• Francis Drake was an English privateer who attacked many Spanish ships and forts in the Caribbean, including San Juan harbour in 1595. His most celebrated Caribbean exploit was the capture of the Spanish Silver Train at Nombre de Dios in March, 1573.

• British colonisation of Bermuda began in 1612. British West Indian colonisation began with St. Kitts in 1623 and Barbados in 1627. The former was used as a base for British colonisation of neighbouring Nevis, Antigua, Montserrat, Anguilla and Tortola; the latter used as a base for colonisation of the Windward Islands and the wider Caribbean area.

• French colonisation too began on St. Kitts, the British and the French splitting the island amongst themselves in 1625. It was used as a base to colonise the much larger Guadeloupe (1635) and Martinique (1635), but was lost completely to Britain in 1713.

• The English admiral William Penn seized Jamaica in 1655, and it remained under British rule for over 300 years.

• The Caribbean was known for pirates, especially between 1640 and 1680; see piracy in the Caribbean. The term "buccaneer" is often used to describe a pirate operating in this region.

• In 1697 the Spanish ceded the western third of Hispaniola (Haiti) to France. France also held control of Tortuga.

• The Dutch took over Saba, Saint Martin, Saint Eustatius, Curaçao, Bonaire, Aruba, Tobago, St. Croix, Tortola, Anegada, Virgin Gorda, Anguilla and a short time Porto Rico, together called the Dutch West Indies, in the seventeenth century.

• The Danish ruled first part, then all of the present U.S. Virgin Islands since 1672, selling sovereignty over these Danish West Indies in 1917 to the United States which still administers them.

This article is about the Elizabethan naval commander. ... For other uses, see San Juan. ... Nombre de Dios (Spanish: Name of God) is a town on the Atlantic coast of Panama, near the mouth of the Río Chagres. ... Saint Kitts (also/previously known as Saint Christopher) is an island in the Caribbean. ... For other uses, see Nevis (disambiguation). ... Tortola is the largest and most populated of the British Virgin Islands, a group of islands which form part of the archipelago of the Virgin Islands. ... The Windward Islands are the southern islands of the Lesser Antilles. ... Admiral Sir William Penn, 1621–1670 by Sir Peter Lely, painted 1665–1666. ... Look up pirate and piracy in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article refers to the type of pirate. ... For other uses, see Tortuga (disambiguation). ... Motto Remis Velisque (Latin) With oars and sails (English) Anthem Saba you rise from the ocean Capital The Bottom Largest city The Bottom Official languages Dutch, Papiamento and English (unofficial) Government See Politics of the Netherlands Antilles  -  Saba Administrator A.J.M. Solagnier  -  Governor of N.A. Frits Goedgedrag Constitutional... St. ... Map showing location of Sint Eustatius relative to Saba and Sint Maarten/Saint Martin Sint Eustatius (also Saint Eustace and Statia), pop. ... For other uses, see Curaçao (disambiguation). ... Anthem: Tera di Solo y suave biento Capital (and largest city) Kralendijk Official languages Dutch Government See Politics of the Netherlands Antilles  - Bonaire Administrator  - Governor of N.A. Frits Goedgedrag Constitutional monarchy part of the Netherlands Antilles  Area  - Total 288 km² 111 sq mi  Population  - 2001 census 10,791  - Density... Castara village beach looking south, Tobago Tobago is the smaller of the two main islands that make up the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. ... A separate article treats the several rivers known as the St. ... Tortola is the largest and most populated of the British Virgin Islands, a group of islands which form part of the archipelago of the Virgin Islands. ... Unlike the other British Virgin Islands, Anegada is a flat atoll. ... Virgin Gorda is the second-largest of the British Virgin Islands Virgin Gorda is the third-largest of the British Virgin Islands. ... This article is about Puerto Rico, the territory of the United States. ... The Netherlands Antilles (Dutch: Nederlandse Antillen), previously known as the Netherlands West Indies, are part of the Lesser Antilles and consist of two groups of islands in the Caribbean Sea that form an autonomous part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (none of the other Antilles use this term in... The Danish West Indies or Danish Antilles, (DWI, Dansk Vest Indien) are a former colony of Denmark in the Caribbean, now known as the U.S. Virgin Islands. ...

