The culture and history of Puerto Rico are rich with folklore and legends – mythological stories that have been passed down and retold over many generations. Many of the legends derived from the Taíno people, an Indian tribe who populated Puerto Rico from around 900 B.C. to 1500 AD (Source goes here.). The stories of the Taíno people were originally told orally, and they were not transcribed until the Spanish entered Puerto Rico in the early 1500s.
One well known story of the Taíno tribe of Princess Guanina. Legend has it that Guanina, the princess of the Taíno people, fell in love with Don Cristobal de Sotomayor, a conqueror from Spain and an enemy of the Taíno people. On his way to the capital city, Sotomayor was murdered, and Guanine was heartbroken. Labeled a traitor, the elders and chiefs of the Taíno village decided to make Guanine a sacrifice to the Gods, but when they went to capture her, they discovered her dead body lying on Sotomayor’s “bloody chest.” As the lovers were buried together underneath a ceiba tree, a red hibiscus flower and white lilies appeared out of nowhere on their tombstone. It has been said that people passing by the tree under which they were buried, can still hear Guanina and Sotomayor laughing as they fall in love all over again (Yale Source). To me, the legend of Princess Guanina and Sotomayor greatly resembled the love story of Pocahontas and John Smith, which is widely taught across the United States. In both stories, an Indian princess, against the will of her family and tribespeople, falls in love with a foreign man who has come to conquer her homeland.
Atariba and Niguayona: a Story from the Taíno People of Puerto Rico is another popular legend that originated from the Taíno Indi...
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...lso, when reading about Juan Bobo, I would play one of the numerous videos depicting his adventures. I found a popular American television show, Super Why!, that has an entire episode about Juan Bobo dressing a pig in his mother’s clothing. The bilingual book and the visuals in the form of videos will help my Puerto Rican ELL students connect a story with which they are familiar to a show that is in English. While they watch their native story in English, they will begin to make connections with some words, and their English vocabulary will expand. I would also play Puerto Rican music for my students. This would be beneficial to my musically smart learners and my ESOL students, who would feel more comfortable in my class if they can have some aspect of familiarity. Plus, exposing my students to multiple cultures at the same time makes this situation a win-win.
Early histories of the Tigua Indians are conflicting and largely untrue. Since 1680 it had been believed that the Tiguas were traitors to the Pueblo Nation, and had chose sides with the Spanish during the Pueblo Revolt. Upon the Spanish retreat south it was believed that the Tiguas chose to flea with the Spanish Military. The truth of their migration south is somewhat different. The Tigua are direct descendants of the Pueblo Indians of Isleta, New Mexico. There name Tigua, or Tiwa, refers to the dialect that they speak. Long before they founded Isleta, however, they were the inhabitants of a much more spectacular home; the fabled city of Gran Quivira, the golden city that drew the interest of Coronado. By 800 A.D. the city covered seventeen acres. T its height it had twenty housing projects built in the form of towering apartments, when most of Europe was nothing but primitive tribes. Terraces, garden apartments, churches, workshops and kitchens separated these projects. The masons were so skilled that the stones required no cement, and the carpenters cut wood in a way that the beams required no nails. When the Spanish finally found this city of legends they ere so impressed that they called it Pueblo de los Humanas, or the City of Human Beings. Then they went about destroying the city and the people forcing them into exile. This marked the beginning of centuries of abuse. From relocation to theft the Tiguas were to become the plaything of Europeans and Americans alike.
Robles de Melendez, W. (2010). Teaching Young Children in Multicultural Classrooms: Issues, Concepts, and Strategies (3rd ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
The debate on Puerto Rican Identity is a hot bed of controversy, especially in today’s society where American colonialism dominates most of the island’s governmental and economic policies. The country wrestles with the strong influence of its present day colonizers, while it adamantly tries to retain aspects of the legacy of Spanish colonialism. Despite America’s presence, Puerto Ricans maintain what is arguably their own cultural identity which seems largely based on the influence of Spain mixed with customs that might have developed locally.
Puerto Rico is the neighbor to the south of Florida. There is a growing population of Puerto Ricans in the United States. There is also a large United States interest in Puerto Rico. It is important to understand the culture of our neighbor should the United States wish to continue a positive relationship as well as globalization. Understanding the superstitions and the proper business etiquette in Puerto Rico can serve as a glimpse into the culture of the island.
“Geronimo.” “The Project Gutenberg eBook of Geronimo’s story of His Life.” Web. 7 March 2014. .
Unlike the United States, in Puerto Rico the different races mixed and intermingled to create the moder...
Why is it significant that the Pueblo tradition of story telling makes no distinction between types of stories, such as historical, sacred, or just plain gossip?
