At this time the neighbors of the TaÃno were the Guanahatabeys in the western tip of Cuba, and the Island-Caribs in the Lesser Antilles from Guadaloupe to Grenada.
They were not immune to European diseases, notably smallpox, but many of them were worked to death in the mines and fields, put to death in harsh put-downs of revolts or committed suicide to escape their cruel new masters.
Under this system, Taino were required to work for a Spanish land owner for most of the year, which left little time to tend to their own community affairs.
He describes the pre-Taino groups in the island, the origin of the Tainos, their extent and spread in the Caribbean, and the archaeological evidence to support his theories.
Since the Tainos are largely extinct as far as being an identifiable group living today, we are unable to study them via direct observation or interviews.
The remaining sources availabe to us are the oral literature handed down, their legacy as expressed in their art and daily objects, and the theories constructed by experts from various fields as to their lifestyles and culture, based on evidence such as objects found in archaeological sites and museums.
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