Wars

The Caribbean region was war-torn throughout much of colonial history, but the wars were often based in Europe, with only minor battles fought in the Caribbean. Some wars, however, were borne of political turmoil in the Caribbean itself. “West Indian” redirects here. ...

• Thirty Years' War between the Netherlands and Spain.
• The First, Second, and Third Anglo-Dutch Wars were battles for supremacy.
• Nine Years' War between the European powers.
• The War of Spanish Succession (European name) or Queen Anne's War (American name) spawned a generation of some of the most infamous pirates.
• The War of Jenkins' Ear (American name) or The War of Austrian Succession (European name) Spain and Britain fought over trade rights; Britain invaded Spanish Florida and attacked the citadel of Cartagena de las Indias in present-day Colombia.
• The Seven Years' War (European name) or French & Indian War (American name) was the first "world war" between France, her ally Spain, and Britain; France was defeated and was willing to give up all of Canada to keep a few highly profitable sugar-growing islands in the Caribbean. Britain seized Havana toward the end, and traded that single city for all of Florida at the Treaty of Paris in 1763.
• The American Revolution saw large British and French fleets battling in the Caribbean again. American independence was assured by French naval victories in the Caribbean.
• The French Revolution allowed for the creation of the Republic of Haiti.
• The Spanish-American War ended Spanish control of Cuba and Puerto Rico and heralded the period of American dominance of the islands.

Combatants Sweden  Bohemia Denmark-Norway (Until 1643) Dutch Republic France Scotland England Saxony  Holy Roman Empire ( Catholic League) Spain Austria Bavaria Commanders Frederick V Buckingham Leven Gustav II Adolf â€  Johan Baner Cardinal Richelieu Louis II de Bourbon Turenne Christian IV of Denmark Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar Johann Georg I of... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The Second Anglo-Dutch War was fought between England and the United Provinces from 4 March 1665 until 31 July 1667. ... This does not cite any references or sources. ... The Nine Years War (also known as the War of the League of Augsburg, the War of the Grand Alliance, the War of the Palatinian Succession, and the War of the English Succession) was a major war fought in Europe and America from 1688 to 1697, between France and the... Charles II was the last Habsburg King of Spain. ... Combatants British Empire Spain Commanders Edward Vernon James E. Oglethorpe George Anson Charles Knowles Blas de Lezo Manuel de Montiano Andrés Reggio The War of Jenkins Ear was a conflict between Great Britain and Spain that lasted from 1739 to 1748. ... Combatants Kingdom of Prussia Kingdom of Great Britain and its American Colonies Electorate of Hanover Iroquois Confederacy Kingdom of Portugal Electorate of Brunswick Electorate of Hesse-Kassel Philippines Archduchy of Austria Kingdom of France Empire of Russia Kingdom of Sweden Kingdom of Spain Electorate of Saxony Kingdom of Naples and... John Trumbulls Declaration of Independence, showing the five-man committee in charge of drafting the Declaration in 1776 as it presents its work to the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia The American Revolution refers to the period during the last half of the 18th century in which the Thirteen... The French Revolution (1789–1815) was a period of political and social upheaval in the political history of France and Europe as a whole, during which the French governmental structure, previously an absolute monarchy with feudal privileges for the aristocracy and Catholic clergy, underwent radical change to forms based on... Combatants United States Republic of Cuba Philippine Republic Spain Commanders Nelson A. Miles William R. Shafter George Dewey Máximo Gómez Emilio Aguinaldo Patricio Montojo Pascual Cervera Arsenio Linares Ramón Blanco Casualties 3,289 U.S. dead (432 from combat); considerably higher although undetermined Cuban and Filipino casualties...