The technique relies on a holistic approach that adopts instructions that allow students to actively participate in the learning process. This is easier for children that feel that the society appreciates their diversity through bilingualism and biliteracy. The society and parents need to encourage children to take up bilingual classes because they offer a lot of benefit to the society through favoring critical thinking, rationality, and sensitivity to other cultures, empathy, and detached or balanced awareness. However, Sonia Nieto mirrors a society that is made to fake being American and become ashamed of their family. It helps appreciate that it is not by choice that anyone speaks any other language as the first language and that the society and community influence the language of choice. Therefore, bilingualism cannot be detached from any community that freely promotes and accommodate the language spoken by the other community. Children and community members learn each other’s language without disregarding each other favoring effective learning that influences bilingualism and biliteracy in the long
Dr. Pousada starts by examining the historical development of English in Puerto Rico prior to 1898. Interesting as it is one might think that English language controversies started with the United States invasion to the island, but being able to explore further in a history not much talked about one can see that in fact “there was a long history of cross influence” between the U.S and Puerto Rico. Going way back to 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries when our very own “American Pirates” made illegal dealings with Puerto Ricans. Even at that time it is mentioned that a small elite group used the language in international affairs. It is very interesting noting that many native Puerto Ricans also fought for Spain in the war with England to defend the island. All those things apart, the sole purpose of the trading activity that took place between Puerto Rico and the United States b...
Gonzales uses the metaphor of a four storied building to express the idea of Puerto Rican identity. At the foundation of this building are the natives of the island Boriquen which are the Taino Indians. Every floor that is added to this building represents a wave of foreigners that came to the island. The first floor is representative of the Spaniards that came to colonize the island, along with the slaves they brought with them, and the interaction these groups had the Taino Indians.
Puerto Rico is a small island in the Caribbean that holds a vast, and rich culture. Due to its accessible geographical location, it is often called the key to the Caribbean. Puerto Rico enriched its people with one of the most innate and unique culture different from the rest of the world. The colonization of Spaniards left us not only with myriad architectural heritage, but also with language and cultural traditions that beholds Hispanic imagery and representations. Our music, our love of dancing and festivities, as well as our practice of Catholic beliefs represents
The native American tribe the Iroquois Confederacy has an origin story for the start of folk stories. This is an interesting piece of writing in the way that it describes how stories began. It shows the high regard for the art of storytelling. This story starts off by telling the reader about a young boy who had lost his parents. There was no other family that would look after him so he raised himself the best that he could. This young boy was unhappy as the villages saw him as an outcast and wanted nothing to do with him. The young boy one day came across a canoe. Once in the canoe the boy was brought into the sky and paddled until he stopped atop a peek. The boy had made a home and at night heard a voice calling out to him. The voice demanded the boy offer him Tabaco. After the boy obeyed the voice the voice preceded to tell the young man a story. The voice then told the young boy a set of rules that he must follow if he wanted to be told stories. This continued for a while and the boy also came
When visiting just about any school across America, students who attend come from all over the globe. This raises the question across America about bilingual education. This can create many challenges in and out of the classroom. The classroom should be a safe place for all students regardless of what native language they speak. In the essay Lost in translation written by Eva Hoffman, describes a foreign student who tries hard to fit in. Instead, Eva begins to feel angry, hurt and confused because people laugh at her. In Guiding Principles for Dual Language Education by Elizabeth R. Howard, Julie Sugarman, Donna Christian Center for Applied Linguistics Kathryn J. Lindholm-Leary San José State University David Rogers Dual Language Education of New Mexico. Guiding principles gives great ideas to educators to stop kids from making other students feel the way that Eva felt. After reading several articles about bilingual education, it is evident that all children in school should learn English but never lose their native language. When all the students speak one language, students will be less likely to make fun of each other. A good educator should learn enough foreign languages to aid them in effective communication in their classroom although; if an educator does not speak a foreign language, they should recruit within the classroom students to be peer mentors. However, a teacher should be willing to listen and encourage the students. Above all a good educator should be a good role model to their students by respecting their heritage and their language.
This story reminds me very much with the story of Pocahontas. The old gringo and the general, Tomas Arroyo, both desired Harriet Winslow's love. In the story of Pocahontas, John Smith and Kokoum also had such feelings towards Pocahontas. In The Old Gringo, Harriet has a passionate love affair with Tomas Arroyo, the man with the different culture as her. In Pocahontas, she falls in love with John Smith, the man with the different culture as her as well. In both of these situations, we see the different desires for one woman made by two men.
When I heard this story, 12 years ago, it came from the mouth of my father’s good friend, an Ojibwa man, named Henry Meekis. I still remember everyone sitting in front of him while he told the story. His passion for the story permeated the room and we were all captivated by it.