Independence

Haiti, the former French colony of Saint-Domingue on Hispaniola was the first Caribbean nation to gain independence from European powers when in 1791, a slave rebellion that became theHaitian Revolution under the leadership of Toussaint l'Ouverture established Haiti as a free, black republic by 1804. Haiti became the world's oldest black republic, and the second-oldest republic in the Western Hemisphere, after the United States. The remaining two-thirds of Hispaniola were conquered by Haitian forces in 1821. In 1844, the newly-formed Dominican Republic declared its independence from Haiti. Saint-Domingue was a French colony from 1697 to 1804 that is today the independent nation of Haiti. ... Combatants Haiti France Commanders Toussaint Louverture, Jean-Jacques Dessalines Charles Leclerc, vicomte de Rochambeau, Napoleon Bonaparte Strength Regular army: <55,000, Volunteers: <100,000 Regular army: 60,000, 86 warships and frigates Casualties Military deaths: unknown, Civilian deaths: <100,000 Military deaths: 57,000 (37,000 combat; 20,000 yellow... François-Dominique Toussaint LOuverture François-Dominique Toussaint LOuverture, also Toussaint Bréda, Toussaint-Louverture (c. ... Look up republic in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The geographical western hemisphere of Earth, highlighted in yellow. ...

Some Caribbean nations gained independence from European powers in the nineteenth century. Some smaller states are still dependencies of European powers today. Cuba remained a Spanish colony until the Spanish American War. Dependent areas are territories that for some reason do not enjoy full independence or sovereignty as states. ... The Spanish-American War took place in 1898, and resulted in the United States of America gaining control over the former colonies of Spain in the Caribbean and Pacific. ...

Between 1958 and 1962 most of the British-controlled Caribbean became the West Indies Federation before it separated into many separate nations. Flag Motto To dwell together in unity Anthem God Save the Queen Capital Chaguaramas Language(s) English Government Constitutional monarchy Queen Elizabeth II Governor-General Lord Hailes Prime minister Grantley Herbert Adams¹ History  - Established January 3, 1958  - Disestablished May 31, 1962 Area  - 1960 20,253 km² Population  - 1960 est. ...

Relations with the US

Since the Monroe Doctrine, the United States gained a major influence on most Caribbean nations. In the early part of the twentieth century this influence was extended by participation in The Banana Wars. Areas outside British or French control became known in Europe as "America's tropical empire". U.S. President James Monroe The Monroe Doctrine is a U.S. doctrine which, on December 2, 1823, proclaimed that European powers would no longer colonize or interfere with the affairs of the newly independent nations of the Americas. ... US Marines with the captured flag of Augusto César Sandino in Nicaragua in 1932 The Banana Wars is an unofficial term that refers to the United States military interventions into Central and South America from 1898 (following the Spanish-American War) through 1934. ...

Victory in the Spanish-American war and the signing of the Platt amendment in 1901 ensured that the United States would have the right to interfere in Cuban political and economic affairs, militarily if necessary. After the Cuban revolution of 1959 relations deteriorated rapidly leading to the Bay of Pigs venture, the Cuban Missile Crisis and successive US attempts to destabilise the island. The US invaded and occupied Hispaniola (present day Dominican Republic and Haiti) for 19 years (1915-34), subsequently dominating the Haitian economy through aid and loan repayments. The US invaded Haiti again in 1994 and in 2004 were accused by CARICOM of arranging a coup d'état to remove elected Haitian leader Jean-Bertrand Aristide. Combatants United States Republic of Cuba Philippine Republic Spain Commanders Nelson A. Miles William R. Shafter George Dewey Máximo Gómez Emilio Aguinaldo Patricio Montojo Pascual Cervera Arsenio Linares Ramón Blanco Casualties 3,289 U.S. dead (432 from combat); considerably higher although undetermined Cuban and Filipino casualties... Page one of the Platt Amendment The Platt Amendment was a rider amended to the Army Appropriations Act, a United States federal law passed on March 2, 1901 that stipulated the conditions for the withdrawal of United States troops remaining in Cuba since the Spanish-American War, and defined the... The Cuban Revolution refers to the revolution that led to the overthrow of General Fulgencio Batistas regime on January 1, 1959 by the 26th of July Movement and other revolutionary elements in the country. ... Cuba and the United States of America have had a mutual interest in one another since well before either of their independence movements. ... Map showing the location of the Bay of Pigs. ... President Kennedy in a crowded Cabinet Room during the Cuban Missile Crisis. ... Early map of Hispaniola The island of Hispaniola (from Spanish, La Española) is the second-largest island of the Antilles, lying between the islands of Cuba to the west, and Puerto Rico to the east. ... The Caribbean Community and Common Market or CARICOM was established by the Treaty of Chaguaramas which came into effect on August 1, 1973. ... Jean-Bertrand Aristide (born July 15, 1953) is a Haitian politician and former Roman Catholic priest who was President of Haiti in 1991, again from 1994 to 1996, and then from 2001 to 2004. ...

In 1965, 23,000 US troops were sent to the Dominican Republic to quash a local uprising against military rule. President Lyndon Johnson had ordered the invasion to stem what he claimed to be a "Communist threat", however the mission appeared ambiguous and was roundly condemned throughout the hemisphere as a return to gunboat diplomacy. In 1983 the US invaded Grenada to remove populist left-wing leader Maurice Bishop. The US maintains a naval military base in Cuba at Guantanamo Bay. The base is one of five unified commands whose "area of responsibility" is Latin America and the Caribbean. The command is headquartered in a Miami, Florida office building. Lyndon Baines Johnson (August 27, 1908&#8211;January 22, 1973), often referred to as LBJ, was an American politician. ... For other uses, see Grenada (disambiguation). ... Maurice Bishop Maurice Rupert Bishop (May 29, 1944 – October 19, 1983) was a Grenadian revolutionary leader. ... , For other titular locales, see Guantánamo (disambiguation). ... This article is about the city in Florida. ... Official language(s) English Capital Tallahassee Largest city Jacksonville Largest metro area Miami metropolitan area Area  Ranked 22nd  - Total 65,795[1] sq mi (170,304[1] km²)  - Width 361 miles (582 km)  - Length 447 miles (721 km)  - % water 17. ...

See also

• History of Latin America

v • d • e History of the Americas
History	North America · Mesoamerica · Central America · Caribbean · South America · Latin America
Settlement	Models of migration to the New World · Indigenous peoples · Indigenous population · Pre-Columbian trans-oceanic contact · Discoverer of the Americas · European colonization of the Americas · Spanish colonization of the Americas · Columbian Exchange · Decolonization
Societies	Pre-Columbian · Paleo-Indians · Maya · Incas · Aztecs
Related	Maps · Archaeology · Culture · Geography · Indigenous languages · Epidemics · Slavery
Lists	Pre-Columbian cultures · Indigenous peoples · Population · Conflicts
Chronology	Archaeological periods by region · North America by period · North American timelines · Mesoamerica by period · Mesoamerica timeline · Paleo-Indian period
Era: By period · By region · Three-age system · Ancient history · Pre-Columbian · Classical Antiquity · Middle Ages · Modern history · Future

Histoire de lAmérique latine History of Latin America ---- (more info) Stage 2 : In Progress (How-to) (See #Talk) Madeinsane 15:30, 18 December 2006 (UTC) Yug 08:27, 30 September 2006 (UTC) Latin America is now see as one big area. ... The history of the Americas is the collective history of North and South America, including Central America and the Caribbean. ... // The history of the world, by convention, is human history, from the first appearance of Homo sapiens to the present. ... Many natives of North America, when the Europeans found them, were semi-nomadic tribes and chiefdoms of hunter-gatherers; others were sedentary and agricultural civilizations. ... This article is about the culture area. ... This is the history of Central America. ... While perhaps the last continent--except Antarctica-- to be inhabited by humans, South America has a history that spans the full range of human cultural and civilizational forms. ... Histoire de lAmérique latine History of Latin America ---- (more info) Stage 2 : In Progress (How-to) (See #Talk) Madeinsane 15:30, 18 December 2006 (UTC) Yug 08:27, 30 September 2006 (UTC) Latin America is now see as one big area. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (2759x1404, 54 KB) Extracted from CIA World Factbook PDF world map, then rasterized and colored. ... There are several popular models of migration to the New World proposed by the anthropological community. ... Native Americans redirects here. ... Millions of indigenous people lived in the Americas when the 1492 voyage of Christopher Columbus began an historical period of large-scale European contact with the Americas. ... Pre-Columbian trans-oceanic contacts were interactions between the indigenous peoples of the Americas and peoples of other continents—Europe, Africa, Asia, or Oceania—before the arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1492. ... The role of discoverer of the Americas is variously attributed to the following people, depending on context and definition: Indigenous peoples of the Americas, the first people to live in America (see Paleo-Indians, Clovis Culture, Models of migration to the New World, Solutrean hypothesis, Pre-Siberian American Aborigines); Vikings... Territories in the Americas colonized or claimed by a European great power in 1750. ... The Spanish colonization of the Americas began with the arrival in the Western Hemisphere of Christopher Columbus in 1492. ... Inca-era terraces on Taquile are used to grow traditional Andean staples, such as quinua and potatoes, alongside wheat, a European import. ... Decolonization of the Americas refers to the process by which the countries in North America and South America gained their independence. ... The pre-Columbian era incorporates all period subdivisions in the history and prehistory of the Americas before the appearance of significant European influences on the Americas continent. ... Paleo-Indians is an English term used to refer to the ancient peoples of America who were present at the end of the last Ice Age. ... This article is about the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. ... The Inca Empire was an empire centered in what is now Peru from AD 1438 to AD 1533. ... The Aztecs were a Pre-Columbian Mesoamerican people of central Mexico in the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries. ... The Archeology of the Americas is the study of the archeology of North America, Central America (or Mesoamerica), South America and the Caribbean, which is to say, the pre-history and Pre-Columbian history of Native American peoples. ... Indigenous languages of the Americas (or Amerindian Languages) are spoken by indigenous peoples from the southern tip of South America to Alaska and Greenland, encompassing the land masses which constitute the Americas. ... Smallpox (also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera) is a contagious disease unique to humans. ... The history of slavery covers many different forms of human exploitation across many cultures and throughout human history. ... This list of pre-Colombian civilizations includes those civilizations and cultures of the Americas which flourished prior to the European colonization of the Americas. ... Cultural regions of North American people at the time of European contact. ... // List of conflicts in North America Before the 16th Century 1006 Norseman versus Beothuk along the coast of Newfoundland Sixteenth Century 1520 Aztecs force Cortés from Tenochtitlan 1521 Cortés captures the Aztec capital Tenochtitlan 1524 Alvarado burns the Mayan kingdom of Quiché 1530 Alvarado enslaves the Mayan kingdoms... Names for archaeological periods vary enormously from region to region. ... Many archaeological periods, cultures, complexes, and peoples have been identified in North America. ... The chronology of Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica is usually divided into the following eras: // One of the most enduring classifications of archaeological periods & cultures was established in Gordon Willey and Philip Phillips 1958 book They divided the archaeological record in the Americas into 5 phases. ... Mesoamerican chronology The chronology of Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica is usually divided into the following eras: Paleo-Indian Period c. ... In the History of Mesoamerica, the stage known as the Paleo-Indian period (or alternatively, the Lithic stage) is the era in the scheme of Mesoamerican chronology which begins with the very first indications of human habitation within the Mesoamerican region, and continues until the general onset of the development... The three-age system is a system of classifying human prehistory into three consecutive time periods, named for their respective predominant tool-making technologies: The Stone Age The Bronze Age The Iron Age The system is most apt in describing the progression of European society, although it has been used... “Ancient” redirects here. ... The pre-Columbian era incorporates all period subdivisions in the history and prehistory of the Americas before the appearance of significant European influences on the Americas continent. ... Classical antiquity is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, which begins roughly with the earliest-recorded Greek poetry of Homer (7th century BC), and continues through the rise of Christianity and the fall of the Western Roman Empire (5th century AD... The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Notes

Sources and references

• Ferguson, James: Far From Paradise. Latin American Bureau, 1990. ISBN 0-906156-54-8 (Good first read, from Columbus to present. Concentrates on slavery, the colonial period, struggles for independence and the rise of US influence. Lots of references.)
• Rogozinsky, Jan: A Brief History of the Caribbean. Plume, 1999. ISBN 0-452-28193-8 (Thorough history of the Caribbean up to the end of the twentieth century.)

Further reading

• Kurlansky, Mark. 1992. A Continent of Islands: Searching for the Caribbean Destiny. Addison-Wesley Publishing.

External links

• Caribbean Geology & Tectonics
• Caribbean settlement in Britain